The Salah of the Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) Hadrat Mughira (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) prayed for so long in the night in standing posture that his feet got swollen up. His companions said to him, "O Prophet of Allah! Why do you exert so much when Allah (The Glorified and the Exalted) has forgiven you all sins." The Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) replied, "Should I not be a grateful servant of Allah?" (Bukhari, Muslim)
First Questioning will be about Salah On the authority of Hadrat Abu Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him), who said that Allah's Messenger (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) said: The first of his actions for which a servant of Allah (The Glorified and the Exalted) will be held accountable on the Day of Resurrection will be his prayers. If they are in order, then he will have prospered and succeeded; and if they are wanting, then he will have failed and lost. If there is something defective in his obligatory prayers, the Lord (The Glorified and the Exalted) will say: See if My servant has any optional prayers with which may be completed that which was defective in his obligatory prayers. Then the rest of his actions will be judged in like fashion. (Tirmidhi, Abu Dawud, an-Nasai, Ibn Majah and Ahmad). (Hadith Qudsi)
Pray in All Circumstances Narrated 'Imran bin Husain (may Allah be pleased with him): I had piles, so I asked the Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) about the prayer. He said, "Pray while standing and if you can't, pray while sitting and if you cannot do even that, then pray lying on your side." (Bukhari)
Salah Erases Sins Hadrat Abu Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) said, "Let anyone tell me; if a stream flows by the house of any person and he baths in it five times a day, whether any dirt will remain on his body." The companions replied that no dirt would remain in such a case. He said, "So is the case with prescribed prayers. Allah forgives men's sins (minor) on their account." (Bukhari, Muslim)
Salah is the Best Deed Hadrat Abdullah Ibn Masud (may Allah be pleased with him) said that he enquired of the Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) what was the best deed in the sight of Allah. The Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) replied, "To say prescribed prayers at stated hours." I asked what was the next best. He said, "To be good to parents." I again asked what deed ranked next. He said, "To do Jihad in the way of Allah." Ibn Masud (may Allah be pleased with him) says that if he had gone on asking, the Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) would have told him more. (Bukhari, Muslim)
Salah Brings Salvation Hadrat Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) said that one day the Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) was talking about prescribed prayers and he said, "Whoso is regular in his prayers it will illumine his face, testify to the firmness of his faith and be the cause of his salvation on the Day of Judgement. And whoso neglects the prayers will neither acquire any glow nor staunchness of faith nor any means of salvation and he will join, on the Day of Resurrection, the company of Korah (Qarun), Pharoah, Haman and Ubay bin Khalaf." (Ahmad, Darimy, Baihaqi)
The Merit of Each Salah Narrated by Hadrat Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him): Allah's Messenger (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) said, "Whoever misses the 'Asr prayer (intentionally) then it is as if he lost his family and property." (Bukhari)
Hadrat Abu Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) said, "If people only knew the reward of giving the prayer-call or the merit of standing in the first row of the congregational prayers, they would insist on drawing lots for finding a place therein. And if they could know the merit of repairing to the mosque early for noon prayers, they would go there running and if they were to know the blessings of night and early morning prayers, they would go to the mosque dragging themselves on their buttocks if they had not the strength to walk upto it" (Bukhari, Muslim)
Say Prayers in Congregation Hadrat Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) said: They Holy Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) said, "If they are three persons in a habitation or in a jungle and they do not say their prescribed prayers jointly, it would mean that the devil has gained ascendency over them. Therefore, make a rule for yourselves to say congregational prayers, for a goat which leaves the flock is devoured by the wolf." (Ahmad, Abu Dawud, an-Nasai)
Merit of the Congregational Prayer Hadrat Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that Allah's Messenger (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) said: Prayer of a man in his house is one prayer, and his prayer in the mosque of the tribes is prayer by 25 times, and his prayer in the congregational mosque is prayer by 500 times, and his prayer in the farthest mosque Masjid Aqsa (of Jerusalem) is prayer by 50,000 times and his prayer in my mosque is prayer by 50,000 times and his prayer in the sacred mosque (of Ka'ba) is prayer by 100,000 times. (Ibn Majah)
The Timing of the Five Prayers Hadrat Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that Allah's Messenger (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) said: The time of Zuhr prayer remains till the sun declines and the shadow of a man becomes double his length and so long as the Asr prayer does not come, and the time of Asr prayer remains so long as the sun does not become yellow: and the time of Maghrib prayer remains so long as the red hue does not disappear; and the time for Isha prayers remains up to the midnight, and the time for Fajr prayer runs from the appearance of dawn till the sun does not rise, but when the sun rises, keep away from prayer because it rises between two horns of the devil. (Muslim)
Straight Rows in Salah Hadrat Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that Allah's Messenger (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) said: make your rows straight, because the straightening of lines is part of the Aqamat of prayer. (Bukhari and Muslim)
Follow the Imam Hadrat Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Allah's Messenger (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) led us in prayer one day, and when he finished his prayer he faced us and said, "O people, I am your Imam, so do not bow, prostrate yourselves, stand, or go away before I do, for I see you both in front of me and behind me." (Muslim)
Hadrat Abu Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that Allah'a Messenger (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) said: The Imam is appointed to be followed. So when he recites takbir, recite takbir: and when he recites (Qur'an), keep silent. (Abu Dawud, an-Nasai, Ibn Majah)
Dua After Salah Hadrat Sawbhan (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that when Allah's Messenger (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) finished his prayer, he begged pardon thrice (Istighfaar) and said: O Allah! Thou are Peace, and from Thee is peace. Thou are Blessed, O Lord of Glory and Honour. (Muslim)
Tasbih After Salah Hadrat Ka'ab bin Uzrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that Allah's Messenger (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) said: There are some recitations after prayer, of which the reciters or the doers at the end of each obligatory prayer will not be disappointed -Tasbih for 33 times, Tahmid for 33 times and Takbir for 34 times. (Muslim)
Dua Qunut in Salah Narrated Hadrat Anas (may Allah be pleased with him): The Qunut used to be recited in the Maghrib and the Fajr prayers. (Bukhari)
Friday Prayers Narrated Hadrat Abu Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him): The Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) said, "When it is a Friday, the angels stand at the gate of the mosque and keep on writing the names of the persons coming to the mosque in succession according to their arrivals. The example of the one who enters the mosque in the earliest hour is that of one offering a camel (in sacrifice). The one coming next is like one offering a cow and then a ram and then a chicken and then an egg respectively. When the Imam comes out (for Jumu'a prayer) they (i.e. angels) fold their papers and listen to the Khutba." (Bukhari)
Hadrat Abdul Ja'ad az-Zumairi (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that Allah's Messenger (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) said: Whoso gives up three Friday prayers by way of neglecting them, Allah (The Glorified and the Exalted) will seal up his heart. (Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi, an-Nasai, Ibn Majah)
Eid Prayers Narrated Hadrat Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with him): Allah's Messenger (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) used to offer the prayer of Eid-ul-Adha and Eid-ul-Fitr and then deliver the khutba after the prayer. (Bukhari)
Salatul Witr Narrated mother of faithful believers, Hadrat 'Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her): Allah's Messenger (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) offered Witr prayer at different nights at various hours extending (from the 'Isha prayer) up to the last hour of the night. (Bukhari)
Sunnah Muakkadah Hadrat Umm Habiba (may Allah be pleased with her) reported Allah's Messenger (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) as saying, "A house will be built in paradise for anyone who prays in a day and a night twelve rakas (Sunnah prayers), four before and two after the noon prayer, two after the sunset prayer, two after the night prayer and two before the dawn prayer." (Tirmidhi)
Tahajjud Hadrat Abu Ummah (may Allah be pleased with him): The Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) said, "Make Tahajjud prayers obligatory for yourselves. This is the way of pious gone before you and it is a means of attaining nearness to Allah, it atones for your sins and prevents their commission." (Tirmidhi)
Taraweh Hadrat Abu Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him) says that the Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) used to encourage people to offer extra prayers (Taraweh) but would not give a positive direction for it. He used to say "Whoso offers Taraweh prayers devotedly and sincerely, all his former sins would be forgiven." The narrator says that this practice continued after the passing away of the Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him), during the khilafat of Sayyidina Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) and the early part of Sayyidina Umar's (may Allah be pleased with him) khilafat (then it became congregational) (Muslim)
Tahiyyatul Masjid Narrated Hadrat Abu Qatada bin Rab'i Al-Ansari (may Allah be pleased with him): The Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) said, "If anyone of you enters a Mosque, he should not sit until he has offered a two Rak'at prayer." (Bukhari) Istikhara Prayer Narrated Hadrat Jabir bin Abdullah As-Salami (may Allah be pleased with him): Allah's Messenger (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) used to teach his companions to perform the prayer of Istikhara for each and every matter just as he used to teach them the Suras from the Qur'an. He used to say, "If anyone of you intends to do something, he should offer a two-Rak'at prayer other than the compulsory prayers, and after finishing it, he should say: O Allah! I consult You, for You have all knowledge, and appeal to You to support me with Your Power, and ask for Your Bounty, for You are able to do things while I am not, and You Know while I do not, and You are the Knower of the Unseen. O Allah! If You know that this matter (name your matter) is good for me both at present and in the future, (or in my religion), in my present life and in the Hereafter, then fulfil it for me and make it easy for me, and then bestow Your Blessings on me in that matter. O Allah! If You Know that this matter is not good for me in my religion, in my present life and in my coming Hereafter (or at present or in the future), then divert me from it and choose for me what is good whenever it may be, and make me be pleased with it." (Bukhari)