Chapter on the Merit of Prayer, and What is Obligatory and Recommended from It

Al-Husayn ibn Sa‘id from Fadalah from Husayn ibn Uthman from Sama‘ah from Abu Basir, who said: I heard Abu Ja‘far عليه السلام say: “Indeed, the first thing by which the servant is taken to account is the prayer. If it is accepted, then everything else will be accepted; and if the prayer is raised at its appointed time, it returns to its owner white and radiant, saying, ‘You preserved me, may Allah سبحانه وتعالى preserve you.’ But if it is raised at other than its time and without fulfilling its limits, it returns to its owner black and dark, saying; ‘You neglected me, may Allah سبحانه وتعالى neglect you.’”