❖ The Ruling on Order (Tarteeb) in Making Up Missed Prayers ❖
✍ By: Imran Ayub Lahori
➊ The Practice of the Prophet ﷺ Regarding Missed Prayers
Narrations clearly establish that when multiple prayers were missed, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ made them up in their original order (tarteeb). For example:
◉ Narration from Jābir (رضي الله عنه):
On the Day of the Trench, ʿUmar (رضي الله عنه) came after sunset and said:
“By Allah, I did not pray ʿAsr,” to which the Prophet ﷺ responded:
“By Allah, I have not prayed it either.”
Then the Prophet ﷺ performed ablution, and they all performed ablution, and the Prophet ﷺ prayed ʿAsr after sunset, followed by Maghrib.
[Bukhārī: 596, 598; Muslim: 631; Tirmidhī: 180; Nasāʾī: 3/84; Ibn Ḥibbān: 2889]
◉ Narration from Abū Saʿīd al-Khudrī (رضي الله عنه):
“The disbelievers kept us so engaged on the Day of the Trench that we could not perform Ẓuhr until after sunset. After the revelation of the verse: ‘And Allāh sufficed the believers in battle’, the Prophet ﷺ commanded Bilāl (رضي الله عنه) to call the iqāmah. He then led the Ẓuhr prayer, followed by ʿAsr, then Maghrib, all in order, as he would normally perform them.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ Nasāʾī: 638; Aḥmad: 3/25; Dārimī: 1/358; Ibn Khuzaymah: 996; Bayhaqī: 1/402]
◉ Narration from Ibn Masʿūd (رضي الله عنه):
“The disbelievers preoccupied the Prophet ﷺ so much on the Day of the Trench that four prayers were missed. The Prophet ﷺ instructed Bilāl (رضي الله عنه) to call the adhān and iqāmah. He then led:
- Ẓuhr,
- ʿAsr,
- Maghrib,
- and ʿIshā’,
all in proper order.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ Nasāʾī: 639; Tirmidhī: 179; Aḥmad: 1/375; Bayhaqī: 1/403]
📌 Summary: Sunnah is to Maintain Order
All these authentic narrations indicate that the Prophet ﷺ always maintained order (tarteeb) when making up missed prayers, and this is the Sunnah that should be followed.
🧠 Scholarly Disagreement on Maintaining Order with Present Prayers
Scholars differ on whether tarteeb must also be maintained between missed prayers and the current prayer (e.g., a missed ʿAsr before praying Maghrib in its time):
- Imām Abū Ḥanīfah, Mālik, Layth, al-Zuhrī, al-Nakhaʿī, and Rabīʿah:
➤ Order is obligatory even between qadaʾ and the current (waqt) prayer. - Imām al-Shāfiʿī:
➤ Order is not obligatory, as mere action (of the Prophet ﷺ) does not imply obligation.
Sources:
- Al-Mughnī: 2/336
- Sharḥ al-Muhadhdhab: 3/75
- Ḥilyat al-ʿUlamā’: 2/3
- Al-Ḥāwī: 2/276
- Al-Hidāyah: 1/72
- Sharḥ Fatḥ al-Qadīr: 1/422
⚖ Rajih (Preferred View):
Although Prophetic practice alone does not imply obligation, following his example brings blessing and correctness. Hence, maintaining order is the preferred and prudent approach.
🕌 Adhān and Iqāmah When Making Up Missed Prayers
It is legislated (mashrūʿ) to:
✔ Give adhān before the first missed prayer,
✔ Then give only iqāmah for each subsequent missed prayer,
✔ And to perform them in congregation,
—as indicated in the aforementioned ḥadīths.
🧾 Ruling for New Muslims: No Qadāʾ of Past Prayers
If a non-Muslim embraces Islam, they are not required to make up prayers missed during their time of disbelief.
As the Prophet ﷺ said:
“Indeed, Islam erases all that came before it.”
[Muslim: 173; Aḥmad: 17112]
This may also be due to wisdom and mercy: enforcing such a burden might cause fear or lead new Muslims to abandon their faith.
✅ Conclusion
- The Sunnah is to maintain tarteeb when making up multiple missed prayers.
- It is preferable to follow the Prophetic method even if some jurists consider it non-obligatory.
- Missed prayers should begin with adhān and iqāmah, and be performed in congregation where possible.
- New Muslims are exempt from making up past prayers, based on divine mercy and prophetic guidance.
