‘Umar ibn Al-Khattab (Radia-Allaahu ‘anhu) reported that the Messenger of Allaah (Salla-Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said: “If anyone falls asleep at night and thereby fails to recite his Hizb [portion (of Qur’an/Salaat)] or a part of it, and then he observes it between the Fajr and the Dhuhr prayers, it will be recorded for him as though he had recited it during the night.” [Reported by Muslim]
Explanation:
Imaam An-Nawawi (Rahimahullaah) mentioned what is narrated from ‘Umar ibn Al-Khattab (Radia-Allaahu ‘anhu) that the Prophet (Salla-Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) stated that if someone oversleeps and misses his Hizb [a portion or some part] of his nightly worship, but he makes up for it between the Fajr and Dhuhr prayers, then it will be as though he performed it during the night. This serves as evidence that if an individual is used to performing an act of worship, then he should maintain it even if the designated time has passed.
The term “Hizb” means a portion of something – it is the origin of the word, “Ahzaabul-Qur’an” (i.e., parts of the Qur’an), and for, “Ahzaabun-Naas” (i.e., groups of people) meaning factions of people. So, if a person has a habit of performing a certain act of worship during the night but he misses it or a part of it due to sleep, then he may make up for it between the Fajr and Dhuhr prayers, and it will be as though he performed it during the night.
However, if it were the Witr Salaat at night (that was missed) and if he wants to make up for it during the day, then he should not offer it as an odd number of Rak’ah; rather he should offer it as an even number by adding an extra Rak’ah. So, if it was his habit to pray three Rak’ahs, then he will offer four Rak’ahs as Qadhaa’ [i.e. offering prayer to make up for having failed to offer it at their due time], and if it were his habit to offer five Rak’ahs, then he will offer six as Qadhaa’, and if it were his habit to offer seven, then he will offer eight Rak’ahs.
The evidence for this is the Hadeeth of ‘Aishah (Radia-Allaahu ‘anha) who said that when sleep or pain overcame the Prophet (Salla-Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and made it impossible (for him) to observe prayer in the night, he prayed twelve Rak’ahs during the day, as reported by Muslim no. 746.
Also, the Prophet (Salla-Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) restricted the Qadhaa’ Salaat between Fajr and Dhuhr. There are many Ahadeeth that prove that there should be no prayer after Fajr until the sun rises or after the sun rises until it is high in the sky. This restriction includes the Hadeeth under discussion; hence, the Qadhaa’ Salaat should be performed after the sun has risen to the height of a spear above the horizon.
Although, it might be argued that this restriction does not apply because Qadhaa’ is to be made up whenever the person remembers it according to the general saying of the Prophet (Salla-Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam): “Whosoever oversleeps his prayer or forgets it, he may offer it when he remembers it, there is no expiation for it, except this.” [Reported by Muslim no. 684]
It can also be inferred – from the Hadeeth under discussion – that a person should maintain and be consistent in his good deeds, and not neglect what is forgotten if it can be made up. As for what is forgotten and cannot be made up, that is forgiven.
An example is the Sunnah of entering the mosque – also known as Tahiyyatul-Masjid – if someone enters the mosque, but forgets to offer Tahiyyatul-Masjid, and sits down for an extended period, then Tahiyyatul-Masjid cannot be made up. This is because Tahiyyatul-Masjid is a Sunnah that is tied (or restricted) to a cause and if one is late for that cause, then the Sunnah is missed. Similarly, this is the case with every deed that is tied (linked) to a cause; if the cause has passed, the deed cannot be made up for – unless it is an obligatory act like the obligatory Salaat.
However, deeds that are time-bound, like the Rawatib Sunnah prayers, can be made up after their prescribed time has passed as established by the practice of the Prophet (Salla-Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam). Likewise, if a person misses fasting three days of the month – Ayyam al-Beed (the white days) – he can make up for them later. Fasting three days of the month is broad in scope; it is permissible to observe them at the beginning, middle, or end of the month. However, it is preferable to fast them on the 13th, 14th, and 15th of the month. And Allaah is the One Who Guides.
Source:
Riyadhus-Saliheen no. 153, with explanation by Shaikh Ibn ‘Uthaimeen (Rahimahullaah)
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