Al-Ma'un: (4-5) Woe to the Praying Ones

Then the Almighty said: {Woe to the praying ones * Who are heedless of their prayer} (Al-Ma'un: 4-5). In this, there are several issues:

Issue 1: The Connection of This Verse to the Preceding Verses

There are several ways this verse connects to what came before it:

1. The connection through hypocrisy: If neglecting the rights of the orphan and preventing charity is evidence of hypocrisy, then neglecting prayer with a lack of humility and submission is even more indicative of hypocrisy. This is because mistreating others and withholding benefit is an interaction with creation, whereas prayer is service to the Creator.
2. Addressing a potential question: It is as if, after mentioning the mistreatment of the orphan and the refusal to give charity, a questioner asked: "Does not prayer forbid lewdness and evil deeds?" The response implies: How can prayer forbid such a reprehensible act when the prayer itself is manufactured from mere ostentation (Riya') and heedlessness?
3. Completeness of deviation: It is as if the verse means: His eagerness to harm the orphan and withhold charity is a deficiency concerning compassion for God's creation, while his heedlessness in prayer is a deficiency concerning the reverence for God's command. Since deficiency has occurred in both aspects, his wretchedness is complete, hence the statement: {Woe}.

Know that this term (Woe/Wayl) is only used for severe crimes, like His saying: {Woe to the defrauders * Woe to them for what their hands have earned * Woe to every slanderer and backbiter}. It is narrated that everyone in the Fire will lament according to the severity of their crime. One will say, "Woe to me because of my love for status," another, "Woe to me because of tribal pride," and another, "Woe to me because of my prayer." Therefore, upon hearing such a verse, it is recommended to say: "Woe to me if my Lord does not forgive me."

Issue 2: The Severity of the Threat and the Nature of the Actions

This verse indicates a great threat for committing three actions:

1. Heedlessness regarding prayer (Al-Sahw 'an As-Salah).
2. Performing prayer for ostentation (Al-Mura'ah).
3. Preventing the loan of useful articles (Man' al-Ma'un).

All these are sins, but they do not necessarily make a person a hypocrite. So why has God decreed such a severe warning for the one who commits these acts? Commentators have offered several explanations for this apparent contradiction:

1. The prayer belongs to the hypocrites: The meaning of {Woe to the praying ones} is: Woe to the praying ones who are hypocrites who commit these actions. Under this interpretation, the verse indicates that the disbeliever receives a greater punishment due to his engagement in prohibited acts and neglect of obligatory duties. This supports the view of Al-Shafi'i that disbelievers are accountable for the secondary rulings (Furu') of the Sharia. This is the most relied-upon answer.
2. The distinction between 'Sahw 'an' and 'Fi': What 'Ata narrated from Ibn Abbas is that if God had said, "Who are heedless in their prayer" (fi salatihim saahun), this warning would apply to the believers. However, He said, "heedless of their prayer" ('an salatihim saahun). The one who is heedless of prayer is the one who does not remember it and is empty of it. This view is weak because heedlessness of prayer cannot be interpreted as abandoning prayer entirely, as God affirmed they do pray by saying, {Woe to the praying ones}. Furthermore, heedlessness of prayer (meaning abandonment) does not constitute hypocrisy or disbelief, returning to the original problem.
   • Rebuttal to the first point: God judges them as misguided based on their outward appearance, while He considers them to have forgotten prayer entirely based on the inner reality, similar to His saying: {Indeed, the hypocrites seek to deceive Allah, but He deceives them. And when they stand up to pray, they stand up lazily, showing off to people} (An-Nisa: 142).
   • Rebuttal to the second point: Heedlessness of prayer means remaining forgetful of the remembrance of God throughout all parts of the prayer. This only issues from the hypocrite who believes there is no benefit in prayer. As for the Muslim who believes there is tangible benefit in it, it is impossible for him to forget the matter of religion, reward, and punishment in any part of the prayer. Rather, heedlessness in prayer (i.e., being forgetful during some parts of the prayer) can occur to the believer. Thus, heedlessness of prayer ('an) is an act of the disbeliever, while heedlessness in prayer (fi) is an act of the believer.
3. Meaning of 'Saahun' as negligence: The meaning of {Saahun} could be that they do not look after the times of their prayers nor their prerequisites. This means they do not care whether they pray or not. This was the view of Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas, Masruq, Al-Hasan, and Muqatil.

Issue 3: The Prophet's Heedlessness in Prayer

There was a difference of opinion regarding the Prophet's (peace be upon him) heedlessness in his prayer:

Many scholars stated that the Prophet (PBUH) did not become heedless, but rather God permitted him to perform such an action so that he might enact what a heedless person does, thereby clarifying that religious ruling through action. Action-based clarification is stronger.

Furthermore, assuming heedlessness occurred from him, heedlessness is of several types:

1. Heedlessness of the Prophet and the Companions, which is rectified either by the prostration of forgetfulness (Sujud As-Sahw) or by Sunnah prayers and supererogatory acts.
2. That which occurs in prayer as inattention and lack of presence of divine knowledge and intentions.
3. Abandonment without making up the prayer or letting the time pass. Among this category is the prayer of the hypocrite, which is worse than abandoning prayer altogether because that prayer mocks the religion.

! 7 < { Who are who show off } . > 7

<