Authored by: Sheikh Mubashir Ahmad Rabbani (Hafidhahullah)
Question:
If a person’s wudu breaks during prayer, what should they do? Should they complete the prayer or perform wudu again and start a new prayer?
Answer:
Having wudu is a condition for the validity of prayer. If wudu breaks during prayer, the person must stop the prayer, leave to perform wudu, and then start the prayer again from the beginning. If the person whose wudu breaks is leading the prayer (the Imam), he should appoint someone from behind him to lead the congregation and leave to perform wudu. Upon returning, he should start a new prayer from the beginning, not from where the previous prayer was interrupted.
Sayyiduna Ali bin Taliq (رضي الله عنه) narrated that the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) said:
"If one of you passes wind during the prayer, let him leave, perform wudu, and repeat the prayer."
(Abu Dawood, Book of Purification, Chapter on Someone Who Experiences an Invalidator During Prayer: 205; Tirmidhi: 1164, 1166; Abdul Razzaq: 1/139; Ibn Hibban: 203; Daraqutni: 1/153)
This hadith is considered hasan (good).
"When any of you passes wind during prayer, let him leave, perform wudu, and repeat the prayer."
In contrast, the Hanafi scholars believe that if a person’s wudu breaks during prayer, they should leave, perform wudu, and then resume the prayer from where it was left off, provided that they did not engage in any action that invalidates the prayer. They support their view with a narration:
Narrated by Aisha (رضي الله عنها): The Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) said:
"If someone experiences vomiting, nosebleed, regurgitation, or pre-seminal fluid, let them leave, perform wudu, and continue their prayer without speaking."
(Ibn Majah, Book of Establishing Prayer and the Sunnah Regarding It, Chapter on Resuming Prayer: 1221)
However, this narration is weak. Hafiz Ibn Hajar (رحمه الله) stated in Bulugh al-Maram:
"This hadith was declared weak by Imam Ahmad and others."
Thus, using this narration as evidence is not correct. The correct opinion is that the person should perform wudu again and start the prayer from the beginning, as wudu is a condition for the validity of prayer.
Question:
If a person’s wudu breaks during prayer, what should they do? Should they complete the prayer or perform wudu again and start a new prayer?
Answer:
Having wudu is a condition for the validity of prayer. If wudu breaks during prayer, the person must stop the prayer, leave to perform wudu, and then start the prayer again from the beginning. If the person whose wudu breaks is leading the prayer (the Imam), he should appoint someone from behind him to lead the congregation and leave to perform wudu. Upon returning, he should start a new prayer from the beginning, not from where the previous prayer was interrupted.
Sayyiduna Ali bin Taliq (رضي الله عنه) narrated that the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) said:
"If one of you passes wind during the prayer, let him leave, perform wudu, and repeat the prayer."
(Abu Dawood, Book of Purification, Chapter on Someone Who Experiences an Invalidator During Prayer: 205; Tirmidhi: 1164, 1166; Abdul Razzaq: 1/139; Ibn Hibban: 203; Daraqutni: 1/153)
This hadith is considered hasan (good).
"When any of you passes wind during prayer, let him leave, perform wudu, and repeat the prayer."
In contrast, the Hanafi scholars believe that if a person’s wudu breaks during prayer, they should leave, perform wudu, and then resume the prayer from where it was left off, provided that they did not engage in any action that invalidates the prayer. They support their view with a narration:
Narrated by Aisha (رضي الله عنها): The Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) said:
"If someone experiences vomiting, nosebleed, regurgitation, or pre-seminal fluid, let them leave, perform wudu, and continue their prayer without speaking."
(Ibn Majah, Book of Establishing Prayer and the Sunnah Regarding It, Chapter on Resuming Prayer: 1221)
However, this narration is weak. Hafiz Ibn Hajar (رحمه الله) stated in Bulugh al-Maram:
"This hadith was declared weak by Imam Ahmad and others."
Thus, using this narration as evidence is not correct. The correct opinion is that the person should perform wudu again and start the prayer from the beginning, as wudu is a condition for the validity of prayer.