A man who is frequently distracted in prayer and does not attain khushu' in it: what is the ruling on his prayer, whether he is an imam or a ma'mum?
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The questioner : He says: When I begin any obligatory prayer, my mind is often distracted and wanders far away into the world of this life. I perform the movements of the prayer without the presence of the heart. Sometimes I become aware and remember after half of the prayer has passed, and sometimes I do not become aware until I am in the final tashahhud. What is the ruling in this case, whether I am a ma'mum, an imam, or praying alone?
The Shaykh : The ruling in this case is that if a person is overcome in his prayer by waswas, meaning intrusive thoughts about matters of this world or matters of religion—such as a student of knowledge who becomes distracted when he enters prayer by contemplating issues of knowledge—I say that if this predominates over most of the prayer, the majority of scholars hold that the prayer is valid and is not invalidated by these waswas, but it is severely deficient. A person may leave his prayer with only half, a quarter, a tenth, or less of it recorded for him. However, his conscience is cleared by it, even if it occurs frequently. Nevertheless, a person should be present-hearted in his prayer, for that is khushu', and khushu' is the essence and spirit of the prayer. The remedy for this is for a person to do what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) commanded:
السائل : نعم، بارك الله فيكم.
هذه السائلة نضال علي من العراق بغداد.
The Shaykh : The ruling in this case is that if a person is overcome in his prayer by waswas, meaning intrusive thoughts about matters of this world or matters of religion—such as a student of knowledge who becomes distracted when he enters prayer by contemplating issues of knowledge—I say that if this predominates over most of the prayer, the majority of scholars hold that the prayer is valid and is not invalidated by these waswas, but it is severely deficient. A person may leave his prayer with only half, a quarter, a tenth, or less of it recorded for him. However, his conscience is cleared by it, even if it occurs frequently. Nevertheless, a person should be present-hearted in his prayer, for that is khushu', and khushu' is the essence and spirit of the prayer. The remedy for this is for a person to do what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) commanded:
That he should spit to his left three times and seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan. If he does that, Allah will remove it. If he is a ma'mum in the row, spitting is not possible for him because people are to his left, but he should limit himself to seeking refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan. If he does that and repeats it, Allah will remove it from him. Yes. The questioner: Yes, may Allah bless you. This questioner is Nidal Ali from Iraq, Baghdad.
بأن يتفل عن يساره ثلاثاً ويستعيذ بالله من الشيطان الرجيم فإذا فعل ذلك أذهبه الله وإذا كان مأموماً في الصف فإن التفل لا يُمكنه لأن الناس عن يساره ولكن يقتصر على الاستعاذة بالله من الشيطان الرجيم فإذا فعل ذلك وكرره أذهب الله ذلك عنه، نعم.السائل : نعم، بارك الله فيكم.
هذه السائلة نضال علي من العراق بغداد.