Hayya Al Al-Falah

It all began in Ramadan of 2012, when a group of my friends made a small what’s App group to share lessons about the Quran and Islam. We called our group, “Ramadan Lessons”. After Ramadan that year, we continued to exchange Islamic posts and general good will messages. The group kept growing and exceeded more than a hundred and fifty members with several sub-groups. I used to teach Quran in Lahore during that time, so I started sending my audio-recorded lessons in these groups as well. We changed the name of group to “Quran Lessons” and carried on until Ramadan 2013. Around this time, one of our worthy members suggested the name, “Hayya al al Falah” and the rest, as they say, is history. Hayya al al Falah means, “come to success!” Although, the English word, “success” cannot capture the essence of Arabic “Falah”, however, it hints at the meaning. This phrase is part of the call to prayer in Islam, called five times a day. Prayer symbolizes everything that a believer wishes to express in front of his creator, the Almighty Allah. We stand in humility and surrender to His will, performing our prayers as ordained by Him and taught to us by our Prophet Muhammad, (Peace be upon him). Our prayers represent or at least, are supposed to represent, our effort to reach our creator and find eternal success. What is the success that we are looking for? Why is this falah so important that we are called to it ten times every day? Why does the Quran mention this term in different grammatical forms more than twenty times, each time associated with glad tidings for the most successful believers who will enter the paradise, the gardens of eternity, and the heaven? We hope to be able to answer these questions and many more in light of the teachings of Quran and examples from the life of our Prophet Muhammad, (peace be upon him) and from lives of his blessed companions, (Allah be Pleased with them, all).