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Prayer Timings in Polar Regions
Fatw Issued For Virtual Sharah Court
Imran A. Nyazee Version 1.0
nyazee@icloud.com January 3, 2013
Cite as: VSCF-1 (2012) |
irs+ioxs asked of Islamic scholars today are by persons who are well educated; some
are scholars in their own right. They deserve adequate and well reasoned responses.
..
A note on the
methodology of
fatws.
One-line fatws issued by the learned Mufts are, therefore, no longer acceptable.
This fatw is issued according to the principles of the anaf school. The method
followed for responding was laid down by Imm Abu al-usayn al-Karkh. He says:
When a person asks a question it is necessary for the responding jurist not to answer in absolute
and general terms. He should examine the question to see whether it is a single category or may be
divided into two or more. He should then examine each category word for word and give a suitable
answer to the question. This principle is of immense benet. The reason is that a reply in absolute
terms can readily be ripped apart, because words are seldom employed in general terms. He further
adds: The reply to a question is to be construed in accordance with what is generally known by
each nation in their place of abode. Some learned jurists have also stated that if there is a conict in
the texts of the jurists, the work to be treated as a nal authority is al-Mabs of Shams al-Aimmah
al-Sarakhs. We consider this to be sound advice. It may also be added here that if the issue is new
and is not to be found in the works of the jurists, the methodology of takhrj is to be followed, which
basically means reasoning from the already settled general principles to resolve the new issue. The
identity of the person raising the question will not be revealed unless he or she makes a request that
it be revealed and stated in the fatw.
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1 Tnr Qirs+iox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
2 Tnr Issirs R.isrr . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
3 Wn. No+ Lr.vr Prnirnrn.t Issirs Atoxr . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
3.1 The Debate is Not New: To Extend Concepts or Not to Extend? . . . . . . 4
3.2 Some Scholars are Attempting to Revive the Debate in a New Form . . . . 5
3.3 The Maqid, Deviant Particular Rules, and the Universality of the Sharah 5
4 Tnr Ontio.+iox or Pn..rn .xr Pn..rn Tixixos ix +nr Pot.n Rroioxs . . . . . 6
4.1 A Word About Taqq al-Man . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
4.2 The Cause (Sabab) of alt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
5 Tnr Ritixo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Rrrrnrxcrs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
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2 Vin+i.t Sn.n.n Coin+ 1
1 Tnr Qirs+iox
1. I have a very unusual question concerning ul al-qh. I am contacting you because you are
an expert in this eld, and I am sure that the average mufti would not be able to answer it. I will be
sincerely grateful to you if you could help me in this regard.
..
This question was
raised by a learned
person, whose
name is not being
revealed.
2. My question is about the cases in which the asbb of the usual akmare anomalous or missing.
As an instance, I will consider the situation of a Muslim living within the polar circles, where the
sun does not set at all for six months and does not rise for the following six months. I know that there
are already fatw providing a solution to the related questions (for instance: one should follow the
timings of the nearest country). But my question is quite dierent: I would like to know why the
fuqah feel the need to devise special akm for such cases, instead of simply applying the general
rule.
3. I further explain my question through an illustration: if the sun does not set for six months, as it
happens at the poles, then during that long period the sabab for alt-ul-maghrib is simply missing.
Consequently, according to the general rule, there should be no wujb for alh. Why do the fuqah
have to devise an alternative line of reasoning to make the situation somehowsimilar to the normal
cases? Of course, I do know that meanwhile in the rest of the world days and nights alternate, but
why should I care about that? If I am in a place where the sabab of dukhl waqt al-alh does not
happen, then the shart of wujb for alh is not fullled, and that alh is not wjib for me. Any
other considerations should be irrelevant for me, unless there is a dall shar to that eect.
4. I understand that this conclusion is very astonishing and that it raises misgivings, considering
that the obligation of something as fundamental as alh would be suspended, but why should it
be any dierent from the case of a menstruating woman, for whom the wujb of alh is likewise
suspended? Or from case of someone who does not have to pray jumuah because he lives in a small
and isolated village where there is no mosque and only very few Muslims live? Or from the case of
someone who does not pay the zakh because his possessions do not reach the nib?
5. No mufti raises an objection about these cases, or devises an alternative line of reasoning in
order to establish the wujb. That is because, due to the particular circumstances, the wujb has been
suspended by the Shri (Lawgiver) Himself. And yet, in other cases where applying the general rule
leads to some strange result, as in the example of the polar circles, the fuqah make up new akm,
instead of accepting the logical conclusion of the general ruling as it is, however bizarre.
6. What right do we humans have to change the akm of the sharah? I already know about
the maqid, which should be taken into consideration and take priority over the general akm, but
how do we know that making the alh regularly timed in a geographical area where the Lawgiver
Himself suspended the regularity of time-keeping would be according to the maqid?
7. As a side note, I would like to add that I really dont understand the reasoning of those who
consider nding a solution to the polar problem as important for establishing that Islamis universal,
fearing that it would not be universal if the ukmof alh would not be applicable to the polar regions.
In my understanding, IslamIS universal, and its universality is not aected in the least by the fact that
the shur of alh do not apply in the polar areas. It is simply the natural order of things established
by Allah.
8. I hope you will be able to provide me some clarication of this issue, on the basis of some adillah
shariyah. I have a hard time accepting explanations like it is just common sense, it feels right or
other vague and subjective answers not supported by adillah. In the eld of sharah, as I understand
it, the reasoning methodology should be based on hiri asbb and the reasoning should be like that
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3 Vin+i.t Sn.n.n Coin+ 3
of Sayyidin Mus (alayhi al-salm), not on bini argumentations like those of Sayyidina al-Khidr
(alayhi al-salm). I would be much obliged if you could help me with this issue.
Jazaaka Allahu khairan.
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2 Tnr Issirs R.isrr
9. The questioner is a very intelligent and a well read Muslim. He appears to have a good knowledge
of the sharah: both qh and ul al-qh. We will rst assess the issues he has raised and then try
to answer them in a manner satisfactory for him and for other readers. A number of issues have been
raised:
Whether in cases where the asbb of the usual akm are anomalous or missingthe require-
ments of the general rule imposing the obligation not being metthe jurists feel compelled,
so to say, to bring such cases under the general rule and impose the obligation.
Whether the jurists should restrict their reasoning to the veriable causes expressly mentioned
in the texts of the Qurn and the Sunnah, and when the causes are missing they should not
extend the rules to new cases.
Whether the attempt to extend the obligation, against the general rule, amounts to changing
the akm of the sharah, a right that we as human beings do not have.
Whether maqid take priority over the general akm or can overturn the regular akm.
Whether the sabab of dukhl waqt al-alh does not happen in the polar regions, and if so
whether the shart of wujb for alh is not fullled, thus, rendering alh as not wjib for
people living there.
Whether the universality of the noble sharah comes into question in places where the appar-
ent asbb mentioned in the texts do not occur at all.
10. These are the issues raised by the questioner. Some of these issues need comprehensive
treatment, but the task of the fatw is to indicate basic reasoning. The readers who wish to pursue
the reasoning further may do so on their own. The rst four issues have been taken up together in
the rst section, because they deal with fundamental matters of methodology and ul al-qh.
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3 Wn. No+ Lr.vr Prnirnrn.t Issirs Atoxr
11. A primary rule stated at the beginning of many books on ul al-qh is that the legal texts of
the Qurn and the Sunnah are to be acted upon to the extent possible.
1
This rule implies that the
1. See Ab Zayd Ubayd Allh ibn Umar ibn s al-Dabbsi, Taqwm al-Adillah (Beirut: Dr al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah,
2001), 13; al-Sarakhs, Ul al-Sarakhs (Beirut: Dr al-Marifah, 1973), 10.
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4 Vin+i.t Sn.n.n Coin+ 3
intention of the Lawgiver is to be given eect through our actions. The question then is what is the
intention of the Lawgiver underlying each text, and in particular what are the limits to which such
intention goes? We have to stay with this intention to the limits to which it extends. This is achieved
by understanding the limits of the concepts that underlie these texts. These limits are rst understood
through literal means. Once these are exhausted, rational extensions are undertaken till we nally
reach the level of the maqid al-sharah.
12. Throughout the history of ul it has been the fundamental position of the jurists that literal
methods and rational methods are organically related and the intention of the Lawgiver is to be
discovered through all methods declared valid by the jurists.
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The validity of each method is the
subject-matter of ul.
13. The questions that may arise are: Should we limit our search for the intention of the Lawgiver
and consequential actions to the literal meanings alone? If we have to extend our search, should it be
conned to a strict method like qiys? Should we delve into the area of the ikmah and thus adopt
istisn, malaah and the maqid as valid methods?
3.1 The Debate is Not New: To Extend Concepts or Not to Extend?
14. Discussion about these questions is not new. It began with the hirs who wanted to conne
the search to the literal meanings alone. There were others who argued that at the outer limits of
literal interpretation, you cannot separate qiys (syllogism) from the literal implications.
3
The well
known example of not saying even u (e) to parents may be used here. It is a command of the
noble Qurn. If we adopt the apparent literal meaning alone then the command becomes conned
to u. Mistreating parents by turning them out of the house is not covered in this literal meaning.
The implied literal meaning includes them, however. The hirs may agree with this saying that this
is actually a literal implication. The anafs agree saying that this is done through dallat al-na,
but the h jurists say that this extension is actually a form of syllogism called qiys al-man.
Now, if the anaf jurist want to extend the meaning through qiys to the obligatory maintenance of
parents thus providing them with shelter and subsistence, the hirs will denitely not agree.
15. The extension of meanings in these ways is essential, because this is the only way Islam can
be called a complete way of life. Attempting to limit the intention of the Lawgiver to literal methods
alone will narrow down the meaning of Islamic law and its impact on the lives of people. This was
not acceptable to the majority of the jurists who maintain that there is no option other than tall.
16. As a result of trying to limit the intention of the Lawgiver, the hir school soon lost a fol-
lowing and became extinct. Its methods were rejected by the majority. The consequence is that their
opinions have academic and historical value alone, and there is nothing binding in their opinion for
anyone. Something similar to the hirs may be attributed to the Ahl al-adth with the distinction
that they try to follow everything without trying to check the derived literal meanings against the
general principles derived through rational methods.
17. Today, if we attempt to limit the intention of the Lawgiver to what is apparent from the texts
and do not extend the intention to what is possible, we will be going against the stated position of
the majority who maintain that we have no right to limit such intention. This also applies to limiting
the rules of prayer timings to the apparent causes alone.
2. This has been discussed in great detail in our forthcoming work called The Secrets of Ul.
3. For the same reasons syllogism is treated as a literal method by some in Western law as well.
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3 Vin+i.t Sn.n.n Coin+ 5
3.2 Some Scholars are Attempting to Revive the Debate in a New Form
18. There are scholars, especially in the West, who are trying to revive the debate in a new form.
We will not name names here and the Internet is loaded with their views for they have support from
dierent quarters. They have come up with the assertion that the sharah is one thing and qh is
another thing. Sharah is the law laid down by the Lawgiver, while qh is what the jurists think the
law is. This assertion has two major implications.
19. The rst implication is that the sharah is the literal meaning, and all the rest belongs to
the minds of the fuqah. The sharah is conned to the intention of the Lawgiver as is visible
through the apparent literal meanings. The rest is the understanding of the fuqah pertaining to
their own times. If the fuqah could have their own understanding of the law, so can we. We will,
therefore, remove the work of the jurists and replace it with out own understanding based on our
reason, modern ideas, human rights and international norms. When the work of the fuqah is set
aside, and the intention of the Lawgiver is conned to the literal meanings alone, we will ll the
vacuum with whatever pleases our reason.
20. The second implication is that the schools continue to enjoy an overpowering authority over
the masses. This authority must be shattered. It can only be done by setting aside the work of these
jurists and labeling it as a creation of their own minds. The schools will automatically lose authority
once this is done.
21. Both implications, and the eorts behind them, have either failed or are bound to fail. It is
not suggested, by any means, that the questioner belongs to this group of scholars; however, the very
question as to why the jurists pursue rules that are not expressly implied follows similar reasoning.
3.3 The Maqid, Deviant Particular Rules, and the Universality of the Sharah
22. The discussion about the maqid al-sharah (purposes of the sharah) does not pertain to the
core of the discussion on the topic addressed, but as the questioner has mentioned them, we will take
up the matter very briey here. The maqid are organically linked to the concepts and meanings in
the texts; they arise from such meanings. In this form, they are really broad general principles that
highlight the general direction that the sharah wants humans to take. General principles operate
for the usual cases (aghlabiyyah) and are subject to exceptions. This is the area of the azmah and
rukhah. Likewise, the maqid. An impression has been created by the writings of jurists like al-
Shib that the maqid are denitive (qa ). Reading such works, some well known writers have
suggested that the maqid as universals can overturn some of the particular rules of the sharah.
This is preposterous and cannot be accepted. How can these purposes knock out the foundations on
which they stand and from which they have emerged. In reality, the word qa has been misapplied
in this context. Denitive here implies that it is denitely these ve purposes that emerge from the
texts. It does not mean that they are denitive in their implication to the extent that they can eliminate
even the particulars (juzs). They are denitive to the extent that a general principle is denitive,
which means that it is open to exceptions on the basis of a valid evidence.
23. We may turn to the point that a deviation in the obligation of prayer at the poles or somewhere
else, or in some special situation does not aect the universality of the sharah. We will let Imam
Shib answer this. He says: A universal principle is not demolished by individual decisions nor
by rare opposing cases.
4
What he means is that rules are made for the usual cases, and the shariah
4. Al-Shib, al-Muwfaqt, vol. 1 (Beirut: Dr al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, 2001), 185.
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6 Vin+i.t Sn.n.n Coin+ 4
keeps in viewthe existence of deviant cases. In other words, if I go to the North Pole, the obligation of
prayer itself is not abolished, even though I cannot see the sun and amtotally handicapped. He arms
again: All these (exceptions) do not aect the legal basis, because when the universal principle
is established as a universal, the deviation of some individual rules from the requirement of the
universal does not remove it from the status of being a universal. Further, the rule that applies to a
predominant majority is considered in the shariah as a general denitive rule, because individual
deviations do not constitute a universal that conicts with such an established universal.
5
This
statement is in line with the assumptions of most schools. The universality of the sharah, therefore,
does not come into question due to such deviations.
24. Having dealt with the rst theoretical issues, we may turn to the issue of wujub of prayer in
the polar regions where the sun is visible for six months.
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4 Tnr Ontio.+iox or Pn..rn .xr Pn..rn Tixixos ix +nr Pot.n Rroioxs
4.1 A Word About Taqq al-Man
25. There are two types of ijtihad: The rst is called tahqiq al-manat and the other is regular full
blown ijtihad which may be called takhrj to identify what we are about here.
26. Taqq al-man is not really ijtihd in the regular sense of the term. It is the ascertainment
of legal facts insofar as facts aect legal rules. It has been called ijtihd out of respect for Imm
al-Sh, because he termed it ijtihd when he was discussing the determination of the direction of
the qiblah on a cloudy night in the desert, in al-Rislah. We will, therefore, continue to refer to it as
ijtihd and, in fact, try to show in a dierent work why it should be considered ijtihd of a type.
27. This type of activity does not always need a jurist. For example, to determine if a beverage is
an intoxicant, you will consult a pharmacist or chemist and not a jurist. Likewise when you are trying
to determine the direction of the qiblah in a desert at night when there is a complete cloud cover; you
need some kind of expert. The task of the jurist comes when the facts are reported to him, that is,
what type of legal presumption is to be drawn from the reported facts. Some of our learned scholars
are trying to undertake the activity of the expert when they try to gure out night and day at the
poles even when the sun is visible or concealed for six months at a stretch. It is conveyed somewhere
on the Internet that a learned scholar will visit some country in the polar regions to determine the
timings of prayers there. How he will undertake tahqiq al-manat in a spaceship is beyond the burden
of this document.
28. Others ask us to follow the nearest land where day and night are visible. This is the task of the
jurist. He draws a presumption from the reported facts and lays down the rule. The presumption, we
believe, is that day and night are ocurring in the reckoning of the Almighty, even if we cannot gure
out these changes even with our precise scientic instruments.
4.2 The Cause (Sabab) of alt
29. The crucial point to understand is that the cause of prayer is not the declining, or setting of the
sun (dulk), it is time. Dulk is merely an indication of this time. Immal-Sarakhs says, Knowthat
5. Ibid., vol. 2, 41.
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5 Vin+i.t Sn.n.n Coin+ 7
prayer has been made obligatory due to its timings. Allah has said, Establish regular prayersat
the suns decline till the darkness of the night, and the recital of the Qurn in the morning prayer,
for which reason the obligation recurs with the recurrence of time, and it is performed within its
timings. Allah has said, For such prayers are enjoined on believers at stated times, that is, an
obligation linked to time.
6
He adds, In the Book there is an indication about the timings, when
it is said, So glory be to Allah, when ye reach eventide and when ye rise in the morning; Yea, to
Him be praise, in the heavens and on earth; and in the late afternoon and when the day begins to
decline.
7
He then explains that according to Ibn Abbs (God be pleased with him) dulk means
declining of the sun, while according to Ibn Masd (God be pleased with him), it is the setting of
the sun upto the darkness of the night. Al-Ksn has recorded a similar discussion.
8
30. The important point to make is that the obligation of prayer does not go away if the sun is not
seen or it is being seen, but the condition of dulk is not met, because it is time or the timings that
create the obligation for us. Of course, the real obligation is created by Allah Almighty Himself.
Thus, if there is a dense cloud-cover that lasts for weeks, and the sun is not visible at all, it does not
mean that the obligation of prayer itself has been removed; the timings are always there, for time
moves on. We take a look at our clocks, or use some other method for knowing the time in the
absence of clocks.
31. The questioner, considering the visibility of sun as the cause rather than the prescribed timings
as the cause, makes a point about a woman undergoing her periods for whom the obligation is lifted.
He also mentions the absence of the obligation of zakt in certain cases. These situations cannot
be compared to the suns visibility or its absence at the poles. They are cases where the evidences
in the sharah themselves have created the exceptions, therefore, the intention of the Lawgiver is
clearly understood. We may, however, consider other cases where worshippers are handicapped in
some ways, just as they are handicapped from assessing the time on the basis of the sun.
32. The rst is the case of the istihadah or a woman with irregular bleeding so that we cannot
distinguish between menstrual and other bleeding. Does she give up prayer completely, because the
condition of aharah is not established for her? Take another case called salas which means that one
of the passages is never clean, like a person having no control over urination. In these cases, the
jurists use estimates of what is normal and proceed to issue the ruling, as in the case of continuous
bleeding. The reason is: who are we humans to limit the intention of the Lawgiver.
33. In the case under examination too the cause is there at the poles in the reckoning of the
Almighty, but the condition of our seeing it or assessing it is not established. We are handicapped.
Time exists even there and the obligation cannot be removed.
34. What if time itself changes, and the revolutions of the earth do not have the same meaning
for us? In space even the cause may be dierent, but is not known to us; it is only known to the
Almighty.
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6. Al-Sarakhs, al-Mabs, vol. 1, 141.
7. Ibid.
8. See, al-Ksn, Badi al-ani, vol. 1 (of 10), 45556.
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8 Vin+i.t Sn.n.n Coin+ 5
5 Tnr Ritixo
35. The legal texts of the Qurn and the Sunnah are to be acted upon to the extent possible, and
the intention of the Lawgiver is to be given eect through our actions to the extent possible by the
use of rational evidences that have been accepted by the schools of Islamic law.
36. Human beings have no right to limit or restrict the intention of the Lawgiver to the express
statements in the Qurn and the Sunnah. Meanings must be extended on the basis of ilal (underlying
causes) and ikmah in accordance with the methods approved by the schools of Islamic law. This
rule ows directly from the assumption that the sharah is a complete code of life.
37. An integral bond exists between sharah and qh. Sharah is the law and qh is its under-
standing; the sharah cannot be understood without qh whose guardians are the schools of law.
38. The sharah is universal: it is meant for all mankind and for all places; its universality is not
aected by exceptions or deviant individual cases.
39. The residents of the polar regions are to be asked what they consider to be morning, afternoon,
evening and night for purposes of their meals or work, and to estimate the timings accordingly. The
Muslim community there can easily arrive at a consensus about the timings of prayers. Perhaps, they
should seek help from neighbouring regions where conditions are dierent, as some scholars have
suggested, but this does not appear to be necessary.
40. In space, it is better to follow earth time as that is the only time we know. The time at the
Kabah would be most suitable for this purpose.
Allah knows best.
Imran Ahsan Khan Nyazee
Muharram 1, 1434
November 27, 2012
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Rrrrnrxcrs
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Mals. 4 vols. Beirut: Dr al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, 2001.
Ksn, Al al-Dn Ab Bakr. Badi al-ani f Tartb al-Shari. Edited by Al Muammad
Muawwa. 10 vols. Beirut: Dr al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, 2003.
Sarakhs, Shams al-Aimmah. Kitb al-Mabs. Edited by Ab Abd Allh Isml al Sh. 30 vols.
Beirut: Dr al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, 2001.
. Kitb al-Ul. Edited by Ab Abd Allh Isml al-Sh. 2 vols. Beirut: Dr al-Marifah,
1978.
Shib, Ibrhm Ibn Ms. al-Muwfaqt f Ul al-Sharah. Edited by Abd Allh Dirz. 4 vols.
Beirut: Dr al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, n.d.