The Shaykh’s remarks on combining prayers for the resident.

The Shaykh : Because most people, as the Lord of the Worlds said as a principle, do not know. And among what they do not know is this combining of prayers for the resident. Some know that combining for the resident is permissible, but they do not stipulate any condition for it; they treat combining for the resident like combining for the traveler, as if they were the same. For example, combining for the resident differs from combining for the traveler. Combining for the traveler, as I mentioned earlier, is a dispensation. It is not that he is in dire necessity or has a pressing need for this dispensation, but he is allowed to do so, and no one can deny it, because combining the two prayers in travel is established in authentic hadiths, contrary to those who depict this combining in travel as "formal combining." You say "formal combining," but there is no linguistic need for that term. It is simply formal combining. Real combining is either delaying the first prayer, such as Zuhr, until the time of the other prayer, 'Asr, so that you pray them together in the time of 'Asr, and this is called combining by delay; or advancing the other prayer and adding it to the first, so that you pray them in the time of the first, Zuhr, and this is called combining by advancement. This is real combining, not formal combining. Likewise, combining in the state of residence is real combining, but a condition is required here that is not required for combining in travel, which is the need that obstructs the path of the one praying. He finds difficulty on a certain day at a certain time in praying Zuhr in its time and 'Asr in its time, so he combines them by advancement or by delay to remove the difficulty. In travel, it is not to remove difficulty, but rather to hold onto the dispensation. Once we understand this reality regarding combining in travel and combining in residence—that in terms of the form of combining, it is real combining, but in terms of the permissibility of combining, it is for the dispensation in travel and for removing difficulty in residence—then we return to the answer. The one who intended to reside in a country of his travel for a month or two months, or less than that, or more than that: this residence does not have a fixed number of days in the Shari'ah; rather, it depends on the state of the resident. If he resided for those days, or less, or more, and he actually intended to reside and felt at ease in his stay in that place, then he has become a resident, even if it is not his home country. He has become a resident, so shortening the prayer is not permissible for him where shortening is obligatory for the traveler, let alone combining, except as I mentioned earlier, to remove difficulty. That is, the one who intended to reside for a month or less or more has become a resident, so the rulings of the resident apply to him. As for the one who stayed in a country other than his own and did not intend to reside, but has interests in that country he wants to attend to, yet he does not know when they will be completed, such that when they are completed he will return to his home country: as long as he did not intend to reside, but said to himself, "When I finish attending to my need, I will return to my home country," then he is not a resident. The form of this is the one who says, "By Allah, we have finished this task," and he travels for two, three, four, or five days, and he excuses himself, saying, "It will end today," but it does not end; "It will end tomorrow," but it does not end. Even if many days pass, however long, and even months, he is a traveler. So the issue is related to the person's situation in the state of temporary residence and his intention. If he intended to reside and settle for a fixed number of days, he is a resident. If he did not intend to reside, but is residing temporarily to attend to those interests and follow up on those works, and when he finishes them he returns to his home country, then he is a traveler, no matter how long the days last. This is the answer to the first question.