What does one do if he doubts: did he pray or did he not pray?
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Q: If the one who is praying doubts whether he prayed or did not pray, what does he do, whether the doubt is within the time or outside of it?
A: If a Muslim doubts about any of the obligatory prayers: did he perform it or not? Then it is obligatory for him to hasten to perform it; because the original state is the continuation of the obligation, so he must hasten to perform it; due to the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):.
And it is obligatory for the Muslim to take great care of the prayer, and to strive to perform it in congregation, and not to be preoccupied with what causes him to forget it; because it is the pillar of Islam, and the most important of the obligations after the two testimonies. And Allah the Exalted said: [al-Baqarah: 238], and He the Exalted said: [al-Baqarah: 43], and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2616Hasan (Darussalam), and he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2609Sahih (Darussalam).
And the verses and hadiths regarding the exaltation of the status of prayer and the obligation to preserve it are numerous.
A: If a Muslim doubts about any of the obligatory prayers: did he perform it or not? Then it is obligatory for him to hasten to perform it; because the original state is the continuation of the obligation, so he must hasten to perform it; due to the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):
Whoever sleeps through a prayer or forgets it, let him pray it when he remembers it; there is no expiation for it except that.
مَن نام عن الصلاة أو نسيها فليُصلها إذا ذكرها، لا كفارةَ لها إلا ذلكAnd it is obligatory for the Muslim to take great care of the prayer, and to strive to perform it in congregation, and not to be preoccupied with what causes him to forget it; because it is the pillar of Islam, and the most important of the obligations after the two testimonies. And Allah the Exalted said:
Maintain with care the [obligatory] prayers and [in particular] the middle prayer and stand before Allah, devoutly obedient.
حَافِظُوا عَلَى الصَّلَوَاتِ وَالصَّلَاةِ الْوُسْطَى وَقُومُوا لِلَّهِ قَانِتِينَAnd establish prayer and give zakah and bow with those who bow [in worship and obedience].
وَأَقِيمُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَآتُوا الزَّكَاةَ وَارْكَعُوا مَعَ الرَّاكِعِينَThe head of the matter is Islam, and its pillar is the Salat, and its hump is Jihad
رأس الأمر الإسلام، وعموده الصلاة، وذروة سنامه الجهاد في سبيل اللهIslam is based upon five: the testimony of La Ilaha Illallah, and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, the establishment of the Salat, giving the Zakat, fasting (the month of) Ramadan, and performing Hajj to the House.
بُنِيَ الإسلامُ على خمسٍ: شهادة أن لا إله إلا الله، وأن محمدًا رسول الله، وإقام الصلاة، وإيتاء الزكاة، وصوم رمضان، وحج البيتAnd the verses and hadiths regarding the exaltation of the status of prayer and the obligation to preserve it are numerous.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.