The Book of Purification
Chapter: Rulings on Purification and Water

The prayer is the second pillar of Islam after the two testimonies of faith. It is what differentiates the Muslim from the unbeliever; it is the backbone of Islam and the very first matter about which the servant will be called to account. If the prayer is sound and accepted, all his other deeds will be accepted; but if it is rejected, everything else will be rejected as well.

The Quran mentions the prayer in many places and in various ways: at times Allah commands that it be established; at times He highlights its virtue; at times He explains its reward; and at times He pairs it with patience, instructing the believers to seek help through both during hardships.

For this reason, the prayer was the coolness of the Messenger’s eye (peace and blessings be upon him) in this worldly life. It is the adornment of the prophets, the emblem of the righteous, the connection between the servant and the Lord of all worlds, and it restrains from indecency and wrongdoing.

Since the prayer is only valid when the worshipper is free—so far as he is able—from both ritual impurity and physical defilement, and since the substance of purification is water, or its substitute tayammum (dry ablution) when water is unavailable, the jurists—may Allah have mercy on them—began their works with the Book of Purification; for just as the prayer is given precedence after the two testimonies over the rest