“Daddy, why do we pray?”

Her question caught me off guard. I didn’t expect it from an eight year
old. I knew of course the most obvious answer—that as Muslims we are
obligated to—but I did not want to waste the opportunity to share with her
the experience and benefits of salah. Nevertheless, as I tried to put
together a reply in my mind, I bought a little time by beginning with, ‘We
pray because God wants us to!’

‘But why, daddy, what does praying do?’ she asked.

‘It is hard to explain to a young person, honey. Someday, if you do the
five prayers every day, I’m sure you’ll understand, but I’ll do my best to
answer your question.’

‘You see, sweetheart. God is the source of all the love, mercy, kindness,
and wisdom—of all the beauty—that we experience and feel. Like the sun is
the source of the light we see in the daytime, God is the source of all of
these and much more. Thus, the love I feel for you, your sisters, and
mommy is given to me by God. We know that God is kind and merciful by all
the things He has given us in this life. But when we pray, we can feel
God’s love, kindness, and mercy in a very special way, in the most
powerful way.

For example, you know that mommy and I love you by the way we take care of
you. But when we hug you and kiss you, you can really feel how much we
love you. In a similar way, we know that God loves and is kind to us by
the way He takes care of us. But when we pray, we can feel His love in a
very real and special way.’

‘Does praying make you a better daddy?’ She asked me.

‘I hope so and I would like to think so, because once you are touched by
God’s love and kindness in the prayer, it is so beautiful and powerful,
that you need to share it with those around you, especially your family.
Sometimes, after a hard day at work, I feel so exhausted that I just want
to be alone. But if I feel God’s kindness and mercy in the prayer, I look
at my family and remember what a great gift you are to me, and all the
love and happiness I get from being your daddy and mommy’s husband. I’m
not say­ing that I am the perfect father, but I believe I would not be as
good a father without the prayers. Am I making any sense at all?’

‘I kind of understand what you mean,’ Jameelah answered.

Then she hugged me and said, ‘And I love you, Daddy!’

‘I love you too, sweetie pie. I love you too.’

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