The ruling on one who vows to pray two rak'ahs after every obligatory prayer
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Question:
I vowed to Allah the Exalted to pray two rak'ahs after every obligatory prayer. Since it is not permissible to pray after Fajr and after 'Asr, does the situation change in the case of a vow? Please inform us, may Allah reward you.
Answer:
You must fulfill the vow, but this does not include what comes after 'Asr and what comes after Fajr; because that is not a place for worship, it is not a place for prayer. So your vow, and the vow of anyone else, is understood in light of the Shari'ah ruling. Thus, you must pray two rak'ahs after Zuhr, after Maghrib, and after 'Isha', but not after 'Asr and Fajr; because what follows them is not a place for prayer.
Then we advise you and others not to make vows. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade vows and said:Sunan an-Nasa'i 3801Sahih (Darussalam) (peace and blessings be upon him). So it is not advisable. However, if one vows an act of obedience, it is obligatory for him to fulfill it, like this vow. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sunan Ibn Majah 2126Sahih (Darussalam). So the advice is to not make vows at all.
Q: And is the Sunnah of Fajr made up if it is missed, and likewise the Witr?
The Shaykh: Yes, if the Sunnah of Fajr is missed, it is made up after the prayer, or after the sun rises and becomes high. This is the Sunnah, this is the best. And so with the Witr: if it is missed at night, the Sunnah is for the believer, male or female, to pray during the day what he used to pray at night. But he does not pray an odd number; he makes it even. If he used to pray five, he prays six, with three taslims. If he used to pray three, he says taslim twice. If he used to pray seven, he prays eight rak'ahs, with four taslims, and so on.
Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said: "The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), if illness or sleep prevented him from his Witr at night, would pray twelve rak'ahs during the day." And it was the norm for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to pray eleven rak'ahs at night. So if he was prevented from that by sleep or illness, he would pray them during the day and make them even, praying twelve rak'ahs with six taslims. So likewise, if someone else (peace and blessings be upon him) is prevented from the Witr at night by sleep or illness, he prays during the day, but he makes it even; he does not pray an odd number, he makes it even.
I vowed to Allah the Exalted to pray two rak'ahs after every obligatory prayer. Since it is not permissible to pray after Fajr and after 'Asr, does the situation change in the case of a vow? Please inform us, may Allah reward you.
Answer:
You must fulfill the vow, but this does not include what comes after 'Asr and what comes after Fajr; because that is not a place for worship, it is not a place for prayer. So your vow, and the vow of anyone else, is understood in light of the Shari'ah ruling. Thus, you must pray two rak'ahs after Zuhr, after Maghrib, and after 'Isha', but not after 'Asr and Fajr; because what follows them is not a place for prayer.
Then we advise you and others not to make vows. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade vows and said:
They do not bring any good
إنه لا يأتي بخيرٍWhoever vows to obey Allah, let him obey Him, and whoever vows to disobey Allah, let him not disobey Him.
مَن نذر أن يُطيع الله فليُطِعْه، ومَن نذر أن يعصي الله فلا يعصهQ: And is the Sunnah of Fajr made up if it is missed, and likewise the Witr?
The Shaykh: Yes, if the Sunnah of Fajr is missed, it is made up after the prayer, or after the sun rises and becomes high. This is the Sunnah, this is the best. And so with the Witr: if it is missed at night, the Sunnah is for the believer, male or female, to pray during the day what he used to pray at night. But he does not pray an odd number; he makes it even. If he used to pray five, he prays six, with three taslims. If he used to pray three, he says taslim twice. If he used to pray seven, he prays eight rak'ahs, with four taslims, and so on.
Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said: "The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), if illness or sleep prevented him from his Witr at night, would pray twelve rak'ahs during the day." And it was the norm for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to pray eleven rak'ahs at night. So if he was prevented from that by sleep or illness, he would pray them during the day and make them even, praying twelve rak'ahs with six taslims. So likewise, if someone else (peace and blessings be upon him) is prevented from the Witr at night by sleep or illness, he prays during the day, but he makes it even; he does not pray an odd number, he makes it even.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.