I work as a non-resident driver in a location; my daily route is approximately one thousand four hundred kilometers. Do I have the right to combine and shorten the prayers?
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The questioner : I work as a non-resident driver in a location; my daily route is approximately one thousand four hundred kilometers. Do I have the right to combine and shorten the prayers, and is there anything required of me if I delay only the 'Isha' prayer?
The Shaykh : In any case, as long as you are outside your city, you are a traveler, even if you are a continuous driver, because you are outside the city. Whoever is outside his city is a traveler, because travel is defined as leaving one’s place of residence. Therefore, the driver who moves back and forth between cities and towns is a traveler.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : So he may shorten the prayer, and indeed shortening is recommended for him. He may also combine the prayers, but if he is staying in a place and not intending to continue his journey, it is better that he not combine unless he has a need for combining, such as being in a place where he wants to sleep a long sleep. In that case, he may combine by advancing the prayer or delaying it, and there is no blame on him for that.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : The important point is that you are considered a traveler, even if your usual habit is travel, because you are a person who has a city where you reside and to which you return. As long as you are in your city, you are a resident, and as long as you are outside your city, you are a traveler.
The questioner : You have done well; may Allah reward you.
Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached the end of this session in which we hosted the honorable Shaykh Muhammad ibn Salih al-Uthaymeen, professor at the College of Sharia in Qassim, and imam and khatib of the Grand Mosque in al-Unayzah. He answered the questions and inquiries sent by the honorable Mr. I’timad al-Sayyid and Mukhtar Sulayman from the Hasakah Governorate in Syria, Jum’ah al-Husayn al-Hamud from Syria, A.A.M. from Riyadh, Ahmad Alawi Faridan or Qaridan from Northern Yemen, and finally a message from Jasim Hamud from Syria. Thank you to the honorable Shaykh, and thank you.
The Shaykh : In any case, as long as you are outside your city, you are a traveler, even if you are a continuous driver, because you are outside the city. Whoever is outside his city is a traveler, because travel is defined as leaving one’s place of residence. Therefore, the driver who moves back and forth between cities and towns is a traveler.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : So he may shorten the prayer, and indeed shortening is recommended for him. He may also combine the prayers, but if he is staying in a place and not intending to continue his journey, it is better that he not combine unless he has a need for combining, such as being in a place where he wants to sleep a long sleep. In that case, he may combine by advancing the prayer or delaying it, and there is no blame on him for that.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : The important point is that you are considered a traveler, even if your usual habit is travel, because you are a person who has a city where you reside and to which you return. As long as you are in your city, you are a resident, and as long as you are outside your city, you are a traveler.
The questioner : You have done well; may Allah reward you.
Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached the end of this session in which we hosted the honorable Shaykh Muhammad ibn Salih al-Uthaymeen, professor at the College of Sharia in Qassim, and imam and khatib of the Grand Mosque in al-Unayzah. He answered the questions and inquiries sent by the honorable Mr. I’timad al-Sayyid and Mukhtar Sulayman from the Hasakah Governorate in Syria, Jum’ah al-Husayn al-Hamud from Syria, A.A.M. from Riyadh, Ahmad Alawi Faridan or Qaridan from Northern Yemen, and finally a message from Jasim Hamud from Syria. Thank you to the honorable Shaykh, and thank you.