ght the Musalli repeats the Salam:--

"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 {198} his hands
as high as his shoulders, with the palm towards heaven, or towards his own
face, and offers up a Munajat, 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 (masa),
and when ye rise at morn (subh); and to Him be praise in the heavens and in
the earth,--and at twilight ('ashi) and when ye rest at noon (zuhr)." (Sura
xxx. 17). The Commentators say that masa includes both sunset and the
period after sunset; that is both the Salat-ul-Maghrib and the
Salat-ul-'Isha. 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." (Sura xi. 116).

These daily Namaz are farz, sunnat, witr and nafl prayers. Farz are those
distinctly ordained by God, such as the five stated periods of prayer.

Sunnat, a certain number of rak'ats which are added, because it is said the
Prophet repeated them.

Witr rak'ats are an odd number of rak'ats, 3, 5 or 7, which may be said
after the last prayer at night, and before the dawn of day. Usually they
are added to the Salat-ul-'Isha. Imam Abu Hanifa says they are wajib, that
is ordered by God. They are not authorised by any text in the Quran, but by
Traditions each of which is generally received as a Hadis-i-Sahih, and so
witr rak'ats are regarded as being of divine authority. Imam Shafa'i,
however, considers them to be sunnat only, a term already explained.

The Traditions referred to are: "God has added to your Namaz one Namaz
more: know that it is witr, say it between the Salat-ul-'Isha and dawn." On
the authority of Buzar, a Traditionist, it is recorded that the Prophet
{199} said: "Witr is wajib upon Muslims," and in order to enforce the
practice he added: "Witr is right, he who does not observe it is not my
follower." The Prophet, the Companions, the Taba'in and the Taba-i-Taba'in
all observed it. The word witr literally means "odd number." A Tradition
says: "God is odd, He loves the o