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Learning to Pray

© A Abdullah

2. As you listen to Surat al-Fatiha, write it in English sounds that make sense to you. Another person has already done this on this page which also includes audio of how each individual sentence is pronounced. Review it carefully, print it out and make any notes if you prefer to remember the words in a different way.

3. There are several ways you may learn the other movements of the prayer as well as the other spoken elements which require you to recite in Arabic. Try this page for step by step instructions as well as Arabic audio. It might help to take it very slowly and to make sure you fully understand each step before continuing to the next ones. If you prefer to work off-line, try the program Cyber-Salat which you can download for free. The nice thing about this program is that it has pictures, audio and start-stop controls to help you learn the prayer at your own pace. Recently, however, I read that this program contains a pronunciation error of which you should be aware if you decide to use it; you may read about it here. Of course you can always purchase an instructional video or even professional prayer software for your PC. More free on-line resources can be found on this page which was put together by Anayat Durrani, editor of Islam in the United States at Suite101.

4. If you have found it necessary to write the prayer in English sounds, then you may try looking at your notes while you pray. I did this myself for the first several months I was learning to pray and it really helped a lot. It was not long at all before I no longer needed to do this. This site has a chart of the Arabic alphabet which allows you to click on individual letters in order to hear their sounds.

5. Try to pray with other Muslims. Whether you pray with a friend in the privacy of your home or in congregation at the mosque, you can learn so much by watching other people. Some new Muslims feel shy to pray at the mosque but the fact is that no one is going to be watching you (they will be concentrating on their own prayers), and if they know that you are new to the prayer, they will probably also be very happy to help, so do not feel afraid to ask for it. It is the duty of all Muslims to help our brothers and sisters in faith whenever we can. Do not worry if you do not understand everything at first: just go with the flow and imitate the movements of everyone else. Before you know it, you will have learned the prayer.