Liaison office of Grand Ayatullah Sayyid Ali Al Sistani (L.M.H.L) in London, Europe, North and South America.
1208. There are nine situations in which a person can have doubts
about the number of Rak'ats in the namaz consisting of four Rak'ats. In those
situations, one should pause to think, and if he arrives at any decision or
probability, he should act accordingly. If doubt persists, he should follow
these rules:
After the second Sajdah, if a person doubts whether he has performed 2
Rak'ats or 3, he should assume that he has performed 3 Rak'ats, and finish
the prayers after performing one more Rak'at. And after finishing the prayers
he should offer, as an obligatory precaution, 1 Rak'at of Namaz-e-Ihtiyat,
standing.
If after the second Sajdah, a person doubts whether he has performed 2
or 4 Rak'ats, he should decide that he has performed 4 Rak'ats and finish
his prayers. He should then stand up to offer 2 Rak'ats of Namaz-e-Ihtiyat.
If a person doubts, after the second Sajdah, whether he has performed 2,
3 or 4 Rak'ats, he should decide that he has performed 4 Rak'ats. After
completing the prayers, he should perform 2 Rak'ats of Namaz-e-Ihtiyat
standing, and 2 Rak'ats in the sitting position.
If a person doubts after the second Sajdah, as to whether he has
performed 4 or 5 Rak'ats, he should decide that he has performed 4 Rak'ats
and finish his prayers. After that he should perform two sajdatus sahv.
And this rule applies to every situation of doubt between four and more
Rak'ats, like, if one doubts whether he has prayed four or six Rak'ats. And
there can be a situation where at one single time, one doubts whether he has
performed less than four or more than four Rak'ats.
If this doubt
occurs after the second Sajdah, he will in each doubt, decide that he has
performed four Rak'ats, then for a doubt that he might have performed less,
he will redress it by Namaz-e-Ihtiyat, and for a doubt that he might have
performed more, he will perform Sajdatus Sahv. In any of these four
situations, if the doubt occurs after the first Sajdah, and before having
gone into the second, the prayers will be void.
If a person doubts at any stage during his prayers, whether he has
performed 3 or 4 Rak'ats, he should decide that he has performed 4 Rak'ats
and finish his prayers. Thereafter he should offer Namaz-e-Ihtiyat of 1
Rak'at standing or of 2 Rak'ats in the sitting position.
If a person doubts while standing, as to whether he has performed 4
Rak'ats or 5, he should sit down and recite tashahhud and the Salam of
prayers. Then he should stand up to offer Namaz-e-Ihtiyat of 1 Rak'at, or
give 2 Rak'ats while sitting.
If one doubts, while standing, whether he has performed three or five
Rak'ats, he should sit down and read tashahhud and Salam to finish the
prayers. After that, he should offer 2 Rak'ats of Namaz-e-Ihtiyat standing.
If a person doubts while standing, as to whether he has offered 3, 4 or
5 Rak'ats, he should sit down and recite tashahhud and the Salam of prayers.
Thereafter, he should offer Namaz-e-Ihtiyat of 2 Rak'ats standing, and another
2 Rak'ats in the sitting position.
If a person doubts, while standing, whether he has performed 5 or 6
Rak'ats, he should sit down and recite tashahhud and Salam of the prayers.
Thereafter, he should perform two sajdatus sahv. In all the foregoing four
situations one should, as a recommended precaution, also offer two sajdatus
sahv for an extra qiyam.
1209. When a person has any of the above valid doubts, he should not
break the prayers, if the time for namaz is very short. He should act according
to the rules given above. In fact, even if there be ample time for namaz, it is
a recommended precaution that namaz should not be broken, and the rules of
redressing the situations of doubt be followed.
1210. If a person has one of those doubts for which offering of
Namaz-e-Ihtiyat is obligatory, as a recommended precaution, he should offer the
Namaz-e-Ihtiyat, and without doing so, he should not start praying again. And
before any such act occurs which invalidates namaz, if he starts the namaz
afresh, without having performed Namaz-e-Ihtiyat, it will be void. Of course, if
in the meantime, an act occurred which renders namaz void, and he prayed without
having offered Namaz-e-Ihtiyat, this namaz will be in order.
1211. When a person has any of those doubts which invalidate the
prayers, and if he feels that by continuing to the next act, he may acquire
certainty, or form a strong idea about the actual situation, he is not allowed
to continue with that namaz if the doubt has occurred in the first 2 Rak'ats.
For example, if he doubts while standing, whether he has offered one Rak'at
or more, and feels that if he goes into Ruku, the doubt may be allayed, it is
not permissible to go to Ruku. But in all situations other than this, he can
continue with the namaz if he feels that it would help him acquire certainty.
1212. If initially the feeling of a person is inclined on one side,
and later both the sides become equally strong, he should act according to the
rules of doubt. And if initially both sides are equally strong, and he decides
to act according to his obligation, but later his feeling inclines to the other
side, he should adopt it, and complete the prayers.
1213. If a person does not know whether his feeling is inclined on one
side, or is equal on both sides, he should act according to the rules of doubt.
1214. If a person learns after prayers, that while in namaz, he was in
a state of doubt as to whether, he offered 2 Rak'ats or 3 and that he decided in
favour of 3 Rak'ats, but does not know whether his strong feeling favoured
offering three Rak'ats, or whether it favoured both sides equally, he does not
have to offer Namaz-e-Ihtiyat.
1215. If a person doubts after standing up, whether or not he has
performed the 2 Sajdah, and simultaneously, has a type of doubt which would only
be valid if it occurred after two Sajdah, like if he doubts whether he has
performed two or three Rak'ats, his namaz will be valid if he acts according to
the rule prescribed for that doubt.
But while in tashahhud, if he falls into
a type of doubt which would be valid only if it occurred after two sajdah,
assuming that he has done two Sajdah, if the remedy of that doubt was to decide
upon a Rak'at which has no tashahhud, his namaz will be void. For example, if
that doubt was between 2 or 3 Rak'ats. And if the remedy of the doubt was to
decide upon a Rak'at which has tashahhud, his namaz will be valid, like if the
doubt is between 2 and 4 Rak'ats.
1216. If a person doubts before he begins tashahhud, or before
standing (Qiyam) in the Rak'ats which do not have tashahhud, whether he has
performed one or both the Sajdah, and right at that moment, a doubt occurs which
would only be valid if it occurred after two Sajdah, the prayers will be void.
1217. If a person doubts while standing, whether he is in third or
fourth Rak'at, or whether it is third, fourth or fifth Rak'at, and at that time
he remembers to have omitted one or both Sajdah of the preceding Rak'at, his
prayers will be void.
1218. If one doubt of a person is allayed and another doubt takes its
place, like, if he doubted first whether he had offered 2 or 3 Rak'ats, and
later he doubts whether he has offered 3 or 4 Rak'ats, he should act according
to the rules of the second doubt.
1219. If a person doubts after prayers, whether while in namaz, his
doubt was about 2 and 4 Rak'ats or about 3 and 4 Rak'ats, he may act according
to the rules of both the doubts; and also, he may break the namaz and after
committing an act which invalidates namaz, he can repeat the prayers.
1220. If a person realises after prayers, that while he was in namaz,
he had a doubt, but does not know whether it was a valid or unsound doubt, and
further, if it was one of the valid doubts, he does not know to which type it
belonged, in such a case, it is permissible for him to treat the prayers as
void, and offer it again.
1221. If a person who prays in the sitting position has a doubt, which
would oblige him to perform either 1 Rak'at Namaz-e-Ihtiyat standing or 2
Rak'ats in the sitting position, he should offer 1 Rak'at sitting. And if he has
a doubt for which his obligation is to offer two Rak'ats of Namaz-e-Ihtiyat
standing, he should offer 2 Rak'ats sitting.
1222. If a person, who normally offered prayers in the standing
position, becomes unable to stand while offering Namaz-e-Ihtiyat, he should
offer it as one who offers prayers in the sitting position. Rules of these have
been detailed above.
1223. If a person, who normally sat when offering prayers, becomes
capable of standing for offering Namaz-e-Ihtiyat, he should act according to the
obligation of one who offers prayers standing.