Is Missing Prayers Due to Impurity Shirk?

Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam

Question: My friend missed a prayer because while he was urinating he had an erection, which led him to release prostatic fluid. Has my friend committed shirk?

Answer: Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullah,

No, what you have described is not shirk. But the right thing to so would have been to ignore the misgivings (waswasa) and pray before the time exited. In order to compensate for the error, he needs to sincerely repent for his mistake and perform a makeup (qada’) for the missed prayer. If he does another good deed, such as a voluntary prayer (nafila) or gives some charity, this too would be good as good deeds wipe out bad ones.

Please see the following articles for future practice: Ritual Purity Urine Leakage and Misgivings and: A Reader on Waswasa Baseless Misgivings

And Allah Most High alone knows best.

wassalam,

[Ustadh] Tabraze Azam

Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Ustadh Tabraze Azam was born and raised in Ipswich, England, a quiet town close to the east coast of England. His journey for seeking sacred knowledge began when he privately memorized the entire Qur’an in his hometown at the age of 16. He also had his first experience in leading the tarawih (nightly-Ramadan) prayers at his local mosque. Year after year he would continue this unique return to reciting the entire Quran in one blessed month both in his homeland, the UK, and also in the blessed lands of Shaam, where he now lives, studies and teaches.