HKB
188; IV, 104) or bowing down or prostrating (XXII, 76) is the only form and ritual, if it may be called so, of prayer and worship taught in the Koran.
"Recite then as much of the Koran as may be easy to you."--Sura LXXIII, 20.
"Recite the portions of the Book which have been revealed to thee and discharge the duty of prayer; verily prayer restraineth from the filthy and the blameworthy. And assuredly the gravest duty is the remembrance of God; and God knoweth what ye do."--Sura XXIX, 44.
"And when the Koran is rehearsed, then listen ye to it and keep silence: haply ye may obtain mercy."
"And think within thine ownself on God, with lowliness and with fear and without loud-spoken words, at even and at morn; and be not of the heedless."--Sura VII, 203, 204.
[Sidenote: Pretentious prayers and ostentatious almsgiving condemned.]
The Koran condemns pretentious prayers and ostentatious almsgiving.
"Verily the hypocrites would deceive God; but he will deceive them! When they stand up for prayer, they stand carelessly to be seen of men, and they remember God but little"--Sura IV, 141.
"Woe then to those who pray,"
"Who in their prayer are careless;"
"Who make a show of devotion,"
"But refuse help to the needy."--Sura CVII, 4-7.
"And they fall down on their faces weeping, and it increaseth the humility."--Sura XVII, 110.
"O ye who believe! make not your alms void by reproaches and injury; like him who spendeth his substance to be seen of men, and believeth not in God and in the latter day. The likeness of such an one is that of a rock with a thin soil upon it, on which a heavy rain falleth, but leaveth it hard. No profit from their works shall they be able to gain; for God guideth not the unbelieving people."--Sura II, 266.
"We have made ready a shameful chastisement for the unbelievers, and for those who bestow their substance in alms to be seen of men, and believe not in God and in the last day. Whoever hath satan for his companion, an evil companion hath he!"--Sura IV, 42.
[Sidenote: No indispensable hours or places for prayers.]
There are no indispensable hours or places to be observed for prayers. In Suras XI, 116; and IV, 104, the time of prayer is set down in general terms without specifying any fixed hour. There are some more times named in Suras XVII, 81, 82; XX, 130; L, 38, 39; and LII, 48, 49, but they are special cases for Mohammad himself, and "as an excess in the service." Vide Sura XVII, 81. On this subject Dr. Marcus Dods observes:--
"There are two features of the devout character which the Mohammedans have the merit of exhibiting with much greater distinctness than we do. They show not the smallest hesitation or fear in confessing God, and they reduce to practice the great principle that the worship of God is not confined to temples or any special place:--
"Most honour to the men of prayer, Whose mosque is in them everywhere! Who amid revel's wildest din, In war's severest discipline, On rolling deck, in thronged bazaar, In stranger land, however far, However different in their reach Of thought, in manners, dress or speech,-- Will quietly their carpet spread. To Mekkeh turn the humble head, And, as if blind to all around, And deaf to each distracting sound, In ritual language God adore, In spirit to his presence soar, And in the pauses of the prayer, Rest, as if rapt in glory there."