Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

Dear Mr. Burhan (Hifzallah), Assalamualaikum;

Q-2) While praying if ablution becomes invalid...... , subsequently namaz also becomes invalid. But how to stop the namaz. Stop immediately, stop saying salaam or complet the namaz and repeat the same prayer after ablution.

“If one is in the middle of a lone or congregational prayer, and is absolutely convinced he has passed wind; his wudu and thus his prayer becomes immediately invalid. He must stop immediately without saying any salaams or tasleems, and leave the prayer; redo his wudu and rejoin the congregation anew, or repeat the full prayer again.”

In the above answer, you have said that we have to leave the prayer immediately. How could we do this when we are in the middle of saf? Crossing during prayer is allowed. I heard that it is a grave sin.

Regards,

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

Answer:

How to walk away from prayer if wudu breaks?

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad(saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Your Question: In the above answer, you have said that we have to leave the prayer immediately. How could we do this when we are in the middle of saf? Crossing during prayer is allowed. I heard that it is a grave sin.

Zaid ibn Khalid relates that the Messenger of Allah (saws) said: "If the one who passes in front of one who is praying knew what was upon him [of sin], it would be better for him to stand [and wait] for forty autumns than to pass in front of him." This is related by al-Bazzar.

In light of the above tradition of the Messenger of Allah (saws), it is indeed a sin to pass in front of a praying person and his sutrah or place of prostration.

But there is absolutely no harm and no sin if, for a valid reason, one wishes to leave the state of prayer in a congregation and walks out vertically, without horizontally passing any praying person. What is disallowed is the passing in front of a praying person, but if one wishes to pass by the sides of a praying person, there is absolutely no harm. Besides, when the believers praying in the congregation realize that someone in front wants to leave the prayer, it is obvious that they would assume he has an emergency, and they would create the little space that is needed for the person to walk out of the congregation.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan