The Ruling on Abandoning the Prayer (Ṣalāh) Out of Negligence and Laziness

In the name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Bestower of Mercy. All praise is due to Allah, and prayers and peace be upon the Messenger of Allah, upon his family and companions, and upon whoever is guided by his guidance. To proceed:

This is one of the great matters over which the scholars have differed, the matter of abandoning the prayer (ṣalāh) out of negligence and laziness, not out of denial of its obligation. A group of the scholars held that one disbelieves (kufr) by that, on account of many evidences. Among them is His saying, Majestic and Exalted is He:

مَا سَلَكَكُمْ فِي سَقَرَ ۝ قَالُوا لَمْ نَكُ مِنَ الْمُصَلِّينَ ۝ وَلَمْ نَكُ نُطْعِمُ الْمِسْكِينَ “‘What has caused you to enter Hell?’ They will say: ‘We were not of those who used to offer the Salât (prayers), nor we used to feed Al-Miskîn (the poor).’” — Sūrah al-Muddaththir (74:42-44)

And among them is His saying, Majestic and Exalted is He:

فَإِنْ تَابُوا وَأَقَامُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَآتَوُا الزَّكَاةَ فَإِخْوَانُكُمْ فِي الدِّينِ “But if they repent, perform As-Salât (Iqâmat-as-Salât) and give Zakât, then they are your brethren in religion.” — Sūrah al-Tawbah (9:11)

This indicates that whoever does not pray is not a brother in religion, even if he does not deny the obligation. And the saying of the Prophet ﷺ in the authentic hadith:

الْعَهْدُ الَّذِي بَيْنَنَا وَبَيْنَهُمُ الصَّلَاةُ، فَمَنْ تَرَكَهَا فَقَدْ كَفَرَ “The covenant between us and them is the prayer; whoever abandons it has disbelieved.” — reported by Imām Aḥmad and the Sunan authors with an authentic chain

And his saying ﷺ:

بَيْنَ الرَّجُلِ وَبَيْنَ الْكُفْرِ وَالشِّرْكِ تَرْكُ الصَّلَاةِ “Between a man and disbelief and shirk stands the abandonment of the prayer.” — reported by Muslim in his Ṣaḥīḥ

This is “disbelief” (al-kufr) defined by the definite article, and “shirk” defined by the definite article, which indicates that it is the major disbelief and the major shirk. And his saying ﷺ:

رَأْسُ الْأَمْرِ الْإِسْلَامُ، وَعَمُودُهُ الصَّلَاةُ “The head of the matter is Islam, and its pillar is the prayer.”

A thing whose pillar is abandoned does not remain; rather it falls. And when he ﷺ was asked about the rulers who introduce and change things in the religion, “Shall we fight them?” he said:

لَا، مَا أَقَامُوا فِيكُمُ الصَّلَاةَ “No, as long as they establish the prayer among you.”

And in another wording he said:

لَا، حَتَّى تَرَوْا كُفْرًا بَوَاحًا عِنْدَكُمْ مِنَ اللَّهِ فِيهِ بُرْهَانٌ “No, unless you see clear disbelief for which you have proof from Allah.”

So he made abandoning the prayer part of the clear disbelief that obligates the disbelief of the one who does it.

ʿAbdullāh ibn Shaqīq al-ʿUqaylī, the noble Successor (Tābiʿī), reported from the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) that they did not consider the abandonment of any deed to be disbelief except the prayer. So he related from the Companions, all of them, that they held abandoning the prayer to be disbelief, and it was not transmitted from them that they conditioned it upon denial of the obligation. This shows that abandoning it, without denial of the obligation, is disbelief. Applying the term “disbelief” in this context requires that it is major disbelief, because there are deeds that, with the Companions, abandoning them is disbelief and doing them is disbelief, yet it is not major disbelief, such as impugning lineage and wailing over the dead. The Prophet ﷺ named it “disbelief,” but it is minor disbelief. Likewise disowning one’s lineage the Prophet ﷺ named “disbelief,” a person disowning his father:

إِنَّ كُفْرًا بِكُمْ تَبَرُّؤٌ مِنْ آبَائِكُمْ “It is disbelief in you to disown your fathers.”

This is minor disbelief. This shows that the disbelief which ʿAbdullāh ibn Shaqīq related from the Companions is the major disbelief. And ʿUmar (may Allah be pleased with him) said:

لَا حَظَّ فِي الْإِسْلَامِ لِمَنْ تَرَكَ الصَّلَاةَ “There is no share in Islam for one who abandons the prayer.”

This statement is the sounder and stronger of the two positions from the standpoint of evidence. As for the one who denies the obligation, he is a disbeliever according to everyone. Whoever denies the obligation of the prayer is a disbeliever according to everyone, even if he prays with the people, because he is belying Allah and His Messenger when he denies the obligation.

So it is obligatory upon every Muslim man and woman to hasten and rush to the prayer, to guard it in its times, to fear (taqwā) Allah in that, and to beware of being among the disbelievers and counted among them while he does not realize it. The prayer is the pillar of Islam and its greatest pillar after the two testimonies. So it is obligatory upon all the Muslims to guard it, to give it care, to perform it in its times, and for a man to pray it in congregation in the mosques of Allah, in obedience to Allah and His Messenger ﷺ, and out of caution against what the one who abandons it has been described with of disbelief.

We ask Allah for all the Muslims success, guidance, and well-being from everything that angers Him.

Presenter: May Allah reward you with good.

Source: binbaz.org.sa (Nūr ʿalā al-Darb).