His reward and obeying the commands of the Messenger (peace be upon him). Among the greatest deniable acts that must be avoided and warned against is the abandonment and neglect of Salah (prayer) and congregational Salah.
Guard strictly (five obligatory) AsSalawât (the prayers) especially the middle Salât (i.e. the best prayer – 'Asr).
And perform AsSalât (IqâmatasSalât), and give Zakât and bow down (or submit yourselves with obedience to Allâh) along with ArRaki'ûn.
What makes one a disbeliever and a polytheist is abandoning Salah (Prayer).
That which differentiates us from the disbelievers and hypocrites is our performance of Salah (Prayer). He who abandons it, becomes a disbeliever.
It is related in the Two Sahih (authentic) Books of Hadith (i.e. AlBukhari and Muslim)from Ibn `Umar that he said the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: Islam was based on five pillars: testimony that there is no God but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah; performing Salah (Prayer), giving Zakah; fasting Ramadan; and performing Hajj (pilgrimage).
Among the most important duties of Salah and the best declaration of the rites of Islam is performance of Salah (Prayer) in Masjids (mosques) in congregation as the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his Companions used to do.
I was going to order that the Salah (Prayer) be commenced, then order a man to lead the people in Salah, then I would go with some men having with them bundles of wood to a people not attending the Salah and burn their houses on them with fire.
Whoever heard the call (adhaan) and he did not come to it (Prayer), then there is no prayer for him except with an excuse.
Ibn Mas`ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "He who likes to meet Allah tomorrow as Muslim, he should keep to these prayers when a call is announced for them. Allah has laid down for your Prophet the paths of right guidance, and these (prayers) are among the paths of right guidance. If you were to pray in your houses as this man why stays away (from the mosque) prays in his house, you would abandon the practice of your Prophet, and if you were to abandon the practice of your Prophet, you would go astray. There is no man purifying himself, doing it well and going to one of these mosques without Allah recording a blessing for him; for every step he takes raises him a degree for it, and effaces a sin from him for it. I have seen the time when no one stayed away from it (Prayer in congregation) except a hypocrite, who was wellknown for his hypocrisy or a sick person, whereas a man would be brought swaying (due to weakness) between two men till he was set up in a row.(Related by Muslim).
Allah (Exalted be He) informed the people in His Book that neglecting Salah is one of the qualities of the hypocrites.
Verily, the hypocrites seek to deceive Allâh, but it is He Who deceives them. And when they stand up for AsSalât (the prayer), they stand with laziness and to be seen of men, and they do not remember Allâh but little.
And nothing prevents their contributions from being accepted from them except that they disbelieved in Allâh and in His Messenger (Muhammad ﺻﻠﻰ ﺍﷲ ﻋﻠﻴﻪ ﻭﺳﻠﻢ), and that they came not to AsSalât (the prayer) except in a lazy state, and that they offer not contributions but unwillingly.
It is related in the Two Sahih (authentic) Books of Hadith (i.e. AlBukhari and Muslim)that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: The most burdensome prayers for the hypocrites are the `Isha' (Night) Prayer and the Fajr (Dawn) Prayer. If they were to know the blessings they have in store, they would have come to them, even if they had to crawl.
So, it is obligatory on you, Muslims, to keep to the five obligatory daily Salah in Masjid, exchange advice, rebuke those who lag behind, abandon those who do this and not accompany them anymore until they repent to Allah (Exalted be He), follow the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his Companions and keep away from resembling the hypocrites whom Allah threatened with the lowest grade of the Fire.
We ask Allah to grant you and us safety, good health and success in all that pleases Him. May Allah reform our hearts and actions and make us fear Him and observe our actions before Him! We ask Him to make His religion superior, to let down His enemies, to guide our rulers and all the Muslim rulers to which pleases Him, to reform their retinues and to protect all Muslims from the misleading turmoil; Amen. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions!