Prayer is classed as intrinsically good because it is directed to worship: magnifying God, expressing servitude, remembering Him and submitting in humility. Its value is not merely a preparation for another religious action.
Nevertheless, the prescribed form of prayer—cycles, times, essential acts and conditions—is established through revelation. Reason may understand the goodness of worship, but it does not independently fix four cycles for the noon prayer.
Calling prayer intrinsically good therefore does not mean that its detailed form is left to personal choice. Intrinsic merit and prescribed performance must remain distinct.