prayer timings in polar regions

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Prayer Timings in Polar RegionsFatw Issued For Virtual Sharah Court

Imran A. Nyazee Version 1.0

[email protected] January 3, 2013Cite as: VSCF-1 (2012)

asked of Islamic scholars today are by persons who are well educated; someare scholars in their own right. They deserve adequate and well reasoned responses.

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A note on thmethodology o

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 methodfollowed 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 absoluteand general terms. He should examine the question to see whether it is a single category or may bedivided into two or more. He should then examine each category word for word and give a suitableanswer to the question. This principle is of immense benefit. The reason is that a reply in absoluteterms can readily be ripped apart, because words are seldom employed in general terms. He furtheradds: The reply to a question is to be construed in accordance with what is generally known byeach nation in their place of abode. Some learned jurists have also stated that if there is a conflict inthe texts of the jurists, the work to be treated as a final authority is al-Mabs of Shams al-Aimmahal-Sarakhs. We consider this to be sound advice. It may also be added here that if the issue is newand is not to be found in the works of the jurists, the methodology oftakhrjis to be followed, whichbasically means reasoning from the already settled general principles to resolve the new issue. Theidentity of the person raising the question will not be revealed unless he or she makes a request thatit be revealed and stated in the fatw.

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1 T Q . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 T I R . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

3 W N L P I A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33.1 The Debate is Not New: To Extend Concepts or Not to Extend? . . . . . . 43.2 Some Scholars are Attempting to Revive the Debate in a New Form . . . . 53.3 The Maqid, Deviant Particular Rules, and the Universality of the Sharah 5

4 T O P P T P R . . . . . 64.1 A Word About Taqq al-Man . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64.2 The Cause (Sabab) ofalt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

5 T R . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8R . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

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1 T Q

1. I have a very unusual question concerning ul al-fiqh. I am contacting you because you are

an expert in this field, and I am sure that the average mufti would not be able to answer it. I will besincerely grateful to you if you could help me in this regard.

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This question wa

raised by a learneperson, whosname is not beinrevealed. 2. My question is about the cases in which the asbb of the usual akm are anomalous or missing.

As an instance, I will consider the situation of a Muslim living within the polar circles, where thesun does not set at all for six months and does not rise for the following six months. I know that thereare already fatw providing a solution to the related questions (for instance: one should follow thetimings of the nearest country). But my question is quite different: I would like to know why thefuqah feel the need to devise special akm for such cases, instead of simply applying the generalrule.

3. I further explain my question through an illustration: if the sun does not set for six months, as ithappens 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 fuqahhave to devise an alternative line of reasoning to make the situation somehow similar to the normalcases? Of course, I do know that meanwhile in the rest of the world days and nights alternate, butwhy should I care about that? If I am in a place where the sabab ofdukhl waqt al-alh does nothappen, then the shart of wujb for alh is not fulfilled, and that alh is not wjib for me. Anyother considerations should be irrelevant for me, unless there is a dall shar to that effect.

4. I understand that this conclusion is very astonishing and that it raises misgivings, consideringthat the obligation of something as fundamental as alh would be suspended, but why should itbe any different from the case of a menstruating woman, for whom the wujb ofalh is likewisesuspended? Or from case of someone who does not have to pray jumuah because he lives in a smalland 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 inorder to establish the wujb. That is because, due to the particular circumstances, the wujb has beensuspended by the Shri (Lawgiver) Himself. And yet, in other cases where applying the general ruleleads 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 aboutthe maqid, which should be taken into consideration and take priority over the general akm, buthow do we know that making the alh regularly timed in a geographical area where the LawgiverHimself 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 finding a solution to the polar problem as important for establishing that Islam is universal,fearing that it would not be universal if the ukm ofalh would not be applicable to the polar regions.In my understanding, Islam IS universal, and its universality is not affected in the least by the fact thatthe shurofalh do not apply in the polar areas. It is simply the natural order of things establishedby Allah.

8. I hope you will be able to provide mesome clarification of this issue, on the basis of some adillahshariyah. I have a hard time accepting explanations like it is just common sense, it feels right orother vague and subjective answers not supported by adillah. In the field ofsharah, as I understandit, the reasoning methodology should be based on hiri asbb and the reasoning should be like that


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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.

.2 T I R

9. Thequestioner is a very intelligent and a well read Muslim. He appears to have a good knowledgeof the sharah: both fiqh and ul al-fiqh. We will first assess the issues he has raised and then tryto answer them in a manner satisfactory for him and for other readers. A number of issues have beenraised:

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 verifiable causes expressly mentionedin the texts of the Qurn and the Sunnah, and when the causes are missing they should notextend the rules to new cases.

Whether the attempt to extend the obligation, against the general rule, amounts to changingthe 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 ofdukhl waqt al-alh does not happen in the polar regions, and if sowhether the shart of wujb for alh is not fulfilled, thus, rendering alh as not wjib forpeople 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 comprehensivetreatment, but the task of the fatw is to indicate basic reasoning. The readers who wish to pursuethe reasoning further may do so on their own. The first four issues have been taken up together inthe first section, because they deal with fundamental matters of methodology and ul al-fiqh.

.3 W N L P I A

11. A primary rule stated at the beginning of many books on ul al-fiqh is that the legal texts ofthe 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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intention of the Lawgiver is to be given effect through our actions. The question then is what is theintention of the Lawgiver underlying each text, and in particular what are the limits to which suchintention 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 first understoodthrough literal means. Once these are exhausted, rational extensions are undertaken till we finallyreach the level of the maqid al-sharah.

12. Throughout the history oful it has been the fundamental position of the jurists that literalmethods and rational methods are organically related and the intention of the Lawgiver is to bediscovered through all methods declared valid by the jurists.2 The validity of each method is thesubject-matter oful.

13. The questions that may arise are: Should we limit our search for the intention of the Lawgiverand consequential actions to the literal meanings alone? If we have to extend our search, should it beconfined to a strict method like qiys? Should we delve into the area of the ikmah and thus adoptistisn, 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 confinethe search to the literal meanings alone. There were others who argued that at the outer limits ofliteral interpretation, you cannot separate qiys (syllogism) from the literal implications.3 The wellknown example of not saying even uff (fie) to parents may be used here. It is a command of thenoble Qurn. If we adopt the apparent literal meaning alone then the command becomes confinedto uff. 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 thisis actually a literal implication. The anafs agree saying that this is done through dallat al-na,

but the hfi 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 ofparents thus providing them with shelter and subsistence, the hirs will definitely not agree.

15. The extension of meanings in these ways is essential, because this is the only way Islam canbe called a complete way of life. Attempting to limit the intention of the Lawgiver to literal methodsalone will narrow down the meaning of Islamic law and its impact on the lives of people. This wasnot 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 theiropinions have academic and historical value alone, and there is nothing binding in their opinion foranyone. 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 thegeneral principles derived through rational methods.

17. Today, if we attempt to limit the intention of the Lawgiver to what is apparent from the textsand do not extend the intention to what is possible, we will be going against the stated position ofthe majority who maintain that we have no right to limit such intention. This also applies to limitingthe 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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3.2 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 fromdifferent quarters. They have come up with the assertion that the sharah is one thing and fiqh isanother thing. Sharah is the law laid down by the Lawgiver, while fiqh is what the jurists think thelaw is. This assertion has two major implications. 19. The first implication is that the sharah is the literal meaning, and all the rest belongs tothe minds of the fuqah. The sharah is confined to the intention of the Lawgiver as is visiblethrough the apparent literal meanings. The rest is the understanding of the fuqah pertaining totheir 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 ourreason, modern ideas, human rights and international norms. When the work of the fuqah is setaside, and the intention of the Lawgiver is confined to the literal meanings alone, we will fill thevacuum with whatever pleases our reason. 20. The second implication is that the schools continue to enjoy an overpowering authority overthe 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 authorityonce this is done. 21. Both implications, and the efforts behind them, have either failed or are bound to fail. It isnot suggested, by any means, that the questioner belongs to this group of scholars; however, the veryquestion 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 takeup the matter very briefly here. The maqidare organically linked to the concepts and meanings inthe texts; they arise from such meanings. In this form, they are really broad general principles thathighlight the general direction that the sharah wants humans to take. General principles operatefor the usual cases (aghlabiyyah) and are subject to exceptions. This is the area of the azmah andrukhah. Likewise, the maqid. An impression has been created by the writings of jurists like al-Shib that the maqid are definitive (qa). Reading such works, some well known writers havesuggested 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 onwhich they stand and from which they have emerged. In reality, the word qa has been misappliedin this context. Definitive here implies that it is definitely these five purposes that emerge from the

texts. It does not mean that they are definitive in their implication to the extent that they can eliminateeven the particulars (juzs). They are definitive to the extent that a general principle is definitive,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 somewhereelse, or in some special situation does not affect the universality of the sharah. We will let ImamShib answer this. He says: A universal principle is not demolished by individual decisions norby 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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keeps in view the existence of deviant cases. In other words, if I go to the North Pole, the obligation ofprayer itself is not abolished, even though I cannot see the sun and am totally handicapped. He affirmsagain: All these (exceptions) do not affect the legal basis, because when the universal principle

is established as a universal, the deviation of some individual rules from the requirement of theuniversal does not remove it from the status of being a universal. Further, the rule that applies to apredominant majority is considered in the shariah as a general definitive rule, because individualdeviations do not constitute a universal that conflicts with such an established universal. 5 Thisstatement 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 first theoretical issues, we may turn to the issue of wujub of prayer inthe polar regions where the sun is visible for six months.

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4.1 A Word About Taqq al-Man

25. There are two types ofijtihad: The first is called tahqiq al-manatand the other is regular fullblown ijtihadwhich may be called takhrjto identify what we are about here. 26. Taqq al-man is not really ijtihd in the regular sense of the term. It is the ascertainmentof legal facts insofar as facts affect legal rules. It has been called ijtihd out of respect for Immal-Shfi, because he termed it ijtihdwhen he was discussing the determination of the direction ofthe qiblah on a cloudy night in the desert, in al-Rislah. We will, therefore, continue to refer to it asijtihdand, in fact, try to show in a different work why it should be considered ijtihdof a type. 27. This type of activity does not always need a jurist. For example, to determine if a beverage isan intoxicant, you will consult a pharmacist or chemist and not a jurist. Likewise when you are tryingto determine the direction of the qiblah in a desert at night when there is a complete cloud cover; youneed 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 scholarsare trying to undertake the activity of the expert when they try to figure out night and day at thepoles even when the sun is visible or concealed for six months at a stretch. It is conveyed somewhereon the Internet that a learned scholar will visit some country in the polar regions to determine thetimings of prayers there. How he will undertake tahqiq al-manatin a spaceship is beyond the burdenof 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 figureout these changes even with our precise scientific 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 thesun(dulk), it is time. Dulkis merely an indication of this time. Imm al-Sarakhs says, Know that

5. Ibid., vol. 2, 41.


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prayer has been made obligatory due to its timings. Allah has said, Establish regular prayersatthe 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, anobligation linked to time.6 He adds, In the Book there is an indication about the timings, whenit is said, So glory be to Allah, when ye reach eventide and when ye rise in the morning; Yea, toHim be praise, in the heavens and on earth; and in the late afternoon and when the day begins todecline.7 He then explains that according to Ibn Abbs (God be pleased with him) dulk meansdeclining of the sun, while according to Ibn Masd (God be pleased with him), it is the setting ofthe 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 notseen or it is being seen, but the condition of dulk is not met, because it is time or the timings thatcreate 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 timemoves on. We take a look at our clocks, or use some other method for knowing the time in theabsence of clocks.

31. The questioner, considering the visibility of sun as the cause rather than the prescribed timingsas 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 cannotbe compared to the suns visibility or its absence at the poles. They are cases where the evidencesin the sharah themselves have created the exceptions, therefore, the intention of the Lawgiver isclearly understood. We may, however, consider other cases where worshippers are handicapped insome ways, just as they are handicapped from assessing the time on the basis of the sun.

32. The first 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 thecondition ofaharah is not established for her? Take another case called salas which means that oneof 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 continuousbleeding. 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 theAlmighty, 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 meaningfor us? In space even the cause may be different, but is not known to us; it is only known to theAlmighty.

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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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5 T R

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 effect through our actions to the extent possible by theuse 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 expressstatements in the Qurn and the Sunnah. Meanings must be extended on the basis ofilal (underlyingcauses) and ikmah in accordance with the methods approved by the schools of Islamic law. Thisrule flows directly from the assumption that the sharah is a complete code of life. 37. An integral bond exists between sharah and fiqh. Sharah is the law and fiqh is its under-standing; the sharah cannot be understood without fiqh 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 notaffected 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. TheMuslim community there can easily arrive at a consensus about the timings of prayers. Perhaps, theyshould seek help from neighbouring regions where conditions are different, as some scholars havesuggested, 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 theKabah would be most suitable for this purpose.

Allah knows best.

Imran Ahsan Khan NyazeeMuharram 1, 1434

November 27, 2012

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Dabbs, Ab Zayd Ubayd Allh ibn s. Taqwm al-Adillah. Edited by Khall Muy al-Dn alMals. 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 MuammadMuawwa. 10 vols. Beirut: Dr al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, 2003.

Sarakhs, Shams al-Aimmah. Kitb al-Mabs. Edited by Ab Abd Allh Isml al Shfi. 30 vols.Beirut: Dr al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, 2001.

. Kitb al-Ul. Edited by Ab Abd Allh Isml al-Shfi. 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.

prayer timings in polar regions

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