An individual or a congregation, and during the prayer he felt he had broken his ritual purity, and it was the dominant opinion in his mind that he had, but he did not leave out of modesty, and after the prayer it became clear to him that he had actually broken his ritual purity, so what is the ruling in that?
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The questioner : An individual led a congregation, and during the prayer he felt he had broken his ritual purity, and it was the dominant opinion in his mind that he had, but he did not leave out of modesty, and after the prayer it became clear to him that he had actually broken his ritual purity, so what is the ruling in that?
The Shaykh : If a person doubts while he is praying whether he has broken his ritual purity or not?
If the prayer is an obligatory prayer, it is not permissible for him to leave it, even if it is the dominant opinion in his mind that he has broken his ritual purity, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade that, and he said:Sunan Ibn Majah 514Sahih (Darussalam).
And if he is the imam, it is obligatory for him to remain the imam for the congregation until he is certain that he has broken his ritual purity, and the obligation to remain upon him here is for two reasons:
The first reason is that the prayer is an obligatory prayer, and it is not permissible to leave an obligatory prayer based merely on suspicion or doubt regarding the breaking of ritual purity.
The second is that he is the imam, and his leaving leads to confusion among the followers, and it may lead to the invalidity of their prayer.
But if the imam is certain that he has broken his ritual purity, it is obligatory for him to leave the prayer, and it is not permissible for modesty to prevent him from doing so, because Allah is not shy of the truth, and modesty in performing an obligatory duty is not praiseworthy modesty, but rather it is a blameworthy weakness.
In this case, meaning if he leaves his prayer due to certainty of having broken his ritual purity, he orders one of those behind him to complete the prayer for the people, saying for example: "O so-and-so, come forward and complete the prayer with them," and they complete their prayer.
If he does not do so, the followers have the right to bring forward one of them to complete the prayer with them, and they have the right to complete the prayer individually, and their prayer is not invalidated by the invalidity of their imam's prayer.
Some people may think that there is a difference between the case where the imam breaks his ritual purity during the prayer and the case where he begins the prayer in a state of broken ritual purity while forgetting, and they think that if he begins the prayer in a state of broken ritual purity while forgetting and then remembers during the prayer that his prayer, just as it did not take effect, the prayer of the followers is also not valid, unlike the case where he breaks his ritual purity during the prayer, in which case the prayer of the followers is valid.
This distinction has no basis, and both cases are the same. If the imam breaks his ritual purity during the prayer, he does what I mentioned earlier, and if he remembers during the prayer that he is not in a state of ablution, he does what I mentioned as well: he leaves the prayer and orders one of the worshippers behind him to complete the prayer with the congregation. If he does not do so, the congregation has the choice between bringing forward one of them to complete the prayer with them, or each one of them praying by himself, and their prayer is not invalidated in either case.
The questioner : May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : If a person doubts while he is praying whether he has broken his ritual purity or not?
If the prayer is an obligatory prayer, it is not permissible for him to leave it, even if it is the dominant opinion in his mind that he has broken his ritual purity, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade that, and he said:
he should not leave until he hears a sound or detects an odor
لا يخرج أو قال : لا ينصرف حتى يسمع صوتاً أو يجد ريحاًAnd if he is the imam, it is obligatory for him to remain the imam for the congregation until he is certain that he has broken his ritual purity, and the obligation to remain upon him here is for two reasons:
The first reason is that the prayer is an obligatory prayer, and it is not permissible to leave an obligatory prayer based merely on suspicion or doubt regarding the breaking of ritual purity.
The second is that he is the imam, and his leaving leads to confusion among the followers, and it may lead to the invalidity of their prayer.
But if the imam is certain that he has broken his ritual purity, it is obligatory for him to leave the prayer, and it is not permissible for modesty to prevent him from doing so, because Allah is not shy of the truth, and modesty in performing an obligatory duty is not praiseworthy modesty, but rather it is a blameworthy weakness.
In this case, meaning if he leaves his prayer due to certainty of having broken his ritual purity, he orders one of those behind him to complete the prayer for the people, saying for example: "O so-and-so, come forward and complete the prayer with them," and they complete their prayer.
If he does not do so, the followers have the right to bring forward one of them to complete the prayer with them, and they have the right to complete the prayer individually, and their prayer is not invalidated by the invalidity of their imam's prayer.
Some people may think that there is a difference between the case where the imam breaks his ritual purity during the prayer and the case where he begins the prayer in a state of broken ritual purity while forgetting, and they think that if he begins the prayer in a state of broken ritual purity while forgetting and then remembers during the prayer that his prayer, just as it did not take effect, the prayer of the followers is also not valid, unlike the case where he breaks his ritual purity during the prayer, in which case the prayer of the followers is valid.
This distinction has no basis, and both cases are the same. If the imam breaks his ritual purity during the prayer, he does what I mentioned earlier, and if he remembers during the prayer that he is not in a state of ablution, he does what I mentioned as well: he leaves the prayer and orders one of the worshippers behind him to complete the prayer with the congregation. If he does not do so, the congregation has the choice between bringing forward one of them to complete the prayer with them, or each one of them praying by himself, and their prayer is not invalidated in either case.
The questioner : May Allah bless you.