The Ruling on Abandoning Prayer
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Q318: The questioner, A. M. A. from Libya, says: I am consistent in performing the prayer at its times, praise be to Allah, but I want to pray the make-up for what I left behind during my youth, meaning that I pray two prayers in every time. Is this practice of mine correct, and if not, what is obligatory for me to do?
A318: If by the stage of youth you mean before reaching puberty, then during that period there is no obligatory prayer upon you, and no make-up is required of you. However, if you mean after reaching puberty, and you were abandoning the prayer after puberty intentionally, then the correct opinion among the scholars is that whoever abandons the prayer intentionally commits disbelief; and if he repents to Allah with a sincere repentance and is consistent in his prayer, then it is not obligatory for him to make up the missed prayers. In the case of abandoning the prayer intentionally, he must repent to Allah, because at that time he is not upon Islam, according to the correct view, because whoever abandons the prayer intentionally is a disbeliever, as evidenced by the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sunan Ibn Majah 1079Sahih (Darussalam) and other evidence on this matter. The conclusion is that what is obligatory for you, in our view, is to repent to Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) and to be consistent in performing the obligatory prayers at their times, and this will expiate what has passed, if Allah wills.
A318: If by the stage of youth you mean before reaching puberty, then during that period there is no obligatory prayer upon you, and no make-up is required of you. However, if you mean after reaching puberty, and you were abandoning the prayer after puberty intentionally, then the correct opinion among the scholars is that whoever abandons the prayer intentionally commits disbelief; and if he repents to Allah with a sincere repentance and is consistent in his prayer, then it is not obligatory for him to make up the missed prayers. In the case of abandoning the prayer intentionally, he must repent to Allah, because at that time he is not upon Islam, according to the correct view, because whoever abandons the prayer intentionally is a disbeliever, as evidenced by the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):
Between the servant and shirk or disbelief is abandoning the prayer
بين العبد وبين الشرك أو الكفر ترك الصلاةThe 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 كفر
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.