When we say "prayers" we are referring to an act of worshipping God which has a specific format as God revealed to Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh). The prophets, from Prophet Adam to Prophet Muhammad (Pbut), ordered their followers to pray as per God's orders.
Since the prayer is the most important matter of Islam after having the correct belief in God and His Messenger, one must plan his life around the prayer. It would be a great sin to neglect praying when at work if a prayer was required at that time. If a believer is shopping at the mall or waiting at the airport and there is no way to get home or to a mosque, he is still obligated to perform the prayer within its due time instead of purposely leaving out or delaying the prayer. This indicates the importance of the obligatory prayer. Performing the obligatory prayer on time takes priority over other non-obligatory matters.
Each of the 5 prayers have different number of units (Raka'at) for each.
Fajr (Dawn Prayer) is 2 units (Raka'at)
Dhor (Noon prayer) is 4 units (Raka'at)
Asr (Afternoon prayer) is 4 units (Raka'at)
Maghrib (Sunset prayer) is 3 units (Raka'at)
Isha (Night prayer) is 4 units (Raka'at)
A unit (Raka'a) of prayer is from step 1 to step 8 of the 'Full Prayer Mat' tutorial below.
Step 1 to step 8 is repeated for each unit (Raka'a) of prayer.
Step 9 is the completion of the first 2 units (Raka'at) of prayer.
If the prayer is only 2 units ie Fajr, then after you complete step 9, move onto steps 10 and 11 to complete your prayer.
If the prayer is 4 units then complete steps 1-8 twice then step 9 and then repeat for the next 2 units and then move onto steps 10 and 11 to complete your prayer.
If the prayer is 3 units then complete steps 1-8 twice then step 9 and then steps 1-11 to complete your prayer.
The first 2 units (Raka'at) of prayer consist of 2 suras (chapters) from the Qur'an and the 3rd and forth unit is only 1 sura (chapter). The first sura (chapter) that is recited is sura (chapter) 1 of the Qur'an 'Al Fatiha' (The Opening).
Al fatiha (The opening) is recited for each and every unit of prayer. When praying the first 2 units, recite Al Fatiha (The opening) and also one of the short suras (chapters) of the Qur'an such as suras (chapters) 112-114. You are free to recite any of the suras (chapters) of the Qur'an after Al Fatiha even the lengthy ones but I recommend that you start with the short ones as they will be easier to memorize.
Eg. 1st unit (Raka'a) of prayer = sura (chapter) 1 plus sura (chapter) 112
2nd unit (Raka'a) of prayer = sura (chapter) 1 plus sura (chapter) 113
3rd unit (Raka'a) of prayer = sura (chapter) 1 only
4th unit (Raka'a)of prayer = sura (chapter) 1 only
Be sure to watch the step by step video guide below to put everything into perspective for you.
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