4. The level of incapacity that permits one to sit in an obligatory prayer has been defined by the scholars. Imām al-Ḥaramayn said: “What I consider to be the criterion is that standing should impose such hardship that it eliminates one’s humility, for humility is the very purpose of the prayer. The Prophet ﷺ once prayed sitting when his side was scratched; it appears that this was not because he was utterly unable to stand, but because doing so was difficult or harmful—and either case is a valid proof. One should act on the judgment of a knowledgeable, trustworthy physician—even if she is a woman—who states that standing will harm him or aggravate his condition.”

5. In the ḥadith of Abū Mūsā, the Prophet ﷺ said: “When a servant falls ill or travels, there is recorded for him whatever he used to do while healthy and at home.” Reported by al-Bukhārī (2996).

Shaykh Taqī al-Dīn said: “Whoever intends a good deed and does whatever he is able of it receives the same reward as the one who actually performed it.”

Disagreement among the scholars

• The majority hold that the prayer is never waived so long as the intellect remains. If a person cannot signal with his head, he gestures with his eyes; if he cannot recite with his tongue, he recites in his heart.

• Shaykh Taqī al-Dīn maintained that if a sick person is incapable of head gestures, the prayer is no longer obligatory for him.

• Our teacher ʿAbd al-Raḥmān al-Saʿdī—may Allah have mercy on him—said: “We have no established proof for praying by merely moving the eyes or by the heart alone. The implication of the ḥadith is that praying on one’s side with head gestures is the last obligatory level, and that is also the position chosen by Shaykh Taqī al-Dīn.”

The view of the majority is the more prudent, for the basic obligation of prayer remains, liability for it still exists, and the intellect that is addressed with the duty of performance is present. Allah knows best.