Until What Time Can I Delay Prayer?

Answered by Shaykh Yusuf Weltch

Question

Until what time can I delay each prayer without them being considered missed (qadha)? 

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate

In short, If you pray Fajr prayer before the sunrise, Dhuhr prayer before ‘Asr prayer time enters, ‘Asr prayer before Maghrib time enters, Maghrib prayer before ‘Isha time enters and ‘Isha prayer before Fajr time enters – they are considered a current performance (Ada) and not missed (qadha). [Shurunbulali, Maraqi al -Falah] 

However, for each of the 5 prayers there is a recommended time to pray and for certain prayers there is a time that it is disliked to delay the prayer till.

Recommended Times

The recommended times are as followed:

(1) Fajr – It is recommend to delay the Fajr prayer until the sky starts to brighten slightly (isfar). [Shurunbulali, Maraqi al -Falah]

This time is described as being enough time that one could recite 40 verses in each unit (rak’a) of the Fajr prayer and still have enough time to repeat the wudu and perform the prayer again in the same manner as the first time.

[Shurunbulali, Maraqi al -Falah]

(2) Dhuhr – It is recommend to delay the Dhuhr prayer until the mid-day heat diminishes slightly and there is enough shade that one could walk to the Masjid in the shade of the buildings. [Shurunbulali, Maraqi al -Falah]

(3) Asr – It is recommend to delay the Asr prayer until just before the brightness of the sun diminishes enough that one could comfortably stare at the sun without difficulty. [Shurunbulali, Maraqi al -Falah]

(4) Maghrib – In all situations, Maghrib prayer should be prayed right away.

[Shurunbulali, Maraqi al -Falah]

(5) ‘Isha – It is recommended to delay the ‘Isha prayer until just before the first third of the night has passed. [Shurunbulali, Maraqi al -Falah] 

Disliked Times

(1) It is prohibitively disliked to delay ‘Asr till such a time that the brightness of the sun changes, such that one can comfortably stare at the sun. It is also described as the yellowing of the sun. 

(2) It is prohibitively disliked to delay the Maghrib prayer until the stars become visible. [Shurunbulali, Maraqi al -Falah] 

(3) It is prohibitively disliked to delay ‘Isha prayer past the mid-point of the night. [Shurunbulali, Maraqi al -Falah] 

Hope this helps

Allah knows best

[Shaykh] Yusuf Weltch
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Shaykh Yusuf Weltch is a teacher of Arabic, Islamic law, and spirituality. After accepting Islam in 2008, he completed four years at the Darul Uloom seminary in New York, where he studied Arabic and the traditional sciences. He then traveled to Tarim, Yemen, where he stayed for three years studying in Dar Al-Mustafa under some of the greatest scholars of our time, including Habib Umar Bin Hafiz, Habib Kadhim al-Saqqaf, and Shaykh Umar al-Khatib. In Tarim, Shaykh Yusuf completed the memorization of the Qur’an and studied beliefs, legal methodology, hadith methodology, Qur’anic exegesis, Islamic history, and several texts on spirituality. He joined the SeekersGuidance faculty in the summer of 2019.