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Everyday questions › Prayer in daily life

Prayer in daily life

Fitting the five prayers into work, travel, study and a body that does not always cooperate: what is required, what is forgiven, and what to do about years missed.

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Latest answers

72 segments in 37 recordings, newest first
18 Oct 2025MindTrap with Mufti Abu Layth LatestHow does a Quranist pray salah? The guest's prayer has no unit count: after wudu he seeks refuge, reads al-Fatiha by his own choice and a full chapter, then prostrates once with supplication, filling the prayer time as the moment dictates; in congregation the imam leads a single long prostration and prayers last up to an hour, three times a day. Discussionquoted view, not his positionguest speechBr Muhammad (MFG, MuhammadFromGod channel)salahwudusujud machine6 min 20 s1:19:58on YouTube
18 Oct 2025MindTrap with Mufti Abu Layth How do Muslims know how to pray if the Quran does not spell it out? Mufti Abu Layth says Muslims know how to pray from an unbroken living tradition of more than 1,400 years, father to child, documented in the books of every century; the guest asks why God describes prayer in the Quran if it must be learned at the mosque, and why two prayers are silent when 17:110 forbids silence. Discussionguest speechBr Muhammad (MFG, MuhammadFromGod channel)The deen reaches us through continuous living practiceQuran 17:110 (be neither loud nor silent in your prayer, but seek a way between)salah machine4 min 51 s1:27:01on YouTube
18 Oct 2025MindTrap with Mufti Abu Layth Does the Quranist prayer have any set structure? The guest's prayer has no set structure: it changes in the moment, may include hours of prostration or prostrating mid-recitation when a verse moves him, and its purpose per 29:45 is to restrain immorality; he says Quranists may also pray like Sunnis, minus words not from God. Discussionquoted view, not his positionguest speechBr Muhammad (MFG, MuhammadFromGod channel)Quran 29:45 (prayer restrains from immorality and wrong, and the remembrance of Allah is greater)salahsujud machine5 min 45 s1:31:46on YouTube
18 Oct 2025MindTrap with Mufti Abu Layth LatestWhy does the guest's prayer have no fixed number of units, and what counts as wudu? The guest's prayer is about duration and connection rather than numbers of units, with an imam supplying structure only in congregation; prostration, kneeling and standing are components without a set order, and wudu is as 5:6 describes it, without the tradition's additions. Discussionquoted view, not his positionguest speechBr Muhammad (MFG, MuhammadFromGod channel)Quran 5:6 (wash your faces and hands, wipe your heads and your feet)Quran 96:19 (prostrate and draw near)salah machine5 min 07 s1:36:54on YouTube
18 Oct 2025MindTrap with Mufti Abu Layth Why are two of the daily prayers recited silently when 17:110 says not to be silent? The silent prayers come from the living tradition Malik described, handed down from the Companions' descendants; Mufti Abu Layth reads 17:110 as being about crying out to Allah, neither in despair nor in silence, rather than the five prayers, citing 8:35 where 'prayer' means whistling and clapping. Discussionguest speechBr Muhammad (MFG, MuhammadFromGod channel)Quran 17:110 (be neither loud nor silent in your prayer, but seek a way between)Quran 8:35 (their prayer at the House was only whistling and clapping)Imam Malik machine10 min 12 s2:31:09on YouTube
13 Feb 2023video Language embeds power: 'inconvenience' versus 'hardship' in tayammum The words scholars choose, such as 'inconvenience' or 'hardship', already decide the ruling, embedding power even when used sincerely. Lessonposition checkedrukhsah (dispensation)tayammumwuduHanafi school machine3 min 52 s26:17on YouTube
16 Dec 2022video Is someone who prays but commits major sins better than someone who doesn't pray? Mufti Abu Layth says it is categorically wrong that someone who prays, however evil, is better than someone who does not, and calls the idea dangerous. Question from live chatposition checkedsalahISIS machine7 min 08 s0:00on YouTube
10 Dec 2022video LatestWhy did Abu Hanifa allow things like praying in Persian? Abu Hanifa's legal stratagems, such as letting someone who knew no Arabic pray in Persian, were meant to create ease for new Muslims, not to change Islam, and Mufti Abu Layth says that spirit is needed today. Lessonposition checkedAbu HanifaImam Malikal-Awza'i [?]Sufyan al-Thawri machine5 min 15 s17:01on YouTube
10 Dec 2022video Did Abu Hanifa allow wudu with nabidh when there was no water? In the early school of Abu Hanifa, someone without water could make wudu with nabidh, a weak fermented date drink, and he helped people out of rash conditional divorce oaths, unlike the sterner Imam Malik. LessonAbu HanifaImam Maliknabidhwudu machine3 min 54 s28:48on YouTube
16 Apr 2022Positive Faith LatestAm I only praying because I fear God will punish me? Mufti Abu Layth says praying only out of fear of punishment is unhealthy: salah is devotion that benefits us, bringing structure and order into our day. Question raised by Mufti Abu Laythposition checkedsalahQuran 74:42-46 (what brought you to Saqar? We were not of those who prayed ... we used to deny)Blaise PascalJordan Peterson machine8 min 20 s0:38on YouTube
6 Oct 2021Malik Resources Is there a sahih hadith on where to put my hands in salah? There is no sahih hadith fixing where the hands go in salah; sadl, praying with the hands at the sides, is a sunnah of the school of Madinah without a hadith. Not every hadith is sunnah and not every sunnah was recorded in a hadith. Lessonposition checkeddistinction between sunnah and hadithImam MalikAbu HanifaHanafi school machine9 min 51 s0:00on YouTube
27 Apr 2021video Can I pray while carrying my child? Yes: the Hanafi rule that three consecutive movements break the prayer is made up, and the Prophet prayed carrying Umama; Mufti Abu Layth puts the attacks on Shaykh Aslam down to jealousy. Lessonposition checkedsalahwudureport: the prophet prayed carrying a child (Umama)Ibn Abidin machine7 min 58 s4:23on YouTube
26 Apr 2021MindTrap with Mufti Abu Layth LatestDo obscene or blasphemous thoughts during prayer ruin my salah? Intrusive or blasphemous thoughts in prayer are not a reason to worry: noticing them is a sign of faith, as a hadith says. Mufti Abu Layth adds that jinn in the Quran means the unseen and possession stories are folklore. Discussionguest speechLupe Fiasco (guest)salahwuduwaswasa machine7 min 40 s1:31:29on YouTube
13 Apr 2021Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth I don't feel spiritual in Ramadan; am I a bad Muslim? No: Mufti Abu Layth says not feeling Ramadan's atmosphere is no reflection of your faith, since worship is not measured by how good it feels. Question from live chatposition checkedhajj machine2 min 38 s3:34:59on YouTube
6 Apr 2021Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth Can I carry a child while I pray? Mufti Abu Layth says one may carry a child while praying and that Hanafi rulings such as the three-movement rule, or that laughing or reading something breaks the prayer, are made up. He sees the campaign against the preacher who showed this as sectarian jealousy. Lessonposition checkedHanafi schoolAbu HanifaAbu YusufIbn Abidin [?] machine12 min 45 s23:17on YouTube
6 Apr 2021Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth Are disgusting sexual fetishes between spouses haram? Such fetishes are not haram, however disgusting most people find them: contact with impurity is unclean but not forbidden, and what a consenting couple do in private is their own business. Nobody is obliged to do them. Question from live chatposition checkedTariq RamadanharamHanafi schoolno one may declare haram what Allah has not declared haram machine8 min 30 s1:04:21on YouTube
16 Feb 2021Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth LatestCan I pray in my car if I don't feel safe praying outside? Yes: in the worst case, if you need to or do not feel safe praying outside, you can pray in your car. Question from live chatposition checkedsalah machine38 s2:37:32on YouTube
9 Feb 2021Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth Should I use water or toilet paper after going to the toilet? Mufti Abu Layth says a person should always clean with water after the toilet where possible, with paper only as a fallback. Question from live chatposition checked machine5 min 31 s1:22:52on YouTube
29 Jan 2021MindTrap with Mufti Abu Layth What does Shaykh Atabek think of his debate on the Isha time? The guest says his much-watched exchange on the Isha time was not a real debate, since his opponent never addressed his proofs. Discussionquoted view, not his positionguest speechShaykh Atabek Shukurov (guest)Isha (the night prayer) machine3 min 56 s1:24:53on YouTube
29 Jan 2021MindTrap with Mufti Abu Layth When should I pray Isha in the UK summer when it never gets fully dark? The guest says that where twilight never fades, the Hanafi school allows Isha to be prayed keeping the order of prayers, rather than dividing the night into seven. Discussionquoted view, not his positionguest speechShaykh Atabek Shukurov (guest)Isha (the night prayer)shafaq (evening twilight)Abu Hanifa machine4 min 08 s1:28:21on YouTube
26 Jan 2021Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth Can I do tayammum instead of wudu if water makes my cough worse? Yes: tayammum is allowed for anyone with an excuse, and whether the excuse applies is for the person to judge. Question from live chatposition checkedtayammumwudu machine1 min 17 s39:55on YouTube
26 Jan 2021Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth LatestCan a woman be an imam and lead the prayer? Yes: a woman can be an imam and her leading the prayer is valid, though whether it works in practice depends on her society accepting it. Question from live chatposition checkedimam machine2 min 38 s50:21on YouTube
19 Jan 2021Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth Does smoking break my wudu? Smoking does not break wudu, Mufti Abu Layth says; only relieving oneself and meaningful sexual activity do, not a peck on the cheek or eating. Question from live chatposition checkedwudu machine1 min 57 s38:30on YouTube
19 Jan 2021Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth Will I go to hell for not shaving my pubic hair? Nobody goes to hell for not shaving pubic hair, Mufti Abu Layth says; it is a matter of hygiene, which religion tied to reward and closeness to God. Question from live chatposition checked machine3 min 34 s1:03:44on YouTube
12 Jan 2021Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth Do I have to be in a state of purity to say verses of the Quran? Mufti Abu Layth says religion should be natural, not ritualistic: the menstrual state is not impure, and revelation came to the Prophet while in bed with Aisha. Lessonposition checkedreport: the prophet did not return the greeting until he wiped on the wall i disliked to mention allah except in a state of purityhayd (menstruation)report: revelation came to me while i was under the blanket of aishaAisha machine5 min 14 s39:18on YouTube
12 Jan 2021Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth Can a woman lead the prayer or give the khutbah? Yes, he says a woman may lead the prayer, give the adhan or the khutbah; it is not invalid, it is just generally not done. Question from live chatposition checkedadhankhutbahimam machine3 min 05 s1:35:21on YouTube
12 Jan 2021Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth Can I work as a recruiter if some of the jobs are in banking? Yes, he says one may work as a recruiter for such a company; it is not haram in his understanding. Question from live chatposition checked machine1 min 17 s1:40:51on YouTube
12 Jan 2021Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth Is tahajjud the best way to get close to God? Night prayer is one good way, he says, but God is always with you; if your lifestyle does not suit it, another practice that works for you is fine. Question written questionposition checkedtahajjuddua machine1 min 57 s2:54:37on YouTube
7 Jan 2021video Do I have to go to jumu'ah every Friday if I live in a non-Muslim country? In his understanding jumu'ah is not mandatory on each individual in countries like the UK that are not Muslim countries, though holding it communally is good. Question source not recordedposition checkedjumu'ahfard kifayah (communal obligation) machine2 min 16 s0:02on YouTube
5 Jan 2021Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth LatestIf I sleep late and wake up at asr, can I pray the missed prayers together then? If you wake at asr after sleeping late, pray when you wake; he says the religion is meant to be easy, as the Prophet taught. Question from live chatposition checkedreport: idha istayqazta fa-salli (when you wake up, pray)report: al-din yusr the religion is easereport: khayr dinikum aysaruhu the best of your religion is the easiest of itImam Malik machine1 min 53 s8:45on YouTube

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