The process of making up missed prayers is a profound concern for many individuals who return to the practice of Islam after a period of negligence or distance from their faith. A Muslim may experience a spiritual awakening and realise that a significant number of obligatory prayers were abandoned during their youth or times of ignorance. This situation raises important questions about accountability, the boundless mercy of the Creator, and the legal requirements for rectifying years of missed worship.
Accountability and the Status of Prayer
In Islam, accountability (takleef) depends on a person possessing maturity and a sound mind. Prominent scholars state that a sane and mature Muslim must carry out their religious duties, such as prayer, as long as there is no valid hindrance.
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) outlined the exceptions to this accountability, stating that three people are not accountable for their actions: the child until they become mature, the insane person until they are of sound mind, and the sleeping person until they wake up (Sunan Abi Dawud).
Prayer is the most important pillar of Islam, second only to testifying to the Oneness of Allah. It is a religious duty prescribed for every single prophet. The Quran emphatically states the necessity of timely prayer:
“Indeed, prayer has been decreed upon the believers a decree of specified times” (Surah An-Nisa, 4:103).
Furthermore, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) reported a Hadith Qudsi stating:
“The covenant between Us and them is Salah; so whoever establishes it establishes religion; whoever undermines it undermines religion.”
Another tradition emphasises the gravity of this obligation:
Allah has made five prayers obligatory upon His servants. So whosoever will perform them and will not miss any of them out of negligence, they have the pledge of Allah that He will enter them in Paradise. And whosoever will not perform them, Allah has no pledge with them. If He wills He may punish them, and if He wills He may forgive them” (Sunan an-Nasa’i, Sunan Abi Dawud, and Musnad Ahmad).
The Majority View on Rectifying Past Negligence
A Muslim must never become slack in performing their obligatory prayers. If a prayer is missed due to forgetfulness or oversleeping, it must be performed immediately without further delay.
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Whoever oversleeps and misses his prayer or forgets to do it, let him pray as soon as he remembers it” (Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim).
When addressing the issue of abandoning prayers for several years, the vast majority of scholars and imams hold the opinion that a person must make up for all of the prayers missed in their life, regardless of the quantity. One highly recommended method to achieve this is to perform an additional obligatory (fard) prayer in lieu of the missed one alongside every current obligatory prayer. For instance, a person would pray an extra four units (rak’ahs) of Zuhr as qadha’ (making up) either before or after their current Zuhr prayer, and do the same for ‘Asr and the other daily prayers. A believer should continue this practice until they are reasonably certain that all missed prayers have been rectified.
An Alternative Scholarly Perspective on Deliberate Omission
Conversely, other prominent Islamic scholars hold a different view regarding prayers that were intentionally abandoned. They argue that a person who has deliberately missed their prayers over a prolonged period can never effectively make up for them through qadha’.
According to this perspective, insisting that a person who has strayed from Islam for many years must make up thousands of missed prayers serves only as a deterrent against their repentance. Scholars arguing this point state that imposing such a heavy burden amounts to limiting the infinite mercy of Allah. Therefore, the only option left for a person in this situation is to repent sincerely, ask for continuous forgiveness (istighfar), and perform a multitude of good works. By doing so, the individual can hope to receive Allah’s mercy.
Regardless of which scholarly opinion a person follows, the overarching consensus is that a believer must firmly resolve never to be negligent in their prayers again, striving to remain steadfast in their religion.
