Did the Shaykh issue a ruling on shortening the prayer for students residing in these countries?
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The questioner : There is another question, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : Fine.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good, it is the same story as the brother’s. It happened to me with the director of an academic institute in one of the regions. I discussed with him the shortening of the prayer, and he said: The Shaykh issued a ruling for university students that they should shorten the prayer.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : If they miss the prayer.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : And this is not permissible. He issued a ruling for them, and I do not know how. I do not know; he says: Is this matter correct or not? I said: By Allah, I have no knowledge, O Shaykh. I am more knowledgeable than you and him. If you have a fatwa that objects to the Shaykh, and his son was studying at your university in the College of Sharia, he said: No. In fact, he warned his son and said to him: Do not shorten; complete the prayer.
The Shaykh : Fine.
The questioner : So I do not know, meaning, if we follow Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, and then your fatwa.
The Shaykh : Yes, exactly.
The questioner : Meaning, do we shorten or do we not shorten?
The Shaykh : May Allah protect you, we issued this ruling after study and after looking at the evidence and looking at the words of the scholars of knowledge. We found that the closest opinion to the truth is the opinion of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him): That a man, as long as he is away from his homeland and has not taken the second country as a residence, is a traveler. Whoever remains for a need, when it ends he returns, is a traveler, whether the duration is specified or not. Do you understand? This is what we see, because any estimate you make, if you estimate four days, we say: What is your evidence? If you estimate a month, we say: What is your evidence? If you estimate a year, we say: What is your evidence? There is no evidence that says, for example, that if a traveler intends to reside in this place for this duration, the ruling of travel is cut off from him. There is no evidence. And whoever finds evidence, let him please present it. We, if Allah wills, are holding ourselves to the standard that if the evidence becomes clear to us, we will take it.
And our saying is not infallible. We make mistakes just as others make mistakes, but we must fear Allah as much as we can and[Al-Baqarah 2:286].
If this is what the effort of the person has reached, he is excused by Allah. But any issue that is more probable to the scholar, he is not excused for deviating from what is more probable to him, because he will be questioned on the Day of Resurrection. And any issue that a person states, and there is evidence contrary to his statement, and he did not know it, he is excused. And any issue that a person states without right, and he is a mujtahid, it is obligatory upon him, if the truth becomes clear to him, to return from his ijtihad. So if a person comes to us with evidence that a person, if he remains for the specified duration, the ruling of travel is cut off from him and his ruling becomes the ruling of a resident, it is upon us always, it is upon us to accept it. And whoever finds evidence, let him also throw our saying to the winds. I have given him permission, and he has given me permission. But I say: It is obligatory upon him, if he finds evidence that contradicts my saying, to take it.
The Shaykh : Fine.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good, it is the same story as the brother’s. It happened to me with the director of an academic institute in one of the regions. I discussed with him the shortening of the prayer, and he said: The Shaykh issued a ruling for university students that they should shorten the prayer.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : If they miss the prayer.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : And this is not permissible. He issued a ruling for them, and I do not know how. I do not know; he says: Is this matter correct or not? I said: By Allah, I have no knowledge, O Shaykh. I am more knowledgeable than you and him. If you have a fatwa that objects to the Shaykh, and his son was studying at your university in the College of Sharia, he said: No. In fact, he warned his son and said to him: Do not shorten; complete the prayer.
The Shaykh : Fine.
The questioner : So I do not know, meaning, if we follow Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, and then your fatwa.
The Shaykh : Yes, exactly.
The questioner : Meaning, do we shorten or do we not shorten?
The Shaykh : May Allah protect you, we issued this ruling after study and after looking at the evidence and looking at the words of the scholars of knowledge. We found that the closest opinion to the truth is the opinion of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him): That a man, as long as he is away from his homeland and has not taken the second country as a residence, is a traveler. Whoever remains for a need, when it ends he returns, is a traveler, whether the duration is specified or not. Do you understand? This is what we see, because any estimate you make, if you estimate four days, we say: What is your evidence? If you estimate a month, we say: What is your evidence? If you estimate a year, we say: What is your evidence? There is no evidence that says, for example, that if a traveler intends to reside in this place for this duration, the ruling of travel is cut off from him. There is no evidence. And whoever finds evidence, let him please present it. We, if Allah wills, are holding ourselves to the standard that if the evidence becomes clear to us, we will take it.
And our saying is not infallible. We make mistakes just as others make mistakes, but we must fear Allah as much as we can and
Allah does not charge a soul except [with that within] its capacity
لا يُكَلِّفُ اللَّهُ نَفْساً إِلَّا وُسْعَهَاIf this is what the effort of the person has reached, he is excused by Allah