Holy Qur’ān teach men to work hard for success in life, and lays down, in plain words, that “man can have nothing but what he strives for” (53:39), but it actually made the Arabs — the then most backward nation in the world — a nation of great leaders in all phases of life. And this great revolution was brought about only by awakening in them a desire for work and a zest for hard striving. Islām does teach man to pray, but prayer, instead of making him idle, is intended to prepare him for a still harder struggle, and to carry on that struggle in the face of failure and disappointment, by turning to God who is the Source of all strength. Thus prayer in Islām is only an incentive for work, and not a hindrance.