#389: Doubts Regarding Salāt

QUESTION

” Asalamu alaykum Waramatullahi wabarakatuh, pls I need a correction on what happened to me today I was doubting wether I had pray zuhri or not I was praying ishai and then I was thinking if I do or do not pls if things happening in this manner what should one do to correct the error may Allah accept our prayers as act of ibadaa.”

ANSWER

Wa alaykum salaam watahmatullaah wabatamaatuh.

Alhamdulillaah!
May Allaah reward you abundantly, aameen.

The rule in Islam is that if you doubt whether or not you have observed an Ibaadah or not, then the ruling is that you have not observed it. This is due to the Hadith in which the Rasul – salallaahu ‘alayhi wasallam – said:

“Whenever any of you observes his Salaat and he doubts whether he has observed three raka’ats or four, let him throw doubts away and build upon what he is certain of…”

It is recorded by Imaam Muslim in his Sahih, and others.

From this, the Ulamaa derive a precept in Fiqh where it is said that

اليقين لا يزال بالشك

“Certainty is not taken off by doubts”

What this means is that whenever you are sure of something initially, you don’t cast it off due to some doubts that come to you.

Example, if you are doubting whether or nor you have observed the Wudhu, then the rule is that you have not observed it. This is because your doubts is on the wudhu itself, therefore you have to cast it aside and base yourself on the original which is the absence of wudhu.

But if your doubts were on whether you have terminated the wudhu or not, then the ruling is that you have not. This is because your doubt here, is casted off and the original ruling is clung to, which is that you have made the wudhu.

If you understand what we have said above, then it becomes clear to you that in this case, if you have any strong reasons to doubt that you are yet to observe Dhuhr, then you have to observe it.

The exemption in this case is if you suffer from what the fuqahaa refer to as ‘Wiswaas’ (prevalent doubt).

That is when one experiences overwhelming doubts that seem to be abnormal such as a person doubting whether he has observed a thing he just finished observing. We can refer to it as a doubtful doubt.

If this one is the case, then the ruling is to cast the doubt itself aside and to assume you have observed Dhuhr.

It therefore, all depends on the situation.

Allāhu A’alam.

Bārakallāhu Fīkum
Jazākumullāhu Khayran.

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