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How to learn to pray Salah for Beginners!

Q:

I am a 24 year old female and I have come to the age where I want to pray but never learnt growing up and have no family that can help, I know the basic steps but I struggle when it comes to reciting during prayer as I can’t remember everything. Would it be okay for me to either leave someone reciting on my phone and follow alone with it or writing it on a paper on the floor and read alone? What would be the easiest way to leant how to pray?

A:

Salamun Alaykum

I am happy that you want to learn how to pray. This is indeed a grace of Allah(swt). Stay strong and you will be successful in learning how to pray Salah.

Salat is wajib in Islam for all Muslims to pray. All sects in Islam believe 5 Salat wajib for man and women. The only difference between the sects is the method of prayers.

Since I don’t know which sect you belong to, I will mention both Shia and Sunni method of prayers.

You can find the transliteration from the above links to make it easier for you to read if you can’t read Arabic.

Please note, during menstruation(Haydh) it is not wajib on the woman to pray.

Question: Is it necessary for a woman to compensate the prayers and fasts which she missed during menses?

Answer: A woman must perform the Qadha of the fasts which she has missed during her menstrual period. However, Qadha of prayers is not obligatory on her.

www.sistani.org/english/qa/01212/

You can try and learn the small Surahs and repeat them during Salah and this way you will memorize and it will become easier. The same goes for the Azkaar of Salah. According to Shias you can take a print or put something in front of you(such as software etc.) and read during Salah, but as it will be difficult to look and read during Sajdah, so you can at least memorize that particular zikr. You can also try to take a print of azkaar and memorize them. Someone else can also recite for you and you can recite during Salah but keeping in mind the state of Salah doesn’t break and there is not a lot of gap between the recitations.

Also you will have to make up and do the Qadha of the Salah you haven’t prayed since you have become Baligh. You can note how many years Salah is Qadha and gradually you can make it up. Shaitan will whisper and make it difficult for you but when there is a will there is a way. Have the intention that in your life you will perform the Qadha prayers with the help of the Almighty.

Feel free to write us again if any clarification is required.

May Allah(swt) give us Tawfiq to pray all obligatory prayers to make our Akhirah.

Wassalam,

Syed Haider