Yasir Qadhi | The Definition of ‘Travel’ (safar) According to Islamic Law | Part 1

One of the five main principles upon which Islamic law is based (i.e., the Legal Maxims, or al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyya) is: “Difficulty begets ease” (al-mashaqqa tajlib altaysīr). This principle is manifested throughout all of the rules of fiqh, and in particular that of travel (safar). A traveler may shorten the prayers (qasr), co mbine them (jamʿ), and be legally permitted to break the fast of Ramadan (fiṭr). There are explicit evidences from the Quran, the Sunnah, and unanimous consensus of the scholars of Islam that allow a traveler to shorten his or her prayers. The Quran says, “And if you travel in the land, there is no sin on you that you sh orten your prayers (taqṣurū min al-ṣalāt) if you fear that the unbelievers may harm you.” [Sūra al-Nisāʾ:101]. The verse seems to suggest that ‘fear’ is a necessary condition, along with travel, in order to shorten the prayer. However, even though the verse mentions ‘fear’ as a condition, it is no longer a requirement. ʿUmar b. al-Khaṭṭāb was asked how it was stil l permissible to shorten prayers even though there was no ‘fear’ remaining. He repli ed, “I asked the Prophet salla Allahu ʿalayhī wa sallam the exact same question, and h e said, ‘This is a charity that Allah has given to you, so accept His charity’” [Repor ted by Muslim]. In other words, Allah has graciously lifted the condition mentio ned and allowed Muslims to shorten even if there is no fear of impending attack by enemy forces. It is narrated in numerous traditions that the Prophet salla Allahu ʿalayhī wa salla m would shorten every four-unit prayer to two-units whenever he was traveling – in fact, he never prayed any four-unit prayer while in a state of travel.[1] Hence, there is unanimous consensus amongst all the scholars of Islam that a tra veler who is undertaking a legitimate journey may shorten the four-unit prayers to two.[2] [Note that the issue of combining (jamʿ) is a separate one, and there i s a difference of opinion regarding the permissibility of combining prayers whil e traveling]. The question that arises, however, is: when does one legally become a ‘traveler’? An d for how long may one continue to shorten the prayer? To answer this question, we will divide this article into two sections. Firstly, we shall discuss the opinions of scholars regarding the distance that constitut es ‘travel’. This will also require us to go into a tangent and convert the distance s narrated in the classical and medieval textbooks into modern measurements. Sec ondly, we shall discuss the opinions of the scholars regarding the time-duration that is required for the status of a traveler to change into a resident once he arrives at some destination. 1. The Distance that Constitutes ‘Travel’ The distance that constitutes ‘travel’ is one of the most highly contested issues am ongst the early scholars of Islamic law, so much so that Ibn al-Mundhir (d. 310/ 922) mentioned close to twenty opinions on this matter. For the purposes of our article, we shall concentrate on the four most famous opinions. 1.1 First Opinion: A three-day journey What is meant by a ‘three-day journey’ is the distance that a traveler on a camel of average speed would traverse in three complete days. This is the position of the Companion Ibn Masʿūd, some of the famous scholars of Kuf a such as al-Shaʿbī (d. 105/723) and al-Nakhaʿī (d. 96/714), and the standard position o f the Ḥanafī school of law. They based this figure on the famous hadith in which the Prophet salla Allahu ʿala yhī wa sallam said, “It is not allowed for a woman who believes in Allah and the Las t Day that she travel for a distance of three days without her father, son, husb and, brother or any maḥram ” [Reported by Muslim]. They reasoned from this hadith th at the Prophet called the distance of ‘three days’ a ‘travel’, hence this can be taken a s a definition for what constitutes traveling. Another evidence that they used was the hadith pertaining to wiping over the soc ks, in which the Prophet “…allowed a traveler to wipe over his socks for a period of three days and nights” [Reported by Muslim]. The Ḥanafīs reasoned that since the Prop het salla Allahu ʿalayhī wa sallam set a particular time limit in place, this demons trates that anyone traveling a distance less than a three-day journey would not be allowed to wipe over his socks, which would then imply that he would not be a traveler. 1.2 Second Opinion: A two-day journey This is the famous opinion of the Ḥanbalīs, Shāfʿīs and Mālikīs (note that even within thes chools there are other opinions as well, as shall be pointed out in the next sec tion). This opinion has also been reported from Ibn ʿAbbās, Ibn ʿUmar, Ibn Shihāb al-Zuh rī (d. 129/746), and others. From amongst the modern scholars, this is the opinion of Ibn Baz (d. 1999) and the fatwa of the Permanent Committee of Scholars of Sa udi Arabia. It is claimed that this is the majority opinion of the classical sch olars of Islam. Their evidence is the fact that the Prophet salla Allahu ʿalayhī wa sallam said, “It i s not allowed for a woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day that she travel s for a distance of two days without a maḥram” [Reported by Muslim]. They also used the action of Ibn ʿUmar as an evidence, for it is reported that he would shorten h is prayers if he traveled the distance of four barīds (i.e., two days, as we shall discuss later in this article) [Reported by Imam Malik in his Muwaṭṭa]. 1.3 Third Opinion: A one-day journey This was the opinion of Imam al-Bukharī (d. 256/869) which he in his Ṣaḥīḥ. It has also been attributed as a second opinion f the last opinion (viz., the Ḥanbalīs, Shāfʿīs and Mālikīs). this second opinion for these three schools is not in essence ir first one]. explicitly mentions within the three schools o [It will be explained later w different from the The famous scholar of Syria, al-Awzāʿī (d. 151/768), said, “This is the opinion of the m ajority of scholars, and we hold it as well.” Amongst the modern scholars, this is the opinion of our teacher Muḥammad b. Muḥammad al-Mukhtār al-Shanqīṭī. Their evidence for this is the fact that the Prophet salla Allahu ʿalayhī wa sallam said, “It is not allowed for a woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day that s he travels for a distance of one day without a maḥram” [Reported by al-Bukhārī]. Al-Bukhārī commented on this hadith by saying, “So it is clear that the Prophet called [the t raveling of] one day and night a ‘travel.’” They also use as evidence the statement of Ibn ʿAbbās, when he was asked by a person residing in Makkah, “Should I shorten when I go to Mina or Arafat?” He said, “No! But if you go to Taif, or Jeddah, or travel an entire day’s journey, then do so. But if you travel less than that, then do not shorten.”[3] Therefore, he expressed ‘an e ntire day’s journey’ as being the minimal limit for shortening the prayers. 1.4 Fourth Opinion: It is not defined by distance but by experience What is meant by this opinion is that a journey is not defined by how much one h as traveled but by what one does and how one prepares for it. According to this opinion, a ‘journey’ is not a particular distance as much as it is a physical and ps ychological experience. This is the opinion of Ibn Ḥazm (d. 456/1064) (although he placed a minimum of ‘one mile’), Ibn Qudama (d. 610/1213), Ibn Taymiyya (d. 728/1327), Ibn al-Qayyim (d. 75 6/1355), al-Ṣanʿānī (d. 1182/1768), al-Shawkanī (d. 1250/1834), and others. It has been in terpreted to be the opinion of Ibn Masʿūd, ʿUthmān b. ʿAffān, and Ibn Sirīn. In fact, there an explicit statement from Ibn Sirīn which shows that this opinion might have bee n more prevalent in the past, for he states, “They used to say that a travel in wh ich one may shorten the prayer is a journey in which one takes provisions and ba ggage.”[4] Amongst the modern scholars, it is the opinion of Ibn ʿUthaymīn (d. 2000) a nd Ibn Jibrīn (d. 2010). Their evidence is the lack of any Scriptural evidence that defines ‘travel’, and hen ce the necessity of resorting to what is culturally understood to be ‘travel’. Ibn Taymiyya was perhaps the most vocal proponent of this opinion. He disagreed with any specific distance that other scholars sought to derive. According to hi m, there is no explicit evidence from the Quran, Sunnah, language or custom of t hat generation that would be binding on later Muslims. He views the distances th at the legal schools and other scholars adopted as having been resorted to becau se these scholars did not find anything more explicit to demarcate the distance required to be considered a ‘traveler’. In fact, all three of the previous opinions use the same basic hadith that prevents women from traveling without a male comp anion – yet, as is obvious, each hadith uses a different limit. This in itself sho ws that the intention of the hadith is not to define the distance of what consti tutes ‘travel’. Ibn Taymiyya writes,[5] So demarcating a specific distance does not have any basis in the Shariah, or in the language, or in the intellect. Most people, in fact, do not know the distan ce of the earth, so it is not allowed to link something that the average Muslim is in need of (i.e., when to shorten the prayer) with something that he does not know (i.e., how much he has traveled). No one measured the earth during the tim e of the Prophet, nor did the Prophet himself put limits, neither in mīls nor in f arāsikh (units of measurement). And a person might leave his village to go to the desert in order to collect wood, and he leaves for two or three days, and he wil l be a traveler, even though the distance might be less than a mile! In contrast to this, another person might go [a longer distance] and come back the same day , and he will not be a traveler. This is because the first person will take prov ision for the journey, and bags [with his necessities], whereas the second perso n will not. Therefore, even a near distance can be considered a ‘travel’ if someone stays for a period of time, and a longer distance will not be considered a trave l if a person stays for a short period. A ‘travel’ is therefore defined by the actio ns that are required in order for that journey to be called ‘traveling’… and this is a matter that people recognize by their own customs. Ibn Taymiyya did, however, place a condition that such a travel be considered a travel according to one’s custom, such that a person would prepare for a journey a nd travel into the wilderness (meaning, an uninhabited area). Hence, if a person visited an outlying district of a city (in Ibn Taymiyya’s explicit example, if a person living in Damascus visited a small population outside of Damascus), even if this distance was considered large, this would not constitute travel, as this is not considered ‘traveling’ for a person in this situation. Therefore, according to Ibn Taymiyya, a ‘travel’ is not merely a distance but also a frame of mind. Someone who leaves his house, intending to return the same eveni ng, is not a traveler, even if (as in our times) he travels to another country a nd then returns. Ibn ʿUthaymīn also holds the same position.[6] Ibn Taymiyya also pointed out that this interpretation was in accordance with th e very word safar in Arabic, because this word indicates ‘exposure’. Thus, a woman w ho exposes her face is called sāfira. Therefore, a safar’ would be a journey in whic h a person ‘exposes’ himself/herself to the wilderness by abandoning the cities and towns and journeying into an uninhabited area. To be continued… Part Two deals with converting these measurements into modern units. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------[1] Ibn Taymiyya, Majmūʾ al-Fatāwā, 24/8. [2] Ibn Hubayra, al-Ifṣāḥ, 2/55. There is some disagreement regarding someone who trav els for an impermissible purpose, such as a businessman who travels to engage in an impermissible transaction; that tangent will not be discussed in our article . [3] ʿAbd al-Razzāq, al-Muṣannaf, # 4296. [4] Ibn Abī Shaybah, al-Muṣannaf, # 8153. Also see Ibn Taymiyya, Majmūʾ al-Fatāwāʼ, 24/86-7 [5] Majmūʾ al-Fatāwā, 24/15. [6] Ibn ʿUthaymīn, Majmūʾ Fatāwa, 15/255. Tagged as: Fiqh, prayer, safar, salah, travel, Yasir Qadhi .© MuslimMatters.org by Yasir Qadhi on July 1st, 2011. All rights reserved. Please see legal & other di sclaimers here. 52 Responses » Arif Kabir July 1, 2011 • 12:11 AM .JazaakumAllahu Khayran for posting this, ya Ustadhi. I re member we were discussing how there were particular people within my locale who would shorten prayers practically everyday when heading to work. This article de finitely helped me to see the various legitimate opinions. Looking forward to the next installment. Reply Massoud July 1, 2011 • 12:25 AM .A very-well researched article by the Sheikh. Pleasure to always read your writings! Reply Michael Scott July 1, 2011 • 12:58 AM .can never get enough of Qadhi. Keep writing Sheikh, this is your JIHAD OF THE PEN! Reply Amy July 1, 2011 • 1:36 AM .As-salaamu alaykum I’m interested in this subject because I spend a lot of time traveling and really appreciate the ease of Islam when it comes to the prayers of the traveler. Trave ling a great distance, even in a short period of time, might mean a drastic chan ge in the times of prayers. Alhamdulillah we have apps that can tell us the qibl ah and prayer time even in the desert but without this technology I imagine it m ight be difficult to keep up with the difference between dhuhr and asr while tra veling, or maghrib and isha, or even to know when fajr has come in. Many times t raveling leaves us without an adhan, and clouds can compound the problem of find ing the time while away from home. It’s not that it would be impossible to find the time, but what a mercy to not hav e to be burdened by it. I’d love to know about the scenario of a full day’s travel away from home, with a da y’s provision, but returning at night. Reply Yasir Qadhi July 1, 2011 • 1:23 PM .Salam There is of course a grey area in this. So, for example, I live in Memphis. Supp ose I were to travel to Nashville by plane (30 minutes) for a business meeting a nd I planned to be home for lunch. I would not prepare any luggage, would only b e dressed in the very clothes for that meeting, would drive to the airport, and maybe four hours later find myself driving back home. According to the understan ding of Ibn Taymiyya’s fatwa (and this is also the explicit fatwa of our Shaykh Ib n Uthaymin), this is not quite a ‘travel’ because even my frame of mind did not cons ider it a ‘journey’. Many other scholars (in fact, the majority) would, of course, disagree with this interpretation. Allah knows best…for this one issue (viz., a long journey undertaken in a short pe riod of time) I myself am contemplating both sides of the matter and haven’t as of yet reached a decisive opinion. Yasir Reply salih July 1, 2011 • 3:03 AM .Assalamu Alaikum. Thank you for such a beneficial paper. Barakallahu fik. Reply quadri anwar ahmed July 1, 2011 • 6:42 AM .Their evidence is the lack of any Scriptural evidence that defines ‘travel’, and hence the necessity of resorting to what is culturally unders tood to be ‘travel’. Reply Hassan July 1, 2011 • 10:38 AM .Although it is perhaps not the topic of this article, but since all ahadiths that are used is related to woman and traveling, how come mo dern/contemporary scholars have allowed women to travel far distances? I am not sure if there was any relaxation in first 3 centuries by scholars. Does 1 day travel means “time” or 1 day travel means “distance” ? because that changes t he whole game perhaps. Reply M.M. July 1, 2011 • 11:10 AM .Assalamu Alaikom Sheikh Yasir, Can you clarify what is meant by a ‘legitimate journey’? Especially in Ramadan for e xample. Jazaka Allah Khair Reply Yasir Qadhi July 1, 2011 • 1:18 PM .Salam Alaikum See footnote [2]. Any journey that is permissible (regardless of whether it is a religious journey , such as going for Hajj, or a worldly-related matter, such as traveling for job or business) is one in which the prayer may be shortened and combined. For some scholars (e.g., the Hanbali school), a journey that is ‘sinful’ is not one in which one may shorten prayers. So, for example, if a businessman is traveling to engage in an impermissible transaction (or a thief is traveling to commit a crime in another village!), according to that school he would not be allowed to shorten the prayer. (One wonders if someone who is so unscrupulous as to travel for the sake of hara m actually cares what the scholars say about his combining of the prayers – but th at is a separate point!!) Yasir Reply Khader Ali Khan July 1, 2011 • 2:50 PM .Ya Sheikh, Sometimes I travel to play sports… does that come s into “legitimate journey” category? Reply Yasir Qadhi July 1, 2011 • 3:44 PM .Salam Yes. Yasir Reply Uz July 6, 2011 • 6:42 AM .I read a very convincing fatwa that it is haraam to travel to non-Muslim lands for the purpose of enjoyment. Three main points were: •waste of time •waste of your own money, and the voluntarily spent money is used to spread false religions and wage war against Islamic countries. •Sitting in places where sins are committed (drinking alcohol, gambling, promiscui ty) and not condemning those who do that. This is doing a haraam action, funding the haraam action and failing to do an obligatory action. •Loss of modesty because the immoral conduct and animalistic behaviour that one se es in those countries. Seeing as we are already in these lands, where does this place us? Are we requir ed to leave? I know Muslims close to me who have left Islam. I know non-Muslims close to me who have entered Islam. Is it a wise move to stay in the west when w e cannot even guarantee the Islam of the next generation? M.M. July 1, 2011 • 4:25 PM .Jazaka Allah khair Sheikh, what about travelling for a sho rt vacation, i.e. fun? Is it considered to be a legitimate reason to shorten the prayers? Reply Salaf July 3, 2011 • 11:57 AM .As-salamu alaykum, Jazakum Allah khair. What is the evidence that shortening the prayer in sinful travels is not allowed ? I know that Ibn Taymiyah, Ibn Hazm and Abu Hanifah holds a strong opinion that it is obligatory to shorten the prayer in every travel (obligatory, sunnah, mub ah and haram travels). Jazak Allah khair, wlslm Reply Mahmoud Sabha July 1, 2011 • 1:43 PM .Cant wait for part two…especially since I will be living soo n on a small island that isn’t even 15 miles long! It does have many mountains tho ugh so it could take hours to get to the other side… Reply hendersoncnc July 1, 2011 • 3:04 PM .mashallah these are the type of articles I’ve been waiting f or. Reply Mohammad July 1, 2011 • 5:05 PM .Assalamu alaikum. Could you please clarify – traveling for s ight seeing is a legitimate journey or not? Jzk. Reply Yasir Qadhi July 6, 2011 • 4:50 PM .Salam Yes. Yasir Reply Kamal July 1, 2011 • 10:49 PM .Salam Can you also cover in thwe next article the duration of the time spent outside o ne’s home. I’ve heard about difference of opinions on loosing one’s traveller’s status i f you spend more than 4 days in the place where you go. (Like are you a travelle r when you go to another city to teach an al Maghrib class and spend 2 to 3 week s in that city?) Reply Ibn Masood July 2, 2011 • 12:48 AM .Finally, Muslimmatters returns. BarakAllahu feek Sheikh Yasir for this piece. I have a question about an issue we encountered in Saudi Arabia. We traveled reg ularly on the weekends between Riyadh and Makkah, and would prefer to minimize o ur stops as much as possible. Sometimes we would stop by a gas station and the a dhaan would be called. As per the ahadeeth of responding to the adhaan, should w e respond to that adhaan even if we are traveling? Reply Abez July 2, 2011 • 4:06 AM .JazakAllahuKheitan! I’m really looking forward to the next t wo installments. My husband and I have held differing views on travelling prayer s for a while now, and while we’re content to agree to disagree, I recognise that we both need to learn more about opinions other than our own. Reply Amir Yunas July 2, 2011 • 10:36 AM .A juicy article indeed on a common fiqh issue. I would lo ve to read some fiqh books written by you Sh. Yasir. Because I have noticed that your style in presenting fiqh makes a rather boring topic into one that keeps y ou on the edge of your seat. At least this is how I feel, but jazzakAllah Khair at any rate, and keep on publishing these juicy fiqh issues. Reply Abu Ibrahim Ismail July 2, 2011 • 8:58 PM .Jazakallah Khair, This very situation came up recently when my wife visited another city that was about 150 miles from where we live. It was very frustrating trying to figure out if we were sinning by allowing her to travel on her on. Islamic Learning Materials Reply Weekly Traveler July 3, 2011 • 1:14 AM .Assalamu Alaikum Shaykh Yasir, I travel every week for my job, and I was wondering when I can begin to shorten and combine my prayers? My travel is such that when I am at the airport dhur is just about to end, and w hen I land in the new time zone and arrive at my destination Maghrib has started . Is it permissible to shorten and combine before I leave for the airport? Or shou ld I only pray and shorten Asr on the plane (praying on the plane, even while si tting, is always a little awkward, which is why I was wondering if I could short en before I leave so that it is easier to maintain full concentration). Jazakallah khair Reply Yasir Qadhi July 6, 2011 • 4:52 PM .Salam In your case it would be permissible and better to combine the two prayers at th e airport and pray standing instead of praying sitting in the plane. However, ac cording to the majority you cannot shorten as you don’t actually begin traveling u ntil you leave the city of your residence. You will be combining based on necessity, not because you are traveling. Yasir Reply Zain Ul Islam July 3, 2011 • 2:36 AM .Jazakummullahu Khairan Brother!! Reply Ayesha July 3, 2011 • 7:16 AM .JazakAllahukhairan for the post…!! Reply ibnabeeomar July 3, 2011 • 2:07 PM .another important question: what about business travelers who travel mon-fri, or mon-thurs to different locations? or maybe sometimes the same city for 6months to 2 years? you live out of a hotel during that time, but sometimes you technically spend more time there than at home during a given week Reply iso July 3, 2011 • 2:37 PM .Salamalaykum I follow the less than 15 day stay version of defining a traveler. Its quite str aightforward. You can research this more if you’d like A quick sunnipath Q&A link http://qa.sunnipath.com/issue_view.asp?HD=1&ID=3079&CATE=165 Reply Yasir Qadhi July 6, 2011 • 4:52 PM .Salam Part 3 Ya Omar, patience Yasir Reply umm.esa July 3, 2011 • 2:32 PM .So glad to read an informative article. wish there could m ore of these. jazakAllahu khayran sh. yasir qadhi Reply MuslimNoise July 3, 2011 • 5:24 PM .Much needed article which I’m sure will clear up many issues that people may have. I have always inclined to the fourth opinion and have bee n taught that the definition of ‘travel’ depends on what the custom is. But it’s good to know about the full-scale of the difference of opinion between the classical and contemporary scholars. Reply Umm Reem July 4, 2011 • 1:47 AM .JazakAllah khiar shaikh 1. Can a person have more than one home? And what would be the criteria for that . Can i consider my mother’s house in Houston as my home and not shorten my prayer s there. 2. What about when a person travels for a prolong period of time, like I am in E gypt for 2 months, though I have an apartment here I do feel like a traveler. (w asn’t it IT who also said that a student traveling to seek knowledge may continue to shorten his/her prayers for as long as he/she is away from home or something along the lines) Reply Yasir Qadhi July 6, 2011 • 4:56 PM .Salam Yes a person can have more than one place that s/he considers as a ‘residence’. The second question will be answered in Part 3. Yasir Reply UmmH July 4, 2011 • 4:18 PM .This is a really important issue, especially for women who se parents live over 49 miles away (or however long 3 days is). What I find really surprising is that the fear factor is not taken into account (in relation to women and travelling). I can’t understand that if the Prophet SAW allowed women to travel on their own for three days and three night, when in tho se times it was pitch black at night, extremely dangerous, in total wilderness, why wouldn’t he permit women in this age to travel 100 miles away from their homes ? Travelling has never been safer in many places around the world. Also, it would be interesting to know why there was a need to change it from day s to distance. Who was the person who converted three days and three nights into miles. Reply Mu adh July 5, 2011 • 1:50 AM .Salaam ‘alaykum, Awesome article, I love stuff like this, very practical, and well-written so it does not become dry. I see I’m not alone, as everyone seems to want to have other issues of travel addr essed, and I hate to add to it, but this has much to do with modern travel. I ho pe Sh. Yasir notices this post. How do we deal with traveling across time zones? I know when I fly to Paki acros s the Atlantic, the day is sped up, I’m not sure what’s going on, isn’t salah by the p osition of the Sun, etc. etc? Reply Yasir Qadhi July 6, 2011 • 4:55 PM .Salam You pray according to where you currently are (in your case, where the plane is) . Look out the window – when the sun sets, you pray Maghrib, and so forth. Yasir Reply Aaminah Abdiqadir July 5, 2011 • 2:35 AM .Baarakalaahu feek SHeikh Yassir, I’m looking forward to the the second segment. Indeed this is most educational and it cleared some fog from our minds Reply   Madeeha July 5, 2011 • 1:35 PM .JazakAllah khiar for this informative article. I have a qu estion. What if one is under circumstances where they cannot perform their short ened prayer on time. However, when they get to a place where they can pray, they are already home. Does one perform the shortened prayer (because the prayer tim e occurred while the person was travelling) or does he/she perform the normal pr ayer. Reply Yasir Qadhi July 6, 2011 • 4:54 PM .Salam If one returns home after a travel and delayed the prayers (e.g., arrives home a t 10 PM without praying Maghrib and Isha), there is no sin in this. However, bec ause this traveler has now arrived, s/he must pray the full four units for Isha. Yasir Reply Sabeen H July 5, 2011 • 11:24 PM .Asalam ALekum Question asked by Br, Hassan(July 1st) is very interesting. Today Muslim women travel almost everywhere alone,are we doing something prohibi ted in Islam? waiting for the answer. JAK Reply Yasir Qadhi July 6, 2011 • 4:54 PM .Salam I’m afraid this is an altogether different talk and not the scope of this article – perhaps one day I’ll write an article on that issue! Yasir Reply Abdullah July 6, 2011 • 5:34 AM .Shaykh, If you have heard of Bayyinah’s Dream program, do yo u think that students coming from afar should shorten their prayers when not pra ying in the masajid? Reply Abu Ayyoob July 6, 2011 • 10:22 PM .As Salaamu Alaykum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatahu ya Shayk h What would the ruling be on the prayer of a traveller who travels a short distan ce from home yet packs for a day or two(for stay at an inn/guesthouse)? By short distance I mean less than or around 100 km. Reply July 7, 2011 • 5:24 AM .Great article! JazakAllah Khayr. The question of what exac tly consitutes travel is something I’ve been precisely wondering about for a while now. I look forward to the future parts. Btw any plans to finish the series of articles on salvific exclusivity? And what about the article you said you were going to write on the obligation or otherwi se of Hijrah from Non-Muslim lands and other related issues? Reply July 7, 2011 • 5:34 AM .Also: 1. You mentioned that the legal maxims is one of the five main principles upon w hich Islamic Law is based. Could you please briefly just list what the other fou r are? I know it’s not entirely relevant but I’m really curious. 2. May I know which position from the ones mentioned in the article, that you pe rsonally take, if any? 3. How do we renconile the meaning of the hadeeths which prevent women from trav elling without a male companion, when they appear so contradictory? All three of them mention different periods of time! How does such a contradiction arise? Reply Student July 7, 2011 • 12:05 PM .AsSalaamu ‘Alaykum Sh Yasir, JazakAllahu khayr for the article, I always appreciated your articles that dealt with issues like this and academic approaches to various issues. I’ve heard and some groups even practice, that the Hanafii Fiqh actually has the t ravel time of two weeks, yet here you listed their opinion is only of 3 days? Wh at’s their reasoning behind two weeks then? I do remember some brothers who practi ced the two week opinion at the first IlmSummit as well, I’m a bit confused about this? Secondly, I’ve read another opinion that if you pray 20 fard salah or less in your destination, it constitutes travel. Meaning if you arrive somewhere by Maghrib, and leave before Maghrib 4 days later, you are traveling, but if after, then it s considered not, which makes sense one the 4 days opinion. Do you know the proo fs behind this and reasoning? I assume its a legit opinion because of where its found…     Uthmaan Uthmaan JazakAllahu Khayr