If a person wakes up exactly at the time of sunrise, how is the performance of the prayer? Is it within its time, or after the sun has risen by the length of a spear?

The questioner : If a person wakes up exactly at the time of sunrise, how is the performance of the prayer? Is it within its time, or after the sun has risen by the length of a spear?

The Shaykh : It is obligatory for a person, when he wakes up from his sleep, to pray at the time of his waking, whether it is at the rising of the sun, at its setting, or at any other time, due to the generality of the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): meaning that he should pray it when he remembers it, whether he forgot it or he woke up from sleep. It is not permissible for him to delay it. So he must perform wudu' when he wakes up at sunrise; he must perform wudu' and then pray the sunnah of Fajr, which is recommended and not obligatory, and then he prays the obligatory prayer. At this point, I will pause briefly to offer advice to this questioner and to others who are lax in delaying the Fajr prayer for the sake of sleep. I say: It is obligatory for a person, if he does not wake up except by an alarm, to set an alarm, either a person he can rely on who is trustworthy and keen to wake him, or an alarm clock. And praise be to Allah, this is common, and every person can obtain it. As for giving oneself a grace period, such that whenever he wakes up he gets up and prays, that is a serious error and a risk that his prayer will not be accepted. Because anyone who intentionally delays the prayer from its time has no prayer, even if he prays it a hundred times, because delaying the prayer from its time without a valid religious excuse means that he has done an act that is not in accordance with Allah and His Messenger. And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said: meaning that it is rejected.

The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.