Tafsir of Al-Maa'oun 107:4-5

(So woe to those who pray, who are heedless of their prayer): That is, they are neglectful and indifferent toward it, until they miss it entirely, or its time passes, or they do not perform it as the Messenger of Allah—may Allah exalt him and grant him peace—and the predecessors performed it. Rather, they peck at it like a crow, lacking reverence, wandering in their delusions and drifting through every valley of thoughts inappropriate for it. One of them finishes his prayer without knowing what he recited during it, among other things that indicate a lack of concern for it.

There are many statements from the predecessors regarding the intended meaning of this "heedlessness" (sahw), and perhaps all of them are by way of illustration:

• According to Abu al-Aliyah, it is looking to the right and the left.
• According to Qatadah, it is the person’s indifference as to whether he prayed or did not pray.
• According to Ibn Abbas and a group, it is delaying it beyond its time. In a hadith reported by more than one narrator from Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas—attributed to the Prophet (marfu')—though Al-Hakim and Al-Bayhaqi stated that its attribution to the Companion (mawquf) is more authentic.
• According to Abu al-Aliyah, it is when a person does not know how many units he has completed, whether an even number or an odd number.

Some interpreted the "heedlessness regarding it" as abandoning it entirely. It is said that by "those who pray," it means those who bear the mark of the people of prayer, if the intent of the "abandonment" is leaving it altogether and failing to perform it completely, or those who pray in congregation if the intent of the "abandonment" is failing to perform it occasionally.