i am a 20 yr old muslim girl. i live in the us. i am not married and my brother supports me. i work at two places and i don’t observe purdah when at work. i go to a university. my brother used to pay for all my expenses, but in order to help him out a little bit, i decided to work so i can atleast pay for my university expenses since college education is very expensive and my brother has to raise his own family as well as my parents too. when i get back from work, i try to make up all my prayers but sometimes i don’t.
i recently ran across the folowing hadith: the covenant between us and them consists of the prayer:whoever leaves it has disbelieved.
i have also read a lot of other hadith about praying late and how missing a prayer is a major sin. and also in the quran Allah has specified the importance of salat many times.
please let me know what i should do about working?
[ let me know if you any other background questions]
Your email is encouraging. You are a young person and also conscious of your religious obligations. May Allah keep you steadfast, Aameen.
It is permissible for a female to work only if she has no source of income and there is no one to support her. If you have to continue work, you should perform your Salaat on time. You should plan yourself carefully to do that while at work. For example, be in the state of Wudhu and excuse yourself for about 5 minutes and perform your Salaat at a convenient place at your work. If possible and practical, you may inform your management about your religious obligation and the short time you require to execute that. If you feel that is not a good idea, then you surely have a right to excuse yourself for natural causes. You may use that time to perform your Salaat.
In brief, make every possible effort to perform your Salaat on time. If you make that effort, Allah will guide you and make it easy for you. Be courageous and steadfast on Deen.
and Allah Ta’ala Knows Best
Mufti Ebrahim Desai