Frustrated by Having to Make-up Prayers

Answered by Shaykh Yusuf Weltch

Question

Is it a sign of insincerity and/or hypocrisy to be upset that I may have to repeat a prayer due to it being invalid?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate

No, it is not insincere nor hypocritical to be upset or annoyed at having to repeat a deed that you put effort into.

Taklif (Moral Responsibility)

The nature of acts of worship such as prayer is that there is a level of burden to them. This burden is both physical in regards to the effort needed to perform them as well as mental in regards to the responsibility of performing them correctly.

The lower human nature (nafs) does not like this burden, even though it is in its nature an honor and in the best interest of the person.

The Arabs say, “In every burdening of responsibility is an honoring.”

Having to Repeat Actions

If there is a level of burden to performing an action once, to have to repeat such an action again is necessarily going to be burdensome for the one who still has not purified their lower human nature (nafs).

There is No Loss with Allah

Allah Most High says, “They are joyful for receiving Allah’s grace and bounty, and that Allah does not deny the reward of the believers.” [Quran; 3:171]

Even though a person may be required to repeat an act of worship, they will still be rewarded by Allah Most High for the initial effort they put into that action. Habib Husayn al-Saqqaf mentioned – as echoed in the above verse, “There is never any loss with Allah Most High.”

Having to Repeat Actions

The underlying issue here is why exactly you have to constantly repeat your prayers or other acts of worship.

It is unlikely that one performs their prayer and needs to repeat it. The actions that invalidate the prayer are unlikely and definitely would not occur often, if at all. Additionally, many mistakes that are made in the prayer can be made up for in the prayer with a prostration of forgetfulness.

I would highly advise revisiting classes on the rulings of worship. This knowledge will facilitate your sound worship and give you more clarity. Consider the classes offered here at SeekersGuidance if there are no local scholars available to study with.

Hope this helps
Allah knows best
[Shaykh] Yusuf Weltch
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Shaykh Yusuf Weltch teaches 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 studied for three years in Dar al-Mustafa under some of the most outstanding 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 Quran and studied beliefs, legal methodology, hadith methodology, Quranic exegesis, Islamic history, and several texts on spirituality. He joined the SeekersGuidance faculty in the summer of 2019.