Teaching prayer to one who does not know the number of rak'ahs
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
The Shaykh (may Allah have mercy on him) said: A new convert is in prison and she is praying, but she does not know the number of her rak'ahs. Should I teach her to perfect her prayer, or should I teach her? As for whether her prayer is accepted, it is not accepted if it is not performed properly.
Answer:
If she is sane and aware, you are required to explain it to her and emphasize it, and to rebuke her for her fear of Allah. But if she is not sane and not aware, you do not burden her with what she cannot bear. You command her to pray, and she prays according to her condition and her ability. Allah the Exalted said:[At-Taghabun 64:16] Yes.
The Shaykh (may Allah have mercy on him) said: A new convert is in prison and she is praying, but she does not know the number of her rak'ahs. Should I teach her to perfect her prayer, or should I teach her? As for whether her prayer is accepted, it is not accepted if it is not performed properly.
Answer:
If she is sane and aware, you are required to explain it to her and emphasize it, and to rebuke her for her fear of Allah. But if she is not sane and not aware, you do not burden her with what she cannot bear. You command her to pray, and she prays according to her condition and her ability. Allah the Exalted said:
So fear Allah as much as you are able
فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْ
Source
شرح بلوغ المرام من أدلة الأحكام [ صالح الفوزان ]، تابع باب شروطه وما نهي عنه منه - 1 — islamhouse.com (51:58)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.