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The Most Preponderant Opinion
In the light of the above texts and arguments, the opinion found most preponderant – and knowledge belongs to Allaah – is that observing Zuhr prayer cannot be waived for someone who attended ‘Eid prayer on a Friday and availed himself of the permissibility of absenting from Jumu’ah prayer. This is due to cogent points, some of which are as follows:
1. The strength of the textual and logical proofs supporting it.
2. There is no explicit and authentic Hadeeth indicating that the obligation of performing Zuhr prayer is waived for those who are permitted to be absent from Jumu’ah prayer. Neither is this authentically reported from the Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alayhi wasallam) nor can it be reliably and explicitly traced to any of his companions. In the absence of this explicit proof, the clear obligation of performing Zuhr prayer remains unchanged on the part of whoever is absent from Jumu’ah with or without an excuse. As for the report attributed to Ibn Az-Zubayr, the stronghold of the holders of the contrary view in that report is the word ‘sufficiency’ (Al-Ijzaa) mentioned in the report, which is not strong enough to support the claim.
3. Zuhr is an obligatory prayer ordained by an explicit proof and one can only be exempted from performing it through an equally explicit proof; and there is none.
4. Ibn ‘Abdul-Barr, in his voluminous work, At-Tamheed (vol. 10, pp. 270-271), said: “As for the statement that Jumu’ah can be waived without any need to observe Zuhr if one has already attended ‘Eid, it is a clearly unsound, erroneous, rejected and unrecognized statement. For, Allaah says: “When call to prayer is made on Yawmul-Jumu’ah…” without exempting the day of ‘Eid or any other day. The reports traced to Allaah’s Messenger (sallallaahu ‘alayhi wasallam) on such exception are only concerning permissibility to be absent from Jumu’ah prayer when one of the two ‘Eids falls on a Friday (and one has already attended ‘Eid prayer). This permissibility, according to the scholars, applies to both city dwellers and others, or to only dwellers of the countryside while all must observe Zuhr prayer if they do not attend the Jumu’ah prayer.”
5. The Saudi Arabia Standing Committee for Scientific Researches and Fatwa, (Fatwa No. 21162), stated that the opinion that says that anyone who attended an ‘Eid prayer that falls on a Friday is exempted from attending Jumu’ah and observing Zuhr prayer for that day is wrong. That is why the scholars repudiated it and declared it indefensible and weird. This is due to its direct contradiction of the Sunnah and its cancellation of one of the acts of worship clearly ordained by Allaah, without a proof.
Wallaahu ta’aalaa a’lam.
Reviewed and edited on Sunday, 5 Dhul-Hijjah 1438 (27 August 2017)
Credit : ‘Abdur-Raafi Al-Imaam
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