Answered by Shaykh Amjad Rasheed
According to the Shafi’i school of thought, what are valid excuses for not attending group prayer?
There are many things that excuse you from group prayer. These include:
1. Rainfall that will soak your clothing, in the event that you have nothing to shield yourself;
2. An illness that makes attending [the prayer] difficult;
3. Taking care of a sick person who has no one else to care for him;
4. Staying with a relative who is dying;
5. Fearing for your life, honor, or property;
6. Meeting your creditor if you are a debtor and cannot repay your loan;
7. Cleaning ritual impurity;
8. Not having any suitable attire, such that if you go out wearing what you have, you will appear undignified;
9. Being overtaken by sleep
10. Being exposed to severe nighttime wind;
11. Experiencing intense hunger and thirst;
12. Encountering severe heat and cold;
13. Encountering muddy travel conditions;
14. Eating something with a bad or strong odor, like raw onions and garlic, or cooked onions and garlic if their odor is offensive;
15. And anything else that would make it difficult to attend, as discussed in the Minhaj and its commentaries, and the Muqaddima al-Hadramiyya.
Amjad Rasheed
[Translated by Zaynab Ansari ]