Can I Make Up Missed Prayers Sitting Down?
Hanafi Fiqh
Answered by Ustadh Sufyan Qufi
Question
I needed to ask whether it’s permissible for me to perform qada salah while seated since I have a lot to make up for (10 years of missed prayers), and I’m afraid of exhaustion if I perform a fixed amount every day, say 20.
If I were to perform five qada every day, it would take me ten years to settle my debt, and I do not feel safe going for so long without doing so entirely, so I want to increase in number every day.
Am I allowed, with given intention, to perform qada salah exclusively, seated?
Answer
In the name of Allah, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful,
Validity of the Prayer
No, you cannot perform a makeup prayer seated without a genuine excuse ( such as being sick or praying on a boat…). [Shurunbulali, Nur al-Idah]
Please don’t forget that standing is one of the obligatory components of the prayer. Without performing the standing position, obligatory prayer is invalid. [Marghinani, al-Hidaya]
Another Solution
If you are afraid to be overwhelmed, you can go as low as making up five prayers a day as long as you firmly stick to this schedule.
This is based on the advice given by Shaykh Adib al-Kallas (may Allah be pleased with him), one of the major Hanafi scholars of recent times.
In a previous answer, Shaykh Faraz Rabbani (may Allah protect him) said:
“Shaykh Adib al-Kallas [daamat barakaatuhu] emphasized that if one repents from one’s non-performance or invalid performance and then has a strong resolve and a systematic, consistent makeup schedule one stick to, then even if one dies, Allah will forgive one for any remaining makeups. [This differs from one who does not resolve to do this or does not consistently make up their prayers.] There is a difference between Allah’s rights and His creation’s rights, for Allah is free of all needs, while the latter are needy. As such, Allah has promised to forgive a truly repentant slave, whereas we have no such assurances about that which is due to others.”
Please see:
A Reader on Missed Prayers
And Allah knows best.
[Ustadh] Sufyan Qufi
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Ustadh Sufyan Qufi is an advanced seeker of knowledge, originally from Algeria, who grew up in France. He began searching far and wide for answers to the fundamental questions of life and was disappointed at the answers he found.
Then he connected with various traditional teachers and gradually connected with SeekersGuidance. He embarked on his journey of learning through the various teachers at SeekersGuidance, including his mentor Shaykh Faraz Rabbani.
He studied numerous texts in Islamic Law, Theology, Hadith, and other areas with Shaykh Faraz Rabbani and other teachers, including Shaykh Abdurrahman al-Sha’ar, Shaykh Ali Hani, and others.
He is an active instructor at SeekersGuidance and answers questions through the SeekersGuidance Answers Service.
