Title

Please inform me about the Zuhr-i Ahir prayers which is prayed in some Hanafi countries like Turkey. Ibn Abidin did gave preferance for this practice i.e. to pray 4 rakaats (Zuhr-i Ahir) after Jumuah as a precaution in his Radd ul Mukhtaar.

Question

Please inform me about the Zuhr-i Ahir prayers which is prayed in some Hanafi countries like . Ibn Abidin did gave preferance for this practice i.e. to pray 4 rakaats (Zuhr-i Ahir) after Jumuah as a precaution in his Radd ul Mukhtaar.

The fatwa in is on this, but i noticed in Indo/Pak continent its not, why not?

Answer

In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful  

Assalaamu `alaykum waRahmatullahi Wabarakatuh

The entire issue of Zuhr Aakhir (to perform four rakaats of Zuhr salaat after the Jumu’h salaat as a precaution) stems from a difference of opinion amongst the scholars as to whether many Jumu’h salaat could be performed at the same time in one city or not.

Ibn Aabideen was of the view that only one Jumu’h salaat could be performed in a city. Thus, if many Jumu’h salaats were performed in one city, then only the Jumu’h salaat of one Musjid will be valid and the Jumu’h salaat of the remainder Musjid’s will be invalid. Therefore, Ibn Aabideen and other scholars ruled that after Jumu’h salaat, four rakaats of Zuhr salaat should be performed as a precaution, in the event of the Jumu’h salaat being invalid.

This ruling lead to a misunderstanding amongst the Muslim masses, who began to believe that the Zuhr salaat was fard on Friday and not the Jumu’h salaat. Significance and importance was not shown to the Jumu’h salaat.  Thus, in order to remove this misunderstanding, the four precautionary rakaats of Zuhr salaat after Jumu’h were stopped.

Eventually, the correct and authentic view of the Hanafi Madhhab was established i.e. many Jumu’h salaat could be performed in one city and there is no need to perform four precautionary rakaats of Zuhr salaat after the Jumu’h salaat. (Fatawa Mahmudiyya, vol 8, pg 354/355, Faruqiyya)

Consider the following reasons for the impermissibility of Zuhr Aakhir:

• The practice of Zuhr Aakhir is not established from the Quran, Ahadith and nor found in the practice of Sahaba and Aimmah Mujtahideen. (Fatawa Mahmudiyya, vol 8, pg 350, Faruqiyya)

• The restriction of performing Jumu’h salaat in one Musjid only, is not found in the books of Ahadith. In fact, this restriction is based on a weak view.(Radd Al-Muhtaar, vol 2, pg 145, HM Saeed/ Maraaqi Al-Falaah, pg 506, Ilmiyya)

• By permitting Zuhr Aakhir , people will begin to regard the Zuhr salaat as fard on the day of Friday and show no significance to the Jumu’h salaat, as has occurred in the past.( Al-Bahr al-Raaiq, vol 2, pg143)

• Since, the preferred view in the Hanafi Madhhab is that it is permissible to perform more than one Jumu’h salaat in a city; therefore there remains no reason to doubt the acceptance of the Jumu’h salaat and perform four precautionary rakaats of Zuhr salaat.(ibid)

Based on the above, the Ulamaa of the Indo Pak subcontinent have not permitted the performance of Zuhr Aakhir.

يصح أداء الجمعة في مصر واحد بمواضع كثيرة ، وهو قول أبي حنيفة ومحمد ، وهو الأصح(البحر الرائق2\142,رشيدية)

 وذكر الإمام السرخسي أن الصحيح من مذهب أبي حنيفة جواز إقامتها في مصر واحد في مسجدين وأكثر وبه نأخذ لإطلاق : لا جمعة إلا في مصر شرط المصر فقط ، وفي فتح القدير الأصح الجواز مطلقا(البحر الرائق2\142)

وذكر في باب الإمامة أن الفتوى على جواز التعدد مطلقا(البحر الرائق)

و تصح اقامة الجمعة في مواضع كثيرة باالمصر و فنائه وهو قول ابي حنيفة و محمد في الاصح..........وعلي قول الضعيف المانع من جواز التعدد(مراقي الفلاح 506,العلمية)

 ولم يوجد دليل عدم جواز التعدد(البحر الرائق2\143,رشيدية)

 مع ما لزم من فعلها في زماننا من المفسدة العظيمة ، وهو اعتقاد الجهلة أن الجمعة ليست بفرض لما يشاهدون من صلاة الظهر فيظنون أنها الفرض ، وأن الجمعة ليست بفرض فيتكاسلون عن أداء الجمعة فكان الاحتياط في تركها

(البحر الرائق2\143,رشيدية)

And Allah knows best

Wassalam

Checked and Approved by:

Mufti Ebrahim Desai