Answered by Shaykh Yusuf Weltch
Question
I am suffering from Waswasa during my Salah because I fear my incorrect pronunciation. Sometimes it is erroneous, and I must repeat myself; other times, it is not, but I repeat it anyway. Sometimes it is hard to distinguish between the two.
Should I repeat when I am incorrect to make sure my Salah is valid or not? I struggle to distinguish whether my pronunciation is correct or not. Does pronunciation affect my Salah? This especially happens when I am reciting Fatiha.
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate
Mistakes in Prayer
There is much discussion in the books of sacred law regarding mistakes in recitation.
Many scholars have deemed that mistakes in recitation do not invalidate the prayer whatsoever, even if the meaning is changed significantly.
This is due to the fact that most people cannot distinguish between mistakes that invalidate the prayer and those that do not. [Ibn ‘Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar]
Correcting Recitation
I would advise you to seek a reliable teacher to improve your recitation of the Quran. Even though there is much leeway in the above opinion, we as believers should strive to recite the Quran correctly.
Hope this helps
Allah A’lam
[Shaykh] Yusuf Weltch
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani