Benefits of the Hadith: (Amir ibn Rabi'ah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) praying on his mount in whatever direction it faced . . . )

The Shaykh : In this hadith, there is evidence that the action of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) is a proof, because Amir ibn Rabi'ah only mentioned it to cite it as evidence. Among its benefits is also that the action of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) specifies the verbal evidence. Where is the verbal evidence? This is an action-based evidence. So we derive a principle of jurisprudence: what is the action-based evidence? It specifies the verbal evidence. Among the benefits of this hadith is the permissibility of praying on a mount, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) cannot do anything forbidden, as he is the legislator, and because he (peace and blessings be upon him) is the most scrupulous of people, so he cannot do anything forbidden. Thus, we derive from it: the permissibility of praying on a mount. Among the benefits of this hadith is the purity of the donkey, the mule, the horse, and the camel. This is a point of dispute among those who dispute, unless Amir explicitly stated that he was on a donkey. However, it is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) that he used to ride a donkey, as in the hadith of Mu'adh, who said: This indicates the purity of the donkey, because a donkey is not free from sweat, especially in the days of summer, over long distances, and in the haste of travel; it must sweat, and the sweat must reach the rider. Also, there may be rains that cause the donkey and the rider's clothes to become wet. This opinion, meaning the opinion regarding the purity of the donkey, is the stronger position. It is supported by the fact that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said regarding the cat: And he explained this Allah (Mighty and Majestic) has the right to legislate; He may rule that a thing is pure even if it is foul and not to be eaten, in order to make things easy for the servants. There is no doubt that the circling of the donkey and the mule around their riders is more than the circling of what? The cat. And the ruling revolves with its cause, in existence and in absence. This opinion is the stronger one: the purity of the mule and the donkey. The camel is agreed upon to be pure because it is lawful; if it were impure, its consumption would not be lawful. Among the benefits of this hadith is that the traveler prays on his mount in whatever direction it faces, toward the direction it is facing. If someone asks: what if he prays in a direction other than the direction he is facing? Is his prayer valid? There is a detail in this: if he is facing the qiblah, it is valid, because that is the original requirement. If he is facing other than the qiblah, it is not valid, because he is not facing the qiblah, either as a primary or secondary requirement. An example of this is: a man traveling north sees a tree or luggage or something similar on his right, so he turns the mount toward it, not because it is his direction of travel, but to see what it is. We say: is the prayer? The prayer is not valid; it is invalid, except if the direction is toward the qiblah, in which case it is valid, because the qiblah is the original requirement. So he has shifted from the secondary to the original, and it does not harm. Now, if the camel or mount, in the majority of cases, is blown by the wind and turns away from the qiblah, and he tries to turn it back but it refuses, is his prayer valid? Yes, because this is a customary matter; the mount may blow the rider and turn him away from his direction, so it does not harm, especially if it is slight. Among the benefits of this hadith is that the obligation of the rider in bowing and prostration is to indicate, because he cannot pray while bowing. Yes, he cannot bow or prostrate, especially in the past, when mounts were either donkeys, camels, horses, or mules, and one could not manage. So do we make this ruling apply even when one is able to bow and prostrate, or do we say: in the state of inability? The apparent view is the second: that it is in the state of inability, and that if it is possible to bow and prostrate, it is obligatory for him to bow and prostrate, just as if he were on a ship. Although on a ship, we may say: one must face the qiblah, because the space is wide and one can turn right and left and wherever one wishes. Among the benefits of this hadith is the facilitation for the one who is obligated in the virtues of deeds, because there is no doubt that this is a facilitation. If a person wants to perform voluntary prayers, we do not oblige him to dismount and pray on the ground; rather, we say: pray voluntarily on your mount while it is carrying you. Among the benefits of this hadith is that this is not permissible in the obligatory prayer, due to the statement of Amir: And based on this, if he does not do it in the obligatory prayer, then facing the qiblah in the obligatory prayer remains on what? On the original rule: that one must face the qiblah. But it has been mentioned to us previously that facing the qiblah is dropped in cases of inability and fear, so let that be transferred here. Among the benefits of this hadith is that the original rule is the equality of the obligatory and the voluntary. The original rule is the equality of the obligatory and the voluntary. The point is: if that were not the case, there would be no need for the exception, because it would be said: the specification was only mentioned in the voluntary prayer, so the obligatory prayer remains on the original rule. Then a person would come and say: yes, this remains on the original rule. But we can use analogy and say: the obligatory prayer is like the voluntary prayer, because what is established in the voluntary is established in the obligatory. So when the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) denied that he prays the obligatory prayer on it, we know that the original rule is what, Jabir? The equality of what?
The student: The obligatory and the voluntary.

The Shaykh : The equality of the obligatory and the voluntary, except with evidence. So we say in this issue: the obligatory differs from the voluntary. If someone asks: what is the wisdom? We say: the wisdom in this is to encourage the person to perform voluntary prayers. Because if we told him: you must dismount and pray on the ground, he would not do it; he would say: this is voluntary and there is no need for the prayer. So, in order to encourage the person to perform voluntary prayers, he was given a dispensation to pray voluntarily on his mount. Now, there are differences between the obligatory and the voluntary that we have outlined for you previously; I think it reaches twenty or more. In any case, they are available with some of the brothers. Whoever wishes to look at them will find them beneficial: the differences between the obligatory and the voluntary. Yes.
The student: They are in *Al-Mu'tamad*.

The Shaykh : They are in *Al-Mu'tamad*. Now, praise be to Allah, *Al-Mu'tamad*, I think, is available with most of you.