Patent Application
20110056020
This invention relates to a prayer cushion for use during Islamic ritual prayers and more particularly to prayer cushions for reducing pain and the formation of black marks on the ankles and knees of individuals.
“Salaat,” the Islamic ritual prayer is an obligatory worship for each Muslim. The obligation is to pray five times a day, namely “Fajer” before the sun rises, “Thoher” at noon, “Aser” afternoon, “Magreb” when the sun sets, and “Isha” at night. During each prayer, the Islamic worshiper exercises prostrate 34 times and sit on their ankles for extended periods of time.
Many Islamic worshipers extend their prayers to include non-obligatory prayers in addition to the obligatory prayers to reach 50 prostrates during a day or even more during the days of the holy month of Ramadan. During such acts, worshipers suffer from pain at their ankles and at the lower part of their legs. At the same time, worshipers noted the emergence of a dark black spots at the ankles and knees (bruising) resulting from the continued contact and friction with carpets on rigid floors. This in turn has adversely affected a women's appearance.
Some worshipers have attempted to use a normal cushion or pillows during prayers to reduce friction and pain. However, such attempts have been less than satisfactory. The cushion and pillows were less than convenient and failed to cover all areas of friction, were uncomfortable during the prostrate and sitting positions and at times made it difficult to maintain ones balance. Further, the cushions and pillows were not easy to carry.
In view of the above, it has now been determined that there is a need and a potential market for a customized prayer cushion that meets the needs of Muslims and is at the same time compact, convenient to carry, and convenient to use. It is also been found that a prayer cushion in accordance with the present invention reduces pain in the ankles and lower legs of worshipers, facilitates prayer and leads to a more meaningful experience on the part of the worshiper.
In essence, the present invention contemplates a prayer cushion for use during Islamic ritual prayers to reduce pain in a worshipers ankles and lower legs and to eliminate the formation of black marks (bruising) on the individual's knees and ankles. The prayer cushion comprises a generally rectangular pad of hollow polyester fibers and a layer of soft cotton on top of the hollow polyester fibers. The cushion in accordance with the present invention has the width of approximately 50 cm, a length of between about 25 cm and about 50 cm and a thickness of about 14 cm. The cushion also defines two longitudinally extending floor engaging channels extending forwardly from the rear edge of the cushion. The channels may be relatively short in length and only need to accommodate a portion of the worshiper's feet. The channels also each have a width of about 12 cm and a height of about 8 cm.
The invention will now be described in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein like reference numerals have been used to indicate like parts.
In performing “Salaat” the Islamic ritual prayer an individual should recognize that the individual's body, clothes and place of prayer must be clean. The worshiper then performs wudu, the ritual ablution. Women are required to cover their hair and their whole body except for their face and hands and to face the Qibla (the direction of Mecca). The individual then stands erect with their head down, hands at sides and feet evenly spaced, and express their intent to perform Salaat.
To begin the Salaat, worshipers stand, puts the world behind them and brings his/her hands to his ears with palms forward and thumbs behind the earlopes and say God is Great in Arabic.
The worshiper then places his/her right hand over his left, men below the navel, women at chest level, look at the ground in front of him/her and recite the Opening Supplication (see for example
Referring now to
In the Qu'ud the worshiper raises to a sitting position looking at the lap, men turn up the heel of the right foot, with right toes bent while women keep both feet, soles up under the body in a flat position as shown in
By completing the above steps the worshiper will complete one Raka-a, depending on the prayer type and time, the worshiper will repeat the above steps 2 times for “AlFajer” prayer, 3 times for “Magreb” prayer and 4 times for “Thoher”, “Aser” and “Isha” prayers. After any two “Raka-a” in all prayers, the worshiper will be seated as shown in
While the invention has been described in connection with its preferred embodiments it should be recognized that changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the scope of the appended claims.
