The Holy Prayers of Ramadan

The holy month of Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar and is one of the five pillars of Islam. It is a time of fasting and spiritual reflection and is followed religiously by Muslims the world over. While following the month-long fast from sunrise to sunset, important prayers are recited in accordance with this holy time. Tarawih is a special prayer that is recited, especially during Ramadan in addition to the daily five prayers. Let’s take a look at these prayers and their significance.

Source: islamicartdb.com

• Fajr- This is the first prayer of the daily five prayers and marks the beginning of the fast. This prayer is said at the beginning of dawn till sunrise. Fajr is considered to be God’s most favoured prayer. 

• Zuhr- It is the second prayer of the daily five prayers and is recited after mid-day. Jumu’ah, which is a congregational prayer, replaces Zuhr on a Friday.

• Asr- It is the third of the daily five prayers; it is recited in the afternoon.
  
  
• Maghrib- This prayer is recited just after sunset and is the fourth of the daily five prayers. During Ramadan, Muslims can break their fast (Iftar) after this prayer.

• Isha- This is the last of the five prayers and is recited at night. The five daily prayers collectively are one pillar of the Five Pillars of Islam, in Sunni Islam, and one of the ten Practices of the Religion (Fur? al-D?n) according to Shia Islam. (Source: Wikipedia)
  
  
• Tarawih- This prayer is especially recited during Ramadan. It is recited at night, usually after the Isha. The prayer can last for more than an hour or longer and is recommend to be recited in a congregation. Parts of the Quran are read when the prayer is being said in an upright/standing position. The Qur'an is divided into equal parts (called juz) for reading sections of equal length during each of the Ramadan nights. Thus, 1/30 of the Qur'an is read on successive evenings, so that by the end of the month, the entire Qur'an has been read completely. (Source: http://islam.about.com)

- Esha Birnur