Fatawa >Section Two: Prayer -- Chapter Three : General Guidelines of Prayers
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Section Two: Prayer -- Chapter Three : General Guidelines of Prayers
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We
have already discussed the types of prayer, be it obligatory or
voluntary, daily or otherwise, the format of each type, and the rules
governing each type. We have also discussed that all prayers have
certain features in common; this we have mentioned in broad terms.
Here
we will dwell on all aspects of prayers. For example, we now know that
ruku’ is a general feature of prayer. But how precisely should it be
done so that it can be deemed correct?
How low should the worshipper bow down?
What sorts of utterances can the worshipper safely embark on
while in ruku’? What is the alternative if the worshipper cannot do
ruku’ due to illness or the like?
These
are the areas we are going to deal with here; we will discuss the
general requisites first, then the main or general parts of prayer.
As
you may know, we have already discussed, in the Chapters dedicated to Taharah,
that for prayer to be accepted certain conditions have to be
fulfilled, in that the worshipper has to be in a state of taharah
both in body and in attire; there has to be wudhu or ghusl
in certain cases.
In
this Chapter, we will discuss the remaining conditions in some detail:
1.Qiblah
1.generally
speaking, qiblah means direction. Technically, though, it is
the direction where the Holy Ka’ba is situated. Allah, Glorified is
He, has ordained that in prayer we should set our faces in that
direction.
As
a result of making it a qiblah for all Muslims, the Holy
Ka’ba has become a symbol for their unity and one of the main
features of the identity of the Muslim Ummah. All Muslims,
irrespective of their persuasions, turn to that focal point as an
expression of unity in essence and goal.
The
Holy Ka’ba is not a qiblah as a building, rather a site that
extends both upward and downward. That is, if you were aboard a plane
and wanted to say prayer, it would suffice to face the qiblah.
If you were in a lower ground floor or in a basement and wanted to
pray, you can still face the Ka’ba.
Since
the earth is a globe, you can seldom have a straight line between the
worshipper in prayer and the Holy Ka’ba, in that most of what you
get is a curve. The yardstick of setting one’s face in the direction
of the qiblah is for the worshipper to choose the shortest of
the earth’s curvatures nearest to where they are and the Holy
Ka’ba.
Suppose
your place is situated north of the qiblah, i.e. some one
quarter of the distance away from the Equator. To determine the
direction of Ka’ba, you have to be standing facing south; facing
north will not yield the same result. That is because the curvature
that sets you apart from Ka’ba in the first instance is equal to one
quarter of the earth’s diameter, whereas in the second instance, the
curvature sets you apart by three quarters the distance. Thus, the
first line is shorter and through it the true facing of the qiblah
is materialized.
Setting
one’s face in the direction of qiblah is a prerequisite for
the acceptance of the five obligatory daily prayers in all their
parts, including the forgotten ones thereof, which are performed after
the prayer has been completed (precautionary ruku’, but not
sujood-as-sahu )Prostration for error).
Facing
the qiblah is also obligatory in all the other types of prayer,
be they wajib or mustahab, such as ayat prayer and prayer for
the dead.
2.There
are some exceptions though, e.g. in a supererogatory prayer said while
the person is in motion. The same applies to a passenger in a car,
ship, or plane while in motion. If the supererogatory prayer is said
while the worshipper is not in any of the previous situations, i.e.
stationary, it is not known that their prayer is valid, unless they
faced the qiblah, as is customary in any obligatory daily
prayer...
How
can the worshippers be sure that they are facing the qiblah?
3.It
goes without saying that those living close to the Holy Ka’ba, such
as the worshippers in the sanctuaryof the Grand Mosque where the
Ka’ba takes a center stage, are in a position to ascertain with a
degree of ease the direction of qiblah and as a result set
their face towards it. Those who live at a great distance from the
Ka’ba may face some difficulty in ascertaining the right position of
the qiblah; and as
the distance between their place of domicile or work grows bigger the
difficulty becomes more acute.
To
overcome this difficulty, people, in Iraq for instance, depended for
some time on the compass to determine the location of Mecca where the Ka’ba is. By
pinpointing South and North points, the direction of the Ka’ba can
be identified. That is, roughly in the South. However, for the
near-exact location, the degree of skewness of Mecca away from the South, because
it does not geographically lie
exactly in that direction, was taken into account. It was further
noticed that there was a degree of imprecision between the magnetic
South to which the hand in the compass points and the geographic South
according to which the degree of skewness of any given country lie
away from the South.
In
the light of these discoveries a special compass, used by the
worshippers for verifying the direction of the Ka’ba, has been
introduced.
Acting
according to this compass is permissible and therefore acceptable.
4.Should
the worshipper who lives far away not be in a position to determine
the direction of the Ka’ba, they can rely on any of the following
ways:
a.
The testimony, or information, of other Muslims of probity.
b.
What Muslims used to know as the direction of the qiblah,
especially the location of the prayer niche, usually pointing to the qiblah,
in their mosques.
c.
What Muslims used to practice in burying their dead, where the dead
body is usually laid to rest on its right side, facing the qiblah;
the graves in a cemetery is another indicator to the direction
of the qiblah.
However,
it is permissible for worshippers to rely on these devices, provided
that they do not have any information that the devices are erroneous.
5.
Personal investigation:
Should
none of the previous tools be available to the persons concerned, it
is obligatory on them to do their best in endeavoring to find the
direction of the qiblah. Acting on the basis of an informed
guess by observing the distinguishing marks and the evidence would be
in order. In this particular case, if a knowledgeable trustworthy
person informs them of the direction of the qiblah, they are
free to rely on the information of that person. That is, if their own
investigation did not lead them to an informed guess about the
direction of the qiblah, or such an informed guess concurred
with the person’s information.
A
situation may arise in that the informed guess of the worshippers
could lead them to a different direction from that of the trustworthy
person and that they remained wed to their own conviction. In such a
situation, they have, in order to absolve themselves of the
responsibility, to say their prayer twice, once in the direction they
themselves believe to be the right one and another in the direction
they were informed of by the trustworthy person. However, we are more
inclined to recommend that the worshipper should rely on the
information provided by the trustworthy person, and thus a prayer said
in that direction would suffice.
Should
the mukallaf exhaust all avenues only to come to nothing, not
even guesswork, one prayer said in any direction they choose would do.
That is, if all directions yield the same level of ambiguity; should
this not be the case, in that there may be some directions, which are
less ambiguous, they have to act according to that which is less
ambiguous.
Example:
The mukallaf may be inclined to think that there may be a more
than 50% chance that the qiblah may lie in one of two
directions. In such a case, they have to say their prayer facing one
of these two directions.
Veering
from the Qiblah
6.The
prayer is deemed batil, should they realize that they had said
it not facing the qiblah. That is, regardless of whether they
knew that Allah had ordained that it be said in the direction of the qiblah
or they were ignorant of the rule. However, should they be unaware of
the rule and their realization was that they were standing either to
the left or right of the correct direction, the ruling in considering
their prayer batil is based on obligatory precaution.
7.Once
they finished their prayer, which they mistakenly thought was
performed in the right direction, what should they
do?
A.
If they found out after the prayer time for that particular prayer was
already up, such a prayer should be in order;
accordingly, they do not have to incur anything. Should they
realize their mistake while there is still time for prayer,
they have to repeat it. That is, if the degree of digression from the qiblah
was great to the extent that it might have been to their right or
their left or their hind. If the degree of deviation was less than
that, no repeat prayer should be required.
8.What
if the worshippers realized the mistake while the prayer is still in
progress?
A.
Should the digression be great, as explained in the previous answer,
the prayer has to be cut short and a repeat prayer must
ensue.Otherwise, the worshippers must correct the angle at the moment
they knew of the problem; thus
their prayer should be deemed valid, i.e.they do not have to repeat
it.
2.What
Should be Worn during
Prayer
9.It
is obligatory on a man embarking on prayer to wear what covers his
private parts, irrespective of whether the prayer was performed in
private or in public. This is the minimum of clothing required
in prayer, i.e. a man is not allowed to pray naked.
For
a woman, all her body must be covered apart from the face, the hands,
and the feet. This covering is obligatory in all prayers, except when
performing prayer for the dead; it is also obligatory in precautionary
ruku’, and the forgotten parts of prayer, but not sujood-as-sahu.
10.
In an emergency, for a man to say prayer, it is sufficient that he
wears one garment covering the anterior and the posterior; it also
suffices if he wears a wrapper round his waist or a pair of trousers.
11.Women
should cover all their body including the hair, except the face and
the hands up to the wrists, and the feet up to the ankles, from the
front as well as the back. On this basis, a woman may wear a garment
capable of covering her body and a scarf to cover her head and neck;
indeed, she may wear one gown if it was designed to cover all
that which must be covered of her body.
12.Transparent
clothes, which can barely cover the color of the skin, would not do as
a substitute for the proper clothing required in prayer.
13.If
the worshippers do not have clothes, it is obligatory on them to cover
themselves with anything that could provide a cover, such as tree
leaves or mud. There and then they can say their prayer.
14.Should
tree leaves or the like not be available, they have to choose a
secluded place to say their prayer to avoid being looked at. If this
was not feasible, they should say their prayer seated and nodding for
both ruku’ and sujood, doing their best not to expose (more of their
body).
If
the mukallafs happened to be in a place where no onlookers are
present, they should perform their prayer in the usual manner.
However, they may, out of choice, repeat the prayer from a sitting
position, following the same procedure just mentioned.
15.Should
any part of the worshippers body, which should be covered in prayer,
be exposed and they came to know about it while prayer was
still in progress, yet they did not take remedial action to cover it,
their prayer shall be deemed null and void. However, where the
worshipper is not aware of the exposure, until they completed their
prayer, it should be valid; and they do not have to repeat it. The
same applies to him who is ignorant of
the fact that covering one’s body and private parts is
obligatory in prayer. That is, even if any of his body parts get
uncovered without him paying attention to that.
16.Should
the worshippers realize, while the prayer is still in progress, that a
part of their body got uncovered, their prayer still counts, in that
they do not have to repeat it. The same applies to the worshippers
who, through ignorance of the rules, say prayer without due care to
covering himself.
Conditions
Concerning Clothing
Worshippers
embarking on prayer may be wearing one garment, or a number of items,
to cover their body. However, no matter what type of clothes you
should be wearing, they must fulfill a number of conditions:
a.Taharah,
the details of which have already been discussed in the Chapter
concerning Najasah, paras.(48 and 71).
17.b.Any
clothing should not be made of the skin or hair of an animal whose
meat is not lawful to eat, such as that of any beast; that is, even if
such animals were killed according to the Islamic code of
slaughtering. Prayer said by the worshipper wearing such clothes is
not valid. Nevertheless, any part of such animal coming into contact
with the clothes or body of the worshipper will not render the prayer batil. For example, should the worshipper pray with a cat’s hair on
their clothes, their prayer is valid.
18.However,
this ban does not cover all parts of some other living beings, which
have no body mass, although eating them is not permissible. Things
like mosquitoes, flees, ants, honey and wax [produced by bees], and
what is produced by silkworms; pearl
shells are also outside the remit of this ban.
19.Things
that are linked to the human body, such as hair, milk etc, are also
not covered by such a ban, in that prayer is deemed in order even with
the presence of any part of these on the body or clothes of the
worshipper.
20.The
exemption of certain categories of animals among those whose meat is
not allowed for eating concerns those whose blood does not spurt out
when a blood their vessels are severed, be they land or marine
animals. Wearing clothes or other clothing items made with
]leather or fur[ of such animals in prayer is allowed.
21.Doubt
may arise as to the origin of an )x( item of clothing, i.e. whether it
be traced to an animal whose meat is unlawful or to that whose
meat is lawful. Such a doubt has no bearing on the validity or
otherwise of prayer performed with that item being worn.
22.c.Insofar
as men are concerned, they are not allowed to wear any garment made of
natural silk, i.e. that which is produced by silkworm;
however, synthetic silk and all other delicate soft fabrics are
allowed.
23.Prayer
would not be good enough, if it was performed by a person wearing pure
natural silk; should the
garment worn during prayer be made of blended material, it should be
in order, barring that the quantity of the non-silk material was so
minute that you can hardly trace it.
24.Is
it permissible to wear a garment whose lining is made of pure silk?
And is wearing such a garment in prayer sanctioned, if silk was
used in its embroidery or its other accessories?
A.
No, for the lining. The rest can be tolerated.
25.Doubt
may arise as to the material an (x) garment is made of, i.e. whether
it is made of silk or cotton, pure silk or synthetic, pure silk or a
blend, etc. Such doubt can be ruled out, in that it is permissible to
wear it in prayer.
26.The
ban on [men] wearing silk is not confined to prayer. It is banned
throughout as will be discussed.
27.Women,
however, are allowed to wear silk clothes, be it in prayer or outside
it.
28.d.
Men are not allowed to wear anything made of gold, be it gold ring,
watch strap, or pocket watch chain. Prayer is not deemed good enough,
if it was said with the man wearing a ring. As for the watch chain,
the worshipper is urged, as a matter of ihtiyat and wajib, not to wear
it during prayer.
29.However,
men are allowed to carry gold watches in their pockets, use gold
crowns on their teeth, gold buttons, and military gold emblems and
medals. This does not amount to wearing gold. The criterion for
wearing gold is that when the gold item is worn, it should form a ring
around any part or limb of the man’s body. This is true of the ring,
the bracelet or strap; but
it is not true of the carried watch or the button.
30.Just
as it is not permissible to wear a pure gold ring, so is it not
permissible to wear it, if it contained metals other than gold;
that said, the percentage of any blend of metal should be
minimal, in that such a ring would still be recognized as gold
according to established practice )urf(.Should the percentage of other
metals be such that it can no longer be called gold, it is permissible
to wear it during prayer. If the ring was made of gold, but was plated
with silver or any other metal, wearing it during prayer is not
permissible.
31.Prayer
is permissible with the worshipper wearing a platinum ring. So is it
permissible to wear during prayer a ring made of gold that is blended
with a white metal such as platinum or silver;
yet, the ring in question can no longer be called gold because
it has lost its golden color, in that it has become conspicuously
white, so much so that it could be said it is not gold. But, if
it still can be called gold, the change of color to a non-golden one
would not affect the ruling ]of prohibition].
32.All
gold items of jewelry that are forbidden during prayer are equally not
permissible to wear outside prayer because wearing them is absolutely unlawful
for men.
33.Women
are free to wear gold jewelry, be it during prayer or otherwise.
34.It
is not permissible for any mukallafs to usurp an item of
clothing to wear during prayer. Should they wear it, they would be
guilty, regardless of whether they said their prayer wearing it or
not. If they went ahead and performed prayer in that usurped garment,
such a prayer is deemed null and void;
that is, if they were aware of the fact that their action,
[i.e. usurpation]is unlawful, and that the garment was big
enough to cover the private parts, as a matter of obligatory
precaution; if it is not
the case, i.e. without it being big enough to cover the private parts,
prayer would not be deemed batil.
Should
we assume that the perpetrator was ignorant, their prayer should be
valid, although ihtiyat must be followed where the ignorant person was
both aware of the rule and negligent.
35.The
worshippers may take to prayer wearing that which is not allowed, be
it taken from an animal whose meat is not lawful to eat, silk
garment, gold ring, yet they are not aware or are ignorant that they
are not allowed to do so. In such a case, their prayer is valid;
they are not required to repeat it after they have completed
it, should they come to know about the rule. Should they become aware
of the rule during prayer, their prayer can still be judged valid, if
they hastened to take off the forbidden item they were wearing.
36.In
the event of the non-availability of an item of clothes, apart from
one that is najis, prayer in such a garment would be deemed
valid, provided that the worshipper was not in a position to render
the garment tahir.
37.During
prayer the worshippers may [become aware] that the garment they are
wearing is made of material taken from an animal whose meat is not
permissible to eat. They have to take it off, and, where possible,
cover themselves with anything available, such as tree leaves.
38.In
case one garment, made of pure silk, was available,
the worshippers should not contemplate wearing it. The
alternative is that they should say their prayer naked, sparing no
effort to cover their private parts by way of tree leaves or such
like. Should the worshipper not be in a position to take off that
garment for any good reason, such as illness, they are allowed to say
their prayer in the said garment, provided that it was not feasible,
during prayer time, to take it off.
39.The
worshipper may have the choice to wear one of two garments, one is unlawful
to wear at all time, including in prayer, such as that made of pure
silk; the other is
permissible to wear at all time. However, it was not feasible to
distinguish the lawful from the unlawful. Should there be no third
garment, the worshipper should say their prayer without either,
endeavoring in the process to cover their private parts with tree
leaves or the like.
40.Suppose
both garments were lawful to wear outside prayer. However, one of them
you cannot wear in prayer, such as that made of fur of the beast, and
the other you can, such as that made of cotton. Should you be in a
position whereby you cannot tell which is which, you have to say
prayer twice, once in each of the two garments.
41.It
is permissible for the worshippers who are unable to acquire the
garment that is lawful to say prayer with, to hasten to say their
prayer on its prime time, either naked or using any emergency covering
as has already been discussed. That is, even if there was a
possibility that the situation might not prevail until the end of
prayer time.
However,
the said worshippers might
have said prayer during the early part of prayer time without the
garment that is sanctioned by Shari’a After a short while,
while there was still time for prayer, they came by a garment which
can be worn during prayer. In such a case, the worshipper is not
required to repeat their prayer, except in the case where the
worshippers state is that they cannot say their prayer only by way of
nodding to suggest that what they are doing is sojood.
3.The
Place of Prayer
42.The
worshippers must choose a place where they can perform their prayer
with all its requirements while in a stable position. That is, praying
in a place which is in constant motion, e.g. on a plane, car, boat,
train, or mounted should be avoided, especially if it entails
instability of the worshipper in prayers to the extent that it becomes
difficult to maintain one’s position in relation to the direction of
qiblah. But supposing that they could, there is no objection to
praying in such places.
43.The
worshippers may board a train or a plane before
prayer time. However, when the time sets in, they could not
perform prayer fully in a stable condition; in this case, they either
postpone the prayer until they disembark, time permitting, or, if this
was not feasible, perform it, doing their best to keep steady and keep
staying put in the direction of qiblah, at least when uttering takbiratul
ihram.
44.Suppose
a traveling person knew that they would reach their destination just
before, say, sunrise, leaving just enough time for performing one ruku’
of subh prayer within the time allowed. Is it preferable to say
one’s prayer on board the means of transport or to wait until one
gets off?
A.
If the prayer that particular means of transport lacked both
steadiness and facing the qiblah or just the latter, it is
obligatory to wait ]until one arrives to one’s destination[.If it
lacked steadiness, it becomes obligatory to say one’s prayer on
board the means of transport they happen to be using.
45.It
may be possible for a person traveling in a car to stop en-route to
say their prayer. Yet, they are not allowed to perform their prayer,
if they were not sure of maintaining a position in the direction of
the qiblah, nor were they sure of achieving stability while in
a standing position in that prayer.
The
time for a given prayer may enter while the traveler’s plane or
train is not yet due. Furthermore, the journey may take all the time
of prayer and more. In such a case, the mukallaf must hasten to
say prayer before embarking on their journey. That is, if it is not
possible to say it on board.
46.All
what we have been discussing thus far applies to the obligatory daily
prayers. Any supererogatory prayer can be performed aboard the means
of transport the traveler happens to be using. That is, the traveller
is not required to observe facing the qiblah, nor are they
required to maintain a steady posture while praying.
47.Praying
in the immediate vicinity of the tomb of the infallible, can one
occupy a place which could be seen that they are turning their back to
the grave?
A.
Apparently, it is permissible, unless
it constitutes an act of sacrilege as espoused by the generality of
men and women , which varies from place to place and community to
community.
48.A
worshipper might perform his prayer in a place with the permission of
the owner. Such a prayer is no doubt valid. However, in certain
circumstances it might be deemed invalid. This is going to be
discussed later on under the Rules of Sujood.
49.There
is no harm in a man praying in a place with a woman praying nearby. It
does not matter whether the woman was related to him or not, neither
does it matter whether she was close to him or at some distance, to
his right or left, in front or behind him.
50.It
is permissible for a person to say their prayer inside the Holy
Ka’ba.
4.The
Niyyah
The
three elements which constitute the niyyah:
51.Niyyah
is a prerequisite for each and every prayer. That is, it has to
fulfill the following:
a. There
has to be niyyah of qurbah because prayer is an act of
worship and thus it would not be good enough without such a niyyah,
as has already been discussed in the Chapter dealing with Acts of
Worship.
b.
Genuine intention. That is, it should not be tinged with any
hypocrisy as it is unlawful and thus nullifies prayer. This too
has already been discussed in the Chapter on Acts of Worship.
c.
Naming
the particular prayer one intends to perform, such as subh, dhuhr, asr,
maghrib, isha’ and their twin supererogatory prayers, Juma’,ayat,
late night, eid, istisqa’ prayers, etc. If the worshippers want to
pray a two-rak’a voluntary prayer, they must observe the niyyah
of qurbah in a general sense.
The
number of ruka’s of any prayer is immaterial, be it similar to
another one, like dhuhr, asr, and isha’ or a unique one, like
Maghrib, i.e. being a
three-rak’a prayer. That is, you have to call the prayer you are
embarking on by its own name.
Thus,
the intention to perform any particular prayer becomes an obligation
in its own right, regardless of whether or not there be room for
getting it wrong. However, we maintain that the intention had to be
linked to the name of the prayer in hand, i.e. there might arise
confusion (ishtibah) without it.
Accordingly,
this condition has been considered as one of the prerequisites of niyyah
-which should not be the case. That is, intending to perform prayer
while in one’s all senses, cannot be separated from naming the
particular prayer in hand.
52.The
first two conditions have to be observed in all parts of prayer, right
from takbiratul ihram to the end. However, this does not mean
that niyyah should be made ahead of prayer, nay it should not
be delayed beyond the first of its parts, i.e.takbiratul
ihram.
Furthermore,
in saying that "niyyah has to be present throughout
prayer" should not mean that the worshippers must be fully aware
of the niyyah at all time as though they were in the moment of
its inception.That is, if the worshippers made niyyah, followed
it by takbiratul ihram, and carried on with their prayer, then
forgot about the niyyah, their prayer would be valid so long as
the niyyah is still deep-seated in their mind so much so that
if they were asked what they were doing, they would readily reply:
We are praying to seek nearness to Allah.
53.As
for the intention to say the particular prayer, as called for by the Shari’a,
it must be present throughout. That is, if, while the prayer is still
in progress, the worshipper had in mind some other prayer and finished
it as such, their originally intended prayer would be invalid, except
in two cases:
54.a.The
apparent switch )from one niyyah to another( must have been
triggered by forgetfulness or absent-mindedness. For example, if you
embarked on subh prayer, thinking while prayer was still in progress
that you were praying a supererogatory one, and completing it as such,
a prayer thus performed is valid and will count as subh. The opposite
is true as well.In short, what counts at the end of the day is the
original motivation or intention, and that transient absent-mindedness
does not have any bearing on the end result.
55.b.The
switching of niyyah from one prayer to the other is confined to
the cases where it is permissible.
For
example, suppose you were praying asr only
to remember that you did not say dhuhr. In such a case, you can switch
niyyah from asr to dhuhr and complete your prayer as dhuhr.
Another
example could be that of a person praying isha’, who, before the
last ruka’, remembered that they did not perform maghrib prayer;
the switch to maghrib here is also justified.
A
third example could be of a person who, while in prayer, remembered
that they should be performing another qadha’ prayer whose time has
preceded the one in hand and that both tally in the number of ruka’s.
They are permitted to make the switch.
56.The
worshipper may switch niyyah to another prayer where such a
switch is not permissible, such as from dhuhr to asr. Yet, having done
that, they reverted to the niyyah of dhuhr. Is it permissible
for them to do that?
A.It
depends on what stage of prayer they were in. However, if they have
just started, there is no problem in that. If they have executed any
major part of prayer, which cannot be rectified, such as ruku’, the
prayer is deemed invalid, in that it should not count, even if it was
completed. If the part which has been executed is of the type which
can be retaken, such as tashahhud, it could be repeated with the newly
adopted niyyah. That is, if the switch was from asr to dhuhr,
the prayer is valid as dhuhr, provided that tashahhud is repeated to
suit the new niyyah.
More
details of what can or cannot be repeated will be discussed later on.
57.Once
the worshippers resolved which prayer they were going to say, it is
not necessary that they state the name of the day it was intended for.
So, if it was dhuhr, they do not need to allocate it for today or a
previous day they.
58.The
worshippers may inadvertently make niyyah for an obligatory
daily prayer for a day that has passed, only to realize after they had
finished that it was for the current day not the one that had already
passed. Such a prayer is valid, in that they do not have to repeat it.
This applies too, if the situation was the reverse.
Questions
on the Three Prerequisites
59.a.Some
prayers are obligatory whereas others are voluntary. Should the
worshipper always be alert, i.e.insofar as niyyah is concerned,
as to the nature of particular prayer they are performing?
A.It
is not a must so long as the worshipper is obedient to Allah’s
injunctions.
60.b.hypocrisy
off could impinge on the major parts of one’s prayer, thus rendering
it invalid. It could be confined to the general format of prayer and
the voluntary acts that may go into it. Does such hypocrisy detract
from the validity of prayer?
A.Voluntary
acts connected to prayer may vary and be distinguished from its
integral obligatory parts. Qunoot is one of these voluntary acts; in
other instances, it could be a general state that characterizes the
way prayer is performed, such as performing it in the mosque or on its
prime time.
As
for the first case [i.e.qunoot], showing off should not invalidate
prayer; nevertheless, the worshipper will be deemed guilty for
resorting to hypocrisy. There are two interpretations for the second
case:
1.The
mukallafs could be intent on deception at the outset, i.e.
whether or not they prayed. For example, they may aim, from being in
the mosque, to give the impression to others that they are among those
who frequent the mosque; if
it so happened that they said prayer for the sake of Allah, such
prayer would be in order.
2.The
mukallaf could be intent on pulling the wool over the eyes of
the others For example,
the intent of the mukallaf for being in the mosque could merely
be to show that they are keen
on choosing what is best for the sake of saying their prayer. A prayer
thus performed is invalid.
61.c.Worshippers
may embark on prayer. At some stage in their prayer, they decide to
cut it short, or do that which invalidates it. What is the ruling in
such a case?
A.
Should they choose to revert to their original niyyah before
executing any part of it or doing that which contravenes and renders
it invalid, their prayer is valid, if they complete it as it ought to
be performed.
Should
they finish the prayer while still in a state of a limbo insofar as
the niyyah of either breaking the prayer or doing that which
invalidates it, or remained undecided between breaking and finishing
it, their prayer is deemed invalid, even if they did not do anything
that may detract from it in any way.
If
the mukallafs executed any part thereof after they had decided
on the niyyah of cutting the prayer short, only to revert to
their original niyyah, there may be a number of issues to
consider:
In
the event of having executed ruku’ or sujood, the prayer should be
deemed invalid. If it was other parts or acts of prayer, such as
tashahhud, the recitation of suratul-Fatiha or dhikr, the prayer is
deemed invalid, had they made the niyyah that tashahhud was
part of the prayer they intended to break.Had this not been their
intention, in that they recited tashahhud as a unit independent of
prayer, they may, if they had changed their minds regarding the niyyah
of breaking the prayer, repeat
same at the time of change and carry on with their prayer. They do not
need to do anything else.
The
Case for Doubt
62.The
worshippers may embark on their prayer with a lingering doubt that
they might not be in a position to finish it. For example, you could
be saying your prayer in a place renowned for its overcrowding, such
as al Masjidil Unlawful during
the pilgrimage season.
Right
from the start, you were hoping that you would be able to finish your
prayer without being forced to duck and weave. Should this
materialize, i.e. saying your entire prayer while still maintaining a
steady position, your prayer shall be in order and therefore accepted.
63.Crecps
say their prayer in public but doubt crept into their mind as to
whether or not they had intended the prayer . Those - who for, the
sake of being seen by others, such prayer does not count.
64.Those
who say their prayer in public, knowing fully well that they are
doing so for the sake of Allah, however, they start having
second thoughts that they might be showing off. That is, they made
people party to Allah in their motives. This should not detract from
the validity of prayer.
65.Someone
embarked on an obligatory daily prayer. At some stage in the prayer,
they could not determine whether it was dhuhr or asr prayer they were
performing. What should they do?
A.
If they have not said dhuhr before that, they should assume that the
prayer in hand is that of dhuhr and finish it as such. They could then
say asr. If they have already said asr, the prayer in hand is invalid.
They have to start afresh with the niyyah of asr. The same goes
for the other prayers, maghrib and isha’, unless they have already
done the fourth ruka’.
66.Suppose
someone prepared for dhuhr prayer on a given day. Once they embarked
on it, having completed quite a portion of it, they started having
second thoughts as to whether it was really the same prayer they set
out to perform or it could be that they have made niyyah for a
missed prayer which they did not intend to say. Such a prayer is
invalid. Accordingly, the person must start afresh with a definite niyyah
for a definite prayer.
67.A
person may embark on a particular prayer for the day, only to find
themselves not able to decide whether the prayer in hand was really
for that day or for a previous day. They may even have doubts as to
the nature of prayer, i.e. whether it was an obligatory daily prayer
or a supererogatory one. Such a prayer is not good enough. Thus, the
worshipper must start anew determining a proper niyyah.
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