so long as he is not excused by ignorance.

Just as the disbelief of the one who abandons the prayer is proven by the transmitted, scriptural evidence, it is likewise confirmed by rational reflection.

How can a person still lay claim to faith while neglecting the prayer—the very backbone of the religion—when the texts contain such powerful encouragement to perform it that any rational believer should hasten to establish it, and such severe warnings against abandoning it that any rational believer should fear leaving it or wasting it? To abandon the prayer in spite of all these incentives leaves no faith in the one who abandons it.

Someone might object: Might not the “disbelief” mentioned concerning the one who leaves the prayer be disbelief in the sense of ingratitude for blessings rather than disbelief that expels from the religion, or perhaps a lesser form of disbelief, like the Prophet’s saying, “Two traits found among people are acts of disbelief: insulting one’s lineage and wailing over the dead” 1, and his statement, “Reviling a Muslim is outrageous sin, and fighting him is disbelief” 2, and similar reports?

We say: This possibility and the analogy drawn from it are untenable for several reasons: