I request clarification on how the traveler prays, as some say that the traveler’s prayer begins when one starts the journey from home?
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The questioner : I ask the honorable Shaykh to clarify how the traveler prays, as some say that the traveler’s prayer begins when one starts the journey from home. I ask for clarification on this. May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : The four-rak'ah prayer of the traveler is shortened to two rak'ahs, as in "Sahih al-Bukhari" and other sources, in the hadith of Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), who said: So Zuhr, 'Asr, and 'Isha'—these three prayers are four-rak'ah prayers that are shortened to two rak'ahs when traveling. It is not permissible to shorten the prayer or to take advantage of the dispensation unless a person leaves his village, that is, his town. As long as he is in his town, he is not a traveler, because travel does not occur until it is actualized, not merely intended. So even if he departs and mounts his mount, as long as he is in the town, he does not shorten the prayer. It should be known that if the traveler prays behind someone who completes the prayer, it is obligatory for him to complete it, and it is not permissible for him to shorten it at that time, because his prayer is linked to his imam’s prayer. It is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said: Sahih al-Bukhari 635 So the one who enters the prayer with an imam who is praying four rak'ahs: if he enters with him at the beginning of the prayer, he says the taslim with him. If he enters with him in the middle of the prayer, he prays what he catches up with and makes up what he missed, meaning he completes the prayer based on what he caught up with his imam.
Ibn 'Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) was asked about this issue: that the traveler prays two rak'ahs, but if he is with the imam, meaning in the settled state, he prays four. He said: "That is the Sunnah". So even if he catches up with the imam for two rak'ahs of a four-rak'ah prayer, it is not permissible for him to say the taslim with him; rather, he must complete the prayer, based on the hadith we mentioned. This is the opposite of the case where the imam is the traveler. If the imam is the traveler, he prays two rak'ahs, and the residents praying behind him complete four. This is what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did when he conquered Makkah; he prayed with the people of Makkah for two rak'ahs, and the people of Makkah completed four. Yes.
The questioner : Also, the listener asks and says.
The Shaykh : The four-rak'ah prayer of the traveler is shortened to two rak'ahs, as in "Sahih al-Bukhari" and other sources, in the hadith of Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), who said:
The prayer was first prescribed as two rak'ahs, then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) migrated, and the prayer in the settled state was increased, while the prayer for travel was left as it was.
أول ما فرضت الصلاة ركعتين، ثم هاجر النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم فزيد في صلاة الحضر، وأقرّت صلاة السفرand pray whatever you get (with the people) and complete the rest which you have missed
ما أدركتم فصلوا، وما فاتكم فأتمواIbn 'Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) was asked about this issue: that the traveler prays two rak'ahs, but if he is with the imam, meaning in the settled state, he prays four. He said: "That is the Sunnah". So even if he catches up with the imam for two rak'ahs of a four-rak'ah prayer, it is not permissible for him to say the taslim with him; rather, he must complete the prayer, based on the hadith we mentioned. This is the opposite of the case where the imam is the traveler. If the imam is the traveler, he prays two rak'ahs, and the residents praying behind him complete four. This is what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did when he conquered Makkah; he prayed with the people of Makkah for two rak'ahs, and the people of Makkah completed four. Yes.
The questioner : Also, the listener asks and says.