Joining two prayers because of the symptoms of a medical test

A question about joining two prayers because of the symptoms of a medical test that last for hours, in which the fatwa centre of IslamWeb answered that the Prophet's joining of two prayers in Medina without fear or rain is established, that a number of careful scholars prefer the view that it was a real joining for illness or need, so the questioner may join prayers in whatever way is easier for his condition, and that if the symptoms persist he is treated like those with a permanent excuse. ¹

The questioner asked whether the authentic hadiths show that the Prophet joined the noon and afternoon prayers and the sunset and night prayers in reality rather than only in appearance, and whether this can be used as evidence for joining prayers for a need such as illness or receiving treatment. He said he wished to undergo a small-intestine bacterial overgrowth test, in which the patient drinks a sugar solution that may cause diarrhoea, cramps and gas lasting hours or a whole day, and asked about prayer in that state and whether he may join prayers, what he should do if the symptoms prevent him from praying even after delaying, or whether he should forgo the test altogether; he added that he is an anxious person who wants to be sure that joining, if permitted, involves no breach of sharia. ¹

The centre answered that it is established in Sahih Muslim from Ibn Abbas that the Prophet joined the noon and afternoon prayers and the sunset and night prayers in Medina without fear or rain, in another version without fear or travel, and that when Ibn Abbas was asked what the Prophet intended he said he intended not to burden his community. ¹ It noted that scholars differed on how to read the hadith. Some held it to be an apparent joining, delaying the first prayer to the end of its time and bringing the second forward to the start of its time, as Ibn Hajar reports in al-Talkhis from Abu Hamid, and as appears expressly in the two Sahihs from Amr ibn Dinar and Abu al-Sha'tha. A number of careful scholars preferred that it was a real joining for illness or need: al-Nawawi in his commentary on Muslim says this is the view of Ahmad ibn Hanbal and Qadi Husayn, chosen by al-Khattabi, al-Mutawalli and al-Ruyani, and the preferred reading because of the hadith's plain sense and because the hardship involved is greater than that of rain; and a group of imams allowed joining prayers when resident for a need, for one who does not make it a habit, this being the view of Ibn Sirin, Ashhab and a group of hadith scholars, chosen by Ibn al-Mundhir, and supported by Ibn Abbas's words that the Prophet intended not to burden his community, with no mention of illness. ¹

The centre ruled that the questioner may join the noon and afternoon prayers, and the sunset and night prayers, by advancing or delaying as is easier for his condition and health, to ward off the hardship of acute diarrhoea, recurrent gas and the burden of cleansing and ablution for each prayer; medical treatment and tests to identify and treat illness are legitimate, and he need not forgo the test or endure severe illness, since the sharia is built on ease, the preservation of life and the removal of harm, as in al-Ma'ida 6. ¹ It said that after drinking the solution he should wait for a time when the symptoms ease and then pray; if the symptoms last through the whole combined time of the two prayers until the time grows short, his ruling is that of people with a permanent excuse, such as urinary incontinence or a loose bowel, so it is enough for him to purify himself, perform ablution and pray the two prayers joined, and whatever leaves his body during or between the prayers does him no harm and his prayer is valid. It quoted al-Buhuti in Kashshaf al-Qina' that among the situations permitting the joining of prayers is that of a woman with chronic bleeding and those like her, such as one with urinary incontinence, on the strength of the hadith of Hamna, who asked the Prophet about chronic bleeding and was told she might delay the noon prayer and bring forward the afternoon prayer, bathe, and pray them together, recorded by Ahmad, Abu Dawud and al-Tirmidhi, who graded it authentic. ¹

The fatwa centre of IslamWeb published this fatwa on islamweb.net as no. 539417, dated 17 Jumada al-Ula 1448, 28 October 2026. ¹ The museum records this text as a historical document attributed to the body or scholar that issued it; it issues no ruling of its own.