This excerpt is taken from the book Ṣaḥīḥ Ṣalāh an-Nabī ﷺ, authored by al-Shaykh ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ʿAzīz, published by Maktabah Dār al-Andalus.
فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْ وَاسْمَعُوا وَأَطِيعُوا
“So fear Allah as much as you are able, and listen and obey.”
❀ A sick or disabled person should offer prayer in whatever manner is easiest for him. ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbdullāh رضي الله عنهما narrates:
He saw ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما sitting cross-legged in prayer. When asked, he explained: “This is because my legs cannot bear my weight.”
❀ This proves that it is permissible for a disabled person to pray according to his convenience.
① If possible, he should pray standing.
② If not, then sitting.
③ If unable to sit, then lying down, praying with gestures of the head.
❀ A person may sit in any position that is easy for him, just as ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما did. Likewise, sitting on a chair is also permissible.
❀ If a seated person later gains the ability to stand, he should stand. If a lying person gains the ability to sit, he should sit.
❀ Sayyidah ʿĀ’ishah رضي الله عنها narrates:
❀ Leaning on something for support while standing in prayer is permissible.
❀ If a person cannot fully bow or prostrate, he should bend as much as possible, and in sujūd he should bend more than in rukūʿ. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ once saw a sick man prostrating on a cushion, so he removed it and said:
❀ A person who is excused from attending the congregation may pray at home. On one occasion, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ led people in prayer while sitting in his house due to an injury.
Prayer of the Sick and the Disabled
❀ Allah Almighty says:فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْ وَاسْمَعُوا وَأَطِيعُوا
“So fear Allah as much as you are able, and listen and obey.”
Reference: At-Taghābun: 16
❀ A sick or disabled person should offer prayer in whatever manner is easiest for him. ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbdullāh رضي الله عنهما narrates:
He saw ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما sitting cross-legged in prayer. When asked, he explained: “This is because my legs cannot bear my weight.”
Reference: al-Bukhārī: 827
❀ This proves that it is permissible for a disabled person to pray according to his convenience.
① If possible, he should pray standing.
② If not, then sitting.
③ If unable to sit, then lying down, praying with gestures of the head.
Reference: al-Bukhārī: 1117
❀ A person may sit in any position that is easy for him, just as ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما did. Likewise, sitting on a chair is also permissible.
❀ If a seated person later gains the ability to stand, he should stand. If a lying person gains the ability to sit, he should sit.
❀ Sayyidah ʿĀ’ishah رضي الله عنها narrates:
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ would begin the prayer while sitting. When about thirty or forty verses of recitation remained, he would stand, complete the recitation while standing, then perform rukūʿ and sujūd.”
Reference: al-Bukhārī: 1119; Muslim: 731
❀ Leaning on something for support while standing in prayer is permissible.
Reference: Abū Dāwūd: 948
❀ If a person cannot fully bow or prostrate, he should bend as much as possible, and in sujūd he should bend more than in rukūʿ. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ once saw a sick man prostrating on a cushion, so he removed it and said:
“If you are able, then pray on the ground; otherwise, pray with gestures, and make your sujūd lower than your rukūʿ.”
Reference: al-Bayhaqī, as-Sunan al-Kubrā: 2/206
❀ A person who is excused from attending the congregation may pray at home. On one occasion, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ led people in prayer while sitting in his house due to an injury.
Reference: al-Bukhārī: 1113; Muslim: 412
