"Oh no! My alarm didn't go off and I missed Fajr! What to do?"

🌷What to Do series🌷 by Asma bint Shameem 

❓QUESTION❓

Oh no! My alarm didn't go off and I missed Fajr! What to do?

🌿 ANSWER🌿

1️⃣ Pray as SOON as you wake up

All you have to do is to perform that prayer AS SOON AS YOU WAKE UP and it won't count as if you missed it. 

That's because you GENUINELY wanted to pray on time but due to a reason that was NOT in your control, you missed the salah. 

Don't 'wait and pray it later'. 

Pray it then and there and In shaa' Allaah it won't count against you. 

That's the Mercy of Allaah,  al-Kareem that He won't hold it against us. 

📌 Proof:

🍃One time during travel, the Prophet ﷺ and his Sahaabah slept and missed Fajr prayer on accident, and the Sahaabah began to ask one another, 

“What is the expiation (kafaarah) for what we have done by neglecting the prayer?” 

The Messenger of Allaah ﷺ said:

“Sleeping does not mean that you are neglecting the prayer.  Rather neglecting the prayer means not praying one prayer until the time for the next prayer comes.  Whoever does that let him pray when he remembers it.”  (Saheeh Muslim)

🍃And he ﷺ said:

“Whoever forgets a prayer, or sleeps and misses it, let him offer it as soon as he remembers, for there is no expiation for it other than that.” (Muslim 684)

Obviously the above hadeeth does not apply to someone who misses the prayer ”intentionally” or out of ”laziness”

It only applies if someone had genuine, sincere intentions to pray on time  but couldn’t for some some valid excuse. 

So you should pray as soon as you wake up. 

Pray the two Sunnah then the fardh. 

2️⃣ What if there’s not much time?

Yes sometimes it may happen that you don’t have much time. 

In this situation you should pray the fardh FIRST because if you pray the Sunnah, you may miss the time of the Salaah. 

Then once you’re done with your fardh, if you still have time and the sun has NOT started to rise, then you can pray the Sunnah afterwards. 

🍃 Proof:

Qays ibn ‘Amr radhi Allaahu anhu said: “The Messenger of Allaah ﷺ came out when the iqaamah for prayer had been given, and I prayed Fajr with him, then the Prophet ﷺ finished and found me praying. He said, “Take it easy, O Qays. Two prayers together?” I said, “O Messenger of Allaah, I did not pray the two rak’ahs before Fajr.” He said, “No (problem), then.” (at-Tirmidhi— saheeh by al-Albaani)

🔺 BUT if the sun has already started to rise after you’re done with your fardh, then DELAY the Sunnah until after the sun has risen. 

That’s because the Prophet ﷺ forbade Salaah at the time of the sun rising. 

🍃 He ﷺ said:

“ ...refrain from praying until the sun has risen and become high, for when it rises, it rises between the horns of the Shaytaan and at that time the kuffaar prostrate to it.” (Muslim)

3️⃣ What if there’s sun is rising?

You should pray the “FARDH” even if the sun is rising. 

🍃 That’s because the Prophet ﷺ said:

‘If one of you catches a Sajdah from the Asr prayer before the sunsets, then he should complete his prayer.  If one of you catches a Sajdah from the morning prayer before the sunrises then he should complete his prayer.’ (al-Bukhaari 579 and Muslim 608). 

🍃 Imaam an-Nawawi said:

“This is a clear evidence that whoever caught and prayed a Rak’ah of the morning or Asr prayer, and then the prayer time finished before he gave Salaam then his prayer is not null and void, rather he should complete it, and his prayer is correct.”

🔺Important note

Keep in mind: If you miss a Salaah on purpose, THAT'S a serious crime.  It’s a major sin and once you miss the time for Salaah for no valid reason, then it can NEVER be made up. 

🍃 Shaikh Ibn Uthaimeen said: 

“If a person misses a Salaah without any Shar’ee excuse, then even if he prays that Salaah a THOUSAND times, he won’t be able to pray it!”

May Allaah enable us to be punctual with our daily prayers and make us among the guided ones.

And Allaah knows best.