and Exalted be He—in His words: “Or who is it that could be an army for you, coming to your aid besides the Most Merciful? The disbelievers are only in delusion. Or who is it that could provide for you if He withheld His provision? Yet they persist in insolence and aversion” [al-Mulk: 20–21]. Moreover, the reports concerning the Prophet’s cessation of qunūt expressly state that he ceased it when that cause no longer existed. Likewise, whenever Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, received no timely news of the Muslim armies, he would perform qunūt. Alī, may Allah be pleased with him, also performed qunūt when he fought those whom he fought among the Kharijites and others.

They said: Ceasing an act does not constitute abrogation, for that which abrogates must necessarily be incompatible with what it abrogates. If the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, did something because of a need and then ceased doing it when that need no longer existed, this would not constitute abrogation. Indeed, even if he had ceased doing it altogether, that would indicate the permissibility of both doing it and leaving it, not that doing it was prohibited.

They said: We know with certainty that he did not perform qunūt as a regular practice. Had he done so, there would have been every reason and incentive to transmit it. Yet not one of the Companions ever reported that, in his qunūt during the dawn prayer or a similar prayer, he supplicated except on behalf of a people or against a people. Nor did any of them ever report that he regularly performed qunūt after bowing, or that he regularly performed it by supplicating before bowing. More than one Companion rejected qunūt as a regular practice. Once this is known, it becomes certain that no such practice existed—just as it is known that “Come to the best of deeds” was not part of the regular adhān, but was said by some Companions on a particular occasion to urge people to pray.

This, then, is the most balanced of the views: qunūt is prescribed and has not been abrogated, but it is prescribed when an exigency arises, not as a regular sunnah.

This is another foundational principle concerning obligatory and recommended acts, like the preceding principle regarding what is waived because of an excuse. Every regularly prescribed obligatory or recommended act is waived when an intervening excuse arises, so that it is no longer obligatory or recommended, just as they are waived