Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

                  

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

Dear Brother,

 

Assalaamalaikum.

You have not clarified whether one should say the sunnat prayers while travelling. Are these to be shortened as well or are they to be omitted? Some say that sunnat prayers in qasr should be said as we do in regular prayers. Please explain. 

Thank you.

 

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

 

Answer:

 

Sunnah in qasr prayers

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person,  no grave, no prophet,  no imam,  no dai,  nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad(saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

 

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 4 Surah Nisa verse 101: When you go on a journey,  there is no harm,  if you shorten your salaat,  (especially) when you fear that the disbelievers might harass you,  for the disbelievers are openly bent upon enmity against you.

 

Allah Subhanah, in His Sublime Mercy, has given the allowance that one who is traveling away from his home at a particular distance, may offer his obligatory prayers in a shortened form. 

 

There is absolutely no harm if one, who is traveling and offering ‘qasr’ prayers wishes to pray Sunnah or Nafl voluntary prayers, but there is no shortening in any of the voluntary prayers.

 

Your Statement: Some say that sunnat prayers in qasr should be said as we do in regular prayers.

Firstly, one must realize that both the Sunnah and the Nafl prayers, while traveling or not traveling, are not obligatory, but rather voluntary.  If one offers these voluntary prayers, he will earn a huge reward from Allah Subhanah; and if one for any reason does not offer his voluntary prayers, there is no sin upon him.

 

But to insist and make it obligatory that one has to offer his Sunnah and/or Nafl voluntary prayers while traveling would be incorrect. 

 

The example of one who states it is obligatory to pray the voluntary prayers along with the ‘qasr’ prayers is as if the boss has contracted an employee to work eight hours with him everyday.  One day, the boss sees that the employee is not feeling well, and the boss has mercy on the employee and tells him to leave after working only four hours because of his special condition.  How logical would it be for the employee to now ask his boss whether he must report later to work over-time, after his boss has already given a relieve after a half day’s work? 

 

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me.  Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

 

Your Brother in Islam,

 

 

Burhan