Rafed English

The argument of Shafi'i and those who do not impose the qasr

They have argued by several ways; the first one being the apparent [meaning] of the Almighty's words: "There is no blame on you if you shorten the prayer." In itself, blameworthiness (which is a sin) indicates permissibility, not an obligation [to perform the qasr].

You know the answer by the report of Imam Abu Ja'far al-Baqir, peace be upon him. Apparently the people at the time [of the Prophet] were inclined towards [offering] the complete [prayer] and they were - as indicated by Imam al-Zamakhshari in his al-Kashshaf - expecting to pray full. It appeared to them that they were at fault by praying the qasr. The blame [for offering the qasr] was removed from them so that they could feel good about their [offering] the qasr and they could be contented by it.

Secondly: 'Uthman and 'A'isha used to complete the prayer when travelling:

The answer is that they wrongly interpreted the proofs for [performing] the qasr. Some of the scholars of masses have explained this interpretation of theirs - by claiming that 'Uthman was the Commander of the faithful and that 'A'isha was their (the faithfuls') mother. Even in their journey they were continuously at home since wherever they were travelling they were with the people, at home and in their land. This thinking is strange; we see the reason for it being strange by seeing the Prophet of God's (S.A.W) absence from the world of the believers. Did they not see him perform the qasr whilst travelling? Similarly, on this basis Abu Bakr, 'Umar and 'Ali were all strangers to them.

Thirdly: Famous traditions clearly reported by Muslim in his Sahih that when the companions would travel with the Prophet of God (P) some of them would perform the qasr, some would do the tamam, some would fast in the month of Ramadhan and others would not, they would not find fault with each other.

The answer is that these traditions do not prove anything based on our chain of transmission since they contradict our sahih traditions reported from our Imams who are the second half of the book; furthermore they contradict each other too, one who examines them knows it as you will read soon, God willing.

There is no doubt that the traditions of the trustees from the family of Muhammad are to be given preference when there is a contradiction, especially after they are supported by a group of the Sihah [traditions] of the masses.

Adapted from: "Questions on Jurisprudence" by: "Abdul Hussein Shareefaldin Al-Musawi"

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