An elderly man was struck by an illness and did not pray two prayer times because he was unconscious, then he began praying; does he have to make up what he missed?
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The questioner : An elderly man was struck by an illness and did not pray two prayer times because he was unconscious, then he began praying; does he have to make up what he missed?
The Shaykh : The stronger position in this issue, meaning the issue of fainting, if it occurs without the patient's choice, is that he owes no making up of the prayer, i.e., he does not make up the prayer that he missed. This is because he is not accountable, as his mind has departed. It is not valid to analogize him to the sleeper, for whom the obligation of making up the prayer has been established by the Sunnah, where the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: من نام عن صلاة نسيها فليصلها إذا ذكرها لا كفارة لها إلا ذلك، ثم تلا قوله تعالى : وَأَقِمِ الصَّلاةَ لِذِكْرِي Whoever sleeps and misses a prayer, or forgets it, let him pray it when he remembers it. There is no expiation for it except that. Then he recited the saying of Allah the Exalted: And establish prayer for My remembrance., because the difference between the one who faints and the sleeper is very clear. The sleeper retains some sensation, and for this reason he wakes up when he is woken, unlike the one who faints, whose mind is more deeply covered, and for this reason he does not wake up when he is woken.
As for when the fainting is due to the person's own action, such as if the cause was taking anesthesia or something similar, then it is obligatory for him to make up the prayer, because the unconsciousness that occurred to him was due to his action.
So the rule is: "Whoever faints due to an illness, an accident, or anything else for which he has no cause, it is not obligatory for him to make up the prayer. And if his fainting is due to his own cause, then he has to make up the prayer".
As for fasting, if he faints in Ramadan, he makes up the day on which he fainted, whether it was one day or more. The difference between prayer and fasting is clear, for the menstruating woman, who is prohibited from fasting by the Shari'ah, makes up the fasting but does not make up the prayer. Likewise, this person who was prevented from fasting by sensation has to make up the fasting but does not make up the prayer.
The questioner : May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : The stronger position in this issue, meaning the issue of fainting, if it occurs without the patient's choice, is that he owes no making up of the prayer, i.e., he does not make up the prayer that he missed. This is because he is not accountable, as his mind has departed. It is not valid to analogize him to the sleeper, for whom the obligation of making up the prayer has been established by the Sunnah, where the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: من نام عن صلاة نسيها فليصلها إذا ذكرها لا كفارة لها إلا ذلك، ثم تلا قوله تعالى : وَأَقِمِ الصَّلاةَ لِذِكْرِي Whoever sleeps and misses a prayer, or forgets it, let him pray it when he remembers it. There is no expiation for it except that. Then he recited the saying of Allah the Exalted: And establish prayer for My remembrance., because the difference between the one who faints and the sleeper is very clear. The sleeper retains some sensation, and for this reason he wakes up when he is woken, unlike the one who faints, whose mind is more deeply covered, and for this reason he does not wake up when he is woken.
As for when the fainting is due to the person's own action, such as if the cause was taking anesthesia or something similar, then it is obligatory for him to make up the prayer, because the unconsciousness that occurred to him was due to his action.
So the rule is: "Whoever faints due to an illness, an accident, or anything else for which he has no cause, it is not obligatory for him to make up the prayer. And if his fainting is due to his own cause, then he has to make up the prayer".
As for fasting, if he faints in Ramadan, he makes up the day on which he fainted, whether it was one day or more. The difference between prayer and fasting is clear, for the menstruating woman, who is prohibited from fasting by the Shari'ah, makes up the fasting but does not make up the prayer. Likewise, this person who was prevented from fasting by sensation has to make up the fasting but does not make up the prayer.
The questioner : May Allah reward you.