By the end of this lesson
Understand the daily prayers and your learning path.
Learn salah, from preparation to practice
Follow these lessons in order, or open the complete prayer sequence when you are ready.
- Prepare for prayer →
Check purification, clothing, prayer time, intention and qiblah.
- Perform wudu →
Learn what to wash and wipe, and what is required in the Hanafi reference.
- Understand units and timing →
A rak‘ah is one unit. See the five prayers and learn how to pray Fajr.
- Learn essential recitations →
Study Arabic words with transliteration and English meaning.
- Follow salah step by step →
Read the complete sequence, from the opening takbir to the closing salam.
- Practice in the Prayer Studio →
Rehearse outside prayer with illustrations and your school’s sequence.
A rak‘ah is one unit of prayer. Learn the shared movement pattern before combining units. Witr follows its own school-specific sequence →
Salah is the daily ritual prayer: a meeting with Allah through intention, words, and movement. The five obligatory prayers give the day a rhythm. You do not need to understand every technical term before you begin learning.
Your first milestones
- Learn when the five prayers happen.
- Learn purification and the preparations for prayer.
- Practice one unit, called a rak‘ah.
- Learn the recitations a little at a time.
- Put the units together and ask a knowledgeable teacher to observe your practice.
This walkthrough teaches a person praying alone. Congregational prayer has additional rules. Transliteration is a bridge to learning Arabic pronunciation, not a replacement for listening to a qualified teacher.
If you do not know the words yet
Begin learning now, and ask a local teacher for the temporary guidance that applies in your school while you learn. Rules about reading from a screen or book during prayer differ. Use this experience to practice outside the prayer.
Prayer terms, in plain language
- Rak‘ah
- One unit of prayer containing standing, bowing and two prostrations.
- Qiblah
- The direction of the Ka‘bah in Makkah.
- Takbir
- Saying “Allahu akbar”: Allah is greater.
- Ruku‘
- Bowing in prayer.
- Sujud
- Prostration in prayer.
- Tashahhud
- The testimony recited while sitting in prayer.
TRY TO RECALL · OPTIONAL
How many obligatory prayers shape the day?
A study check, not an assessment of your prayer.