What is the ruling on someone who fasts but does not pray?
A Muslim must be diligent in fulfilling all obligations, and after the Shahadah, prayer is the most important duty.
● If someone abandons prayer out of disregard, they are considered a disbeliever, and their fasting is not accepted.
● If they abandon prayer out of laziness, they are still a Muslim, and their fasting remains valid, but they have committed a grave sin by neglecting prayer.
What is the ruling on forgoing the sacrifice (uḍḥiyah) for one who is financially able to offer it?
Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
It is disliked (makrūh) for one for whom the uḍḥiyah (sacrifice) is recommended (Sunnah) to forgo offering it, on account of the scholarly disagreement regarding whether it is obligatory. And Allah, the Most High, knows best.
What is the Islamic ruling on the aqiqa?
All praise is due to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
The 'aqīqah is a confirmed Sunnah (sunnah mu'akkadah). Two sheep are to be slaughtered for a newborn boy, and one sheep for a newborn girl. This is established by numerous Prophetic traditions, among them:
The narration of Samurah ibn Jundub, may Allah be pleased with him, who reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: "Every child is held in pledge for his 'aqīqah, which is slaughtered on his behalf on the seventh day, and he is named, and his head is shaved." — Narrated by al-Tirmidhī, who graded it as ḥasan ṣaḥīḥ.
And the narration of 'Ā'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, who said: "The Messenger of Allah ﷺ commanded us to slaughter one sheep as 'aqīqah for a girl, and two sheep for a boy." — Narrated by Aḥmad and Ibn Mājah.
The imperative in these narrations is understood to denote recommendation rather than obligation, based on the ḥadīth of 'Amr ibn Shu'ayb, on the authority of his father, on the authority of his grandfather, who said: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ was asked about the 'aqīqah, whereupon he said: "Allah does not love 'uqūq" — as though he disliked the name itself — and then said: "Whoever has a child born to him and wishes to offer a sacrifice on their behalf, let them do so: two equivalent sheep for a boy, and one sheep for a girl." — Narrated by Aḥmad and Abū Dāwūd.
The legal inference drawn from this narration is that the Prophet ﷺ linked the slaughter to the wish and willingness of the individual, saying: "whoever wishes to offer a sacrifice... let them do so" — thereby indicating that the 'aqīqah is recommended (mustaḥabb) and not obligatory (wājib).
And Allah Almighty knows best.
What is the virtue of performing ‘Umrah in Ramadan?
Ibn ‘Abbas narrated: "When the Prophet ﷺ returned from his Hajj, he said to Umm Sinan Al-Ansariyyah: ‘What prevented you from performing Hajj?’ She replied: ‘Abu So-and-so (referring to her husband) had two camels—he performed Hajj on one of them, and the other was used to irrigate our land.’ The Prophet ﷺ then said: ‘Performing ‘Umrah in Ramadan is equivalent to Hajj with me.’" [Narrated by Al-Bukhari]
The Prophet ﷺ also said: "An ‘Umrah in Ramadan is equivalent to a Hajj." [Narrated by Al-Tirmidhi]
For those who miss the opportunity to perform ‘Umrah in Ramadan, there are many other ways to earn great rewards. One of them is praying Fajr in congregation, then remaining in the mosque remembering Allah until sunrise, and praying two rak‘ahs.
The Prophet ﷺ said: "Whoever prays Fajr in congregation, then sits remembering Allah until the sun rises, and then prays two rak‘ahs, will receive the reward of a complete Hajj and ‘Umrah—complete, complete, complete." [Narrated by Al-Tirmidhi]
