Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

Dear Bro Burhan, could you please tell me, if when I pray namaz, is it OK to pray with ones eyes closed?

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

Answer:

Praying with eyes closed

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad(saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Holy Quran Chapter 33 Surah Ahzab verse 21:There is indeed the best model for you to follow, in the Messenger of Allah, for every such person looks forward to Allah and the Last Day, and remembers Allah much.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) always prayed with his eyes open and there is no authentic narration whereby he advised the believers to pray with their eyes open, or closed. Thus, it should not be considered a form of virtue to pray with one’s eyes closed, nor it is a sin.

It is upto the individual’s preference if he chooses to close his eyes while praying, especially if something is distracting him, or he thinks that he can concentrate better on the prayers by keeping his eyes closed. Both ways, his prayer will be valid.

But if one wants to follow the example of the Messenger of Allah (saws); he prayed with his eyes open.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan