What is the ruling on one who gives zakah and fasts but does not pray, yet performs Hajj and 'Umrah?
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The Shaykh : How? What is the ruling?
The questioner : What is the ruling on one who gives zakah and fasts but does not pray, yet performs Hajj and 'Umrah, but does not pray, and he was advised more than once or spoken to more than once, but he does not establish the prayer?
The Shaykh : What about the Hajj? What does he say?
The questioner : He is busy, he is not free, he is not free, he is not free regarding the prayer, meaning he is not free for the prayer all the time, meaning at many times, with foreigners, with many works, meaning...
The Shaykh : This is, without doubt, a matter that in his own reality is one of two things: either he believes that it is the truth that Allah has obligated him to pray, he believes in this, but the soul that commands evil justifies for him not to pray with a false argument; or he does not believe and says in his heart, at least not with his tongue, that the prayer is merely physical exercise and spiritual purification. As for the physical exercise, I do gymnastics every morning, I do this exercise. As for the spiritual purification, I praise Allah, I do not harm people or curse them, and I am better than many of those who pray; I do not cheat, etc. If this is the case, then he has exited the religion and the faith, because he denied what Allah has obligated upon you, and what is known from the religion by necessity, as the scholars say. But if it is the first case, where in the depths of his heart he believes in the legitimacy of the prayer and that he should pray, and may Allah forgive us and guide us and grant us success, then it is not permissible to declare him a disbeliever, but he is an open sinner. And we are now in a time when there is no Islamic ruling, we cannot reach what is in his heart and be certain that it is so or so. We say this is an atheist, this is a disbeliever, this one does not pray, or how does he give zakah and not pray? Or the opposite, no, this one believes in the prayer, and he may say it with his tongue, but he may be a hypocrite. What do we know, right? There is a legal ruling if there were someone to execute this ruling, then soon we would reveal what is in his heart. At that time, this one who leaves the prayer would be brought and presented with the sword, and it would be said to him: either you pray, you repent to Allah and maintain the prayer, or else death is before you. Now, a question for everyone: if this man truly believes as we think, meaning we say that I believe in the prayer and the obligation of the prayer, but may Allah curse Satan, if he is sincere in this statement that he is telling us, and he is presented with the sword, what would you say? Would he pray or would he not pray?
The questioner : He prays.
Another questioner: Against his will.
The Shaykh : We want to hear from the one who asked the question.
The questioner : He would pray.
The Shaykh : He would pray, good. So if he preferred death over prayer, what would be his status?
The questioner : A disbeliever.
The Shaykh : A disbeliever, and a disbeliever in creed, as they say today.
Another questioner: In creed... meaning?
The Shaykh : I seek refuge in Allah, why? Because imagine now a second example: a man whom the government took, and they said to him: "You must renounce all the properties you own, and he is a millionaire." He is faced with death. What is this person... will he renounce or not? Will he renounce? Is this person's wealth more precious to him or his life?
The questioner : His life.
The Shaykh : His life. So if he did not prefer to pray in order to save his life, and he lost his life and did not pray, would he be a believer in his heart? Impossible. Therefore, this detail indicates a common error in some schools of jurisprudence, which is that the one who leaves the prayer is ordered to pray, and if he prays, otherwise he is killed for a limit (hadd), not for disbelief. This is an error. I cannot imagine a true Muslim preferring death over prayer. So he is killed for disbelief, not for a limit. But our problem today is that there is no Islamic ruling to show us these hypocrites, these ones who are among us and destroy our Shari'ah, and they pretend to be Muslims. If there were legal rulings applied and limits (hudud), then we would be rid of many of these hypocrites, and consequently we would be rid of many of the weak in faith. Among them... but the weak in faith, their strength of faith is not of a strength that would motivate and push them... to pray five prayers every day and night. The Muslim ruler would be a motivator for him to pray, or else death is before him. Please.
The questioner : What is the ruling on one who gives zakah and fasts but does not pray, yet performs Hajj and 'Umrah, but does not pray, and he was advised more than once or spoken to more than once, but he does not establish the prayer?
The Shaykh : What about the Hajj? What does he say?
The questioner : He is busy, he is not free, he is not free, he is not free regarding the prayer, meaning he is not free for the prayer all the time, meaning at many times, with foreigners, with many works, meaning...
The Shaykh : This is, without doubt, a matter that in his own reality is one of two things: either he believes that it is the truth that Allah has obligated him to pray, he believes in this, but the soul that commands evil justifies for him not to pray with a false argument; or he does not believe and says in his heart, at least not with his tongue, that the prayer is merely physical exercise and spiritual purification. As for the physical exercise, I do gymnastics every morning, I do this exercise. As for the spiritual purification, I praise Allah, I do not harm people or curse them, and I am better than many of those who pray; I do not cheat, etc. If this is the case, then he has exited the religion and the faith, because he denied what Allah has obligated upon you, and what is known from the religion by necessity, as the scholars say. But if it is the first case, where in the depths of his heart he believes in the legitimacy of the prayer and that he should pray, and may Allah forgive us and guide us and grant us success, then it is not permissible to declare him a disbeliever, but he is an open sinner. And we are now in a time when there is no Islamic ruling, we cannot reach what is in his heart and be certain that it is so or so. We say this is an atheist, this is a disbeliever, this one does not pray, or how does he give zakah and not pray? Or the opposite, no, this one believes in the prayer, and he may say it with his tongue, but he may be a hypocrite. What do we know, right? There is a legal ruling if there were someone to execute this ruling, then soon we would reveal what is in his heart. At that time, this one who leaves the prayer would be brought and presented with the sword, and it would be said to him: either you pray, you repent to Allah and maintain the prayer, or else death is before you. Now, a question for everyone: if this man truly believes as we think, meaning we say that I believe in the prayer and the obligation of the prayer, but may Allah curse Satan, if he is sincere in this statement that he is telling us, and he is presented with the sword, what would you say? Would he pray or would he not pray?
The questioner : He prays.
Another questioner: Against his will.
The Shaykh : We want to hear from the one who asked the question.
The questioner : He would pray.
The Shaykh : He would pray, good. So if he preferred death over prayer, what would be his status?
The questioner : A disbeliever.
The Shaykh : A disbeliever, and a disbeliever in creed, as they say today.
Another questioner: In creed... meaning?
The Shaykh : I seek refuge in Allah, why? Because imagine now a second example: a man whom the government took, and they said to him: "You must renounce all the properties you own, and he is a millionaire." He is faced with death. What is this person... will he renounce or not? Will he renounce? Is this person's wealth more precious to him or his life?
The questioner : His life.
The Shaykh : His life. So if he did not prefer to pray in order to save his life, and he lost his life and did not pray, would he be a believer in his heart? Impossible. Therefore, this detail indicates a common error in some schools of jurisprudence, which is that the one who leaves the prayer is ordered to pray, and if he prays, otherwise he is killed for a limit (hadd), not for disbelief. This is an error. I cannot imagine a true Muslim preferring death over prayer. So he is killed for disbelief, not for a limit. But our problem today is that there is no Islamic ruling to show us these hypocrites, these ones who are among us and destroy our Shari'ah, and they pretend to be Muslims. If there were legal rulings applied and limits (hudud), then we would be rid of many of these hypocrites, and consequently we would be rid of many of the weak in faith. Among them... but the weak in faith, their strength of faith is not of a strength that would motivate and push them... to pray five prayers every day and night. The Muslim ruler would be a motivator for him to pray, or else death is before him. Please.