The Ruling on the Overlap of Intentions in Acts of Worship
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Regarding the overlap of acts of worship, such as the Sunnah of 'Isha' and the prayer of istikharah, or fasting on Mondays and Thursdays within the six days of Shawwal, how do we combine the intentions? And what is the criterion to ensure they do not overlap?
If the intended act is the same, they overlap; if the intended act is a different worship, they do not overlap.For example: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When one of you enters the mosque, let him not sit until he prays two rak'ahs" . So a man entered and prayed the two rak'ahs of the Fajr rawatib. Now, did he sit before praying two rak'ahs, or did he pray two rak'ahs? He prayed two rak'ahs, and the intended act was to pray two rak'ahs, and that was achieved.
He prays two rak'ahs in the Sunnah of Dhuhr and two rak'ahs before the prayer,If he had said: I will make the two rak'ahs count for the four. Is this sufficient? It is not sufficient, because the intended act is to perform the same four rak'ahs.
The scholars (may Allah have mercy on them) differed regarding the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "Let him pray two rak'ahs other than the obligatory prayer" . If one prays the rawatib and then performs istikharah, does he achieve the intended purpose, or must the prayer for istikharah be a separate, independent prayer?Who said: His saying: "other than the obligatory prayer" includes all voluntary prayers, even the rawatib, even the greeting of the mosque, and even the Sunnah of wudu'. They said: It is sufficient. So perform istikharah after the rawatib, and there is no harm.
And whoever said: This from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) indicates that the prayer for istikharah must be a separate, independent prayer.And this is the closest opinion to me, the saying of those who said: It is not sufficient except that he prays a specific prayer for istikharah.
As for the issue of Mondays and Thursdays, if a person fasts on Mondays and Thursdays for three weeks, it is true that he has fasted six days of Shawwal, and he obtains the reward of fasting on Mondays and Thursdays. However, in the six days of Shawwal, consecutiveness is better than seeking out Mondays and Thursdays, meaning that you fast immediately after the festival and complete all six days.
If the intended act is the same, they overlap; if the intended act is a different worship, they do not overlap.For example: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When one of you enters the mosque, let him not sit until he prays two rak'ahs" . So a man entered and prayed the two rak'ahs of the Fajr rawatib. Now, did he sit before praying two rak'ahs, or did he pray two rak'ahs? He prayed two rak'ahs, and the intended act was to pray two rak'ahs, and that was achieved.
He prays two rak'ahs in the Sunnah of Dhuhr and two rak'ahs before the prayer,If he had said: I will make the two rak'ahs count for the four. Is this sufficient? It is not sufficient, because the intended act is to perform the same four rak'ahs.
The scholars (may Allah have mercy on them) differed regarding the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "Let him pray two rak'ahs other than the obligatory prayer" . If one prays the rawatib and then performs istikharah, does he achieve the intended purpose, or must the prayer for istikharah be a separate, independent prayer?Who said: His saying: "other than the obligatory prayer" includes all voluntary prayers, even the rawatib, even the greeting of the mosque, and even the Sunnah of wudu'. They said: It is sufficient. So perform istikharah after the rawatib, and there is no harm.
And whoever said: This from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) indicates that the prayer for istikharah must be a separate, independent prayer.And this is the closest opinion to me, the saying of those who said: It is not sufficient except that he prays a specific prayer for istikharah.
As for the issue of Mondays and Thursdays, if a person fasts on Mondays and Thursdays for three weeks, it is true that he has fasted six days of Shawwal, and he obtains the reward of fasting on Mondays and Thursdays. However, in the six days of Shawwal, consecutiveness is better than seeking out Mondays and Thursdays, meaning that you fast immediately after the festival and complete all six days.