The Obligation to Fulfill a Vow of Obedience

Question:
This female questioner, a sister from Taif (S. A.), says: Your Eminence! I previously vowed to Allah to pray two rak'ahs as thanks to Allah the Exalted before every prayer if Allah granted me a specific matter. When this matter was granted by the grace of Allah , I began to fulfill my vow. After a while, some of the brothers, who are not scholars, issued a fatwa to me that there is no such thing as the prayer of thanks, but only the prostration of thanks exists. So I began performing that. Is that sufficient to fulfill my vow? And what is the ruling on the period during which I was only performing the prostration of thanks? May Allah reward you.

Answer:
It is obligatory for you to fulfill your vow by praying two rak'ahs, based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): The prayer of two rak'ahs is an act of obedience to Allah. The prostration of thanks is not the vowed prayer. The vowed prayer must be fulfilled, and the prostration of thanks is something else. So you must fulfill your vow with the prayer, by praying two rak'ahs before every prayer for the sake of your vow. Identify the days you left off and make them up. The days you left off, make them up. Yes.