Prayer of a Traveller (Part-8)

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.

Ten-Day Stay in One Place: The Second Nullifier of Travel

The Basic Ruling of a Ten-Day Stay

1. If a traveller has a firm intention to stay in one place for ten days, their prayers must be performed in full (tamām). However, if they stay without intention or with hesitation, their prayers remain shortened (qaṣr).
2. If a person has not made a formal intention but is certain or confident that they will stay for ten days, their prayers are still considered full. Mere assumption, however, is not sufficient.

Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani: If a person knows or is confident that they will stay for ten days but has not made the intention, they are still considered a traveller, and their prayers remain shortened.

Ayatollah Naser Makarem Shirazi: One must have a real and definite intention to stay for ten days. Mere certainty or knowledge without intention is not sufficient, and the prayers remain shortened.

1. The stay must not be less than ten full days. Even a shortfall of one hour prevents the ruling of stay from applying, and the prayers remain shortened.
2. Once the ten-day stay is established, as long as the person has not left that place, their prayers continue to be performed in full, and no new intention is required.
3. The intention to stay is not dependent on performing prayers. Therefore, even those who are in a state where they do not pray (such as during menstruation or postnatal bleeding) can still make the intention to stay. Even if they do not perform prayers during all or part of these ten days stay, those days still count as part of the “ten-day stay.”

Conditions for Establishing a Ten-Day Stay

1. The ten days must be continuous, without any intention of travel during that period. If one intends to undertake a journey (e.g., traveling the legal distance) during these ten days, the stay is not considered valid.
2. If, from the outset, a person intends to make short and عرفاً insignificant outings during these ten days (i.e., distances less than four farsakhs, which are not considered contrary to staying in one place), there is no problem, and the stay remains valid.
3. The criterion for “ten days stay” follows the common understanding of a day (from sunrise to sunset). Therefore, if a person enters a place at sunrise and intends to stay until sunset of the tenth day, their prayers are full, and it is not necessary to remain there during the first and last nights.
4. The nights between the ten days are also considered part of the stay. Therefore, traveling at night to a distance that qualifies as a legal journey is not permitted.
5. If some part of the first day has already passed at the time of arrival, that same amount must be compensated on the eleventh day so that a full ten days are completed.

Conditions Related to the Place of Stay

1. The place of stay must be عرفاً (Customarily) considered a single location. Therefore, merely having two cities or villages connected to each other is not sufficient if, in common understanding; they are not regarded as one place.
2. In large cities, moving between different neighbourhoods does not pose a problem, and it is still considered a single place.
3. If there is doubt as to whether the location is considered one place, the ruling is that the prayers remain shortened (qaṣr).

Cases of Doubt, Mistake, or Conditional Intention in a Ten-Day Stay

1. If the intention to stay for ten days is conditional upon an unknown matter (such as the arrival of a person), the stay is not established, and the prayers remain shortened (qaṣr).
2. If there is a possibility that something may prevent completing the intended stay:

• If the possibility is weak and insignificant, the stay is valid.
• If the possibility is considerable, the stay is not established.

1. If someone intends to stay until a specific time (e.g., the end of the month), and it actually turns out to be ten days or more, their prayers are full—provided they were not paying attention to the exact number of days.

Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani: If the intention is tied to a specific time (e.g., until the end of the month) rather than explicitly to “ten days,” then the intention of stay is not clearly established—even if one knows it will exceed ten days. As an obligatory precaution, one should combine between qaṣr and tamām (i.e., perform both shortened and full prayers).

1. If a person mistakenly believes they will stay for ten days but in reality, stays less, their prayers are shortened and must be compensated. If they realize the mistake within the prayer time, they must repeat the prayer; if they realize it after the time has passed, they should perform it as qaḍāʾ (make-up prayer) as an obligatory precaution. However, if from the outset they intended that, in case of miscalculation, they would extend their stay to complete ten days, their prayers are considered full.
2. If, during a shortened (qaṣr) prayer, a person decides to intend a ten-day stay, they must complete that same prayer as a full four-unit (rakʿah) prayer.