Becoming Muslim and learning to pray

You become Muslim by saying the shahada, the declaration of faith, sincerely and understanding what it means: "I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, and I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah." There is no fee, no exam and no waiting period. After that, the first thing to learn is the prayer.

Muslims pray five times a day. Each prayer is made of units called rakat, and every rakat follows the same order: standing and reciting Al-Fatiha, bowing, rising, and two prostrations with a short sitting between them. The easiest place to start is Fajr, the two-rakat dawn prayer.

Wudu is the washing you do before prayer. You make the intention, say Bismillah, then wash your hands, mouth, nose, face and arms, wipe your head and ears, and wash your feet. Most parts are washed three times, starting with the right side.

The five daily prayers have 17 obligatory rakat in total: Fajr 2, Dhuhr 4, Asr 4, Maghrib 3 and Isha 4. These numbers are the same in every school. On Friday, the two rakat of Jumu'ah at the mosque take the place of Dhuhr.

Each position of the prayer has its own short words. You say "Allahu Akbar" at every movement, recite Al-Fatiha while standing, "Subhana Rabbiyal Adheem" while bowing, "Subhana Rabbiyal A'la" in prostration, and you end with the Tashahhud and "Assalamu 'alaykum wa rahmatullah".

Al-Fatiha, "The Opening", is the first chapter of the Quran (1:1-7). It has seven verses and is recited in every rakat of every prayer. Below is each verse in Arabic, in transliteration and in English.

The Tashahhud is the testimony you recite while sitting in prayer, starting "At-tahiyyatu lillahi". In a two-rakat prayer you recite it once at the end; in three and four-rakat prayers you also recite it after the second rakat. In the final sitting, you follow it with the salawat on the Prophet (peace be upon him).

Wudu is broken by using the bathroom, passing gas, deep sleep and losing consciousness. On a few other things, such as bleeding or vomiting, the four schools differ, so follow your school. Once wudu is broken, you make a new one before the next prayer.

Dua is talking to Allah in your own words, at any time and in any language. A good way is to raise your hands, praise Allah, send blessings on the Prophet (peace be upon him), ask for what you need, and close with salawat and "Ameen".

In Ramadan, Muslims fast from dawn (Fajr) to sunset (Maghrib): no eating, drinking or smoking. You make the intention to fast in your heart, eat suhoor before dawn, and break the fast at sunset with dates and water. You do not have to do everything in your first year; start with the fast and the five prayers.

Maghrib, the sunset prayer, has 3 rakat. Pray the first two like Fajr, then sit and recite only the Tashahhud, stand for a third rakat with Al-Fatiha alone, and end with the full final sitting and salam. Its time begins right after sunset.

Dhuhr, Asr and Isha each have 4 rakat. The first two rakat have Al-Fatiha and a short surah, followed by a sitting with the Tashahhud only. Then you stand for two more rakat with Al-Fatiha alone, and end with the Tashahhud, the salawat and salam.

After Al-Fatiha in the first two rakat, you recite a short surah. Any surah is fine, and the easiest to start with is Al-Ikhlas, only four short verses. Al-Kawthar, Al-Asr, Al-Kafirun, Al-Falaq and An-Nas are also short and common.

Muslims use a handful of short phrases every day: "Assalamu alaikum" to greet, "Bismillah" before you begin something, "Alhamdulillah" to thank Allah, "InshaAllah" for plans, "MashaAllah" to admire, and "JazakAllahu khairan" to thank someone. Each one is a small dua, and they are the easiest place to start as a new Muslim.

After the salam, the sunnah is to stay seated for a few minutes of remembrance: say "Astaghfirullah" three times, then "Allahumma antas-salam", then SubhanAllah, Alhamdulillah and Allahu Akbar 33 times each, and complete the hundred with "La ilaha illallahu wahdahu la sharika lah". Many also recite Ayatul Kursi.

Ayatul Kursi, the Verse of the Throne, is verse 255 of Surah Al-Baqarah. It describes the oneness, life, knowledge and power of Allah. Muslims recite it after each obligatory prayer and before sleeping, and it is easiest to learn in seven short parts.

No. During her period, and during postnatal bleeding after childbirth, a woman does not pray, and the missed prayers are not made up afterwards. She also does not fast, but missed Ramadan fasts are made up later. When the bleeding ends she takes a ghusl and returns to prayer.

Ghusl is the full ritual bath in which water reaches the whole body. It is required after sexual intercourse, after a sexual discharge, and when a period or postnatal bleeding ends, before you can pray again. New Muslims are also told to take a ghusl after the shahada.

Wear clean clothes that cover what must be covered. Men cover at least from the navel to the knees, and it is sunnah to cover the shoulders. Women cover the whole body except the face and hands; the schools differ on the feet. The clothes and the place you pray on must be clean.

Sunnah prayers are extra prayers the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to pray besides the five obligatory ones. They are rewarded but not required. The most emphasised are the two rakat before Fajr and the Witr at night. As a new Muslim, start with the five obligatory prayers and add sunnah prayers later.

Start with a good translation in your own language to understand the message, and learn the short surahs you recite in prayer by listening and repeating. Alongside, learn the Arabic letters slowly, with a teacher or a beginner reading book, so you can one day read the Quran itself.

Most food is halal. The Quran forbids pork, blood, the meat of animals that died without being slaughtered, and meat dedicated to other than Allah, and it forbids alcohol and other intoxicants. Meat should come from an animal slaughtered in the name of Allah. Fruit, vegetables, grains, dairy, eggs and fish are halal.

You can pray in any clean place at home, in your own room with the door closed, and most prayer windows are long enough to find a quiet moment. When you pray alone, a low voice is enough in every school. Islam asks you to keep praying and to keep treating your family with kindness, even when they do not share your faith.

Pray it as soon as you remember or wake up. A missed prayer is made up (qada) with the same number of rakat, in the same way, with the intention of making up that prayer. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "Whoever forgets a prayer, let him pray it when he remembers it" (Bukhari and Muslim). Then carry on with your day and the next prayer.

Most mistakes made by forgetting are fixed with sujud as-sahw: two extra prostrations near the end of the prayer. You do them if you forget a required part such as the middle Tashahhud, if you add something by mistake such as an extra rakat, or if you lose count. If you lose count, go with the lower number, finish the prayer, and make the two prostrations.