Answered by: Maulana Syed Johir Miah
Question
Emergency question. I’ve travelled about 73 miles today since leaving home and am currently about 23 miles from home. At no time have I been more than 48 miles from home. Do I read 2 rakats for Zohar or 4? Jazak Allah Khairan.
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
Answer:
The journey because of which legal commands change is when one intends to travel to a place between him and which there is a distance of three days travel, traversing by camel or walking on foot, but travelling on water (Meaning by sea, ocean, lake, river etc.) is not to be taken into account for that. [1]
Even if a person circumambulated the world without intending to do so would not shorten a journey of three days and nights.[2]
If a person went out and did not intend to travel or intended and did not travel, then he would not be a traveller (Musafir).[3]
Likewise, if a person intends of a town for staying there and between him and the town is a journey of two days. Once he reached there it became apparent for him to go to another town and between him and the town is two days and so on.[4]
Whoever sets out as a traveller performs two units of prayer when he has passed the houses at the fringes of the city, and he remains under the legal ruling of a traveller until he intends to take up residence in a city for fifteen days or more, in which case the completion of the full prayer becomes binding upon him, but if he intends to take up residence for less than that, he does not complete [the prayer of four units but perform two.[5]
The intention to reside in two towns is not valid if the overnight stay is not specified in one of them and each one has its own origin.
If it is part of a village, its residents must perform the Friday prayer, then the residence is valid by entering either of them. Likewise, it is valid if the overnight stay is assigned to one of the two towns, because the residence is added to the place of the overnight stay. [6]
Therefore, if you did not intend for travelling when you exited the house and you surpass the distance of the journey to qualify as a Musafir, you still would not shorten the prayers.
Hence, in the aforementioned case, if the intention was made when initially leaving that you are going to travel then the rulings of travel will apply to you, and you will be considered a Musafir, otherwise, no.
Only Allah knows best.
Written by Maulana Syed Johir Miah
Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah
Darul Ifta Birmingham
[1]السفر الذي تتغير به الأحكامأن يقصد الإنسان موضا بينه وبين ذلك الموضع مسيرة ثلاثة أيام ولياليها بسير الإبل ومشي الأقدام ولا يعتبر ذلك بالسير في الماء
Mukhtasarul Quduri, Quduri, 38/1, Darul Kutub Al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, 1418 H.
[2]( قاصدا ) ولو كافرا ومن طاف الدنيا بلا قصد لم يقصر ( مسيرة ثلاثة أيام ولياليها )
Durrul Mukhtar, 105/1, Darul Kutub Al-Ilmiyyah, 1423 H.
[3](قوله قاصدا) أشار به مع قوله خرج إلى أنه لو خرج ولم يقصد أو قصد ولم يخرج لا يكون مسافرا
Raddul Muhtar, Ibn Abidin, 122/2, Darul Fikr, Beirut, Lebanon, 1412 H.
[4] (قوله بلا قصد) بأن قصد بلدة بينه وبينها يومان للإقامة بها فلما بلغها بدا له أن يذهب إلى بلدة بينه وبينها يومان وهلم جراIbid.
[5]ومن خرج مسافرا صلى وكعتين إذا فارق بيوت المصر ولا يزال على حكم السفر حتى ينوي الإقامة في بلد خمسة عشر يوما فصاعدا فيلزمه الإتمام وإن نوى الإقامة أقل من ذلك لم يتم
Mukhtasarul Quduri, Quduri, 38/1, Darul Kutub Al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, 1418 H.
[6]ولا تصح نية الإقامة ببلدتين لم يعين المبيت بإحداهما) وكل واحدة أصل بنفسها وإذا كانت تابعة كقرية يجب على ساكنها الجمعة تصح الإقامة بدخول أيتهما وكذا تصح إذا عين المبيت بواحدة من البلدتين لأن الإقامة تضاف لمحل المبيت )
Hashiyat Tahtawee, 426/1, Darul Kutub Al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First edition 1997.