Thread by @sirnucy

Repaying Salāt on behalf of the Deceased

Earlier today, a brother asked me if it were permitted to make up Salāt on behalf of one's deceased relative. According to him, he saw a brother observing four raka'āt of prayer after Dhuhr Salāt and when he asked him whether he was

offering nāfilah, the brother replied that he was making up the missed Salāt by his deceased father. All his efforts to convince the brother otherwise proved abortive. Thus, he wants me to shed light on the matter and make it public so the brother and others can benefit.

First, it is important to note that the obligation of Salāt remains on the Muslim until he breathes his last. This is based on the express command in verse 9 of Sūratul Hijr:

وَاعْبُدْ رَبَّكَ حَتَّى يَأْتِيَكَ الْيَقِينُ

And worship your Lord until the certainty comes to you.

At-Tabari رحمه الله mentioned in his Tafsīr of this verse that majority of the Salaf have interpreted the word "yaqīn" here to mean DEATH. Al-Qurtubī رحمه الله also submitted thus:

والمراد استمرار العبادة مدة حياته، كما قال العبد الصالح: وأوصاني بالصلاة والزكاة ما دمت حياً.

What is meant is the continuation of worship of Allāh throughout one's lifetime, just as the pious servant of Allāh (prophet īsā) said, "He has enjoined upon me prayer and charity as long as I live." (19:31)

This view was also corroborated by Ibn Kathīr رحمة الله عليه

who cited verse 47 of Sūratu Mudaththir to support his view: حَتَّى أَتَانَا الْيَقِينُ

Therefore, so long as one is alive, he must NOT abandon Salāt.

Second, Islām has provided a perfect template for Salāt such that even the terribly sick can pray conveniently in the most

comfortable manner for him. The Messenger of Allāh صلى الله عليه وسلم said:

صل قائما ، فإن لم تستطع فقاعدا ، فإن لم تستطع فعلى جنب

"Pray while standing and if you can't, pray while sitting and if you cannot do even that, then pray lying on your side."

Shaykh bn Bāz رحمه الله in his commentary on the above Hadīth said:

فإن عجز عن القعود صلّى على جنبه، يقرأ ويأت بالأذكار القولية، ويأت بالأركان الفعلية بالنية، الركوع بالنية والسجود بالنية والرفع من الركوع بالنية والرفع من السجود بالنية مع الأذكار الشرعية، فإن عجز صلّى

مستلقياً على ظهره،......... يكبر ويقرأ ثم يكبر ويركع بالنية...

"If he (the sick) was unable to pray sitting, he should pray lying on his side, recite the Qur'ān and other verbal adhkār and then he should perform the active pillars of Salāt by intention. He should make Sujūd

and rising from it by intention together with the required adhkār for each posture. If he's unable to pray lying on his side, he should pray lying on his back and make Takbīr and recite the Qur'ān, then say Takbīr again and make rukū' by intention..."

Third, if the sick were unconscious such as if he had entered into coma and is completely unaware of his sorrounding and dies before recovering from it, he's NOT obligated to pray, based on the following Hadīth:

رفع القلم عن ثلاثة : عن النائم حتى يستيقظ , وعن الصبي حتى يشب ,

وعن المعتوه حتى يعقل

"The pen is lifted from three people: a sleeping person until he awakens, a child until he becomes an adult, and an insane person until he regains his sanity.”

Fourth, if he were sane and aware of his environment but didn't pray for any reason other than

the above, he's a GRAVE SINNER and will be held responsible for abandoning the Salāt. If he were reminded to pray before he died but was still lackadaisical about it, his corpse shall not be washed or shrouded, neither would Janāzah prayer be offered for him, so as to serve as

punishment for him and deterrent to others like him.

تارك الصلاة الذي لا يصليها مطلقا ، كافر ، سواء تركها كسلا أو جحودا ، في أصح قولي العلماء ؛ لأدلة كثيرة. وعليه ؛ فلا يجوز أن تصلي الجنازة على من علمت أنه مات تاركا للصلاة ؛ لعموم قوله تعالى :

(وَلَا تُصَلِّ عَلَى أَحَدٍ مِنْهُمْ مَاتَ أَبَدًا وَلَا تَقُمْ عَلَى قَبْرِهِ إِنَّهُمْ كَفَرُوا بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ وَمَاتُوا وَهُمْ فَاسِقُونَ) التوبة/84

"According to the more correct of the two opinions, the one who abandons the Salāt completely is a Kafīr, whether he

did so because he was lackadaisical about it, or out of denial of its obligation. Based on this, Janāzah prayer shall not be performed on the corpse of the one who you know died abandoning the Salāt based on the general interpretation of Qur'ān 9:84."

Concerning the question of whether or not a deceased's relative can make up for the former's missed Salāt, it's instructive to note that there's NO difference of opinion among the Ulamā' that such is NOT permitted and that the deceased will NOT be credited with any reward

from such act.

The Committee on Fatwah of the prestigious Azhar university was asked this question and here's their response:

الصلاة لا تسقط عن الميت ولا تبرأ ذمته منها بفعل غ​​يره لأنها فرض عين وهي من العبادات البدنية الخالصة فلا ينوب فيها أحد عن أحد بخلاف الصدقة،

واختلاف الفقهاء فى من يصلى نوافل ويهب ثوابها للميت، فقال بعضهم: يصل الثواب للميت متى وهب له المصلى، وقال بعضهم لا يصل، وبناءً على الأول فإنه لا مانع من صلاة النافلة وهبة ثوابها للميت.

The obligation of Salāt is not lifted from the deceased and his responsibility is not

fulfilled through the prayer of another. It is an individual obligation and one of the exclusively physical acts of worship. No one can perform it on another's behalf, unlike charity. The only difference of opinion is on whether one can perform NAWĀFIL and donate the reward

to the deceased. Some say the reward will reach him, some say that it will not. Based on the first view, there's no harm in performing NAWĀFIL prayer and donating the reward to the deceased.

Note: One cannot perform any of the obligatory prayers with the intention of Nāfilah

even in this case.

Therefore, it is absolutely WRONG for the brother to repay his deceased father's missed Salāt. NO scholar of repute holds this opinion. He should rather embark on istighfār for his father & make a lot of charity with the intention that the reward gets to him.