Ruling on Prayer During Travel and at Ancestral Home: Full or Qasr at Two Locations?
Source: Fatawa ‘Ilmiyyah, Volume 1, Kitab al-Salah, Page 440
❖ Detailed Explanation: Performing Qasr Prayer at Ancestral Home
Question:
A man is employed in Islamabad as a government servant, while his original personal residence is in Faisalabad. He performs full prayers in Islamabad. The question arises: If he visits Faisalabad for two or three days, should he perform Qasr or complete prayer there?
Some scholars state that one must perform full prayers at both locations—Islamabad (due to employment) and Faisalabad (due to ownership of property), claiming that property ownership necessitates full prayer.
Similarly, if his wife visits her parents’ house (where she holds shared ownership), should she perform Qasr or complete prayer?
What is the true reason for Qasr — travel, or lack of property ownership?
✿ Answer:
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah. To proceed:
✔ Offering Full Prayers at Both Locations Is Preferable
❀ The stronger and preferable view for your situation is:
◈ You should perform full prayers at both Islamabad (your place of employment) and Faisalabad (your ancestral home).
❀ This is because:
◈ Performing full prayer while traveling is also permissible,
◈ The issue is ijtihādi in nature (i.e., open to legitimate scholarly interpretation),
◈ The safest and clearest way out of doubt is to offer complete prayer in both places.
✿ Proof That Full Prayer Is Permissible During Travel
❀ Sayyiduna ʿUthmān (رضي الله عنه) is also reported to have offered full prayer during travel.
❀ An authentic narration records:
◈ The Prophet ﷺ referred to offering full prayer during travel as “aḥsan” (better).
References:
- Sunan al-Nasā’ī, Vol. 3, Page 122, Ḥadīth 1457
- Sunan al-Dāraqutnī, Vol. 2, Page 188
✿ Detailed Authentication of the Narration:
❀ Imām Dāraqutnī declared the narration as ḥasan.
❀ The narrator, al-ʿAlāʾ ibn Zuhayr, is:
◈ Considered reliable by the majority of Hadith scholars.
◈ The criticism by Ibn Ḥibbān is unacceptable and dismissed.
❀ There are also multiple corroborating narrations, such as:
- Dāraqutnī (2/188, Ḥadīth 2275)
- Bayhaqī (3/141)
◈ Imām Dāraqutnī graded its chain as “isnādahu ṣaḥīḥ” (authentic chain).
❀ The narrator Saʿīd ibn Muḥammad ibn Thawwāb:
◈ Has been narrated from by a group of scholars.
◈ Dāraqutnī called him ṣaḥīḥ al-ḥadīth (sound in narration).
◈ Ibn Ḥibbān included him in Kitāb al-Thiqāt (Vol. 8, Pg. 272) and called him mustaqīm al-ḥadīth (sound in narration).
◈ Therefore, Shaykh al-Albānī’s classification of him as majhūl al-ḥāl in Irwāʾ al-Ghalīl (Vol. 3, Pg. 7) is not accurate.
✔ Ruling on Qasr Prayer: What Is Preferred?
❀ In summary:
◈ Shortening the prayer (Qasr) while traveling is preferred and better.
◈ However, offering full prayer is permissible and established.
❖ Regarding the Wife’s Case:
❀ If your wife visits her parents’ home, where she holds shared property rights, then:
◈ The same ruling applies:
➤ If she visits with the intention of residing there (and the place is considered her watan asli or watan iqamah), she should perform full prayers.
➤ If she goes merely for a short stay (as a traveler), then she may offer Qasr prayer.
❀ Mere ownership or share in property is not the determining factor for Qasr or full prayer.
➤ The true reason is travel, not property.
Shahādah, February 2002
ھٰذا ما عندی، واللہ أعلم بالصواب
