Why does a Muslim pray?

A Muslim prays in obedience to his Lord Who commanded him to pray and Who made prayer one of the pillars of Islam.

A Muslim gets up every day at five o'clock to pray, whereas his non-Muslim friends wake up at the same time exactly to practice their morning sport. His prayer is nourishment for his body and soul, whereas sports for them is only physical nourishment. Prayer is different from supplication, which is asking Allah some need without physical movement like bowing and prostration and which a Muslim can make any time.

Let's consider how much we care about our bodies and leave our souls starving; the result of which is suicide cases beyond count committed by people enjoying the highest degrees of luxury in the world.

Acts of worship lead to cessation of the feeling that exists in the consciousness center in the brain, which is related to self-feeling and feeling those around us. Thus, one feels a great deal of sublimity, a feeling that cannot be perceived except by one who experienced it.

Acts of worship stimulate the emotion center in the brain and, consequently, turn the creed from mere theoretical information and rituals to personal conscience experiences. A father cannot suffice only with a verbal welcome when his son returns from a journey; rather, he feels relieved only when he hugs and kisses him. The mind possesses a natural desire for giving beliefs and ideas a physical form, hence, the acts of worship came to satisfy such a desire as worship and obedience take the form of prayer, fasting, etc.

Dr. Andrew Newberg [293] said: "Acts of worship play an important role in improving the physical, mental, and psychological health and in attaining tranquility and spiritual sublimity. Similarly, turning to the Creator leads to more tranquility and sublimity." Director of the Center for Spirituality and the Mind at the University of Pennsylvania in the United States.