Arak, Markazi Prov, 2007 Sep 6, IRNA 
 
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said here Thursday that Namaz (prayer) is the pillar of the Islamic thoughts and the true way to mankind's salvation.

"A religion without prayer is a body without soul," stressed the president in his address to the inauguration ceremony of national Namaz conference in this provincial city, 293 km southern capital Tehran.

At the end of the ceremony he left Arak for the holy city of Qom where he is to visit young religious preachers.

Parents played a key role in promoting the "culture of prayer" among their children, said the president in his address.

He urged all Iranians to promote religious principles in the society.

the 16th national Namaz (prayers) conference was inaugurated Thursday morning with a message by Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The two-day conference is attended by a large number of domestic religious figures.