The duration and conditions for shortening the prayer for the traveler
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner:
The questioner asks: What is the duration for which the traveler shortens the prayer?
The Shaykh:
The duration is not determined by time but by distance, according to the majority of scholars. The criterion is distance. If the distance reaches eighty kilometers or more, it is the distance for shortening, even if it is covered in a short time. The criterion is distance, not time.
The questioner:
He also asks: Is it permissible for me to shorten the prayer for the duration of my stay?
The Shaykh:
If the stay exceeds four days, and you know that you will stay for more than four days, then the state of travel is broken, and you are required to complete the prayer. However, if you do not know when the stay will end, and you are in need and do not know when it will finish, or if the stay is only four days or less, then there is no harm in shortening.
The questioner:
The questioner also asks: If I enter the mosque and the prayer is already in progress, is it permissible for me to shorten the prayer with them?
The Shaykh:
No, your ruling is the same as the imam’s. It is not permissible to shorten behind an imam who is completing the prayer. Your ruling is the same as the imam’s.
The questioner asks: What is the duration for which the traveler shortens the prayer?
The Shaykh:
The duration is not determined by time but by distance, according to the majority of scholars. The criterion is distance. If the distance reaches eighty kilometers or more, it is the distance for shortening, even if it is covered in a short time. The criterion is distance, not time.
The questioner:
He also asks: Is it permissible for me to shorten the prayer for the duration of my stay?
The Shaykh:
If the stay exceeds four days, and you know that you will stay for more than four days, then the state of travel is broken, and you are required to complete the prayer. However, if you do not know when the stay will end, and you are in need and do not know when it will finish, or if the stay is only four days or less, then there is no harm in shortening.
The questioner:
The questioner also asks: If I enter the mosque and the prayer is already in progress, is it permissible for me to shorten the prayer with them?
The Shaykh:
No, your ruling is the same as the imam’s. It is not permissible to shorten behind an imam who is completing the prayer. Your ruling is the same as the imam’s.
Source
لقاء مفتوح 21-09-1435هـ — alfawzan.live (34:00)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.