---
title: "Prayer as the Foundation for Enjoining Good and Forbidding Evil"
author: "adrian preece"
published_at: "2026-10-19"
canonical_url: "https://www.truthpromoters.com/reflections/prayer-as-the-foundation-for-enjoining-good-and-forbidding-evil"
type: "reflection"
scripture_reference: "Mafatih al-Jinan, Visitations (Ziyarat), Supplications after the Ziyarat of the Imam (AS) and after Obligatory and Supererogatory Prayers in Najaf al-Ashraf, Line 2"
---

# Prayer as the Foundation for Enjoining Good and Forbidding Evil

God willed for humanity to embody the prophetic spirit through servitude, shedding blameworthy traits and actively removing them from others. As Al-Mizan explains, the nature of prayer restrains the believer from indecency and wrongdoing, creating a reverent concentration that hinders major sins. This internal restraint is not merely personal; it compels the believer to extend this moral influence outward, transforming private worship into a public duty to guide society away from evil.

Consequently, the imperative to establish prayer serves as the foundation for enjoining good and forbidding the blameworthy. This message encompasses all aspects of existence, requiring vigilance against indecency in personal, social, political, and economic spheres. By understanding that 'good' represents everything God desires for life and 'blameworthy' what He rejects, the believer recognises that their daily worship is the source of a comprehensive moral mission.

## Scripture

> وَ لا تَجْعَلْهُ لَنَا أَشَراً وَ لا بَطَراً وَ لا فِتْنَةً وَ لا مَقْتاً وَ لا عَذَاباً وَ لا خِزْياً فِي الدُّنْيَا وَ الْآخِرَةِ اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّا نَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ عَثْرَةِ اللِّسَانِ وَ سُوءِ الْمَقَامِ وَ خِفَّةِ الْمِيزَانِ اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ وَ آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ وَ لَقِّنَا حَسَنَاتِنَا فِي الْمَمَاتِ وَ لا تُرِنَا أَعْمَالَنَا حَسَرَاتٍ وَ لا تُخْزِنَا عِنْدَ قَضَائِكَ وَ لا تَفْضَحْنَا بِسَيِّئَاتِنَا يَوْمَ نَلْقَاكَ وَ اجْعَلْ قُلُوبَنَا تَذْكُرُكَ وَ لا تَنْسَاكَ وَ تَخْشَاكَ كَأَنَّهَا تَرَاكَ حَتَّى نَلْقَاكَ وَ صَلِّ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ وَ آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ وَ بَدِّلْ سَيِّئَاتِنَا حَسَنَاتٍ وَ اجْعَلْ حَسَنَاتِنَا دَرَجَاتٍ وَ اجْعَلْ دَرَجَاتِنَا غُرُفَاتٍ وَ اجْعَلْ غُرُفَاتِنَا عَالِيَاتٍ .
>
> And do not make it for us a source of arrogance, tyranny, sedition, rancor, punishment, and disgrace in this world and the Hereafter. O Allah, we seek refuge in You from the slip of the tongue, the evil of one's station, and the lightness of the scale of deeds. O Allah, send blessings upon Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, and deliver our good deeds to us at the time of our death, and do not make our deeds a cause of regret for us, and do not shame us at the time of judgment, and do not expose us through our evil deeds. On the day we meet You, make our hearts such that they remember You and do not forget You, and fear You as though they see You, until the time we meet You. And send blessings upon Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, and transform our evil deeds into good deeds, and our good deeds into ranks, and our ranks into chambers of Paradise, and make our chambers lofty.

— *Mafatih al-Jinan, Visitations (Ziyarat), Supplications after the Ziyarat of the Imam (AS) and after Obligatory and Supererogatory Prayers in Najaf al-Ashraf, Line 2*

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