From wudu to the final salam — every step illustrated, with Arabic, transliteration, and Sunnah notes. Designed for new Muslims and lifelong learners.
The ritual purification required before prayer. 10 ordered steps.
The core postures repeated within each rak'ah, with the dhikr said in each.
How many units each daily prayer contains, including sunnah and witr.
| Prayer | Sunnah (before) | Fard (obligatory) | Sunnah / Witr (after) | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fajr الفجر | 2 | 2 | — | 4 |
| Dhuhr الظهر | 4 | 4 | 2 | 10 |
| Asr العصر | 4 | 4 | — | 4 fard (8 with sunnah) |
| Maghrib المغرب | — | 3 | 2 | 5 |
| Isha العشاء | — | 4 | 2 + 3 Witr | 9 |
Witr is emphatically Sunnah (Sunnah Mu'akkadah) — the Prophet ﷺ never omitted it. The Hanafi school considers it Wajib.
Salah is the second pillar of Islam and the first matter for which a servant will be questioned on the Day of Judgement. The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said: "The first of his deeds for which a person will be brought to account on the Day of Resurrection is the prayer. If it is sound he will have succeeded and prospered; and if it is corrupt he will have failed and lost." (Tirmidhi, Nasa'i) Learning the prayer properly — with its rukn (pillars), wajib (essentials), and sunan (recommended acts) — is a duty, not a luxury.
Allah says in the Quran: "O you who have believed, when you rise to perform prayer, wash your faces and your forearms to the elbows and wipe over your heads and wash your feet to the ankles." (Al-Ma'idah 5:6) Wudu is not a formality — it is the door of the prayer. Without it, no salah is valid. Take your time, use water generously but without waste, and let the water run between the fingers and toes.
Each rak'ah contains four core postures: Qiyam (standing), Ruku' (bowing), Sujud (prostration), and Jalsa (sitting). The Prophet ﷺ said that the closest a servant is to his Lord is when he is in Sujud, so make supplication in it abundantly. (Muslim) The fixed dhikr — Subhana Rabbiyal-'Azim in Ruku' and Subhana Rabbiyal-A'la in Sujud — should be said at least three times each, slowly, with the heart engaged.
Fajr is 2, Maghrib is 3, and Dhuhr / Asr / Isha are 4 fard each. Sunnah Mu'akkadah (emphasized sunnah) is added to Fajr (2 before), Dhuhr (4 before + 2 after), Maghrib (2 after), and Isha (2 after + Witr). When the Prophet ﷺ travelled, he shortened the four-rak'ah prayers to two — this is the Qasr concession, explained on our Travel Prayer Helper page.
Salah without khushu' (humility, presence) is like a body without a soul. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Pray as if it is your last prayer." (Ibn Majah) Slow down. Pause between the verses of al-Fatiha. Feel the weight of the words. The prayer was given to you as a gift — not a chore. Treat it as the appointment of your day.