34 : TIMELINESS IS A LEADING CONDITION OF PRAYER
Validation
of prayer depends on certain conditions that cannot
be missed or imperfectly done. These are 7 outside
prayer (i.e. pure body, pure clothes, pure mat,
timeliness, facing Qaba, covering private parts
and making intention) and 6 are inside prayer
(i.e. saying 'God is Great' to begin, standing
position, recitation, bowing, prostration, last
sitting session). Of these 13 conditions in total,
timeliness appears to be the leader of all, supported
by the following arguments.
If you give closer look you will see that most
other conditions have flexibility while timeliness
does not. For example, if you do not have or cannot
use water to clean body or making ablution, you
must use soil to do 'tayammum' in order to perform
prayer on time. If your sickness forces you from
standing in prayer, bending in 'ruku' or 'sizda'
or sitting for last session, then you are allowed
to perform these activities in any comfortable
position like sitting, leaning or lying on bed
etc. with favorable body postures.
However, under no circumstances, you can deliberately
postpone your prayer beyond designated time of
prayer. Even in extremely unfavorable situation
like in war, you are advised about how can perform
prayer in groups or on horseback. But there is
no provision for withholding prayer until easier
time becomes available probably at night or after
ceasefire. In fact, if you scan the Quran or the
Hadith, you will nowhere come by the word 'Qada'
or expired prayer that is permitted in a planned
manner. In Islam, expired prayer is meant to make
up prayer that you already missed for reasons
beyond your control or intention such as through
unbroken sleep, losing consciousness or surgical
anesthesia etc.