Fatwa ID: 04299

Answered by: Maulana Imad Ali

Question

What happens if someone stopped praying Salah for a long time?

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِيْم

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Answer:

First, one needs to know that the prayers are an obligatory act of worship which was commanded by Allah (SWT) and the consequences of not praying are very severe indeed. However, having said that one should never lose hope and give up because Allah (SWT) said in the Qur’an:

“Say O my servants who have transgressed against themselves (by sinning), do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the forgiving, the Merciful.” Surah Az-Zumar Ayah: 53.

The repentance of a believer is accepted so long as they are alive, or until the sun rises from the west.

My advice to such people would be, that make an effort to change starting from now because whatever you have done before is in the past and that cannot be changed whereas you can change now. As Allah stated in the Qur’an:

“Turn to your Lord (in repentance) and bow to His (will) before the Penalty comes on you. After that, you shall not be helped.”

Only Allah knows best

Written by Maulana Imad Ali

Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah

Darul Ifta Birmingham