Is It Persmissible to Delay Prayers Due to Work and Heavy Traffic?
Shafi'i Fiqh
Answered by Habib Umar bin Hafiz
Question: Assalam aleykum
Someone works in the transportation sector (driving), and does not pray on time, due to heavy traffic. And there are no mosques near him since he lives in a Western country. So he makes up all the prayers he missed as soon as he reaches home. What is your opinion regarding this?
Answer: [Assalam alaykum]
Prayer is the Emblem of Faith
You must remind this brother of the tremendousness of the prayer, and the magnitude of its stature in the religion of Allah, and before Allah, Blessed and Exalted. You must remind him that it is the pillar of the Religion, and that Allah threatened the ones who delay the prayer outside of its time in His book, saying:
“Woe to those worshippers, who are neglectful of their prayer” [al Ma’un 107:4]
In this way, you will bring forth from his conscience and soul the veneration for this emblem of faith, this tremendous obligation, the greatest pillar of Islam after the testimony of faith – the Establishment of the Prayer.
Permissibility of Combining, Impermissibility of Delay
You should also inform him that it is permissible for him during travel to combine Dhuhr and Asr in either of their times, and likewise Maghrib and Isha. However, no delay or advance of the prayer times is permissible beyond this. Rather he must pray where he is, and it is not necessary for him to pray in a mosque. He should find the direction of prayer (qibla) and pray towards it.
The Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him and his folk) said,
“The whole earth has been made a place of prayer for me. So whenever one of my followers finds himself in the time of prayer, let him pray, wherever he may be.”
Translated by Abdullah Alrajhy
Habib Umar bin Hafiz is a descendant of the Prophet (upon him be Allah’s peace and blessings). Born into a family of scholars, Habib Umar, pursued the sacred sciences from a young age, including Quran, Hadith, Fiqh, ‘Aqeedah, Arabic, and Spirituality. In 1994, he established Dar al-Mustafa, an educational institute in Tarim, Yemem.
Photo: Dmitry
شخص يعمل في النقل و بسبب الزحمة لا يصلي الصلاة الحاضرة, و لا يوجد مسجد قريب منه إذ يعيش في بلد غربية, فلذلك يقضي ما فاته أول ما يصل البيت فما رأيكم بذلك ؟
يجب عليك أن تذكر هذا الأخ بعظمة الصلاة وبعظم موقعها في دين الله وعند الله تبارك وتعالى وأنها عماد الدين وأن الله في كتابه هدد من يؤخر الصلاة عن وقتها في قوله ( فويلٌ للمصلين الذين هم عن صلاتهم ساهون ) فتستبعث من ضميره وباطنه تعظيم هذه الشعيرة والفريضة العظمى أعظم أركان الإسلام بعد الشهادتين وهي إقامة الصلاة، وتخبره أنه يجوز له وقت السفر أن يقدم العصر مع الظهر أو يؤخر الظهر مع العصر أو أن يقدم العشاء مع المغرب أو أن يؤخر المغرب مع العشاء.. أما ما عدا ذلك فلا يجوز له تقديم ولا تأخير، فعليه أن يصلي حيث كان ولا يشترط أن يوجد جامع بل مهما عرف جهة القبلة فليصل إليها، قال صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم ( وجُعِلَتْ لي الأرض مسجداً فأيما رجل أدركته الصلاة من أمتي فليصل حيث كان)
