How do we respond to those who object by saying that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) combined prayers without an excuse or rain?
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The questioner : Shaykh, may Allah bless you, we mentioned that the stronger position regarding combining prayers is that it is not permissible except for a sunnah. How do we respond to some people who argue with the hadith that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) combined prayers without an excuse or rain?
The Shaykh : In Madinah.
The questioner : Yes, he says that this is evidence that combining prayers is permissible. So how do we respond to him?
The Shaykh : How do we respond to the one who says, "Woe to the one who prays," based on the saying of Allah the Exalted: "Woe to the one who prays"?
The questioner : He does not complete the verse.
The Shaykh : He says: How much of the verse? He says: How much of the hadith of Ibn 'Abbas?
The questioner : It cuts off the heat.
The Shaykh : They said: He did not intend that. Ibn 'Abbas said: He intended not to burden his Ummah. This makes it clear that the operative cause is the burden. If the burden is absent, it is obligatory to pray every prayer at its time. Then we say: Following the ambiguous verses is the methodology of the people of the later generations.[Ali 'Imran 3:7] We have evidence as clear as the day in the obligation of performing every prayer at its time. So how do we leave these clear evidences for the sake of an ambiguous evidence, which, as you have known, contains no indication?
The Shaykh : In Madinah.
The questioner : Yes, he says that this is evidence that combining prayers is permissible. So how do we respond to him?
The Shaykh : How do we respond to the one who says, "Woe to the one who prays," based on the saying of Allah the Exalted: "Woe to the one who prays"?
The questioner : He does not complete the verse.
The Shaykh : He says: How much of the verse? He says: How much of the hadith of Ibn 'Abbas?
The questioner : It cuts off the heat.
The Shaykh : They said: He did not intend that. Ibn 'Abbas said: He intended not to burden his Ummah. This makes it clear that the operative cause is the burden. If the burden is absent, it is obligatory to pray every prayer at its time. Then we say: Following the ambiguous verses is the methodology of the people of the later generations.
As for those in whose hearts is deviation [from truth], they will follow that of it which is unspecific
فَأَمَّا الَّذِينَ فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ زَيْغٌ فَيَتَّبِعُونَ مَا تَشَابَهَ مِنْهُ
Source
قناة «فضيلة الشيخ محمد بن صالح العثيمين»، 1423 - كيف نرد على المحتجين بأن النبي ﷺ جمع من غير عذر ولا مطر - ابن عثيمين — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.