Can a person who cannot memorize any verses from the Quran due to an illness perform prayers by saying "Allahu akbar" only?
Can a person who cannot memorize any verses from the Quran due to an illness perform prayers by saying "Allahu akbar" only?
Submitted by on Sat, 13/01/2018 - 10:14
Dear Brother / Sister,
The amount of qira’ah that is fard in prayer:
According to Abu Hanifa, this fard amount to read is at least one verse even if it is short in every rak'ah in which qira'ah is fard. When this amount is read, this fard is fulfilled. However, according to Abu Yusuf, Imam Muhammad and another narration from Abu Hanifa, this amount is three short verses or a long verse that is equal to three short verses. This last view is the most appropriate one in terms of caution.
According to the sound view, it is not accepted as sufficient to read verses that consist of only one letter or one word like "Nun" and "Mudhammatan". For, this amount is not regarded as qira'ah.
A person who can read only one verse from the Quran reads that verse only once, not three times, according to Abu Hanifa. According to Abu Yusuf and Imam Muhammad, he needs to repeat it three times. However, according to both imams, it is not permissible for a person who can read three verses to read one verse three times.
According to the sound view, it is enough to read some part of a long verse like "Ayatul-Kursiyy" in one rak'ah and the other part in the other rak'ah because it is equal to three short verses.
"Alhamdu lillahi rabbil alamin" is a verse. It is necessary to read at least this verse. If a religious doctor says a person "cannot memorize even a very short verse", it is appropriate for such a person to perform prayers by saying "Allahu akbar" only instead of not performing any prayers at all or until he memorizes a verse.
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