QUESTION:

What do the scholars and muftis of the mighty Shari’ah say regarding this matter, if one is in a country such as England and does not have a mat etc., then can namāz [Salāh] be prayed on the floor without it [prayer mat] and if one is not aware of the Qiblah, then what is the ruling?

Questioner: Shahzad from UK

ANSWER:

بسم اللہ الرحمن الرحیم
الجواب بعون الملک الوھاب اللھم ھدایۃ الحق والصواب

A mat etc. is not necessary for prayer, it is only necessary that the floor be clean, if it is clean then you may pray upon it; if you do not see any impurity there, then you should offer your prayer.

If you do not have knowledge of the Qiblah, then you should perform taharrī (expending of effort in investigation) i.e. think about which direction the Qiblah is and whichever direction your heart becomes firm upon, then face that direction and pray, the prayer will be valid, even if that turned out to be other than the actual direction of the Qiblah. Just as it is mentioned in al-Durr al-Mukhtār,

وَيَتَحَرَّى عَاجِزٌ عَنْ مَعْرِفَةِ الْقِبْلَةِ فَإِنْ ظَهَرَ خَطَؤُهُ لَمْ يُعِدْ

“One who is incapable of ascertaining the Qiblah direction with sure knowledge should perform taharri (make an inquiry) and if his mistake becomes apparent to him later on, then the prayer will not be repeated [because it is valid].”

[al-Durr al-Mukhtār, vol 3, pg 346]

واللہ تعالی اعلم ورسولہ اعلم صلی اللہ علیہ وآلہ وسلم
کتبہ ابو الحسن محمد قاسم ضیاء قادری

Answered by Mufti Qasim Zia al-Qadri

Translated by Zameer Ahmed

Read the original Urdu answer here – [Q-ID0246] I don’t have a prayer mat and don’t know the Qibla – what should I do

Also see:

[Q-ID0294] Should we pray in the direction we see others pray or should we investigate the qiblah ourself?

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