Ruling on making up fasting and prayer for one who occasionally leaves them off
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Question:
His third question says: I am now twenty-eight years old, and since I was seventeen, I have been praying and fasting, but sometimes I leave off prayer for a period, then I return to it. So what is required of me now? Is making up the missed prayers obligatory, or is repentance sufficient? And how do I act when I may not know the number of days on which I left off prayer? Likewise, regarding fasting, I broke the fast on some days without an excuse, and I broke the fast over four years due to illness, though the doctors did not prevent me from fasting, but I felt severe weakness and a decline in my health, so I broke the fast. What should I do now?
Guide us, may Allah reward you.
Answer:
Leaving off prayer is major shirk (associating partners with Allah), we seek refuge in Allah. Deliberately leaving off prayer is major shirk. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2616Hasan (Darussalam) And he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sunan Ibn Majah 1079Sahih (Darussalam) And he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: So leaving off prayer, even if it is out of negligence, is major shirk according to the most correct of the scholars' opinions.
As for if it is due to denying its obligation, this is major shirk according to all the scholars. But if it is due to laxity and negligence, this is major shirk according to the most correct of the scholars' opinions.
So you must repent to Allah, and you do not have to make up the missed prayers. You must have sincere, earnest repentance with regret for what has passed from you, and a sincere resolve not to return to this matter, and to continue in prayer. You do not have to make up the fasting or the previous prayers that you left off out of negligence, because fasting is attached to that; since leaving off prayer is shirk, you do not have to make up the prayer, nor the fasting.
As for the fasting you left off while you were praying, after Allah had accepted your repentance and you had abandoned this great sin, then you must make up the fasting.
And as for if the leaving off of fasting occurred during the time you were leaving off prayer, then you do not make it up, and you do not make up the fasting; because if a Muslim apostatizes from his religion, he does not make up [missed acts]. Allah (Exalted and Majestic is He) said: [Al-Anfal: 38] And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: So if a man repents from leaving off prayer after he has left it off, and he repents and returns to Allah, then he continues in worship and righteous deeds, and he asks his Lord for forgiveness and pardon, and he does not have to make up anything, neither his prayer nor his previous fasting that he left off while he was in the state of leaving off prayer. We ask Allah for safety.
And you must be truthful with Allah and supplicate to Him (Exalted and Majestic is He) to keep you firm upon the truth. You must increase in righteous deeds, as Allah (Exalted and Majestic is He) said: [Ta-Ha: 82] And when He mentioned shirk, killing, and zina (unlawful sexual intercourse), He said after this: [Al-Furqan: 70].
So we advise you and all Muslims to repent to Allah with sincere, earnest repentance from all sins, especially leaving off prayer, for it is a great sin and a great shirk. So you must hasten and rush to sincere repentance, with a sincere resolve not to return, and to continue in prayer. Likewise, we advise all who have left off prayer to repent to Allah, and to hasten with sincere, earnest repentance, and they do not have to make up what they left off before that. Yes.
The presenter: Regarding the specification of making up [the fast], is it that he does not know the number of days he broke the fast?
The Shaykh: As long as he was in the state of leaving off prayer, he does not have to make it up. But if he was a Muslim and he was praying, and he did not have any of the nullifiers of Islam, then he fasts what is most likely in his opinion.
The presenter: He strives to estimate.
The Shaykh: He strives and fasts what is most likely in his opinion that he left off, that he broke the fast on. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you.
His third question says: I am now twenty-eight years old, and since I was seventeen, I have been praying and fasting, but sometimes I leave off prayer for a period, then I return to it. So what is required of me now? Is making up the missed prayers obligatory, or is repentance sufficient? And how do I act when I may not know the number of days on which I left off prayer? Likewise, regarding fasting, I broke the fast on some days without an excuse, and I broke the fast over four years due to illness, though the doctors did not prevent me from fasting, but I felt severe weakness and a decline in my health, so I broke the fast. What should I do now?
Guide us, may Allah reward you.
Answer:
Leaving off prayer is major shirk (associating partners with Allah), we seek refuge in Allah. Deliberately leaving off prayer is major shirk. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
The 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 اللهThe covenant that distinguishes between us and them is prayer; so whoever leaves it, he has committed Kufr.
العهد الذي بيننا وبينهم الصلاة فمن تركها فقد كفرBetween a man and disbelief and shirk (associating partners with Allah) is the abandonment of prayer.
بين الرجل وبين الكفر والشرك ترك الصلاةAs for if it is due to denying its obligation, this is major shirk according to all the scholars. But if it is due to laxity and negligence, this is major shirk according to the most correct of the scholars' opinions.
So you must repent to Allah, and you do not have to make up the missed prayers. You must have sincere, earnest repentance with regret for what has passed from you, and a sincere resolve not to return to this matter, and to continue in prayer. You do not have to make up the fasting or the previous prayers that you left off out of negligence, because fasting is attached to that; since leaving off prayer is shirk, you do not have to make up the prayer, nor the fasting.
As for the fasting you left off while you were praying, after Allah had accepted your repentance and you had abandoned this great sin, then you must make up the fasting.
And as for if the leaving off of fasting occurred during the time you were leaving off prayer, then you do not make it up, and you do not make up the fasting; because if a Muslim apostatizes from his religion, he does not make up [missed acts]. Allah (Exalted and Majestic is He) said:
Say to those who have disbelieved [that] if they cease, what has previously occurred will be forgiven for them
قُلْ لِلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا إِنْ يَنتَهُوا يُغْفَرْ لَهُمْ مَا قَدْ سَلَفَIslam demolishes what came before it, and repentance wipes out what came before it
الإسلام يهدم ما كان قبله، والتوبة تجب ما قبلهاAnd you must be truthful with Allah and supplicate to Him (Exalted and Majestic is He) to keep you firm upon the truth. You must increase in righteous deeds, as Allah (Exalted and Majestic is He) said:
But indeed, I am the Perpetual Forgiver of whoever repents and believes and does righteousness and then continues in guidance.
وَإِنِّي لَغَفَّارٌ لِمَنْ تَابَ وَآمَنَ وَعَمِلَ صَالِحًا ثُمَّ اهْتَدَىExcept for those who repent, believe and do righteous work. For them Allah will replace their evil deeds with good. And ever is Allah Forgiving and Merciful.
إِلَّا مَنْ تَابَ وَآمَنَ وَعَمِلَ عَمَلًا صَالِحًا فَأُوْلَئِكَ يُبَدِّلُ اللَّهُ سَيِّئَاتِهِمْ حَسَنَاتٍ وَكَانَ اللَّهُ غَفُورًا رَحِيمًاSo we advise you and all Muslims to repent to Allah with sincere, earnest repentance from all sins, especially leaving off prayer, for it is a great sin and a great shirk. So you must hasten and rush to sincere repentance, with a sincere resolve not to return, and to continue in prayer. Likewise, we advise all who have left off prayer to repent to Allah, and to hasten with sincere, earnest repentance, and they do not have to make up what they left off before that. Yes.
The presenter: Regarding the specification of making up [the fast], is it that he does not know the number of days he broke the fast?
The Shaykh: As long as he was in the state of leaving off prayer, he does not have to make it up. But if he was a Muslim and he was praying, and he did not have any of the nullifiers of Islam, then he fasts what is most likely in his opinion.
The presenter: He strives to estimate.
The Shaykh: He strives and fasts what is most likely in his opinion that he left off, that he broke the fast on. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.