Prayer of a Traveller – Part 5

According to the fatwas of the Grand Religious Authorities: Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei, Ayatollah Sistani, and Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi (may Allah prolong their blessings):

Fatāwā presented without citing a differing opinion or a specific reference are the common rulings shared by all of the three respected Marāji‘. In cases where the ruling of one Marjaʿ differs from that of the other two, it is indicated in a footnote under the same number, mentioning the Marjaʿ by name.

Reaching the Limit of Tarakhkhus (Hometown’s boundary)

1. A traveller who leaves his hometown with the intention of covering the legal travel distance (masāfat shar‘iyyah) must shorten (qaṣr) his prayers once he reaches a certain boundary. Likewise, upon returning, when he reaches that boundary, he must perform his prayers in full (tamām). This boundary is called “ḥadd al-tarakhkhus”.

However, it is recommended as a precaution (iḥtiyāṭ mustaḥabb) that in the distance between the

limit of tarakhkhus and entering the city, one combines both shortened and full prayers.

2. The criterion for determining the limit of tarakhkhus is that a person moves far enough from the last house of the city such that he can no longer hear the normal (customary) adhān of the city without a loudspeaker, whether he can still see the city walls/buildings or not.

Ayatollah Sistani: “Ḥadd al-tarakhkhus” is the point where the people of the town—even those in its outskirts—can no longer see the traveller due to his distance, and its sign is that he can no longer see the people of the town and its surroundings.

3. The criterion for tarakhkhus is hearing an adhān that is called in a customary elevated place, such as the minarets of traditional mosques, at the edge of the city.
4. If a traveller is going to a place where he intends to stay for ten days, his prayer remains shortened (qaṣr) until he reaches the limit of tarakhkhus of that place of residence. In the distance between the limit of tarakhkhus and the place of residence, based on obligatory precaution (iḥtiyāṭ wājib), he should combine between shortened and full prayers.

Cases of Doubt about reaching Ḥadd al-Tarakhkhus

1. If a person leaves his hometown intending to travel the legal distance and doubts whether he has reached ḥadd al-tarakhkhus or not, he should assume that he has not reached it and therefore perform his prayer in full (tamām). However, if this doubt occurs while returning from the journey, he should perform the prayer in shortened form (qaṣr).

Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi: If a person doubts whether he has reached ḥadd al-tarakhkhus, or does not know whether the sound he hears is the adhān or something else, he must perform the prayer in full (tamām). But if he knows it is the adhān, yet cannot distinguish its words, then the precaution is to combine between shortened and full prayers.

2. If a person, while leaving his hometown, prays qaṣr before reaching ḥadd al-tarakhkhus thinking that he has already reached it, and later realizes his mistake, he must repeat the prayer.
   The same ruling applies on the return journey: if he performs the prayer in full (tamām) by mistake before reaching the boundary, he must repeat it.
3. If a person, after passing ḥadd al-tarakhkhus, performs the prayer in full (tamām) thinking that he has not yet reached it, and later realizes that he actually had, he must repeat the prayer.
   Likewise, on the return journey, if he performs the prayer as qaṣr by mistake, the same ruling applies (i.e., it must be repeated).

Matters That Terminate a Journey

1. If any of the following occurs, the journey is considered to have ended, and one must perform the prayer in full (tamām):
2. Passing through one’s hometown (waṭan);
3. Intending to stay in one place for at least ten days, or being certain of that;
4. Remaining in one place for thirty days in a state of uncertainty, without intending to stay for ten days.

Passing through One’s Hometown (Waṭan)

1. If a person intends to travel the legal distance (masāfat shar‘iyyah) and, during the journey, enters his hometown (waṭan), his journey is considered interrupted. He must perform his prayers there in full (tamām).

If he then continues his journey, and the remaining distance to his destination is at least eight farsakhs, his prayers will be shortened (qaṣr). But if it is less than the legal distance, he must perform his prayers in full (tamām).

2. Simply passing through one’s hometown—even without stopping or staying—is sufficient to terminate the journey.
3. In common understanding (‘urf), a hometown (waṭan) is a place where a person lives and is settled, and which is considered his place of residence—whether it is a city, a village, or otherwise.
4. A hometown is of two types:

• Original hometown (waṭan aṣlī)

• Adopted hometown (waṭan ittikhādhī)

(The explanation of each will be given in the next Bulletin.)