no time to pray

[allahsservant]

i am a new muslim convert and i have a job at my local mall on the weekends. i work from 1-9 pm on saturdays and 12-6 pm on sundays so i ahev no time to pray AT ALL during the weekends! i am not able to sneak away to pray because we are always busy out on the floor because we take surveys! i would like to pray once i am home but i am usually busy eating dinner and taking ghusl(a shower) and getting ready for church on sundays or or school on mondays. how to i get my daily prayers in on the weekends?

 

[ibn azem]

and getting ready for church on sundays or or school on mondays. how to i get my daily prayers in on the weekends?

:salam2:

You probably meant mosque but that's ok sister. Always ask Allah (swt) to make things easy for you, and try to do your best sister since we know that prayer is the most important thing to a muslim during the 5 times a day.

May Allah (swt) make things easier for you.
(That was not my answer to your question sister, as I'm not entitled to , I only wanted to share my concern with u as a muslim brother )

 

[Serafeddin]

:salam2 sister i am in a similar situation, i try to take a couple of 10 minute breaks to do my zuhr and isha prayers but sometimes we get so overwhelmed that it is impossible for me to get up and leave even for 10 minutes. I try to make up any prayers that i miss as soon as i can. It is not a long time if you think about it to make up missed prayers. One suggestion though if I may, you can ask your supervisor for a half hour of unpaid break which you can use in 15 minute incriments to pray, some employers will be understanding if you approach them in a good manner. Insaallah Allah SWT will make it easier for you and make your eeman stronger.

Wasalam

 

[Ayep]

Prayer is the Basic foundation in Islam.

Asalamualaikum!

I know prayer is difficult in this busy world. However, let me remind you praying 5 times daily is a minimum basic requirement in Islam. It is the only way a person can communicate, seek forgiveness and protection from Allah.

"Show us the the Straight way, the way Thee has bestowed Thy grace, not the way which earned Thy anger nor the way which has gone astray".-verse from Al-Fatihah.

If we don't seek guidance the evil whisperer or the devil will come and influence us. Over time our commitment to Allah will fade away. Slowly we give reasons not to pray and not find good reasons to pray. We do not know when we will leave this world. Your job, your health, your daily live is all provided by Allah. He can take it away just like that and we have nothing. I'm sure many Muslims have a difficult time to find time to pray but they still manage and I think they can also give you advice on this.

Small efforts can go along way, try getting to fit 1 session in the beginning. It's better to make the effort to remember Allah than giving up the idea to pray at all at work or after work. Find ways or solutions to start. Remember if we try to find a way Allah will open doors for you. Remember Allah has guided you to Islam. Just have a conscious effort to make time because you have to be mentally away from this worldly life to appreciate it. Plan ahead and it will take no more 5-10 minutes of your time.
-You can go during break time
-You can go during washroom break
-You can make some excuse.
-You can pray almost anywhere
-You can make up for it if you miss it

The sacrifices you make Allah will repay you in manifolds.
We as Muslims have a fair share of problems about our daily prayers at the workplace or home and it is a personal struggle(jihad) to be good and guided human beings as well.

InsyAllah things will fall right into place for you.

Wasalam

 

[kish223]

How To?

:salam2:

Dear Sister,

This happens to every muslim and is not something that you experience on your own. I believe that you do have a lunch/dinner break for this kind of work. This requires some determination on your part. Trust in Allah. If you make a conscious effort to reach out to him, he will make your path easier to establish contact with him.

Still, you must try and this struggle to perform solat is a daily battle. Its hardest at first but over time will become easier for you over time. Firstly, you need to identify a suitable location for prayer, somewhere quiet, and your ability to perform ablution within 5 minutes. Then you will need at least 10 mins for prayers. I'm assuming that you need to put on your prayer clothing and so add another 5 mins to that. Planning ahead will help you tremendously. Get a friend to pack some food on her way back for you when she/he returns from lunch/dinner.

I'm not sure how far you have to walk away from your work area but all in all it should take you 35mins. The rest is time for you to down a sandwich and a cup of joe. I admire you for the effort that you're making and Allah will definitely show you a way. I hope it works and good luck.

Allah knows best

 

[Kayote]

:salam2:

First of all, know that Allah (SHW) is most pleased with those of us who make the most effort to please Allah (SHW). Masha'Allah what you are trying to do is nothing less than jihad & Insha'Allah it will be accepted.

Also be aware that you are not alone in your struggle to follow the orders of Islam. There are many other muslims like yourself not only here at this forum but the rest of the world trying to follow the orders of Allah (SHW).

Here is just one story, that of mine:

I work on a contract & on average I work 45 hours a week (5 days). I tend to take my prayers as lunch break/s. It takes me 15min (on avg.) to go to the mosque for Zuhr & join the congregation (most of the times) & be back for work. Same for Asr & Mughrib prayers & in total it takes me 45min to pray all three at the mosque & that counts as my lunch break.

As you can see, it hardly takes long & besides, I get a short respite from work & can go back refreshed & attentive again

I must admit, I eat at my desk which I doubt you can do at the mall...

Be brave & ask Allah (SHW) for help!

WaAliekum Assalam

 

[abumah]

There is no legimate excuse for leaving worship


:salam2:

There is never any valid excuse to miss the 5 daily prayers. It is an obligation to pray all 5 prayers every day(except when on menses) and observe hijab whenever you leave the house or you are in the presence of males who are lawful for you to marry, a job is no excuse to remove your hijab. The prayer is your connection with your creator; and with ALLAH is the great reward in the hereafter for the good doers. And that job is the connection with this worldly life and its misery. Learn your religion, marry a righteous man and let him take care of you.

 

[marildu]

Really it's just something you have to plan around. I work at a McDonalds (Classy huh? ) And I plan my schedule around it and I'm just honest. You can talk to your supervisor about a 15 minute break or similar for religious reasons. And if they don't take you seriously you could be a little more specific. At first I was pretty overwhelmed with prayers but now it's just wonderful to have that time. And although, AstaghfurAllah I can be lazy sometimes it is still dear to me.

 

[marildu]

Learn your religion, marry a righteous man and let him take care of you.

I hate to say this. I don't think that that is the answer to this problem. She is a brand new convert and she is still living with her parents with no education. I really dislike how sometimes this is thrown as a perfect solution to everything. Marriage is a big decision and she is JUST learning her deen. No doubt that marriage is beautiful but it needs to be planned out in a timely fashion.

 

[abumah]

I think unfortunately a lot of muslims have the wrong outlook on marriage. Marriage is worship. Plain and simple and it serves a significant purpose in society of the muslims. We are not like the disbelievers in that we love each other before we get married we as muslims have been told by the prophet(PBUH) to "Marry for the Deen". And after that comes love inshaa ALLAH.

 

[allahsservant]

replies

i live with my parents and they dont allow me to practice islam or wear hijab .also im am in high school and in the tenth grade i really want to pray but i dont want to pray if i cant pray during the weekend so what do i do? this was my reply to my post called no time to pray!

 

[allahsservant]

REPLIES

I am 16 and i dont have time to pray at work at any time during work. i cant pray any time during my break and my parents dont want me t practice islam but i really want to pray so what do i do?

 

[Umm Aysha]

Asalaam Alaykum

Hey sis i feel so bad for you ....I understand you want to pray and wear hijab. Its hard cos you are only young and still living with your parents.
If they dont want you to practice, it makes it more difficult for you.

Can you not pray in your bedroom when at home? You can keep door locked so they dont enter.
How long is your break during work? I make my prayers at work during my breaks and personals...
Best thing to do is speak with your manager/supervisor and inform them you need to take time out for prayers. Take it from there, see what they say.
This is what i did at one of my work place and they said thats fine, they even gave me a clean room to pray in.

Sis its a test from Allah above, your imaan is so strong....dont give up....make dua and ask Allahs help to make your path easier for you...insha-allah

We ALL will do dua for you too.....

wasalaam

 

[Ayep]

:salam2: sister!

Here's a short example of what happened to our Holy Prophet in the early years when he was in Mecca taken from the book 'Muhammad the Prophet' by Maulana Muhammad Ali,
"When they(disbelievers) passed by the believers(Muslims), they would laugh and wink at them in derision. Sometimes they would call the Holy Prophet an idle visionary, given to poetic fancies, destined to come to naught as a matter of course. There was something wrong with his brain, as they would say. But as men of light and position gradually gathered round him, the Makkans were awakened to a sense of danger. Now they did not content to themselves with indifference and ridicule, but took to active violence. Once when the Holy Prophet was saying his prayers at the Ka'abah, lying prostrate, Abu Jahl placed the dirty foetus of a she-camel on his neck. As he used to go out of his house for prayers at dawn, one way adopted to annoy him was that branches of prickly shrubs were strewn in his way, so that in the darkness he would become entangled in them. Sometimes dust was thrown at him: sometimes he was pelted with stones. One day, a number of men from among the Quraish nobility fell upon him. One, 'Uqbah ibn Abi Mu'ait threw his mantle around his neck and twisted it till he was on the point of strangulation. Abu Bakar, appearing at the scene intervened and rescued him, saying:" Do you mean to kill a man merely because he says that God is his Lord?"

For sixteen year old you are very brave to stand alone as a Muslim, and I believe you are quite a distance away from the Muslim community in your area. I see your problem is not just "no time to pray" but you are not allowed to pray at home.

Since your parents don't allow you to practice Islam in your home, you should reach out to fellow Muslims in your area for moral support. It's true that this forum can give you lots of advice but a bigger impact will happen for you if you have good Muslim friends in your area to help support you in times of need.

Take things slowly one at a time. If you cannot pray during your worktime find other time to make up for it. If your parents strongly object, do not argue with them cause we Muslims should respect our parents even if they are non-Muslims. Even the Holy Prophet practice Islam with his followers secretly till they were ordered to announce Islam to the world. So do what is within you means. Patience is important. As you go along pick up more materials on Islam especially about our Holy Prophet as a general knowledge and reminder.

Read about sister Aminah Asilmi a convert's story.
http://www.welcome-back.org/profile/aminah1.shtml
She lost contact with her whole family after converting but she send them postcards regularly with short verses of the Quran without revealing the source of the verses. Eventually her family converted to Islam.

Another subtle way is to leave 'simple to understand' Islamic booklets around the house for your family to chance upon and let Allah do the rest. One day it open their hearts insyAllah. Try not to make changes suddenly or immediately so as to upset them too much.

You need friends who understand Islam as a support cause we all live as a community. I hope you can be patient for a while longer and continue practicing what you can. Eventually knowledge and practice will go hand for you, Insyallah.

wasalam:arabi1:

 

[marildu]

I think unfortunately a lot of muslims have the wrong outlook on marriage. Marriage is worship. Plain and simple and it serves a significant purpose in society of the muslims. We are not like the disbelievers in that we love each other before we get married we as muslims have been told by the prophet(PBUH) to "Marry for the Deen". And after that comes love inshaa ALLAH.

I've never heard it worded that way but I do agree with you. However I feel that marriage should be a worship you joyfully take part in when you become pretty confident in your deen. Not something you do because you had no where else to turn. For some people it may work but I think for most you need a certain maturity and understanding of Islam that many converts do not have immediately, myself included. InshaAllah I will be ready to next year once I can move out of my non-Muslim parents' house.

 

[mansooranwar]

May Allah help you with a beautiful job''

:salam2:

you are right it seems impossible, but one who decide to help him or her self Allah's help does come to them in misterious ways ,

, so keep the hopes and look for a better job so you can enjoy both of

the worlds ..please do not hesitate to ask for the job info from friends

etc and donot rest :muslim_child: till you get it right for your self ...
That what good for us all

 

[user expired!]

assalaamualiakum,

hi sister, id just like to say that even sum muslim parents don't want their children to 'practice' the religion too much, and i've heard that a family dont want there daughters to wear hijab!!

but Allah says in the qur,an

So verily, with the hardship, there is relief, Verily, with the hardship, there is relief. Surah Ash Sharh.

so do the best you can, even it means that you may have to disobey the plpl you love!

but Salah is a must!

ive recently started going university in the UK, and sum of my practicals can last upto 4 hrs!!! but when its time to pray i make excuses for a break and sneak out at times.

try and explain to ur manager that u need at least 5 minutes break(you can pray in 5 minutes if you stick to short surahs).

tell the manager that you will work extra 15minutes at the end if he /she gives you 5 minute breaks in between!!

and speak to ur local Imam for more advice!! and the local sisters which are practicing the deen !!

frm ur brother User Expired!!

ps all the above is just my advice and opinions frm past experience speak to ur local Imam for the correct advice

 

[marzuki mohamed]

7 ft in ...and alone...and nobodys....arounds..

:salam2: all

what if in next few seconds..or minutes or hours or days or after we typing something in this forum..then...we was in this house...astagfirullahalazim... i'm too scared to imagine my friends..

"..alone..nobodys arounds..(no family-father-mother-sister-brother or relatives,friends,people..n even u all here.."

from Allah we came....and to Him we shall meets..........."


wasalam.

 

[cadette]

Assalaam mualaykum Sister

HEre's something that may work. A very learned Sheikh told us that if you know you not going to be able read a prayer on time, examlpe Asr, you can move it forward to Zohr time and read it then. Magrieb can be moved to Isha time (provided that at Magrieb time you make intention that you will be reading it later). From the the times you said that you need to work, you can read the Zohr and Asr before starting work and Magrieb and Isha at the end of your shifts.

I know this can be done for travelling, check with your imaam if you ca ndo this for work too. I'm sure you can. Remeber Islam doesn't make our lives difficult, we do that on our own.

 

[khan_saddozai]

salam
i think i am very clumsy when it comes o praying.
but i try and motivate myself and learn to benefits of praying and the pnishments of not praying.
i think u shud try and motivate urself and see how that goes.
salam