What Should I Do about the Prayers I Missed When I Was Doubtful about Islam?
Answered by Shaykh Yusuf Weltch
Question
I was born a Muslim but later developed doubts and sought the truth about our existence. Alhamdulillah, I rediscovered Islam. I never outright condemned Islam, but there was a time during my search when I stopped praying and missed (even broke) the Ramadan fast (and the ones I did were not done with the intention of worship).
What should I do about those missed worship?
P.S. I can’t recall how much I missed.
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.
I am happy to hear that your doubts were addressed and that your heart finds contentment again in Islam.
It is essential to use the various means that Allah Most High has put at our disposal to keep our hearts and our faith strong. Faith is not merely rational belief, nor is it only strengthened by rational proofs; it is a light that Allah Most High puts in the heart, and it is strengthened by the following:
- Consistency in Prayer;
- Company of Righteous People;
- Seeking Sacred Knowledge.
Consistency in Prayer
Allah Most High says, “Establish prayer (O Prophet) at both ends of the day and in the early part of the night. Surely good deeds wipe out evil deeds. That is a reminder for the mindful. And be patient! Certainly Allah does not discount the reward of the good-doers.” [Quran, 11:114]
The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and give him peace) said, “Five prayers, from Jumu’a to Jumu’a, and from Ramadan to Ramadan, are expiations for all that transpired between them, as long as major sins are abstained from.” [Muslim]
Also, “What do you think of a river that flows before one of your doors and one bathed in it five times a day – would any filth remain on them?” They (the Companions) said, “No.” He (may Allah bless him and give him peace) said, “That is the example of the five prayers; Allah erases through them the sins.” [Bukhari]
Company of the Righteous
The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and give him peace) said, “The likeness of a righteous company and a bad companion is the likeness of the perfume seller and the blower of the (ironsmith’s) bellows. The perfume seller will either gift you some, sell you some, or you can enjoy a pleasant smell. The bellow blower will either burn your clothes, or you will bear the foul smell.” [Bukhari; Muslim]
Seeking Sacred Knowledge
The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and give him peace) said, “One person of deep religious understanding is more difficult on Satan than 1,000 worshippers (devoid of such understanding).” [Tirmidhi]
Making Up for Lost Time
Regarding your past worship, two things will help you regain those missed blessings and make up for them:
One: Turning to Allah Most High in Repentance
Repentance, in its essence, is remorse that springs forth as a result of the knowledge that those missed worships were opportunities to draw near to Allah Most High and attain His love and contentment.
Through this repentance, one can re-access those missed opportunities and draw near to Allah Most High again.
Two: Slowly and Methodically Start Chipping Away at Past Missed Worship
In order to do this, you will need to estimate to the best of your ability how many prayers and fasts you have missed since you reached puberty to the present day.
You can do this by assessing how much time elapsed while you were not praying and how many Ramadans occurred during this time. This should produce for you a rough number of prayers and fasts. Thereafter, add a little more to these calculations for the sake of certainty and cautiousness; it does not have to be a lot.
Finally, make a plan. Choose a specific amount of prayers you can make-up each day without putting yourself into hardship. Have a strong resolve to make up all your missed obligatory worship, and start by consistently making up your select amount of worship a day. The same can be done on a monthly basis for missed fasts.
This is considered among the greatest acts of worship, and you will be rewarded more and more as you chip away at this amount. Be steadfast and aim for daily consistency.
Hope this helps
Allah knows best
[Shaykh] Yusuf Weltch
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Shaykh Yusuf Weltch teaches Arabic, Islamic law, and spirituality. After accepting Islam in 2008, he completed four years at the Darul Uloom seminary in New York, where he studied Arabic and the traditional sciences.
He then traveled to Tarim, Yemen, where he studied for three years in Dar al-Mustafa under some of the most outstanding scholars of our time, including Habib Umar Bin Hafiz, Habib Kadhim al-Saqqaf, and Shaykh Umar al-Khatib.
In Tarim, Shaykh Yusuf completed the memorization of the Quran and studied beliefs, legal methodology, hadith methodology, Quranic exegesis, Islamic history, and several texts on spirituality. He joined the SeekersGuidance faculty in the summer of 2019.
