Advice On Dealing With Anger

Source: troid.org

Anger is one of the evil whispers of Shaytaan, which leads to so many evils and tragedies, of which only Allaah knows their full extent. For this reason Islam has a great deal to say about this bad characteristic, and the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) described cures for this "disease" and ways to limit its effects, among which are the following:

(1) Seeking refuge with Allaah from the Shaytaan:

Suleiman ibn Sard said: "I was sitting with the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), and two men were slandering one another. One of them was red in the face, and the veins on his neck were standing out. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, 'I know a word which, if he were to say it, what he feels would go away. If he said "I seek refuge with Allaah from the Shaytaan," what he feels (i.e., his anger) would go away.'" (Reported by al-Bukhaaree, al-Fath, 6/337)

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "If a man gets angry and says, 'I seek refuge with Allaah,' his anger will go away." (Saheeh al-Jaami' al-Sagheer, no. 695)

(2) Keeping silent:

The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "If any of you becomes angry, let him keep silent." (Reported by Imaam Ahmad, al-Musnad, 1/329; see also Saheeh al-Jaami', 693, 4027).

This is because in most cases, the angry person loses self control and could utter words of kufr (from which we seek refuge with Allaah), or curses, or the word of divorce (talaaq) which would destroy his home, or words of slander which would bring him the enmity and hatred of others. So, in short, keeping silent is the solution which helps one to avoid all that.

(3) Not moving:

The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "If any of you becomes angry and he is standing, let him sit down, so his anger will go away; if it does not go away, let him lie down."

The narrator of this hadeeth is Abu Dharr (may Allaah be pleased with him), and there is a story connected to his telling of it: he was taking his camels to drink at a trough that he owned, when some other people came along and said (to one another), "Who can compete with Abu Dharr (in bringing animals to drink) and make his hair stand on end?" A man said, "I can," so he brought his animals and competed with Abu Dharr, with the result that the trough was broken. [i.e., Abu Dharr was expecting help in watering his camels, but instead the man misbehaved and caused the trough to be broken]. Abu Dharr was standing, so he sat down, then he laid down. Someone asked him, "O Abu Dharr, why did you sit down then lie down?" He said: "The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: . . ." and quoted the hadeeth. (The hadeeth and this story may be found in Musnad Ahmad, 5/152; see also Saheeh al-Jaami', no. 694).

According to another report, Abu Dharr was watering his animals at the trough, when another man made him angry, so he sat down. (Fayd al-Qadeer, al-Manaawi, 1/408)

Among the benefits of this advice given by the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) is the fact that it prevents the angry person from going out of control, because he could strike out and injure someone, or even kill - as we will find out shortly - or he could destroy possessions and so on. Sitting down makes it less likely that he will become overexcited, and lying down makes it even less likely that he will do something crazy or harmful. Al-'Allaamah al-Khattaabi, may Allaah have mercy on him, said in his commentary on Abu Daawood: "One who is standing is in a position to strike and destroy, while the one who is sitting is less likely to do that, and the one who is lying down can do neither. It is possible that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) told the angry person to sit down or lie down so that he would not do something that he would later regret. And Allaah knows best." (Sunan Abi Daawood, with Ma'aalim al-Sunan, 5/141)

(4) Following the advice of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him):

Abu Hurayrah, may Allaah be pleased with him, reported that a man said to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), "Advise me." He said, "Do not become angry." The man repeated his request several times, and each time the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) told him, "Do not become angry." (Reported by al-Bukhaaree, Fath al-Bari, 10/456)

According to another report, the man said: "I thought about what the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, and I realized that anger combines all kinds of evil." (Musnad Ahmad, 5/373)

(5) Do not become angry and Paradise will be yours (a Saheeh hadeeth, see Saheeh al-Jaami', 7374. Ibn Hajr attributed it to al-Tabaraani, see al-Fath 4/465):

Remembering what Allaah has promised to the righteous (muttaqeen) who keep away from the causes of anger and struggle within themselves to control it, is one of the most effective ways of extinguishing the flames of anger. One of the ahaadeeth that describe the great reward for doing this is: "Whoever controls his anger at the time when he has the means to act upon it, Allaah will fill his heart with contentment on the Day of Resurrection." (Reported by al-Tabaraani, 12/453, see also Saheeh al-Jaami', 6518).

Another great reward is described in the Prophet's words: "Whoever controls his anger at the time when he has the means to act upon it; Allaah will call him before all of mankind on the Day of Resurrection, and will let him choose of the Hoor al-'Iyn whoever he wants." (Reported by Abu Daawood, 4777, and others. It is classified as hasan in Saheeh al-Jaami, 6518).

(6) Knowing the high status and advantages offered to those who control themselves:

The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "The strong man is not the one who can overpower others (in wrestling); rather, the strong man is the one who controls himself when he gets angry." (Reported by Ahmad, 2/236; the hadeeth is agreed upon). The greater the anger, the higher the status of the one who controls himself. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "The strongest man is the one who, when he gets angry and his face reddens and his hackles rise, is able to defeat his anger." (Reported by Imaam Ahmad, 5/367, and classified as hasan in Saheeh al-Jaami', 3859)

Anas reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) passed by some people who were wrestling. He asked, "What is this?" They said: "So-and-so is the strongest, he can beat anybody." The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, "Shall I not tell you who is even stronger then him? The man, who, when he is mistreated by another, controls his anger, has defeated his own shaytaan and the shaytaan of the one who made him angry." (Reported by al-Bazzaar, and Ibn Hajr said its isnaad is Saheeh. Al-Fath, 10/519)

(7) Following the Prophet's example in the case of anger:

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) is our leader and has set the highest example in this matter, as is recorded in a number of ahaadeeth. One of the most famous was reported by Anas, may Allaah be pleased with him, who said: "I was walking with the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), and he was wearing a Najraani cloak with a rough collar. A Bedouin came and seized him roughly by the edge of his cloak, and I saw the marks left on his neck by the collar. Then the Bedouin ordered him to give him some of the wealth of Allaah that he had. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) turned to him and smiled, then ordered that he should be given something." (Agreed upon. Fath al-Baari, 10/375)

Another way in which we can follow the example of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) is by making our anger for the sake of Allaah, when His rights are violated. This is the kind of anger which is praiseworthy. So the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) became angry when he was told about the Imaam who was putting people off the prayer by making it too long; when he saw a curtain with pictures of animate creatures in 'Aa'ishah's house; when Usamah spoke to him about the Makhzoomi woman who had been convicted of theft, and he said "Do you seek to intervene concerning one of the punishments prescribed by Allaah?"; when he was asked questions that he disliked, and so on. His anger was purely for the sake of Allaah.

(8) Knowing that resisting anger is one of the signs of righteousness (taqwaa):

The righteous (al-muttaqoon) are those praised by Allaah in the Qur'aan and by His Messenger (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). Paradise as wide as heaven and earth has been prepared for them. One of their characteristics is that they (interpretation of the meaning) "spend (in Allaah's Cause) in prosperity and in adversity, [they] repress anger, and [they] pardon men; verily, Allaah loves al-muhsinoon (the good-doers)." [Aal 'Imraan 3:134]

These are the ones whose good character and beautiful attributes and deeds Allaah has mentioned, and whom people admire and want to emulate. One of their characteristics is that (interpretation of the meaning) ". . . when they are angry, they forgive." [al-Shooraa 42:47]

(9) Listening to reminders:

Anger is a part of human nature, and people vary in their anger. It may be difficult for a man not to get angry, but sincere people will remember Allaah when they are reminded, and they will not overstep the mark. Some examples follow:

Ibn 'Abbaas (may Allaah be pleased with him) reported that a man sought permission to speak to 'Umar ibn al-Khattaab (may Allaah be pleased with him), then he said: "O son of al-Khattaab, you are not giving us much and you are not judging fairly between us." 'Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him) was so angry that he was about to attack the man, but al-Hurr ibn Qays, who was one of those present, said: "O Ameer al-Mu'mineen, Allaah said to His Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) (interpretation of the meaning): 'Show forgiveness, enjoin what is good, and turn away from the foolish' [al-A'raaf 7:199]. This man is one of the foolish." By Allaah, 'Umar could go no further after al-Hurr had recited this aayah to him, and he a man who was careful to adhere to the Book of Allaah. (Reported by al-Bukhaaree, al-Fath, 4/304).

This is how the Muslim should be. The evil munaafiq (hypocrite) was not like this when he was told the hadeeth of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and one of the Companions said to him, "Seek refuge with Allaah from the Shaytaan." He said to the one who reminded him, "Do you think I am crazy? Go away!" (Reported by al-Bukhaaree, al-Fath, 1/465). We seek refuge with Allaah from failure.

(10) Knowing the bad effects of anger:

The negative effects of anger are many; in short they cause damage to one's own self and to others. The angry person may utter words of slander and obscenity; he may attack others (physically) in an uncontrolled manner, even to the point of killing. The following story contains a valuable lesson:

'Ilqimah ibn Waa'il reported that his father (may Allaah be pleased with him) told him: "I was sitting with the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) when a man came to him leading another man by a rope. He said, 'O Messenger of Allaah, this man killed my brother.' The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) asked him, 'Did you kill him?' He said, 'Yes, I killed him.' He asked, 'How did you kill him?' He said, 'He and I were hitting a tree to make the leaves fall, for animal feed, and he slandered me, so I struck him on the side of the head with an axe, and killed him.' . . ." (Reported by Muslim, 1307, edited by al-Baaqi).

Anger could lead to less than killing, such as wounding and breaking bones. If the one who caused the anger runs away, the angry person turns his anger in on himself, so he may tear his clothes, or strike his cheeks, or have a fit, or fall unconscious, or he may break dishes and plates, or break furniture.

In the worst cases, anger results in social disasters and the breaking of family ties, i.e., divorce. Ask many of those who divorced their wives, and they will tell you: it was in a moment of anger. This divorce results in misery for the children, regret and frustration, a hard and difficult life, all as a result of anger. If they had remembered Allaah, come to their senses, restrained their anger and sought refuge with Allaah, none of this would have happened. Going against the Sharee’ah only results in loss.

The damage to health that results from anger can only be described by doctors, such as thrombosis, high blood pressure, tachycardia (abnormally rapid heartbeat) and hyperventilation (rapid, shallow breathing), which can lead to fatal heart attacks, diabetes, etc. We ask Allaah for good health.

(11) The angry person should think about himself during moments of anger:

If the angry person could see himself in the mirror when he is angry, he would hate himself and the way he looks. If he could see the way he changes, and the way his body and limbs shake, how his eyes glare and how out of control and crazy his behaviour is, he would despise himself and be revolted by his own appearance. It is well-known that inner ugliness is even worse than outer ugliness; how happy the Shaytaan must be when a person is in this state! We seek refuge with Allaah from the Shaytaan and from failure.

(12) Du'aa':

Du'aa' is always the weapon of the believer, whereby he asks Allaah to protect him from evil, trouble and bad behaviour and seeks refuge with Him from falling into the pit of kufr or wrongdoing because of anger. One of the three things that can help save him is: being fair at times of contentment and of anger (Saheeh al-Jaami', 3039). One of the du'aa's of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was:

"O Allaah, by Your knowledge of the Unseen and Your power over Your creation, keep me alive for as long as You know life is good for me, and cause me to die when You know death is good for me. O Allaah, I ask You to make me fear You in secret and in public, and I ask You to make me speak the truth in times of contentment and of anger. I ask You not to let me be extravagant in poverty or in prosperity. I ask You for continuous blessings, and for contentment that does not end. I ask You to let me accept Your decree, and for a good life after death. I ask You for the joy of seeing Your face and for the longing to meet You, without going through diseases and misguiding fitnah (trials). O Allaah, adorn us with the adornment of faith and make us among those who are guided. Praise be to Allaah, the Lord of the Worlds."

Anger Transcribed Lecture of Dr. Saleh as-Saleh

Anger

Transcribed Lecture of Dr. Saleh as-Saleh

You can Listen to the lecture Here

Transcribed by - Fatimah bint Mohamed min Canada

The next topic of tonight, insha Allah will be, on the following title, a short talk about a matter which all of us need, and this is to know of anger. We all get angry. And getting angry is just one of our natural instincts. And anger affects everybody, young and old. Muslim or non-Muslim. But the difference lies with the way a Muslim approaches his/her anger: how it should be. Because they are some Muslims who are not abiding by the way to deal with anger, that you can’t really differentiate them from others, from the non-Muslims, or otherwise. We know that whenever someone loses their temper, their anger begins to control them. It orders them and it forbids them, and so one becomes subservient to ones anger without realizing it. This sadly happens very frequently. If we look into our own selves or own lives, and often with disastrous consequences. People have kept off ties because of heated words, exchanged in anger. People have killed each other because of their anger. You can hit someone or kill someone because of your anger. The husband may hit his wife out of anger or the other way around. But there is an urgent need for Muslims to put into practice the teachings of our Prophet Muhammad (salAllahu ‘alayhi wasalam) and learn to control our anger. Anger in itself is not forbidden, we spoke about this earlier. Feeling angry is natural.

The Prophet Muhammad (salAllahu ‘alayhi wasalam) did not forbid anger itself but what has been forbidden is when we act upon the anger unjustly. He also told us what steps to take in order to control this anger. For example, Suleiman ibn Suraad relates, that he was sitting with the Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wasalam) when two people fell out and exchanged hot words. The face of one of them became red, and his veins of his neck became swollen. The Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wasalam) said, "If he could repeat a phrase of which I know, he will get rid of the condition of which he is in. If he said, “a’udubillahii minashaytaani rajeem” (I seek refuge with Allah against Shaytaan, the rejected one) then that which he is experiencing would have gone away from him". This is reported in Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim. Another time the Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wasalam) said: “when one of you gets angry while standing up, he should sit down. Then the anger will leave him. And if not, then he should lie down.” This is Sahih Hadeeth reported by Abu Dar, in Sunun Abi Dawud.


SubhanAllah, Islam does not leave anything out, from Aqeedah, from creed, to morals and manners. We are told everything. If you sit down when you are angry, it shows that you are in control of your anger. Unlike the other way around. Because when you do this action, you are now making yourself do something opposite to what your rage, anger, and Shaytaan want. I will repeat that, Islam doesn’t leave anything out from creed, to morals and manners. We are told everything. If one sits down when she/he are angry, it shows that she/he are in control. They are in control of their anger and not the other way around. Because when you do this action, you are now making yourself do something opposite to what your rage, anger and Shaytaan want. You are acting according to what Islam teaches you to do, so your anger subsides. Controlling anger is very important. Because when we get angry we know, we are going to say something that we will regret. Something that may ruin our dunya, our life, and or our next life. The Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wasalam) said: A man speaks an evil word not realizing it its importance for which Allah records for him his displeasure till the day he meets him. This is part of a hadith, reported by at-Tirmidhi and others. And it is sahih. It’s correct. In this way anger can destroy faith, which is why you find that once --when-- a man came to the Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wasalam) seeking some advice, the Prophet simply said “do not become angry” repeating it several times. What a beautiful piece of advice, undoubtly , so many of our problems would be solved if we just heeded this one piece of advice. On another occasion, the prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wasalam) said the strong, isn’t the one who overcomes the people by his strength, but the strong is the one who controls himself, while in anger. And of course we all know that when we fight to control anger, then indeed, you need to be very strong.


‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar relates that the Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wasalam) said: “no gulp has a greater reward with Allah than the swallowing of rage, which a servant surpasses seeking the Face of Allah.” So when someone has done some wrong to you and you are about to say or do something that neither you or that person will ever forget, and instead of acting upon his anger, if you stop and swallow this, then this so belongs to Allah (subhanahu wa Ta’ala).

These ahadith which I mentioned, should be taken in context. It doesn’t mean that we should never become angry or display our anger. There are certain situations where we should become angry. With tawheed being undermined for instance, or when people are looking down upon the Sunnah of the messenger Muhammad (salAllahu ‘alayhi wasalam) or when Muslims are being killed or treated unjustly. We know that under circumstances, such as these, it is correct to be angry because there are many occasions like these where the Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wasalam) became angry. For example, when he saw pictures of animals hanging in ‘Aishah’s house, as in Sahih Bukhari or when he heard of men who failed to attend the congregational prayer, also in Sahih al Bukhari. All these things caused him to be angry. But his anger was always for the sake of Allah not for any person or injury. And that is why ‘Aishah (radiAllahu Ta’alaa anha) said: (talking about the Messenger (salAllahu ‘alayhi wasalam)) “he never took revenge on his own behalf for anything unless of which Allah has forbidden, has been transgressed, in which case he took revenge for it for Allah’s sake.” When we talk about anger, it is not only the anger we feel when we are in wrong, but also experience anger when we feel that we are in the right. We feel that someone has wronged us and that we must defend ourselves. Here again, we must not let shaytaan ever order us to act on that anger and be unjust making us believe we are correct in doing so.

The Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wasalam) said: “I am a claimant for a house on the outskirts of paradise for one who leaves off arguing, even if he is right, and maybe our act of repressing anger, when in a position to give them to it, will yieldfruitful results.”[Hasan hadith. See 'Saheeh ul-Jaami us-Sagheer' (no.1477). ]

Allah says, in Surat Fussilat chapter 41, verse 34, “repel the evil with one which is better, then verily, he between whom, you are in enmity, will become as though you are close friends.”

Therefore, insha Allah, we must try to follow the example of Prophet Muhammad Muhammad (salAllahu ‘alayhi wasalam) to not become angry except for the sake of Allah. The Messenger (salAllahu ‘alayhi wasalam) has left us with numerous ahadith concerning anger and you can find them in chapters of that in books of ahadith. And we must really try to implement this guidance and this is a reminder for myself, wallahi first and for all of us.

Ahadeeth on Anger

Al-Adab al-Mufrad - by Imam Al-Bukhari - - A code For Everyday Living: The Example of the Early Muslims

Imam al-Bukhari is world-renowned for his major work, "al Jami' al Sahih" ("Sahih al Bukhari"), but he has also produced a number of other works, including "Al-Adab al-Mufrad", here translated into English. This book is a compilation of ahadith on Islamic morals and manners from various sources.

 Anger

640. Anger

1317. Abu Hurayra reported that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "The person who is strong is not strong because he can knock people down. The person who is strong is the one who controls himself when he is angry."

1318. Ibn 'Umar said, "There is nothing that is swallowed greater with Allah in reward than a slave of Allah who swallows and contains his rancour out of desire for the pleasure of Allah."

641. What to say in anger

1319. Sulayman ibn Surad said, "Two men abused one another in the presence of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and one of them began to get angry and his face got red. The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, looked at him and said, 'I know some words that, if he says them, will remove this from him. They are: "I seek refuge with Allah from the Accursed Shaytan."' The man went to that man and said, 'Do you know what he said? He said, "I seek refuge with Allah from the Accursed Shaytan."' The man retorted. 'Do you think me mad?'"

1319. (sic) Another variant of 1319.

642. A person should remain silent when he is angry

1320. Ibn 'Abbas said, "The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, ' Teach and make it easy. Teach and make it easy.' three times. He went on, 'When you are angry, be silent' twice."

643. Loving the one you love is an easy matter

1321. 'Ali was heard to say to Ibn al-Kawwa', "Do you know what the first one said? 'Loving the one you love is an easy matter. It may be that one day he will be the one you hate. Hating the one who hate is an easy matter, It may be that one day he will be the one you hate.'"

644. Do not let your anger be destruction

1322. Aslam said, " 'Umar ibn al-Khattab said, 'Do not let your love be a total infatuation. Do not let your anger be destruction.' I asked, 'How is that?' He replied, 'When you love, you are infatuated like a child. When you hate, you desire destruction for your companion.'"

Combining the prayers whilst travelling

Combining the prayers whilst travelling
*Please appropriately reference this fatwa to: www.fatwa-online.com, thankyou!*
Question: What is best to do whilst travelling: combining the prayers at their earliest (permissible) time (jam’u taqdeem) or combining the prayers at their latest (permissible) time (jam’u ta.kheer)?

Response: That which is best whilst travelling, with respect to combining (the prayers), is to do that which is most easiest for you.

So, if it is easier for you to combine the prayers at their earliest (permissible) time, then do that. And if it is easier for you to combine the prayers at their latest (permissible) time, then do that.

The best is that which is easiest for you to do, whether at the earliest (permissible) time or at the latest (permissible) time – both are legislated for within the Sunnah.

Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen
Liqaa.aat al-Baab al-Maftooh – Volume 1, Page 54, Number 95

What is permissible during travels?

What is permissible during travels?
Question: What is permissible during travels?

Answer:

There are four things permissible during travels:

i. The prayers consisting of 4 Raka’hs are shortened to 2 Raka’hs.

ii. Breaking the fast during Ramadhaan, making the same number of days up during other days.

iii. Wiping over the Khuffs 3 days and nights, beginning from the first time the person wipes over them.

iv. The recommendation for the Sunnah prayers of Dhuhr, Maghrib, and Ishaa is lifted. As for the Sunnah prayer of Fajr and the rest of the optional prayers, performing those remains legislated and preferred.

So the traveler prays the night prayer, the Sunnah prayer of Fajr, the two Rak’ahs of Dhuhaa, the Sunnah prayer after making Wudhoo, the two Rak’ahs of entering the masjid, and the two Rak’ahs of arriving from a journey - for surely, from the Sunnah is that when a person arrives from a journey, before he enters his house, he first begins with the masjid, entering it and praying two Rak’ahs in it. [1]

Likewise, the rest of the optional prayers remain legislated with regards to the traveler except for what I have previously said, and they are: the Sunnah prayers of Dhuhr, Maghrib, and Ishaa because the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) used not to pray these three optional prayers (while traveling).
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NOTES
[3] This has been reported in the long Hadeeth of K’ab ibn Maalik regarding his repentance with the wording, “He used to, when he arrived from a journey, begin with the masjid, praying two Rak’ahs in it.” Reported by al-Bukhaaree, no. 4418 and Muslim, no. 2769.

Shaykh Muhammad bin Saalih al-`Uthaymeen
Fataawaa Arkaan al-Islaam, Number 315
http://www.masjiduthaymeen.org

The distance by which a traveller may shorten his prayers

The distance by which a traveller may shorten his prayers
Question:

What is the distance by which a traveller may shorten his prayers? Is combining them permissible rather than shortening them?
Answer:

The distance by which the prayers are shortened; some scholars specified it to be around 83 kilometers. Other scholars specified it to be whatever is customarily considered traveling, even if he (the traveler) did not go beyond 80 kilometers. And whatever the people consider not to be traveling, then it is not traveling even if it reached 100 kilometers.
This last (opinion) is the opinion of Shaykh al-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah (رحمه الله) and that is because Allaah did not define a specific distance by which shortening the prayers is allowed nor did the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) specify an exact distance.

Anas ibn Maalik (رضي الله عنه) said:

“The Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم); whenever he went out for 3 miles or Faraasikh (a measurement of length) then he used to shorten the prayer and pray two Rak’aats.” [1]

The statement of Shaykh al-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah is closer to what is correct. There is also no hardship, whenever there is a difference in what is customarily considered traveling, if the person acts according to the statement of the specific, defined distance because some of the Imaams and scholars sincerely striving towards a verdict (Mujtahideen) have said it. So there is no problem, In shaa Allaah. As long as the issue is left undefined, then acting in accordance to what is customarily considered travel is the correct opinion.

As for (the question), “Is combining (the prayers) permissible when shortening is allowed?” Then we say, “Combining (the prayers) is not associated with shortening. Rather, combining is associated with a need.” So whenever the person needs to combine whether he is traveling or not, then let him combine. For this, the people combine because of rain, which due to it; it would be a hardship to return to the masaajid. Also, the people combine if there is harsh, cold wind during the days of winter, which due to it, it would be a hardship to go out to the masaajid. He combines if he fears losing his wealth or any harm in it, or whatever is similar to that - the person combines (his prayers). It is reported in Saheeh Muslim from ‘Abdullaah ibn ‘Abbaas (رضى الله عنهما) that he said:

“The Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) combined between Dhuhr and ‘Asr, and between Maghrib and Ishaa not due to any fear nor rain.” [2]

They asked, “Why did he do this?” He said that he did so in order not to cause any hardship upon his Ummah. Meaning, he did not want to place any hardship that would make one leave the congregation.

This is the condition - whenever the person finds a hardship which would lead him to leave off the congregation, then it is permissible for him to combine. If there is no hardship upon him, then he doesn’t combine. However, traveling is most likely to place a hardship which would lead to leaving the congregation. If this is so, then it is permissible for the traveler to combine whether he was in the middle of his journey or has stopped to reside (at his destination). If he is in the middle of his journey, then combining is preferable and if he has stopped traveling (reached his destination) then not combining is preferable.

The exception to this is when a person is residing (reached a destination) in a land where the congregation is established, then it is obligatory to attend the congregation. In that case, he would not combine nor shorten (his prayers). However, if he missed the congregation, then he shortens and does not combine, unless he needs to combine (for some reason).



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NOTES
[1] Reported by Muslim, The Book of The Traveler’s Prayer, Chapter: The Prayer of the Traveler, no. 691.
[2] Reported by Muslim, The Book of The Traveler’s Prayer, Chapter: Combining Between Two Prayers While Residing, no. 705.


Shaykh Muhammad bin Saalih al-`Uthaymeen
Fataawaa Arkaan al-Islaam, Number 312
http://www.masjiduthaymeen.org