Praying Regularly

We've been studying Islam in my World Religions class, and I've got to say, there are several things I like about Islamic teachings and practices, and I may even try adopting one or two of them, particularly the Salat, the practice of praying at five specific times each day.

One of the Five Pillars of the Muslim faith is the practice of praying when they wake up, at noon, in the mid-afternoon, at sundown, and when they go to bed. Naturally, we are supposed to pray at some of those times, too. Heck, we're supposed to "pray always," but I think that having a few specific times set aside for prayer can help us to remember to actually pray at those times and to make those prayers fairly special.

There was a time when I used to wear a watch with an hourly chime, and I made a mental note to say a quick, silent prayer whenever I heard that chime. That didn't happen every hour, but that was the idea.

Praying frequently and regularly is a more specific and measurable goal than the nebulous goal of praying always. Of course, we should always try to have a prayer in our hearts, but I don't see the harm in setting aside a few specific times for prayer as well.