Why salah matters

Islam stands on five pillars. The first is the shahada, saying there is no god but Allah and Muhammad ﷺ is His Messenger. The second is salah¹.

Salah was given on the night Nabi ﷺ was taken up to the heavens, the night of the Mi'raj. At first it was fifty prayers a day. It was made easier, down to five. Allah said: they are five, but they count as fifty².

Allah tells us why we pray: pray to remember Me⁹. And He tells us what prayer does: it keeps you away from bad and shameful things¹⁰.

• It cleans you. Nabi ﷺ said: imagine a river right outside your door, and you wash in it five times a day. Would any dirt stay on you? That is what the five prayers do to your sins¹¹.
• It wipes away small sins. The small sins between one prayer and the next are forgiven, as long as you stay away from the big sins¹².
• It is the first question. On the Day of Judgement, the first thing you will be asked about is your salah. If it is good, the rest goes well¹³.
• On time is best. Nabi ﷺ was asked which deed Allah loves most. He said: praying on time¹⁴.

If someone does not pray

Nabi ﷺ said that leaving salah is what stands between a person and disbelief¹⁵. He also said salah is the promise that marks a Muslim¹⁶.

All scholars agree on one thing. If someone says salah is not a duty at all, they have left Islam.

But what about someone who believes in salah and just does not pray, out of laziness? Here scholars differ:

• The well-known Hanbali view: this person has left Islam.
• Most Hanafi, Maliki and Shafi'i scholars: this is one of the worst sins, but the person is still a Muslim.

Who must pray

You must pray if you are:

• a Muslim,
• who has reached puberty,
• and whose mind is sound.

Nabi ﷺ said three people are not held responsible: someone asleep, until they wake up; a child, until puberty; and someone who has lost their mind, until it comes back¹⁷.

Special cases

• Children: Nabi ﷺ said: teach your children to pray at seven, and be stricter at ten¹⁸. Being strict must never mean hurting the child. The goal is a child who loves to pray.
• A woman on her period, or bleeding after giving birth: she does not pray. She also does not make up those prayers later. Aisha said the women in Nabi's ﷺ time were never told to make them up¹⁹.
• Fell asleep or forgot? Pray it as soon as you remember. There is nothing else you need to do²⁰.
• Fainted or unconscious? Scholars differ. Hanbalis say make up what you missed. Hanafis say make it up if you missed five prayers or fewer. Malikis and Shafi'is say you do not need to make it up.

The five prayer times

Allah says: salah is a duty at set times²¹. So each prayer has a window. It opens at one time and closes at another. You can pray any time inside the window.

The angel Jibril came and showed Nabi ﷺ these windows. He led him in each prayer twice: once when the window opened, and once near its close. Then he said: the time is between these two²². Nabi ﷺ later explained the windows himself²³.

Where the schools differ

• When Asr starts. Most scholars: when a shadow is as long as the thing. Imam Abu Hanifa: when it is twice as long. This is why prayer apps have a "Standard" and a "Hanafi" setting for Asr. The Hanafi time is later.
• When Maghrib ends. Most scholars: when the red glow is gone. Abu Hanifa: when the white glow after it is also gone. That is a little later.
• When Isha ends. Nabi ﷺ said its time lasts until the middle of the night²⁵. Most scholars say that is the best limit, but a late Isha still counts until dawn. Just do not delay it without a reason.

The best time to pray

The general rule: pray early in the window. Praying on time is the deed Allah loves most²⁶. Be extra careful with Asr. Nabi ﷺ said that missing Asr is like losing your family and everything you own²⁷.

But there are three times when waiting a little is better:

• Dhuhr on a very hot day: wait until it cools down a bit²⁸.
• Isha: Nabi ﷺ once prayed it late at night and said: if it were not hard for my people, I would tell them to pray at this time²⁹. So praying Isha a bit later is good, if it is easy for you and the people you pray with.
• Fajr: Hanafis like to pray it once the sky is lighter. The other schools like to pray it while it is still dark.

Times when extra prayers are not allowed

Nabi ﷺ told us not to pray extra, voluntary prayers at these times:

• While the sun is rising, until it is fully up.
• When the sun is at its highest point at midday, for a few minutes.
• While the sun is setting, until it has set³⁰.
• After you pray Fajr, until sunrise, and after you pray Asr, until sunset³¹.

This rule is only about extra prayers. If you missed a fard (required) prayer, most scholars say you can make it up even at these times, because Nabi ﷺ said: pray it when you remember³². Hanafis say wait until the sun is fully up, past its highest point, or fully set.

Shafi'is also allow extra prayers that have a reason, like the two rakat you pray when you walk into a masjid.

Prayer times today

Most of us use a timetable or an app. These work out the times from the position of the sun. Two apps can still show different times, because of two settings:

• The Fajr and Isha setting. Apps measure how dark the sky must be. Different settings can change Fajr by up to 20 minutes.
• The Asr setting: Standard or Hanafi, as explained above.

You can choose both on our Prayer times page. Not sure which to pick? Follow your local masjid's timetable.

Living far north or far south

In some places, like the UK, Canada or Scandinavia in summer, the sky never gets fully dark. So it is hard to tell when Isha and Fajr begin.

Nabi ﷺ once spoke about a future day that would last as long as a year. The Companions asked: will one day's prayers be enough for that day? He said: no, work out the times³³. From this, scholars allow working out sensible times when the sky does not help, for example by using the times of the nearest normal day. Your local masjid's timetable already does this for you.

Common questions

Dhuhr started while I was in a meeting. Have I missed it?

No. You have until Asr begins. Pray as soon as the meeting ends.

I slept through Fajr by accident.

Pray it as soon as you wake up³⁴. It is not a sin if you did not mean to. Set an alarm, and try to sleep earlier.

My period started an hour after Dhuhr time began, and I had not prayed yet.

Shafi'is and Hanbalis say: you had time to pray it, so make it up when your period ends. Hanafis and Malikis say: you do not need to make it up.

My period ended a little before Maghrib.

Do ghusl and pray Asr. Malikis, Shafi'is and Hanbalis say pray Dhuhr as well, because Dhuhr and Asr can be joined when there is a reason. In the same way, if it ends before Fajr, pray Maghrib and Isha. Hanafis say pray only the prayer whose time you are in.

Two apps show different Fajr times. Which one do I follow?

When fasting, stop eating by the earlier time. When praying Fajr, wait for the later time, to be safe. Or simply follow your local masjid.