Is it permissible to change the intention during the prayer?

The questioner : The question concerns the intention. Does that mean, is it permissible to change the intention during the prayer?

The Shaykh : How is that? There is no changing of the intention in this case!

The questioner : Regarding the intention of combining prayers?

The Shaykh : My brother, is the situation you are asking about whether it is permissible to change the intention during the prayer?

The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh: The answer is no. But here, there is no changing of the intention of combining. Combining occurs when one adds the second prayer to the first.

The questioner : Yes, exactly.

The Shaykh : Even if he did not intend to combine in the first prayer.

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : If he adds the first prayer, whose time is at the setting of the red twilight, to the time of Maghrib, then the combining has occurred. What indicates this to you is that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), in the hadiths where combining is explicitly mentioned, did not announce to the people that he would combine with them. Rather, he would surprise them by praying Zuhr, then ordering the iqamah, and praying 'Asr. If this is the case, then it is a restriction of what Allah has made broad, as we said earlier!