Fatwa ID: 03618

Answered by: Alimah Sabrina al-Faarsiyyah

Question

Assalamu alaikum wrwb

Dear Mufti Saab,

I hope this message will find you in best of health and spirit.

Question 1: I work on merchant ships and we continuously travel (safar). We offer salat qasar alhamdulillah. Please advise if we can offer salat qasar jama’ (zuhar asar together and maghrib Isha together in awwal waqt) in what conditions? Please keep note that although we are in safar, our life is very comfortable here onboard the ship and we have enough time to offer qasar salat in their correct times. Please answer the way of taqwa that we should offer qasar jama or offer five qasar salat on time?

Question 2: Please advise about the imamat of a person who shaves his beard?

Question 3: Please advise about rakaats of taraweeh one should follow? Also how many rakaats of taraweeh are followed in Masjid Nabawi and Masjid Haram?

Question 4: Please advise about reading through the mushaf while offering taraweeh? What should we prefer? Either to offer taraweeh salaat with small surahs which we remember or by reading through an open mushaf?

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِيْم

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

Answer:

1. You mentioned that you are travellers continuously onboard. You may perform qasr prayer in jama’ah with those on board but should not join between prayers, rather, perform them in their respective times, (especially since you mentioned that you are in a comfortable state).
2. If someone offers prayer behind such an imam, his prayer will be valid. However, such an individual who shaves his beard is not worthy of being an imam as he is openly committing sin by shaving his beard.[1]
3. One should perform 20 rak’aat of taraweeh, and this is the practice of the Haramain as well.[2]
4. Reciting in salah by looking at a mushaf is not permissible, and it invalidates the prayer. It is better to pray whatever surahs you have memorised by heart.[3]

Only Allah knows best

Written by Alimah Sabrina al-Faarsiyyah

Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah

Darul Ifta Birmingham