Fatwa ID: 08319

Answered by: Maulana Nuski Cassim

Question:

By the will of Allah Subhanaoo Wa Taala, my wife passed away on Eid night, 1st Shawwal. She done namaz as long as she managed to do. But last few months she wasn’t capable physically and mentally. She told me to pay Fidya if she did miss any salat. We eat chapati flour which costs 75 pence a kilo. Should I pay the value of the chapati flour or I pay the the same amount as Fitra which is 5 pounds per person? I want to pay as soon as possible, insha’Allah.

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

Answer:

We are sorry to hear the news on the passing of your beloved wife. May Allah ﷻ grant her Jannah al-Firdaus. Ameen.

The fidyah for missed salah—for a deceased person who left such a bequest—is the same as the fidyah one would give for the fasts of the Ramadhan. Hence, you should pay the same amount as fitrah, which in your case is 5 pounds, for every salah missed.[1]

Be that as it may, you mention that your wife wasn’t capable of praying both physically and mentally. If by mentally, you meant that she suffered from a form of insanity or loss of consciousness, and this state carried on for months such that she missed more than 5 prayers in a row, then a debt is not due from her.[2]

References:

1.

ولو مات وعليه صلوات فائتة وأوْصى بالْكفارة يُعْطَى لكل صلاة نصْف صاع منْ برّ كالفطرة

[رد المحتار، كتاب الصلاة، باب قضاء الفوائت، ج. ٢، صفحة ٧٢، دار الفكر]

2.

ومن أغمي عليه أو جن خمس صلوات قضى، ولو أكثر لا

[كنز الدقائق، كتاب الصلاة، صفحة ١٨٤، دار البشائر الاسلامية]

Only Allah knows best.

Written by Maulana Nuski Cassim

Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah

Darul Ifta Birmingham