Human beings tend to get distracted very easily. This is a fact and there is no denying it. It is because of this that most worldly corporations also ensure that their employees follow a routine. Routines turn into habits that ensure that people become accustomed to a work ethic. This in turn improves their productivity. By introducing a regimen of five daily prayers at prescribed times, Islam has enabled the building of a good habit of remembering God multiple times a day.
This serves many benefits. For instance, it allows us to seek forgiveness for our sins on a regular basis. It keeps us in check, and prevents us from falling prey to evil inclinations. Without this check, many people would just falter and become sinful as they would not have the frequent reminders to turn back to God or to seek His refuge from a life of sin. Furthermore, prayer itself is full of moments of reflection which ultimately humble a person and melt his or her heart at the threshold of God Almighty.
Similarly, the Prophet Muhammad(sa) said:
الصَّلَوَاتُ الخَمْسُ وَالجُمُعَةُ إِلَى الجُمُعَةِ وَرَمَضَانُ إِلَى رَمَضَانَ مُكَفِّرَاتٌ مَا بَيْنَهُنَّ إِذَا اجْتَنَبَ الْكَبَائِرَ
That is, “The five daily prayers, and one Friday prayer to the next, and one Ramazan to the next, are all expiations for any sins committed in between them, as long as one abstains from the major sins”.[i] In other words, each prayer expiates and washes away the sins that a person may have committed since the previous prayer. The same point is made in another hadith where the Prophet(sa) likens the five prayers to bathing five times a day, and how spiritual purification can be maintained on a daily basis due to the five prayers.
To the casual observer, it may seem like much. However, the keen observer can see that just as an alcoholic or a drug addict cannot survive a single day without a dose, so too a sincere worshipper cannot survive a day without speaking to his or her God multiple times a day. The Promised Messiah(as) has spoken of this subject numerous times. He says, “I would like to say that we should pray to God Almighty with incredible pain and passion that He should enable us to taste the pleasure of prayer and worship—even once—just as he has granted us the different kinds of pleasures of other fruits and things”.[ii] Then, the Promised Messiah(as) compares a worshipper to an alcoholic who keeps on drinking alcohol until he becomes intoxicated. The one who worships should have a similar goal of continuing to worship until he or she is intoxicated with spiritual pleasures.[iii]
That is why Allah says in the Holy Quran, “Observe Prayer at the two ends of the day, and in the hours of the night that are nearer the day. Surely, good works drive away evil works. This is a reminder for those who would remember” (11:115). Similarly, Allah says:
اِنَّ الصَّلٰوۃَ تَنۡہٰی عَنِ الۡفَحۡشَآءِ وَ الۡمُنۡکَرِ ؕ وَ لَذِکۡرُ اللّٰہِ اَکۡبَرُ ؕ
That is, “Surely, Prayer restrains one from indecency and manifest evil, and remembrance of Allah indeed is the greatest virtue” (Holy Quran, 29:46). The frequent reminders of prayers keeps a person in check and reminds him or her of duties to God, and that he or she should keep himself or herself on a path of righteousness.
What is more is that prayers are like a time-out from the stresses of life. In an age where there is so much interest in meditation and finding ways to reduce the stress of modern life, the five daily prayers could not be more useful. When a Muslim takes the 10-minute spiritual break from all worldly pursuits, it only helps to soothe his or her mind. Our minds are constantly, perpetually thinking about things. Prayer is a means to tap ourselves out of those thoughts and pay attention to something greater and find our peace. That is why God says, “Aye! It is in the remembrance of Allah that hearts can find comfort” (Holy Quran, 13:29).
References:
[i]. Sahih Muslim, Kitabut Taharah [The Book of Purification], Chapter: The 5 daily prayers: https://sunnah.com/muslim/2/19
[ii]. Malfuzat, vol. 9, p. 7
[iii]. Ibid., p. 8