Monday, January 28, 2008

The Solāh of a Traveler



The Solāh of a Traveler

By Sayyid Sabiq

In the name of Allāh, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful;
All the praise and thanks is due to Allāh, the Lord of al-‘ālamīn. There is none worthy of worship except Allāh, and that Muhammad, Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam is His Messenger.

A traveler may Qasar his Solāh of four raka’at. Qasar is the shortening the four-raka’at Solāt of Dzuhur, ‘Asar, and ‘Ishā’, turning each Solāh to a two raka’at. It is granted to a musafir only on Allah’s cause which means it is not permissible for travelling on haram cause. Qasar is not applicable to Solāh Maghrib and Fajar. It is granted regardless of whether or not the traveller encounters any difficulty during the journey. Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) said: “A gift that Allāh has bestowed on you, so accept His gift”.

1 - A Traveler May Qasar The Solāh That Consist Of Four Raka’at Solāh.

Allāh says: “And when you travel in the land, there is no sin on you if you shorten As-Solāh if you fear that the disbelievers may put you in trial (attack you), verily, the disbelievers are ever unto you open enemies” [Al-Nisā’, 4:101]

This concession is not limited to situations of danger only.

Imām Ahmad (rahimahullāh) recorded that Ya’la bin Umayyah said:  “I asked ‘Umar Ibn Al-Khattab (radiyallāhu’anhu) about the verse:And when you travel in the land, there is no sin on you if you shorten the solāh. If you fear that the disbelievers may put you in trial,” ‘Umar said to me “Allāh granted Muslims safety now, and ‘Umar added: “I wondered about the same thing and asked the Messenger of Allāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) about it and he said: ‘A gift that Allāh has bestowed on you, so accept His gift’.”It is also recorded by Muslim and the collectors of Sunan; At-Tirmidzi said, “Hasan Sahih”. ‘Ali bin Al-Madini said, ‘his Hadith is Hasan Sahih from the narration of ‘Umar Ibn Al-Khattab (radiyallāhu`anhu), and it is not preserved by any other route besides this one, and its narrators are all known.’ 

At-Tabari recorded that Abu Munib Al-Jarshi mentioned this verse to ‘Abdullah Ibn ‘Umar (radiyallāhu‘anhu) and said: We are safe now and are not in fear, should we, then, shorten the solāh?” Ibn ‘Umar answered him: You have indeed in the Messenger of Allāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) a beautiful pattern (of conduct of Sunnah).”

Anas Ibn Mālik (radiyallāhu‘anhu) narrated, who said: “We went out with the Rasulullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) from Al-Madinah to Makkah; he used to observe solāh two raka’at [i.e Qasar] until we went back to Al-Madinah.” When he [Anas] was asked how long they remained in Makkah, he said, “We remained in Makkah for ten days.” This is recorded by al-Bukhari, 1081; Muslim, 693; and also by the Group.

Imām Ahmad (rahimahullāh) recorded that Harithah bin Wahb Al-Khuza‘ie (radiyallāhu‘anhu) said: I observed solāh behind the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) for the Solāh Dzuhur and ‘Asar in Mina, when the people were numerous and very safe, and he observed Solāh of two raka‘at [i.e Qasar Solāh].” This was also recorded by the Group, with the exception of Ibn Mājah. 

The issue was also referred to ‘Aishah (radiyallāhu’anha) and she said: "The solāh was made fardhu in Makkah in sets of two raka’at. When the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) came to Medinah, two raka‘at were added to each solāh except the Solāh Maghrib because it is the witir of the daytime, and the Solāh Fajar due to its lengthy Qur’anic recital. But if once travels, Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) performs the original prayer [i.e., only two raka`at]." This is recorded by Ahmad, Al-Baihaqi, Ibn Hibban, and Ibn Khuzaimah; its narrators are trustworthy.

Ibn Al-Qayyim (rahimahullāh) says: “Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) would perform Solāh of only two raka’at for those Solāh which consisted of four, whenever Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) traveled until he returned to Medinah. And it is not established that Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) ever prayed four raka’at [while traveling], and none of the imāms differ on this point, although they do differ about the ruling of shortening the solāh.”

‘Umar Ibn Khattab, ‘Ali bin Abi Talib, Abdullah Ibn Mas’ud, ‘Abdullah Ibn ‘Abbas, ‘Abdullah Ibn ‘Umar, Jabir bin Abdullah (radiyallāhu’anhum) held that to Qasar the solāh when on a musafir is a fardhuwhich make the Hanafi School of jurisprudence held it is a fardhu too.

The Māliki School of jurisprudence holds that it is Sunnah Mu’akkadah (the stressed one); it emphasized that is done in Jama’ah. If the traveler cannot find another traveler to lead him in the solāh, he may perform the solāh by himself as it is disliked that he should follow one who is a resident [i.e., and solāt four raka’at].  The Hanbali School of jurisprudence holds that it is mustahabb (preferred) for the person to qasar the solāh rather than to observe the complete Solāh which is also permissible if he chooses it, but Qasar is a gift from Allāh. The Shāfi’ie School of jurisprudence has a similar opinion, if the person has traveled a sufficient distance of two marhalah or 16 farshahs or 4 barid which is approximately 56 M or 91 KM.

2 -The Distance One Must Travel To Qualify for Qasar Solāh

The evidence derived from the Qur’anic verse includes that of any traveling, be it long or shortwhich falls within the “linguistic definition of the word travel” would be adequate to qasar one’s Solāh, to Jama’ them and to break the fasting. There is nothing in the Sunnah which confines this general term to any particular meaning.

Ibn Al-Munzhir (rahimahullāh) and others have mentioned more than twenty hadiths on this point. Here we shall mention some of the more significant hadiths.

Yahya Ibn Yazid (radiyallāhu’anhu) said: I asked Anas Ibn Mālik (radiyallāhu’anhu) about shortening the Solāh, and he said: ‘The Messenger of Allāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) would observe Solāh two raka’at (Qasar) if he had traveled a distance of three miles or a farsakh’” [Recorded by Ahmad, Muslim, Abu Dawud, and al-Baihaqi]  Ibn Hajar Asqalani(rahimahullāh) states in his ‘Fathul-Bāri’: “This is the most authentic hadith which states and clarifies [that question].”

The argument between mile and farsakh is made clear in Abu Sa’id Al-Khudri (radiyallāhu’anhu) statements: If the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) traveled a distance of one farsakh, he would shorten his Solāt.” This was recorded by Sa’id ibn Mansur(rahimahullāh) in his Sunan and by Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani (rahimahullāh) in at-Talkhis, and he unreservedly accepted it by not making any further comments about it.

It is well-known that a farsakh equals three miles and, therefore, Abu Sa’id’s hadith removes the confusion which arises from Anas’ hadith when he says that the shortest distance, due to the fact the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) qasar his solat, was three miles. One farsakh is equivalent to 5,541 meters while one mile equals 1,748 metersIt should be noted that the shortest distance which has been mentioned with respect to the qasar of Solāh is one mileThis was recorded by Ibn Abi Shaibah, also with a sahih chain, on the authority of Abdullah Ibn ‘Umar (radiyallāhu’anhu).

Ibn Hazm (rahimahullāh)  argued that if the distance is less than one mile, one is not to qasar the Solāh, as the Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) went to the graveyard of al-Baqi’ to bury the dead and (similarly) he went off to answer the call of nature and did not qasar his solāh.

2.1 - The View of the Scholars Varies In Relations to the Distance

The view of the scholars varies in relations to the distance, some says: 81 km, 85 km and 91km. But according to the view of majority of scholars, the distance which avails for a traveler is defined as being four Barid or sixteen Farsakh or two Marhalah approximately fifty-six miles or ninety-one kilometers. The distance in which the concession of traveling is allowed is that which is customarily regarded as travelling, which is approximately eighty five kilometers. Whoever is going to travel this distance or more is allowed to avail him of the concessions granted to travellers, namely wiping over the socks for three days and nights, and jama’ and qasar the Solāh, and not fasting in Ramadhān.

Ibn Qudāmah (rahimahullāh) said:  The view of Abu ‘Abdallāh [i.e., Imām Ahmad] is that it is not permissible to qasar the prayers for a distance not of less than sixteen farsakhs, and a farsakh is three miles, so the distance is forty-eight miles.  Abdullāh Ibn ‘Abbas (radiyallāhu’anhu) estimated it from ‘Usfan to Makkah, or from al-Ta’if to Makkah, or from Jeddah to Makkah. Based on this, the distance at which it is permissible to qasar is the distance of one day and one night direct travel for that destination. This is the view of Ibn ‘Abbas and Ibn ‘Umar, and the view of Malik, al-Layth and Al-Shafi’ieThe equivalent in kilometers is approximately 91 km. [Al-Mughni]  

In relation to what some jurists say, namely, that the journey must be at least two days long or as some say three days, Imām Abu Al-Qasim Al-Kharqi’s refutation of their opinion. It is recorded in ‘Al-Mughni’ Imām Abu Al-Qasim says: ‘I do not find any proof for what those scholars say’.

Imām Abu Al-Qasim Al-Kharqi further said the statements of the sahābah are not a conclusive proof if they differ. It has been narrated from ‘Abdullah Ibn ‘Umar and Abdullah Ibn ‘Abbas (radiyallāhu‘anhum) which differs from what these scholars use as proof.Even if that were not the case, their statements do not constitute a proof when a statement or action of Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) himself exists. Even if their statements were accepted, we would not be able to follow the distance they mentioned due to the following two reasons:

One, they differ from the sunnah that has been related from Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) and from the clear meaning of the Qur'an, as the clear meaning of the verse allows one to shorten one's Solāh if one makes any journey upon the earth. Allāh says: “If you journey on the earth, there is no blame upon you if you shorten your Solāh.” The condition of there being fear has been removed as can be seen in the hadith we recorded from Ya’la Ibn Umayyah (radiyallāhu’anhu), and what remains is the clear meaning of the verse which covers every type of journey. Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) said: “The traveler may wipe over his socks for a period of three days.” This shows the length of time that one may wipe over the socks and it cannot be used as a proof for the question we are discussing here. One could argue that traveling is less than a three-day journey on the basis of the hadith: “It is not allowed for any woman who believes in Allāh and the last day to travel a journey of one day, save in the presence of a male relative.”

Two, the question of the distance to be traveled is one that may only be answered by some sort of revelation from Allāh [the Qur’an or Sunnah]; it is not the type of issue which one may address on the basis of personal reasoning, nor is there any way to derive an analogyThe proofs which exist support the opinion that qasar of Solāh are permissible for every traveler, unless there is some consensus to the contrary.

Similarly is that the traveling by planes, trains, and so forth, or a trip that is in obedience to Allāh Almighty. If there is someone whose occupation requires him to always be traveling, for instance, a pilot, a ship captain, truck driver, and so on, then he is permitted to qasar or jama’ his Solāh or breaks his fasting as he is truly traveling.

3 - Whence One May Qasar the Solāt

The majority of the scholars are of the opinion that it is permissible to qasar one's Solāh when one leaves one’s residence and is outside of one’s city, and that is a condition, and he is not to resume his regular solāh until he reaches the first houses of his city.

Ibn Al-Munzhir says: "I do not know of Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu‘alayhi wasallam) qasar his Solāh during any of his travels until after he had left Medinah."

Anas bin Mālik (radiyallāhu‘anhu) relates“I observed Solāh four raka‘at at Zulhulaifah.” This is narrated by the group. Some of the early scholars say that if one makes the intention to travel, he may qasar his Solāh even if he is in his house.

4 - When the Traveler Is To Observe the Complete Solāh

A traveler may qasar his Solāh as long as he is on a journey. Likewise if he stays in some place for business or some other affair, then he may qasar his Solāh as long as he is there, even for years.

If the person intends to stay in a place for a certain amount of time then, according to Ibn Al-Qayyim (rahimahullāh), he remains a traveler, regardless of whether he plans to stay there for a long or short period, as long as he does not plan to stay [i.e., reside and not return] in the place that he has traveled to. The scholars differ on this point.

Summing up and giving his own opinion, Ibn al-Qayyim (rahimahullāh) says: “The Messenger of Allāh stayed in Tabuk for twenty days and during that time he observed qasar Solāh and he did not say that one may not qasar his Solāh if he stays longer than that, although there is agreement that he stayed there for that period of time.”

‘Abdullah Ibn ‘Abbas (radiyallāhu’anhu) said: “Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) stayed, during some of his journeys, for nineteen day and he observed Solāh only two raka‘at (i.e qasar Solāh). If we stayed in a place for nineteen days, we would not observe the complete Solāh. However, if we stayed longer than that, we would perform the whole Solāh (complete form)." [Recorded by Al-Bukhari]

Ibn ‘Abbas (radiyallāhu‘anhu) was referring to the Prophet’s stay in Makkah at the time of its conquest when he said: " Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) stayed in Makkah for eighteen days during the time of the conquest as he had to go to Hunain and was not planning to stay there." [Recorded by Imām Ahmad] This is his interpretation of Ibn ‘Abbas' statement.

Others say that Ibn ‘Abbas was referring to the Prophet’s stay in Tabuk as Jabir Ibn ‘Abdullah (radiyallāhu’anhu) said: “Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) stayed in Tabuk for twenty days and performed qasar Solāh.” [Recorded by Imām Ahmad in his Musnad]

Al-Miswar Ibn Makhramah reported: “We stayed with Sa’ad in some of the cities of Ash-Sham [Syria] for forty days, and Sa’ad would perform qasar while we would offer the whole Solāh.”

Naf'i related: “Ibn ‘Umar (radiyallāhu‘anhu) was in Azerbaijan for six months, as there was snow blocking the pass, and he would pray two raka‘at."

Hafs Ibn ‘Ubaidullah said: “Anas Ibn Mālik (radiyallāhu‘anhu) stayed in Ash-Sham for two years and he observed the Solāh of a traveler (i.e qasar)."

Anas Ibn Mālik (radiyallāhu‘anhu) related: "The companions of Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) stayed in Ram Hurmuz for seven months and they qasar their Solāh."

Al-Hassan bin ‘Ali (radiyallāhu‘anhu) reported: “I stayed with ‘Abdurrahman Ibn Samurah for two years in Kabul, and he qasar his Solāh but he did not combine the Solāh.” Ibrahim says: "We resided in Rai for a year or more and in Sijistan for two years . . . [and we observed Solāh qasar].

This is the guidance of Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) and his companions, and this is the correct position.

4.1 - When a Musafir Makes Intention to Stay For a Certain Number of Days

Other opinions which people follow Imām Ahmad (rahimahullāh) concerning Solāh qasar when musafir making intention to stay for a certain number of days:

“If a person intends to stay for four days, he has to offer the whole Solāh and he may offer qasar if his intention is for less than that. This is based on an interpretation of the hadiths from Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) and his companions [i.e., they never intended to stay for longer than that and would always say: “We will leave tomorrow” and so on]. This interpretation is obviously suspect.

Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) conquered Makkah and stayed there to establish Islam, eradicate polytheism, and to guide the Arabs. It definitely goes, without saying, which such an objective does take more than a day or two to complete. Similarly, his stay in Tabukwas in preparation for the impending war and he knew that this might take longer than just four days.

In the same way, Ibn ‘Umar’s stay in Azerbaijan for six months, and his observing qasar Solāh during the entire time was with the knowledge that it takes more than two or three days for such snow to melt and the pass to become traversable. The same is the case with Anas’ stay of two years in Ash-Sham and his observing qasar Solāh and the companions' stay in Ram Hurmuz for seven months while qasar their Solāh.

It is well known that activities like theirs, such as jihad and guarding, took more than four days."

The followers of Imām Ahmad (rahimahullāh) also maintain the view:

“If one is staying in a place for the purpose of jihad then, or due to imprisonment or sickness, then one may qasar the Solāh regardless of whether the person thinks that such a situation may last for a short time or a long time."

This is correct but there is no proof that such conditions have been stipulated in the Qur'an, Sunnah, ijma’ (consensus), or practice of the Prophet's companions.  

They argued that such conditions are based on what is needed for the person to fulfill his need while remaining a traveller and that is what less than four days is. His response to them was: 'From where do you derive those conditions, while Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) stayed for more than four days, qasar his solāt, in Makkah and Tabuk, and he did not mention to anyone anything about it and he never told them that he never intended to stay for more than four days, even though he knew that the people would [strictly] follow his actions concerning the Solāh. They surely followed him in his qasar of the salāt, and he did not object to their observing solat qasar if they were to stay for more than four nights. This should be made clear as it is very important. Similarly, the sahabah followed him in that and he did not say anything [in objection] to those who prayed with him.”

Imām Malik and Imām Ash-Shāfi’ie (rahimahullāh) say: "If one intends to stay for more than four days, he should perform the whole solāh, and if he intends to stay for less than that, he is to offer qasar Solāh."

Abu Hanifah (rahimahullāh) holds: "If one intends to stay for fifteen days, he should do the qasar. If he intends to stay for less than that, he should not qasar the Solāh." This is also the opinion of Al-Laith Ibn Sa’ad   concerning the intention to stay, and it has also been related from three companions: ‘Umar, Ibn ‘Umar, and Ibn ‘Abbas (radiyallāhu‘anhum).

Sa’id Ibn al-Musayyab (rahimahullāh) is of the opinion that: "If you stay for four days, you observe four raka’at Solāh." A statement similar to that of Abu Hanifah's has also been related from him.

‘Ali Ibn Abi Talib (radiyallāhu’anhu) says that if one stays for ten days, he is to perform the whole Solāh, and the same has been narrated from Ibn ‘Abbas (radiyallāhu’anhu).

Al-Hassan bin ‘Ali (radiyallāhu’anhu) says: "One who does not get to his destination or (city of residence) may qasar Solāh."

‘Aishah (radiyallāhu’anha) says: "One who does not put down his provision is to qasar the Solāh."

The four imāms  the school of jurisprudence have the same opinion that if a traveller (musafir) has some need to take care of and always has the intention of leaving the next day, then he may qasar his Solāh for as long as he is in that state. However, according to one statement ofAsh-Shāfi’ie (rahimahullāh), states that one may do so only for seventeen or eighteen days and he is not to qasar his Solāh after that time.

But Ibn Al-Munzhir (rahimahullāh) states in his ‘Ishraf’: “The scholars are in agreement that a traveler may perform qasar as long as he does not intend to stay in a place, even though he stays there for years.”

5 – Observing the Nawafil Solāh during Travel.

The majority of the scholars are of the opinion that it is not disliked to perform Nawafil during the state in which one is qasar his Solāh. On this point, there is no difference between regular Sunnah mu’akaddah Solāh and other Nawafil Solāhs.

Al-Bukhari and Muslim (rahimahullāh) recorded that Rasūlullāh (Sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam) made the ghusul in the house of his cousin Umm Hani (radiyallāhu’anha) on the day of the Conquest of Makkah and then he observed eight raka’at Nawafil Solāh (Solāh Ad-Duha).

‘Abdullah Ibn ‘Umar (radiyallāhu’anhu) narrated that Rasūlullāh (Sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam) (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) observed nawafil Solāh while riding in whatever direction he was facing and nodding his head [i.e. indicates the movements of the Solāh].

Al-Hassan bin ‘Ali (radiyallāhu’anhu) related: “The companions of Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) while on a journey performed regular Sunnah (mu‘akaddah) Solāh before and after the fardhu Solāh.”

‘Abdullah Ibn ‘Umar (radiyallāhu’anhu) and others are of the opinion that there are no Nawafil Sunnah, before or after the solāh fardhu, except for during the middle of the night. He saw some people observing Solāh after the Solāh and said: “If I were to observe Solāh, I would have performed the whole solāh [referring the ‘fardhu’ and ‘sunnah’ as obviously that would have taken preference]. O nephew, I accompanied Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) [on journeys] and he never observed Solāh more than two raka’at until Allāh took his soul. And I accompanied Abu Bakar (radiyallāhu‘anhu) and he did not observe Solāh more than two raka’at.” He also mentioned the name of ‘Umar and ‘Uthman, then he recited the verse: “Ye have indeed in the Messenger of Allāh a beautiful pattern (of conduct).” This is recorded by al-Bukhari.

Ibn Qudamah (rahimahullāh) combines what Al-Hassan and what Ibn ‘Umar (radiyallāhu‘anhum) say by concluding that Al-Hassan's hadith points to the fact that there is no harm in observing Sunnah (mu’akaddah) and Nawafil Solāh while traveling, whereas Ibn ‘Umar’s hadith points to the fact that there is no harm in not observing Nawafil Solāh.

6 - Traveling On a Friday

Ka`ab bin Malik (radiyallāhu`anhu) reported: “The Prophet (Sallallāhu`alayhi wasallam) set out on Thursday for the expedition of Tabuk. He liked to set out on a journey on Thursdays”. [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]

Sakhr Bin Wada` ah Al-Ghamidi (radiyallāhu`anhu) reported: The Messenger of Allah (Sallallāhu`alayhi wasallam) said, "O Allah! Bless my people in the early part of the day (morning). Whenever he dispatched a detachment or an army-unit, he would dispatch it at the beginning of the day (soon after dawn).” The narrator, Sakhr (radiyallāhu`anhu) was a merchant, and he used to send off his merchandise at the beginning of the day. So his trade flourished and he made a good fortune.  [At-Tirmidzi and Abu Dawud]

The two Ahadith mentioned above point out the desirability to set off on a journey, business trip, Jihad or anything on Thursdays and at the beginning of the day (soon after dawn).

On the other hand there is no harm in traveling on a Friday if it is not during the time of the Solāh. ‘Umar Ibn Al-Khattab (radiyallāhu`anhu) heard a man say: “If today was not Friday, I would have left.” ‘Umar said: “Leave. Friday does not keep one from traveling.”

Abu ‘Ubaidah (radiyallāhu`anhu) traveled on Friday and he did not wait for the solāh. Az-Zuhri wanted to travel before noon on Friday and the people mentioned something to him, and he said: “Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) traveled on Friday.”

Solāh al-Jumu’ah is not obligatory on the Musafir on the road. This is the opinion of the Hanafi, Māliki, al-Shāfi’ie and Hanbali schools of Jurisprudence of.

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (rahimahullāh) said: 

“The correct opinion, without a doubt… is that this (Solāh al-Jumu’ah and ‘Eid) are not obligatory for the traveller. Rasūlullāh (Sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam) used to travel frequently: he performed ‘Umrah three times, besides the ‘Umrah he performed along with Hajj. Rasūlullāh (Sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam) performed his Farewell Pilgrimage accompanied by thousands of people, and he went on more than twenty military campaigns, but there are no narrations at all that say he observed Solāh Jumu’ah or ‘Eid when travelling; he just observed Solāh two raka’at [i.e., qasar (shortening the solāt)] as on all the other days.

There are also no reports indicated that say he delivered a khutbah on a Friday when he was travelling, neither standing on his own two feet or from atop his camel, as he used to do on ‘Eid, or from a minbar, as he used to do on Fridays. Rasūlullāh (Sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam) occasionally used to deliver an address to the people when he was travelling, and this was narrated by them… but no-one reported that he delivered a khutbah to them before the Solāh on a Friday whilst travelling, and no-one reported that he recited Qur’ān aloud on a Friday (i.e., during Solāh al-Dzuhur, on a journey). Of course, if he had done something out of the ordinary and recited aloud or delivered a khutbah, they would have reported it.

On the Day of ‘Arafāh, he delivered a khutbah, then he came down and led them in a two-raka‘ah solat, but no one reported that he recited aloud in that Solāh. That khutbah was not for Jumu’ah – because if it had been for Jumu’ah, he would have done the same (delivered a khutbah) on every other Friday (when he was travelling); that khutbah was given because it was part of the rituals (of Hajj).

Hence all the Muslim scholars said that he would have given a khutbah at ‘Arafāh even if it had not been a Friday. This mutawātir report proves that it was a khutbah for the Day of ‘Arafāh, not for Friday.” 

[Majmu’ Al-Fatāwa (24/178)]

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (rahimahullāh) said: “The traveller does not have to observe Jumu‘ah, and the evidence for that is the fact that during his journeys, Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) did not observe Jumu’ah, even though he had many people with him; rather he would observe Solāh Dzuhur and shorten it.”  [Al-Sharh al-Mumti’ (5/10)] 

However, if he observes Solāh Al-Jumu’ah with the people of the place he is stopping (transiting) on way to his destination; this is a permissible and worthy act too.

It says: “Whoever of these people – travellers, slaves and women – attends Jumu’ah does not have to observe Solāh Dzuhur, and we know of no dispute on this point. Their exemption from having to attend Jumu’ah is to make things easy for them, but if they attend, it is permissible too, as is the case with the sick person. It is preferable for the traveller to attend Jumu’ah, because this is better deed, and is on the safe side (because some scholars hold that al-Jumu’ah is obligatory for the traveller who is stopping; staying in a particular place, but not for the traveller who is on the road), as he comes under the general meaning of the ayah which means: “O you who believe! When the call is proclaimed for the Solāh on the Day of Friday (Solah Jumu’ah), come to the remembrance of Allāh, and leave off business (and every other thing), that is better for you, if you did but know!” (Al-Jumu‘ah 62:9) [Al-Sharh Al-Kabeer (2/154)]

However majority of scholars holds it is not obligatory. 

Allāh Almighty Knows Best

[This article is based from ‘The Fiqh-Us-Sunnah’: ‘The Solāh of a Traveler’ by Sayyid Sabiq]

See: Is Solāh Jumu’ah waived for the traveller?



All About The Solah

4. Al-Wudhu’ ; 5. Tayammum;
29.   Solāh al-Jumu`ah; 30. The Sanctified Hour of Jumu’ah.
51. Solāh al-Witr; 52.   Solāh al-Wudhu’ ; 53. Solāh Eid ul Fitr

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