Our lives are replete with such scenes. As the congregational prayers come to end, it is a general expectation that there will be loud sound in the mosque and people would almost shout to recite some of the verses or prayers. I have not read or heard about any specific order to shout in this manner on such an occasion. In the same way, we see so many people busy in repetition of some of the words that are to be repeated 33 times or more. They are meant for the spiritual elevation and satisfaction of a person and it has been ordered that it should done with sheer humbleness and gratitude but here we see that this useful recitation is mostly performed in two ways; one is doing so fast that entire process loses its meaning and in order to understand the second way, I would like to quote an example. In our mosque, there comes a person. When he has to repeat those words, he would try to look very serious and movement of his every body part would testify that he is busy in repetition. His lips would be moving, he would close his eyes, he would bring both his hands forward and show that he is counting the repetitions on his fingers, and he would move his head slowly in a to and fro motion. The whole existence of the person shouts that he is busy in some kind of an important work and his work and he himself is important and deserves attention.
It is a general perception that prayers can be best effective when they are performed slowly and with full attention. It is worth praising when it is done in the same way but unfortunately, there lies a philosophy behind this order which is not known by many. Contrary to this, in actual practice, a negative perception has replaced that philosophy and it is that; one who offers the prayers slowly is a more pious person and he deserves more respect and attention by people around him. There are so many people whom I know personally. In their actual lives, they are not much careful but when they come to mosque, they offer their prayers very slowly in order to improve their public image.
In the same way, NAWAFIL are those prayers which are not obligatory but one can earn virtues by offering them. This is rather a private affair of a person and has nothing to do with the public. It is also ordered that such prayers should be offered in solitude so that they should not be used for ‘Show-off’ for which there is present an exclusive term ‘Riaa.’ But we see that large number of people offer those prayers in front of people and among some of my acquaintances, they hardly ever perform this worship at home but when they go to mosque or go to any other social place, they become too much pious and religious.
All these and many more are the examples when people try to make religion and its different practices a tool of earning respect, attention and importance. This is not a new problem; rather it existed at all the eras and in all the religions. Medieval literature and especially the philosophers of the time criticized the religious practices in churches that were meant to make show-offs and exaggeration. This was possible due to the gradually weakening hold of church on the society otherwise it could have been termed as a blasphemy and severe punishments could have been inflicted on the writer. In the same way, some voices are being raised against these practices but unfortunately, we have not developed so much maturity to face the criticism and any such effort by a person may be termed as blasphemy and may end in drastic consequences.
Such a trend of showing off is not limited to the prayers only but we utilize this on so many other occasions. When a person helps someone, he is soon found to be telling it to the others. Similarly, we have trend of doing charity on the name of Allah which are purely religious but mostly people utilize these occasions to earn respect and fame for themselves.
The question arises, what is difference between the act which is pure and which is aimed for personal reputation, fame and respect? In order to differentiate between the two, one factor is really important. Do we act same at all the different occasions or not? Do we also offer the same prayers or with the same attention to details at all the conditions or do we change with the change in the surroundings? If we act the same at all occasions, it would show that we are honest.
In Islamic teachings, people have been threatened who act for their own desires and use the religious practices for their objectives. It has been said that all their prayers and worships are in vain and in the end, they will find themselves bare-handed and there will not be any reward for them in the hereafter. In the same way, they may face some kind of punishment for their deeds and wrong intentions in utilizing the religion for their own objectives.
It is the reason why, the religious worships and practices are not bearing the result for which they are intended. We see that, large number of people offer prayers and mosques are full of worshippers but even then, we see that most of us are dishonest, liars, corrupt and have so many negative qualities. It doesn't mean that these worships have lost their meaning or effectiveness rather the fault lies in us. We have made them a part of our routine just like eating and sleeping and keep on repeating them without understanding. Similarly, we perform them as part of a habitual act. On the other hand, we are in habit of utilizing the religious practices for earning social acceptance and this negative intention takes away all the blessings associated with them.
If we see large number of people who have turned religious practices into a ‘show-off’, there are also present so many others who have given a new meaning to the sincere worshipping. They repeat the verses and do other worships in a way that nobody comes to know about it. They do so not that they are afraid of others or they want to hide but they want to make sure that they should not be given importance because of this. I would like to end this article with a story from the life of our beloved Prophet (PBUH):
Once our Holy Prophet (PBUH) was going somewhere with his blessed companions. It was the habit of our Holy Prophet (PBUH) to say ‘Allah-o-Akbar’ while climbing a steep place. When they all started climbing a hill, the companions started shouting ‘Allah-o-Akbar’ loudly for which our Holy Prophet (PBUH) had to say, ‘You need not to shout as the one who are you addressing and praising can hear you’.