Then comes the Du'á, which may be in the worshipper's own words though he usually says[[200]]:—
"O God our Lord, give us the blessings of this life, and also the blessings of life everlasting. Save us from the torments of hell."
Then turning the head to the right the Musallí repeats the Salám:—
"The peace and mercy of God be with you."
Then turning the head to the left he says:—
"The peace and mercy of God be with you."
At the close of the whole ceremony, the worshipper raises
his hands as high as his shoulders, with the palm towards heaven, or towards his own face, and offers up a Munáját, or supplication, either in Arabic or in the vernacular. The hands are then drawn over the face, as if to convey the blessing received from above to every part of the body.
The appointed periods of prayer are five in number, in proof of which the following text is quoted: "Glorify God when ye reach the evening (masá), and when ye rise at morn (subh); and to Him be praise in the heavens and in the earth,—and at twilight ('ashí) and when ye rest at noon (zuhr)." (Súra xxx. 17). The Commentators say that masá includes both sunset and the period after sunset; that is both the Salát-ul-Maghrib and the Salát-ul-'Ishá. There is also a reference to a stated period of prayer in the following verse: "Observe prayer at early morning, at the close of the day, and at the approach of night." (Súra xi. 116).
These daily Namáz are farz, sunnat, witr and nafl prayers. Farz are those distinctly ordained by God, such as the five stated periods of prayer.