I have been consistent with prayer since the age of six, and when I reached the age of 24, I started praying one day and skipping the next. Now I regret it. What is obligatory for me?
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Question:
I am a perfect person, and since I was six years old, I have been consistent with my prayer, praise be to Allah, and I do not eat what is forbidden. This continued until the questioner says: When I reached the age of twenty-four, I started praying one day and skipping the next. Now I am twenty-six years old, and I regret what I did. How do you advise me regarding making up the prayers I missed? May Allah reward you with good.
Answer:
First, a person should not praise himself. Yes. He should not say, "I am a perfect man" or "I am an upright man," but he should always consider himself a sinner. He should always consider himself a sinner. Allah the Exalted said:[An-Najm 53:32] He the Exalted said: [An-Nisa 4:49] So a person should not praise himself, but he must always consider himself shortcoming and always falling short in the rights of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He). As for the fact that he abandoned prayer for a period. Yes.
Or leaving some of the prayers for a period, then repenting to Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, there is no doubt that leaving prayer is a great crime, because prayer is the second pillar of the pillars of Islam after the two testimonies, and it is the pillar of Islam, and there is no religion for one who neglects prayer. So his leaving it for a period is considered a severance from the religion of Islam. If in his state of leaving it, he did not see its obligation, there is no disagreement that he is a disbeliever, the disbelief that takes one out of the religion. And if he acknowledged its obligation but left it out of laziness, the correct of the scholars' opinions is that he is also a disbeliever, the disbelief that takes one out of the religion. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said: And he said: Mishkat al-Masabih 574 Based on this, it is obligatory for him to repent to Allah, be consistent with prayer, and not make up what he left intentionally; because when he left prayer intentionally, he exited the religion.
And when he repented to Allah and was consistent with prayer, he entered the religion anew. And if a person repents from disbelief and apostasy, he is not ordered to make up what he left in the state of apostasy or in the state of disbelief; because Islam wipes out what came before it. May Allah reward you with good, and may He do you good.
I am a perfect person, and since I was six years old, I have been consistent with my prayer, praise be to Allah, and I do not eat what is forbidden. This continued until the questioner says: When I reached the age of twenty-four, I started praying one day and skipping the next. Now I am twenty-six years old, and I regret what I did. How do you advise me regarding making up the prayers I missed? May Allah reward you with good.
Answer:
First, a person should not praise himself. Yes. He should not say, "I am a perfect man" or "I am an upright man," but he should always consider himself a sinner. He should always consider himself a sinner. Allah the Exalted said:
claim yourselves to be pure; He is most knowing of who fears Him.
تُزَكُّوا أَنفُسَكُمْ هُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِمَنِ اتَّقَىٰHave you not seen those who claim themselves to be pure?
أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى الَّذِينَ يُزَكُّونَ أَنفُسَهُمOr leaving some of the prayers for a period, then repenting to Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, there is no doubt that leaving prayer is a great crime, because prayer is the second pillar of the pillars of Islam after the two testimonies, and it is the pillar of Islam, and there is no religion for one who neglects prayer. So his leaving it for a period is considered a severance from the religion of Islam. If in his state of leaving it, he did not see its obligation, there is no disagreement that he is a disbeliever, the disbelief that takes one out of the religion. And if he acknowledged its obligation but left it out of laziness, the correct of the scholars' opinions is that he is also a disbeliever, the disbelief that takes one out of the religion. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
Between the servant and disbelief and shirk (associating partners with Allah) is leaving prayer.
بين العبد وبين الكفر والشرك ترك الصلاهas saying, “The covenant between us and them is prayer, so if anyone abandons it he has become an infidel.”
صلى الله عليه وسلم العهد الذي بيننا وبينهم الصلاة، فمن تركها فقد كفر،And when he repented to Allah and was consistent with prayer, he entered the religion anew. And if a person repents from disbelief and apostasy, he is not ordered to make up what he left in the state of apostasy or in the state of disbelief; because Islam wipes out what came before it. May Allah reward you with good, and may He do you good.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، كنت محافظ على الصلاة منذ سن السادسة وعند بلوغي سن24 أصبحت أصلي يوم وأترك والآن ندمت فماذا يجب علي؟ — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.