Are You A Traveler? Learn How And When To Shorten Solat!

Shortening Salat, ‘Salatu qasr’ ‘Salatu musafir’ are the same.

* Shortening Salat when travelling is sunnatu mu-akkadah (Emphasised Sunnah), even if no difficulty is encountered. 4:101, al-Nasaa’i, 1420; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Nasaa’I, al-Nasaa’i, 2275; classed as hasan by al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Nasaa’i. Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah, 8/127, I’laam al-Musafireen bi Ba’d Aadab wa Ahkaam al-Safar wa ma yakhuss al-Mallaheen al-Jawwiyyeen by Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-‘Uthaymeen, p. 13

* Shortening Salat mean observing four rak’ats Salat (like Zuhr, ‘Asr and ‘Isha) as two rak’ats. Sahih fiqhi sunnah, Jami’u liahkami fiqhi sunnah.

* Some scholars set a distance for a travel before Salat can be shortened to be four ‘Burud’ (16 farsakh/48 miles/83km) while the most evidenced is to shorten Salat whenever it is referred to as travel in language and practice and it requires preparation of provision for travel. Q4:101-102: Al-Tirmidhi, hadith 2960, Al-Tirmidhi, hadith 453, al-Mughni (2/65), Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah (8/99)

* According to some jurists, if you know that you are going to stay in a place for more than four days, you will not do ‘qasr’ but if you are going to stay there for less than four days or you don’t know when you will finish the task, then you will continue with the ‘qasr’ while some concluded that in as much you are living like a traveller (not like inhabitant), shortening of Salat continues. The reason for the differences is that there is no definitive evidence that would dispel confusion, hence, the views of the scholars differed. Al-Haafiz ibn Hajar said in his commentary on the hadeeth of al-‘Ala’ ibn al-Hadrami, according to which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Three days for the muhaajir after returning from Mina.” al-Bukhari, 3933 and Muslim, 1352, Al-Sharh al-Mumti’, 4/545, al-Majmoo’, 3/171; Bidaayat al-Mujtahid, 1/168. What this hadith refers to is that staying Makkah was forbidden to one who had migrated therefrom before the Conquest, but it was permitted to those who went there for Hajj or ‘Umrah to stay after completing the rituals (of Hajj or ‘Umrah) for three days and no more. It was understood from this that if a person stays for three days, the rulings on travelers still apply to him. Fath al-Baari, 7/267.