Quran Garden

Session 257

Chapter 2

Verses 238 & 239

Maintain with care the prayers and in particular the middle prayer and stand devoutly before God.  But if you are in danger, pray as you are out walking or riding; when you are safe again, remember God, for He has taught you what you did not know.

(Chapter 2: Verses 238 & 239)

These two verses are very interesting; more specifically, their location in the chapter is fascinating.  The preceding verses discussed the issue of divorce and family breakdown.  The next verses return back to discussing widows, family and divorce.  So at first glance, verses 238 and 239 look out of place.  What is the wisdom behind the placement of these verses?  We answer that Allah interjected the discussion of divorce and family breakdown with a reminder of prayers to encourage you to seek Him in prayers during hard times.  Don’t let worldly troubles overtake your life.  Remember that matters of fate, such as death, and the legislation of social ties, such as marriage and divorce, are all from God.  So make sure to maintain a strong connection with your creator at all times.  Prayers are the best tool you have to be with your Lord and seek His guidance.  Prayer gives you tranquillity when your life is breaking down.  Prophet Muhammad -peace be upon him- used to stand in prayer whenever a matter troubled him.

Allah -who gives life and death and who legislated marriage and divorce- is your best refuge during difficult times.  Only He can help relieve your worry and grief.  Moreover, by remembering your Lord in prayers, you would also remember all His teachings that govern matters of death and divorce.  Your faith will guide you to accept whatever God had destined for you humbly.   

God says: “Maintain with care the prayers and in particular the middle prayer.”  We understand that the five daily prayers are intended in this verse.  The phrase ‘Maintain with care’ is translated from the Arabic origin ‘Hafizoo’ ‘حافظوا,’ which holds two meanings -both are appropriate for this verse-.  ‘Hafizoo’ means to remember and not to forget.  It also means to maintain and guard against waste.  Say for example that you have a $100 bill.  If you put it somewhere and then forget where it is, you have wasted your $100.  If you buy something stupid and useless with the $100, you have also wasted it.  Similarly, if you skip and forget to perform your daily prayers, you have in fact wasted the prayers.  And if you offer your prayers in haste while you are absent-minded, you have also wasted your prayers.  Make sure to offer your prayers on time with mindful devotion.  You will experience the sweetness of being close to your Lord. 

Allah is reminding you to “Maintain with care the prayers” then emphasizes “the middle prayers” in particular.  So, in essence, the middle prayer was mentioned twice, the first time it was included with all the prayers, and the second time it was singled out.  What is the reason for singling out the middle prayer in particular? Well, let’s start by defining what the middle prayer is.  The ‘middle’ refers to something situated equally between two sides.  To have a true middle, you need an odd number.  We have five daily prayers.  If we consider the number of prayers as a measuring stick, then the middle prayer would be the Asr mid-day prayer; there would be the morning and noon prayers before it and the sunset and night prayers after it. 

If we consider the middle prayer with respect to the order the prayers were obligated, then the Maghrib sunset prayer would be the middle one.  This is because the Zuhr noon prayer was the first prayer made obligatory, followed by the Asr mid-day prayer, then Maghrib, isha and lastly the Fajr sunrise prayer.  It is the opinion of many scholars that the Maghrib sunset prayer is intended by ‘the middle prayer.’

If you consider the number of rak'ahs –subparts of each prayer- as your reference, you will find that the Fajr prayer consists of two rak'ahs.  The Zuhr, Asr and Isha prayers consist of four rak'ahs.  This leaves the Maghrib sunset prayer –which has three rak’ahs- as the middle prayer.

If you consider whether you say the prayers aloud or more silently as the criteria, you will find that either the Fajr morning prayers or the Maghrib sunset prayers could be considered the middle prayers.  This is because the Zuhr and Asr prayers are offered in relative silence –close to a whisper- while the Maghrib,' Isha 'and' Fajr are offered more audibly.  So the Maghrib falls between two silent and two audible prayers.  The Fajr prayer is the opposite. 

Lastly, if you consider that the largest angels’ gathering –which occurs during the morning Fajr and night Isha prayers-, then the middle prayer would be the ‘Asr’ prayer.

So the middle prayer differs based on whatever yardstick you happen to choose to measure: Is your criteria the time of day? The order of obligation? The number of rak’ahs? Is it based on which prayer is offered audibly or the silently? Or according to the descent of the angels?

You are probably wondering: Why are there so many answers to the ‘middle prayer’ question? Why didn’t God clarify –with one word- exactly what is meant by the middle prayer?  We answer that Allah concealed the true meaning so you would maintain all your daily prayers with care.  Allah wants you to value all your prayers and offer them devoutly on time.  In fact, the ambiguity of the ‘middle prayer’ makes each and every prayer significant.  You should maintain the five daily prayers in general and every single prayer in particular.  This is similar to making the precise date of the night of power –night of al Qadr- unknown to us.  Allah wants us to repeatedly seek the blessings of that night each night of the last ten days of Ramadan.