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The
manner of purification and salaah
for the sick
All
praise belongs to Allaah, we praise Him seek His assistance
and forgiveness, turn to Him in repentance, and seek refuge
in Allaah from the evil of ourselves and the evil of our deeds.
Whoever Allaah guides, no one can lead him astray. And whoever
Allaah allows to stray, no one can guide him. I bear witness
that there is nothing which deserves to be worshipped except
Allaah, alone, and He has no partner. And I bear witness that
Muhammad (sal-Allaahu
`alayhe wa sallam)
is His servant and Messenger - Peace and Blessings be upon
Him and His family, His companions and those who follow them
in goodness.
Verily
this is a brief treatise about that which is compulsory in
the purification (tahaarah) and salaah
of the sick people.
Verily,
there are ahkaam
particularly for the sick in these things (prayer and purification)
which the Sharee'ah
requires to be given consideration because of their condition.
Verily,
Allaah (Subhaanahu
wa Ta'aala)
has sent his Prophet (sal-Allaahu
`alayhe wa sallam)
with the true and tolerant religion which is built on (the
principle of) ease, facility and non-complication.
Allaah
(Subhaanahu
wa Ta'aala)
has
said in the Qur.aan:
{And
He has not laid upon you in the religion any hardship…},
[Soorah
22, Aayah
78].
He
(Subhaanahu
wa Ta'aala)
also
said:
{Allaah
intends for you ease, and he does not want to make things
difficult for you…}, [Soorah
21, Aayah
185].
He
(Subhaanahu
wa Ta'aala)
also
said:
{So
keep your duty to Allaah and fear Him as much as you can;
Listen and obey…}, [Soorah
64, Aayah
16].
And
the Prophet (sal-Allaahu
`alayhe wa sallam)
said: ((Verily the Religion is ease)),
[Saheeh al-Bukhaaree and Saheeh Muslim].
He
(sal-Allaahu
`alayhe wa sallam)
also said: ((What I have ordered
you (to do), do as much of it as you can…)),
[Saheeh al-Bukhaaree].
Based
on this fundamental principle, Allaah has reduced the (amount
of) religious duties (worship) for the people who have reason
to be excused (Ahlul-A'dhaar). This is also the case if someone
is not able to perform wudhoo.
for himself. Then someone else may help him to do so. Each
one according to his condition, in order to enable him to
worship Allaah (Subhaanahu
wa Ta'aala)
without inconvenience or hardship. Praise be to Allaah, the
Lord of all the worlds.
The
Purification (Tahaarah) of the sick person
•
1
- It is mandatory for the sick person to purify himself with
water. Therefore, he must make wudhoo.
from the minor impurities (urine, feces, pus etc.) and ghusl
from the major impurities (menses, sexual intercourse etc.);
[{O
ye who believe! when ye prepare for prayer, wash your faces,
and your hands (and arms) to the elbows; Rub your heads (with
water); and (wash) your feet to the ankles…},
[Soorah
5, Aayah
6]];
•
2
- If he is unable to purify himself with water because of
inability (to move) or fear of worsening his condition or
delaying his recovery - in that case he may make tayammum
(purification with clean sand);
[{…But
if ye are ill, or on a journey, or one of you cometh from
offices of nature, or ye have been in contact with women,
and ye find no water, then take for yourselves clean sand
or earth, and rub therewith your faces and hands…},
[Soorah
5, Aayah
6]];
•
3
- Tayammum
is performed by striking the pure earth or clean earth with
both hands one time, wiping over his whole face, then wiping
the palms of his hands, each of them wiping the other.
•
4
- If he is unable to clean himself then someone may help him
to perform tayammum.
The other person would strike the clean earth himself with
his (own) hands, then wipe over the face and hands of the
sick person.
•
5
- If there was a wound in any part of the body that has to
be cleaned then he should wash it with water. But, if the
washing with water would affect it, then he can dip his hands
in the water and just pass his hand over the wound. And if
even just wiping over it would affect it, then he may make
tayammum.
•
6
- If there was a broken limb that was wrapped tightly with
a bandage or caste (that has to be washed) then he should
wipe over the bandage or caste with water rather than washing
it. He does not have to make tayammum
in this case because the wiping is done in place of washing.
•
7
- It is permissible to make tayammum
on the wall or anything clean that has dust covering it. If
the wall had been covered with something other than dirt or
sand (earth) - for example, if it had been painted - then
he should not make tayammum
on it except if there is dust covering it.
•
8
- If he was unable to make tayammum
on the ground or wall or something that has dust covering
it, then there is no harm if he puts some dirt or sand in
a container or handkerchief and make tayammum
from that.
•
9
- If he makes tayammum
for prayer and he retains his state of purification until
the time of the next prayer, then he may perform that prayer
with the first tayammum
and he does not have to repeat the tayammum
for the next prayer. This is so because he remained in his
state of purification and there was nothing which invalidated
his state of purification.
•
10
- It is mandatory for the sick person to clean his body from
all impurities. But if he is unable then he may pray in this
condition and the prayer is correct and he does not have to
repeat it;
[{What
I have forbidden to you, avoid (completely); what I have ordered
you (to do), do as much of it as you can…},
[Soorah
64, Aayah
16]].
•
11
- It is also mandatory for the sick person to perform prayer
in clean clothing and if his clothing became defiled by impurities
then it is obligatory to wash them or change them for clean
clothing. But if he is unable to do so, then he may pray in
this condition and his prayer is correct, and he does not
have to repeat it;
[{So
keep your duty to Allaah and fear Him as much as you can;
Listen and obey…}].
•
12
- It is mandatory for the sick person to pray on something
clean and if his place of salaah
became unclean he must wash it or change it for something
clean or lay over it something clean. But if he is unable
to do that then he may pray in that condition and his salaah
is correct and he does not have to repeat it.
•
13
- It is not permissible for the sick person to delay his salaah
until after its proper time because of inability to perform
Tahaarah (purification). But he should purify himself to the
extent that he is able so that he may perform his salaah
on time even if there were impurities on his body or his clothing
or his place of salaah
which he is not able to remove;
[{…Verily,
the prayer is enjoined on the believers at fixed hours},
[Soorah
4, Aayah
103]]
The
salaah
of the sick person
•
1
- It is mandatory for the sick person to perform the obligatory
salaah
standing even if he cannot stand up straight or even if he
leans on a wall or a stick that he needs to hold him up;
[((Pray
standing; but if you are unable (to do so), then pray sitting;
and if you are unable (to pray sitting) then (pray) lying
on your side)), [Saheeh al-Bukhaaree]; An-Nasaa.ee
added: ((And if you are unable, then
lying on your back. Allaah does not burden anyone except according
to his ability))].
•
2
- If he is unable to stand, then he may pray sitting and it
is better if he sits with his legs closed in the place of
Qiyaam
and Rukoo'.
•
3
- If he is unable to perform the salaah
sitting then he may pray lying on his side facing the qiblah,
preferably lying on the right side. If he is unable to face
qiblah then he may pray in whatever direction he is facing
and the salaah
is correct and he does not have to repeat it.
•
4
- If he is unable to perform the prayer on his side then he
prays lying flat with his feet towards the qiblah, and it
is preferable that he raise his head a little to direct it
toward the qiblah. If he is unable to point his feet toward
the qiblah, then he may pray however he is and he does not
have to repeat the prayer.
•
5
- It is mandatory for the sick person to make rukoo'
and sajdah in his salaah.
If he is unable, then he should make a gesture for both of
them by nodding his head, lower for sajdah than he does for
rukoo'.
If he is able to perform rukoo'
but not sajdah then he should make rukoo'
when its time for rukoo'
and make a gesture for sajdah. And if he is able to make sajdah
and not rukoo'
then he should perform sajdah when its time for sajdah and
make a gesture for rukoo'.
•
6
- If he is unable to make a gesture by nodding his head for
rukoo'
and sajdah then he would make a signal by closing his eyes
a little for rukoo'
and closing them more for sajdah. As for pointing with the
finger as some of the sick people do, it is not correct and
I don't know if this has any basis in the Qur.aan and Sunnah
or in the sayings of the scholars (Ahlul-'Ilm).
•
7
- If he is unable to gesture with the head nor signal by the
eyes, then he should pray with his heart by making takbeer
and reading of the Qur.aan and making intention for rukoo',
sajdah (prostrating), qiyaam,
qu'ood
by his heart knowing that every person will have what he intends;
[The
reward of the sick will not be less than the reward of the
healthy person when he prays according to his condition, according
to the hadeeth: ((If someone becomes
sick or travels Allaah records for him the reward equal to
what he received when he was healthy and resident)),
[Saheeh al-Bukhaaree and Ahmad]].
•
8
- It is mandatory for the sick person to perform each salaah
in its proper time, and to do everything that he is able to
do of that which is obligatory in the salaah.
If it became difficult for him to perform each salaah
in its proper time, then he may combine Zhuhr
and 'Asr
salaah
and he may combine Maghrib
and 'Ishaa.
either combining them in the earlier time - whereas he would
advance 'Asr
to the time of Zhuhr
and 'Ishaa.
in the time of Maghrib,
or combine them in the later time - delaying Zhuhr
until the time of 'Asr,
and delaying Maghrib
until the time of 'Ishaa.
- according to whichever may be easier for him (i.e. if it
is easier to advance the salaah
or to delay it.)
As for Fajr,
it is not combined with the salaah
before it nor the prayer after it.
•
9
- If the sick person is travelling, seeking treatment in another
country, then he can shorten the four rak'ah
salaah
so that he will pray Zhuhr,
'Asr
and 'Ishaa.
as two rak'ah
each, until he returns to his country. It being the same whether
his journey is for a long period or short period;
[{And
when you (Muslims) travel in the land, there is no sin for
you if you shorten your prayer…}, [Soorah
4, Aayah
10]].
Shaykh
Ibn 'Uthaymeen
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