The Prayer of the Traveler

it is the pillar of faith and the delight of the pious; it never leaves them, whether they are at home or on a journey. It is indeed the Salah (prayer)!

And among the signs of goodness and success is for the traveler to diligently observe their prayers at their appointed times and to understand their rulings. (Whoever Allah intends to bestow goodness upon, He grants them understanding of the religion).

Indeed, from the facilitation and ease of Allah is that He has made for the prayer of the traveler certain rulings that make it easy and distinct.

And among these rulings are "Al-Qasr" (shortening) and "Al-Jam'" (combining). The shortening of the prayer is related to travel, regardless of whether hardship is present or not.

Indeed, "Al-Qasr" (shortening) for the traveler does not require a specific intention, as the default for the traveler's prayer is to shorten it. Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) reported that the prayer was initially prescribed as two units (Rak'ahs), and then the prayer for travel (i.e., Al-Qasr) was established, and the prayer for residents (i.e., Al-Haḍar) remained longer.

If a person enters the time of prayer while in the state of being a resident (i.e., Al-Haḍar) and then travels, they have the option to shorten the prayer (i.e., Al-Qasr). On the other hand, if a person enters the time of prayer while traveling and then reaches their hometown before praying, they should complete the full prayer (i.e., At-Tamam). The determining factor is the location where the prayer was initiated, not the location where the time of prayer was entered. Therefore, if someone prays while being a resident, the prayer is to be completed (At-Tamam), and if they pray while traveling, the prayer is to be shortened (Al-Qasr).

And for the traveler, it is permissible to combine prayers due to early timing, even if they know they will reach their destination (hometown) before the time of the second prayer begins.

If the traveler prays behind an imam who shortens the prayer, they should also shorten it. And if the imam completes the prayer in full, they should follow him in completing the prayer, whether they catch the prayer from the beginning or miss a part of it.

And if the traveler prays the Maghrib prayer behind a resident imam who is performing Isha prayer, then they should join the imam with the intention of praying Maghrib. When the imam stands up for the fourth rak'ah, the traveler should sit for the Tashahhud and then conclude the prayer with the imam for the remaining part of the Isha prayer.

And if the traveler joined the imam in the second rak'ah, they should conclude the prayer with the imam. If the traveler joined in the third rak'ah, they should perform one additional rak'ah after the imam's prayer has ended (i.e., after the imam has made the final Tasleem).

And when the traveler prays behind a resident imam, they should pray the complete four units (Rak'at) of the prayer, which is two units (Rak'at) for the regular prayer.

There is no obligation to combine prayers with shortening (qasr). It is permissible to combine without shortening and also permissible to shorten without combining. Combining prayers is not exclusive to travel; rather, it is permitted for other valid reasons, such as heavy rain, illness, or hardship.

If the prayer time arrives while the airplane is still in flight, and the traveler fears that he will miss the prayer before the plane lands, then it is obligatory for him to pray in the airplane to the best of his ability in order to catch the prayer time.

Ibn 'Uthaymeen said, "The time is the most crucial condition for prayer. Therefore, when the prayer time enters, one should pray in whatever state they are, even if they are unable to fulfill all the conditions and pillars of prayer. If the prayer time enters, and a person does not have the means to cover their 'awrah (private parts), or cannot perform ablution, or stand, or face the qiblah (direction of prayer), they should not wait until all the conditions are met. Instead, they should pray in whatever state they are in when they fear that they might miss the prayer time."

Allah (SWT) says in the Quran, "Indeed, prayer has been decreed upon the believers a decree of specified times." (Surah An-Nisa, 4:103). This means that prayer is an obligatory act with designated times, and it should neither be advanced nor delayed beyond its prescribed time.

If a traveler knows that the planewill land before the time of the prayer (or before the time of the prayer that follows it, for which combining prayers is allowed), and he will have enough time to perform the prayer, but he cannot perform it properly in the plane (with its conditions and pillars), then he should delay the prayer until after landing.

It is not permissible for a traveler to pray the obligatory prayer while sitting, whether on the plane or elsewhere, if he is capable of standing and not afraid of missing the prayer's time. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Pray while standing, but if you can't, then pray while sitting."

However, the traveler may still pray voluntary prayers (Nafl) except for the emphasized Sunnah prayers of Dhuhr, Maghrib, and Isha. He can perform any other voluntary prayers he wishes, such as the Witr prayer, Duha prayer, and other non-emphasized Sunnah prayers.

For the traveler, it is permissible to pray voluntary prayers (Nafl) while sitting on his seat in the plane or car, and he is not required to stand or face the Qibla. This is because the Prophet ﷺ used to pray while riding his camel in whichever direction it was heading. However, when he wanted to perform the obligatory prayer, he would dismount and face the Qibla.

The obligatory congregational prayer is also obligatory for the traveler. If a traveler finds a congregation of other travelers, they should pray with them in shortened form (Qasr). If there is no congregation of travelers, then the traveler should pray with the residents, performing the full four units (Rak'ahs) in the four-unit prayer (Dhuhr, Asr, and Isha).

The definition of travel, in which the concessions of travel apply, is based on "custom and tradition." Whatever people commonly consider as travel, it falls under the category of travel where concessions can be applied. Some scholars specify the distance as "eighty kilometers."

When there is a difference in distance and custom, a person should act on what is more cautious, which means not applying the concessions.

The concessions of travel should not be applied unless the traveler has left the limits of their city or the outskirts of their settled area. If they are still within their city or settled area, the shortening of prayers (qasr) is not permissible.

The combining of prayers is permissible before setting out on a journey if it will be difficult for the traveler to perform the second prayer while on the journey. As for shortening the prayers (qasr), it is only allowed for the traveler after leaving their hometown or city.