What is the meaning of this hadith: “Perfecting the ablution in times of difficulty and waiting for the next prayer after the previous one”? Does it mean sitting in the mosque until the time for the next prayer arrives?

The questioner : This questioner, Umm Ahmad from Riyadh, is asking about this hadith. She asks what its meaning is: “Perfecting the ablution in times of difficulty and waiting for the next prayer after the previous one.” Does it mean sitting in the mosque until the time for the next prayer arrives?

The Shaykh : “Perfecting the ablution in times of difficulty” means that a person completes his ablution in the most perfect manner, or that he completes his ablution in cold weather.
Likewise, he waits for the next prayer after the previous one, whether in the mosque or outside the mosque. The meaning is that his heart remains attached to the prayer. When he performs a prayer, he waits for the next one, so his heart is always attached to the prayer.
The first phrase, , does not mean that a person deliberately uses cold water when hot water is available, for this is not part of the Sunnah. Rather, if Allah makes easy for you what brings you comfort, that is better, more complete, and closer to the perfection of purity. But if it happens that you are in the desert or in a country where there are no heaters and it is not possible to heat the water, and you perform ablution despite the difficulty of the severe cold, then this is what is intended by this hadith that the questioner mentioned.