Imam Luqman Ahmad Mosque Without Borders

WHEN SALAT BECOMES A MEDIA EVENT, YOU’RE ENTERTAINING SHIRK

We have to be careful to what extent we commercialize, and prostitute our religious rites and rituals. I hear that on the 29th, there will be a special taraaweeh prayer in Philadelphia City Hall. Last I checked taraaweeh is prayed in the masjid, or at home, and prayer (salat) is for Allah sub’haanahu wa ta’ala Only, Who has no partners.

Such a media event is the very definition of praying to be seen (riyaa/رياء)! When being seen by people is fundamental to the purpose of prayer at City Hall, what you have is shirk in the making.

“And woe to the worshippers. Those who are heedless towards their salat. Those who seek to be seen” 107-4-5-6. If you are convening the salat with the stated intention of being seen, and calling it dawah, you still commit shirk because praying with the intention of da’wah, it itself is shirk.

How do you reconcile a media salat event at city hall with the salat being the star of the show, with the verse about praying to be seen? Or with the verse; “whoever wants a (favorable) meeting with his Lord, then let him work righteous deeds, and not associate anyone in his worship of his Lord” 18:110 And all the while there are a plethora of available masaajid to pray in?

How can that not be associating partners with Allah in your prayer?

You got cameras, media and video set up etc. it’s like taking a selfie of you making salat and posting it on the Internet. It’s not like people pray taraaweeh the whole month in city hall. 

If you’re praying in the street outside the masjid due to masjid overflow, or just to accommodate the crowd of worshippers, that’s an entirely different story. That’s permissable. We’ve prayed salaatul Eid in open spaces (which is Sunna) for years in Philly and even rented venues like the civic center to accommodate the number of people praying salatul Eid.

Even praying on the sidewalk or in a parking lot, or an office closet, out of necessity, there is no harm in that, because there is a need. Or if you happen to be at City Hall and the prayer comes in and you pray by yourself or in congregation, there is no harm there either. However, praying in a room in city hall, or the courtyard with limited space, when there is no accomodation necessity, or particular Muslim need, except for the benefit of show,  that has shirk as’ghar (الشرك الاصغر) written all over it!!

When salat becomes a media event, you are entertaining shirk. There is no getting around that fact. Notwithstanding the added security concerns, and added burden on the police and law enforcement to keep everyone safe at such a venue.

In reality, such an event underscores our naivete, our malleability and our willingness to make a spectacle out of something as sacred as taraaweeh during the month of Ramadan. If the intention of the taraaweeh prayer is for Allah Only, then why hold a one-time , congregational naafila prayer at City Hall when there is taraaweeh prayer every night at dozens of masaajid in the region?

Still, da’wah is no justification for associating partners with Allah sub’haanahu wa ta’ala in the prayer. SALAT is for Allah Only, as in the verse,  “say, verily my prayer, my sacrifice, my life, and my death is for Allah the Lord of the worlds, He has no partner, and to this I have been commanded, and I am the first of the Muslims (of this ummah)”. 6:162-63.

If the intention of convening a one night taraaweeh prayer at City Hall is for da’wah, then the prayer is corrupted. If it’s for Gaza, then the prayer is corrupted. If it’s for the press, then the prayer is corrupted. If it’s for the onlookers, then the prayer is corrupted. If it’s to promote Islam, then the prayer is corrupted. Salat, wheather it’s the prescribed prayer, or any of the Sunna prayers, can only be for Allah sub’haanahu wa ta’ala.

I’m not discounting that part of the prayer is for Allah, but no one can deny that part of the prayer is for the camera, or one or more of the aforementioned, if that’s the case, partnership has occurred. Partnership in the prayer is considered shirk. “whoever wants a (favorable) meeting with his Lord, then let him work righteous deeds, and not associate anyone in his worship of his Lord” 18:110

It’s not permissable to ignore sacred law when performing any salat. Salat is a sacred ritual.A primary principal with regards to the prayer is that it is only for Allah sub’haanahu wa ta’ala. That is agreed upon by all scholars of Islam, past and present.

There is something fundamentally wrong with showcasing salatul taraaweeh, or any salat in a media event during the month of Ramadan or in any other month. And Allah knows best.

If someone has daleel permitting sharing devotional prayer with someone or something other than Allah sub’haanahu wa ta’ala, let them produce it. Otherwise we are firm in the conclusion that salat is only for Allah as we have stated.

Imam Luqman Ahmad imamabulaith@yahoo.com