Khushu' in Salah: III

One very important thing we must ensure prior to starting our salah is to observe proper covering. Not only is this an etiquette for standing in front your Lord, it will also serve to increase your Khushu' Inshallah. Prior to starting we must see if our clothing covers our satr and how easy it is to move in. The actions of the salah are not new to us, neither are salah timings a surprise; hence we must ensure that we are appropriately dressed. Imagine standing in front your boss at work, or someone respected and fidgeting with your clothes? You would never. Just think - we are presenting ourselves in front of THE Boss.
Another thing is to give each act of the salah its due haq- what that means is; when you go in ruku', say the tasbeeh slowly and properly. You hands must be on your knees, your head must be aligned with your back; this position must be fully observed before moving on to the next act. Then, when you stand in qauma; thats where you say Sami Allahu liman hamidah - it must look like you have stood up striaght and not like you rushed from your ruku to your sujood.
Between your sujood, ensure you sit back up properly. As the prophet saw said, till each bone is back in its place. Most of us dont even sit half way up, just go back down for our second sajdah. Kindly observe the rules of jalsa. Like so, give each act its due haq! Inshallah this will serve to better or increase your Khushu' in Salah

Khushu' in Salah: Wudu

Salah begins with wudu; hence to attain khushu in salah, we need to attain khushu in wudu. Here are some fard (obligatory)and mustahhab (preferred) elements of wudu.

Obligatory:
1) Niyyah to make wudu
2) Wash your face inclusive of rinsing you mouth and cleaning out your nose - once
3) Wash  your arms -once
4) Masah over your head inclusive of cleaning your ears
5) Wash your feet - once
6) Do it in this order only


Preferred:
1) Do miswak before wudu
2) Wash your hands uptil your wrists thrice
3) Repeat act 2,3 and 5 thrice
4) Rinse your mouth with your right hand and clean out your nose with your left hand

Say Bismillah (just that, not bismillahir rahmanir raheem) before beginning the wudu. This is obligatory in the view of some scholars while others consider it preferred.

We all probably do all of it anyway, but knowing is important, so if the need arises we can perform just the obligatory; for eg if there is a shortage of water, if you are in a public place where you cant be elaborate, etc  Also while we are performing preferred acts consciously and for the sake of Allah's pleasure and in the footsteps of our beloved prophet saw, i feel we most certainly renew our imaan.

Khushu' in Salah: II

For almost every action in salah, there are alternate adhkar that we can read. We usually keep reading the ones we were taught as kids. Take the time to add another dua to your vocabulary and Inshallah it will renew your  khushu'. For eg do you read Subhanak Allahumma wabihamdika when you begin ur salah? Do you know there atleast 2 other adhkar you can read here? Check Azkare- Masnoona or Hisnul Muslim for lovely adhkar we can learn Inshallah.

Khushu' in Salah: I

Here is one way to improve or increase your khushu in Salah: Change it up! You know how we always read the same surah in the certain rakahs - DONT! Switch the order or introduce new surahs to keep yourself alert, Inshallah.