Do Shias Pray Three Times a day?
- Anonymous
- 1 day ago
- 19 min read
Updated: 9 hours ago
بِسْمِ ٱللَّٰهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ
One of the common misconceptions about the Shīʿa is that they only pray three times a day, despite the consensus among Muslims that the daily prayers are five.
Ibn Taymiyyah was one of the individuals that popularised this misconception, stating in the beginning of his book, Minhāj al-Sunnah Vol. 1, pg. 37:
“...They (the Shi’a) combine the prayers constantly, so they only pray three times a day, resembling the Jews...”
The real difference between the Shīʿa and Sunnīs in this case, is that they differ regarding when the obligation of praying begins.
The Shīʿa believe in the permissibility of praying ʿAṣr immediately after finishing their Ẓuhr prayer, and praying ʿIshāʾ immediately after finishing their Maghrib prayer. This is what’s meant by “combining” the prayers. This is because they believe ʿAṣr to begin at the same time as Ẓuhr, and likewise ʿIshāʾ at the same time as Maghrib.
The Sunnīs, however, believe it’s not permissible to combine the prayers without a legitimate excuse, as they believe the four prayers have their own timings. In this article, we will explore this difference based on the Qurʾān and Sunnah.
The Timings of the Five prayers
According to the Shīʿa, the prayer times of al-Ẓuhr and al-ʿAṣr is from the zenith of the Sun (zawāl al-shams) until the sun sets below the horizon (ghurūb al-shams).
For al-Maghrib and al-ʿIshāʾ, it is from the confirmed sunset (maghrib) to the middle of the night (muntaṣaf al-layl), and for Subh prayer it is from true dawn (fajr al-sadiq) until sunrise (ṭulūʿ al-shams).
It is valid for this reason to pray both Ẓuhr and ʿAṣr successively during their common period, as well as Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ, because they both begin at the same time, except that one must pray them in sequence (i.e., Ẓuhr must be prayed before ʿAṣr, and Maghrib before ʿIshāʾ).
However, the four Sunnī schools observe a difference. For them:
The time for Ẓuhr begins from the zenith of the Sun until the shadow of an object becomes taller than the object itself, which is considered the late afternoon (ʿAṣr). Afterwards, it is time for the ʿAṣr prayer and it lasts until the sun sets below the horizon (ghurūb al-shams).
Maghrib begins after that, and lasts until the red twilight (shafaq al-aḥmar) in the sky disappears, and ʿIshāʾ is that afterwards until the middle of the night (muntaṣaf al-layl). As for Subh prayers, both sects agree on its timings being from true dawn until sunrise.
For the Shīʿa, these descriptions mirror what they call the recommended/virtuous times to pray the prayers (waqt al-fadila). They say that it’s recommended to pray the 5 prayers in the descriptions given above, while the Sunnīs say it is obligatory.
For a reference of these timings, you may refer to Minhāj al-Ṣāliḥīn Vol. 1, pg. 156, Ruling. # 504 by Āyatullāh Sayyid al-Sistani (HA), who outlines his opinion about what the recommended times for the prayers are.
Additionally, al-Shaykh Murtadā al-Burūjirdī (HA) notes under the lessons of al-Sayyid al-Khūʾī (RA) the following in al-Mustanad Fi Sharh Urwat al-Wuthqa, Vol. 11, pg. 219 - 220:
[Āyatullāh Kāẓim Yazdī] Ruling 1186: It is recommended to separate between the two prayers that share the same time, such as Ẓuhr and ʿAṣr, and Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ, and the minimum level of separation is sufficient.
[Al-Shaykh Murtada al-Burūjirdī]: There is no doubt that the mentioned combining is less preferable, since it is necessary that what is most virtuous for each prayer is to perform it within its own time of virtue. Thus, advancing or delaying goes against what is most virtuous.
Important note: Marājiʿ may dispute the specifics of the recommendation of separating them, so it is best one refers back to the scholar he emulates to know their ruling on this matter.
This is important to clarify before beginning our research in this article, because the Shīʿa do not deny that the Prophet (SAW) prayed these prayers separately at certain occasions, and in fact encourage them to be prayed in their recommended time-period (waqt al-fadila).
However, their view is that it is permissible to pray these prayers successively together, and the Prophet (SAW) illustrated this to us as well. For Shīʿa Hadiths on this matter, one can refer to Wasāʾil al-Shīʿa Vol. 4, Section 2: Chapter # 32 by al-Hurr al-ʿĀmilī (RA) who compiled several Hadiths proving this.
Evidence from the Qur’an
We will begin this discussion in light of the Qurʾān to determine what its view is.
One of the most important verses in this discussion is in Surat al-Israa 17:78:
Establish prayer at the decline of the sun [from its meridian] until the darkness of the night and [also] the recitation of dawn. Indeed, the recitation of dawn is ever witnessed.
The verse in question establishes the timings of prayer:
First, establish it from the declining of the sun (dulūk ash-shams)
Then, establish it after the darkening of the night (ghasaq al-layl)
And finally, establish it at the Fajr time.
Our discussion must focus on understanding the meaning dulūk and ghasaq to derive the correct ruling from this verse.
Some Sunnīs will argue that dulūk does not refer to “immediate decline” (zawāl), but rather refers to its complete decline, which would be sunset (ghurūb). Thus, they would argue this refers to Maghrib only.
The same goes for ghasaq, they will argue it does not refer to “immediate darkening” but rather complete darkening (muntaṣaf al-Layl), which would be ʿIshāʾ only.
But this meaning is strange. Why would the Qurʾān only mention the obligation of Maghrib, ʿIshāʾ and fajr prayers, while ignoring the Ẓuhr and ʿAṣr prayers?
Defining Duluk al-Shams
Ibn Kathir summarises the different views the scholars took in defining dulūk al-Shams in his Tafsir Ibn Kathir Vol. 5, pg. 101 - 102:
It is said that “dulūk” means the setting of the sun (ghurūb), as stated by Ibn Masʿūd, Mujāhid, and Ibn Zayd.
Al-Shaʿbī (however) narrated from Ibn ʿAbbās that its dulūk means its decline (zawāl). It was likewise narrated by Ibn ʿUmar, Abū Barzah al-Aslamī (i.e. a companion of the Prophet), Ibn Masʿūd and Mujāhid.
It was also the view of al-Ḥasan al-BʿAṣri, al-Ḍaḥḥāk, Abū Jaʿfar al-Bāqir, Qatādah, and it was preferred by Ibn Jarīr al-Tabari.
What Ibn Kathir highlights to us is that the majority of scholars argued that dulūk refers to zawāl, and he provides authentic citations (as stated by the editor in the footnote) from Ibn Abbas, Ibn Umar, Abū Barzah al-Aslamī, Ibn Masʿūd (whose reports differ), and a group of the Tābiʿīn. What is interesting to note is that, as usual, Imam al-Baqir (AS) affirms the Shīʿa ruling and interpretation in the Sunnī books.
Moreover, this view- as Ibn Kathir argues- is supported by reports in which the Prophet (SAW) says when the Sun immediately declines (zawāl) that it dulakat. This confirms the meaning of dulūk al-shams as being the same as zawāl al-shams, which therefore refers to the Ẓuhr prayer.
These points have been mirrored and confirmed by al-Tabari as well in Tafsir al-Tabari Vol. 15, pg. 29 – 30:
If the meaning of “dulūk” in the language of the Arabs is inclination (mayl), then there is no doubt that when the sun passes the middle of the sky, it has inclined toward setting, and that is the time of the ẓuhr prayer. This is what has been reported from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, even if in some of its chains there is some discussion.
…Abū Masʿūd said: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “Jibrīl came to me at the dulūk of the sun, when the sun had declined, and he led me in praying ẓuhr.”
….Abū Barzah said: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ would not pray ẓuhr until the sun had declined. Then he recited: “Establish the prayer at the dulūk of the sun.”
…Jābir ibn ʿAbdullāh said: I invited the Prophet ﷺ and whoever wished from his companions, and they ate at my place. Then they left when the sun had declined, and the Prophet ﷺ went out and said: “Come out, O Abū Bakr, the sun has dulakat.”
So if what we have said, supported by what we have cited as evidence, is correct, then it becomes clear that the meaning of His statement is that the prayers of ẓuhr and ʿaṣr, within their limits, are among what Allah has made obligatory upon you in that period, because they are the two prayers that Allah obligated upon His Prophet within the time from the sun’s decline until the darkness of the night.
Both al-Tabari and Ibn Kathir have cited these reports as evidence for their claims, meaning they saw them as authoritative enough to rule by them. Several other scholars followed them in this regard, such as:
Al-Baghawi in his Maʿālim al-Tanzīl Vol. 5, pg. 114
Al-Shafi’i in his Tafsīr al-Imām al-Shāfiʿī, Vol. 2, pg. 1043 – 1044
Al-Jassas in Sharḥ Mukhtaṣar al-Ṭaḥāwī, Vol. 1, Pp. 501 – 502
Defining Ghasaq al-Layl
As we mentioned earlier, ghasaq would either refer to later darkness (ʿIshāʾ) or initial darkening (maghrib), Ibn Kathir favours neither interpretations of ghasaq al-layl, presenting both without arguing for either one.
However, the answer to this issue would cause a significant difference. If it refers to maghrib, then this clearly proves the permissibility of combining the prayers. This was explained to us by Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī in Mafātīḥ al-Ghayb Vol. 21, pg. 27:
If we interpret “ghasaq” as the appearance of the first darkness, then it refers to the beginning of maghrib. Based on this, the verse mentions three times: the time of Ẓuhr, the beginning of maghrib, and the time of fajr.
This implies that zenith is a time for both ẓuhr and ʿaṣr, making it a shared time between these two prayers, and that the beginning of maghrib is a time for both maghrib and ʿIshāʾ, making it also shared between them. This entails the permissibility of combining ẓuhr with ʿaṣr and maghrib with ʿIshāʾ absolutely.
Thus, if the Qurʾān mentions the time periods of Ẓuhr, Maghrib and Fajr as the times to establish the prayer, then it means ʿAṣr is combined with Ẓuhr and ʿIshāʾ with maghrib, because there is no other time-period it mentions for us to pray them in.
But if the meaning of ghasaq refers to later darkness (ʿIshāʾ), then the Qurʾān could just be stating to establish the prayers in between Ẓuhr and ʿIshāʾ.
Despite recognising the validity of this argument, Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī rejected it because the impermissibility to combine the prayers without excuse is agreed upon to be forbidden in Sunnī fiqh. Yet, he could not address the response to his own argument except with superstition, because the Sunnīs almost unanimously agree that ghasaq al-layl refers to Maghrib time and the beginning of the sunset.
For reference of this, just refer to Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī Vol. 15, pg. 31- 33 where he quotes that all the Tābiʿīn including Ibn Abbas, Ikrimah, Mujāhid, Qatadah, Ubayd, Ibn Zayd all agree on the meaning of ghasaq being the immediate setting of the sun, which is the maghrib prayer, and al-Tabari confirms this to be the correct opinions as well.
Several of the companions of the Prophet, including Ibn Abbas, such as Ibn Masʿūd, Abū Huraira and others have narrated the same opinion as per al-Suyuti in Tafsir Durr al-Manthur Vol. 5, pg. 322.
In fact, this verse is so unambiguous in its jurisprudential implication that, in order to defend the validity of the Sunnī ruling, Ibn Kathir had to resort to a strained interpretation that effectively dismisses this verse altogether.
This was presented by the teacher of Shaykh Ibn Baz and major Salafi scholar, al-Shinqiti, in his Tafsir Aḍwāʾ al-Bayān, Vol. 1, Pg. 446:
Ibn Kathir said: it is possible that the verse was revealed before the obligation of the five daily prayers. At that time, what was obligatory were two prayers: one before sunrise and one before sunset, along with night prayer. Then this was abrogated by the five daily prayers. Based on this, “the two ends of the day” would refer to the prayer before sunrise and before sunset, and “the early hours of the night” would refer to the night prayer.
The author comments: the apparent view is that this possibility mentioned by Ibn Kathir is unlikely, because the verse was revealed concerning Abū al-Yusr in Madinah after the obligation of the prayers had already been established. Therefore, it more correctly refers to the prescribed prayer times, even though it is a Madinan verse within a Meccan surah.
This concludes our discussion in this verse, and it’s clear evidence from the Sunnī exegesis on the permissibility of combining the prayers.
As for Shīʿa Hadiths on this matter, when can refer to Shaykh al-Tusi’s Tahdhīb al-Aḥkām Vol. 2, pg. 27 with an authentic chain:
Narrated Ubayd b. Zurarah from Imam al-Sadiq (AS) regarding the verse, “Establish prayer from the decline of the sun until the darkness of the night” {17:78}:
He said: “Indeed, Allah has made four prayers obligatory, their time beginning from the sun’s decline until midnight. Among them are two prayers whose time begins from the sun’s decline until sunset, except that one precedes the other; and among them are two prayers whose time begins from sunset until midnight, except that one precedes the other.”
Here the Imam confirms the permissibility of combining the two prayers as they both start at the same time under the exegesis of this verse.
Additionally, another verse in the Qurʾān confirms the above mentioned discourse very clearly, which is in Surat Qaf 50:39-40:
So be patient, [O Muhammad], over what they say and exalt [Allah] with praise of your Lord before the rising of the sun and before its setting. And [in part] of the night exalt Him and after prostration.
It explicitly notes three time-periods for the prayer times:
Before sunrise (ṭulūʿ al-shams) which is Fajr.
Before sunset (ghurūb al-shams), which is Ẓuhr and ʿAṣr.
During the night (layl) which is Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ.
Clearly, the verse is stating the end time periods that each prayer can be prayed at. That being, sunrise for fajr, sunset for Ẓuhrayn, and night time for Maghribayn. Further discourse is not needed due to explicit clarity.
Evidence from the Sunnah
We will now move onto the Sunnī Hadith corpus, which explicitly states that the Prophet (SAW) used to combine his prayers without any reason on more than one occasion. Below we shall mention the list of companions who narrate this.
Reports of Ibn Abbas
Ibn Abbas is the most famous narrator of these reports. In one report from Sahih Muslim 705a he says:
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) observed the noon and afternoon prayers together, and the sunset and Isha' prayers together without being in a state of fear or in a state of journey.
In another report from Sahih Muslim 705b he also says:
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) observed the noon and afternoon prayers together in Medina without being in a state of fear or in a state of journey.
Abu Zubair said: I asked Sa'id why he did that.
He said: I asked Ibn 'Abbas as you have asked me, and he replied that he [the Holy Prophet] wanted that no one among his Ummah should be put to hardship.
In this report, Ibn Abbas gives the reason as to why the Prophet (SAW) decided to do this; to set a precedent for the people for the permissibility of combining prayers, which is to avoid hardship on the Ummah.
Reports of Abu Huraira
In another report in Sahih Muslim 705g, we find the following encounter:
Ibn 'Abbas one day addressed us in the afternoon (after the ‘asr prayer) till the sun disappeared and the stars appeared, and the people began to say: “Prayer, prayer.”
A person from Banu Tamim came there. He neither slackened nor turned away, but (continued crying): “Prayer, prayer.”
Ibn 'Abbas said: “May you be deprived of your mother, do you teach me Sunnah?”.
And then he said: I saw the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) combining the noon and afternoon prayers and the sunset and 'Isha' prayers.
'Abdullah b. Shaqiq said: Some doubt was created in my mind about it. So I came to Abu Huraira and asked him (about it) and he testified to his assertion.
In this report, Ibn Abbas encouraged the people to combine the Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ prayer as per the sunnah of the Prophet, but a well-known Uthmani called Abdullah b. Shaqiq, could not believe this until Abū Huraira eased his heart with its assertion.
What was in the heart of this man that he could bear to see someone from the family of the Prophet (SAW) narrating this tradition, that he had to go to someone of the likes of Abū Huraira to confirm this tradition for him?
Nevertheless, Abu Huraira narrated this tradition in more than one instance, such as in Musnad al-Bazzar Vol. 15, pg. 326.
Abi Huraira said: "The Messenger of Allah (SAW) combined two prayers in Madinah without fear."
Reports of Jabir b. Abdullah
Another narrator is the great Jabir (RA) who narrated in Sharh Ma’ani al-Athar Vol. 1, pg. 161:
Jabir b. Abdullah al-Ansari said: The Messenger of Allah (SAW) combined ẓuhr with ʿaṣr, and maghrib with ʿisha in Madinah, as a concession, without fear and without illness.
Reports Ibn Masud
Last but least, Ibn Mas’ud narrates this tradition and provides the same explanation as Ibn Abbas in Mujam al-Kabir Vol. 8, pg. 2636, Hadith. # 10525:
ʿAbd Allah b. Masʿud said: The Messenger of Allah (SAW) combined between ẓuhr and ʿaṣr, and between maghrib and ʿisha. He was asked about it, and he said: “I did it so that my community would not be placed in hardship.”
Why Combining Prayers Is Permissible
In all these traditions, a common explanation is made: The Prophet combined the prayers to set a precedent for the people to avoid them falling into hardship. Indeed, this aligns with the Holy Qur’an in which Allah (SWT) says: “He has not placed upon you in the religion any hardship”, [22:78] and “Allah intends for you ease and does not intend for you hardship.” [2:185]
The reason for this is because the majority of people are workers and employed. It is easier for a person to pray both prayers together and then return to his work with peace of mind after fulfilling the obligation.
In contrast, separating the prayers can involve difficulty for the working people, since a person has to stop his work, go and clean himself, purify himself, remove dirt from his body, change his clothes, perform ablution, and pray Dhuhr. Then he returns to work, and shortly after that the time for ‘Asr arrives, requiring him to leave work again to perform the second prayer. This clearly involves hardship and difficulty.
Objections To The Narrations
In criticism of these narrations, the Sunnis have posed several theories. Firstly, a report from Sahih Muslim 705e states the following:
I observed with the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) eight (rak'ahs) in combination, and seven rak'ahs in combination.
I (one of the narrators) said: O Abu Sha'tha, I think that he (the Prophet) had delayed the noon prayer and hastened the afternoon prayer, and he delayed the sunset prayer and hastened the 'Isha' prayer.
Here, one of the narrators tries to justify to Abu Sha’tha (who is a Tabi’i that has also narrated this tradition from Ibn Abbas in Sunan an-Nasa'i 603) of why the Prophet (SAW) combined the prayers, when it is known in Sunni fiqh that it is not permissible.
The argument here in question is that the Prophet delayed Zuhr until it was nearly Asr, and he delayed Maghrib until it was nearly ‘isha. Thus, it looked like he combined the prayers when the timings were just very close.
However, this argument lacks any evidence and contradicts the character of the Prophet (SAW) who hastened to pray on time. It is also agreed upon by scholars that delaying prayers is contrary to what is good. [Source]
Furthermore, it is evident that the narrator in question cannot be Ibn Abbas, as he personally witnessed the Prophet and would therefore have had certainty, rather than resorting to speculation. In this report, however, the narrator uses the phrase “أَظُنُّهُ” (“I think” / “I assume”), which indicates uncertainty.
Additionally, the explanation attributed to Ibn Abbas prior differs from what is suggested here. As mentioned earlier, he stated that the Prophet combined the prayers in order to alleviate hardship for the Ummah, not by delaying one prayer into the time of another.
It is likely the narrator here in question is the well-known Uthmani, Shu’ba. This is because the same report with the same chain is reported by Sufyan b. U’yana (instead of Shu’ba) without commentary in Sahih al-Bukhari 562.
This evidence shows that Shu’ba is likely the one adding this commentary, and we have a detailed article exposing the deceptive character of this man in our article “Did Fatima forgive Abu Bakr?”.
Further Arguments
Al-Alusi gathers the rest of the arguments that are commonly used for these traditions and evaluates them in his Rūḥ al-Maʿānī Vol. 15, pg. 44 – 45:
Mālik restricted the permissibility of combining due to rain to Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ only. This interpretation is reported from a group of early major scholars, but it is weak due to what is also established in Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim from Ibn ʿAbbās that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ combined Ẓuhr and ʿAṣr, and Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ in Madinah without fear or rain. Interpreting “without rain” as meaning “heavy rain” is not acceptable, and such an interpretation is weak and rejected.
Some interpreted it as occurring during overcast weather, where the Prophet ﷺ prayed Ẓuhr, then the clouds cleared and it became clear that the time of ʿAṣr had entered, so he prayed it. However, while this may have some slight plausibility for Ẓuhr and ʿAṣr, it has no plausibility regarding Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ.
Others interpreted it as the Prophet ﷺ delaying the first prayer to the end of its time, praying it there, and then when he finished, the time of the second prayer had entered, making it appear as combining. This interpretation contradicts the apparent meaning in a way that cannot be accepted.
It is also refuted by the authentic narration of ʿAbdullāh b. Shuqayq, who reported that Ibn ʿAbbās delivered a sermon after ʿAṣr until sunset and the stars appeared… (we mentioned this earlier).
Others said it is to be understood as combining due to illness or similar excuses. This is the view of Imām Aḥmad and al-Qāḍī Ḥusayn among the Shāfiʿīs, and it was chosen by al-Khaṭṭābī, al-Mutawallī, and al-Rūyānī. Al-Nawawī said: this is the preferred interpretation.
As Alusi shows, all the interpretations hold weaknesses and are contradicted by the reports in Sahih Muslim. The most accepted interpretation is that perhaps he had another excuse not mentioned in the reports, such as having illness.
However, the report of Jabir explicitly says “no illness” which eliminates this excuse (See here)
As for any other potential reasons, there are no reports that mention them, and if they were true then the companions would’ve mentioned them. Instead, they’ve consistently reported that the reason was due to alleviating hardship.
Al-Albani suggested the Prophet combined prayers to teach their permissibility, but companions like Ibn Abbas didn’t understand it that way and continued the practice as we have shown, and there’s no evidence supporting this interpretation.
Schools that endorsed it
Due to all this evidence, some Sunni jurists have opted to believe in the permissibility of combining the prayers without any excuse. This was mentioned in Rūḥ al-Maʿānī, Vol. 15, pg. 45 - 46:
A group of leading scholars held that combining prayers in residence is permissible in case of need, for one who does not make it a regular habit. This is the view of Ibn Sīrīn and companions among the followers of Mālik. Al-Khaṭṭābī reported it from al-Shāshī, the companions of Imām al-Shāfiʿī, from Abū Isḥāq al-Marwazī, and from a group of hadith scholars. Ibn al-Mundhir also adopted it.
It is supported by the apparent meaning of what is authentically reported from Ibn ʿAbbās, also narrated by Muslim… (as we have mentioned).
From what has been mentioned, it becomes clear that al-Tirmidhī’s statement at the end of his book—that there is no hadith in his book upon which the Ummah has agreed to abandon acting except the hadith of Ibn ʿAbbās regarding combining in Madinah without fear or rain…
As we see, several of major Sunni jurists opted to believe in its permissibility, but the later scholars after Tirmidhi have all chosen to reject it, and their final argument was that the report is just abandoned, without trying to reinterpret it or simply act on it.
Al-Baghawi also it mentions in his Sharh al-Sunnah, vol. 4, pg. 198 - 9:
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, prayed ẓuhr and ʿaṣr together in Madinah without fear or travel.
He said: This is a sound (ṣaḥīḥ) hadith, narrated by Muslim from Aḥmad ibn Yūnus, from Zuhayr. He added: This hadith indicates the permissibility of combining prayers without excuse, because the reason given is to remove hardship from the community.
A small group of scholars held this view, and it is reported from Ibn Sīrīn that he saw no problem in combining two prayers when there was a need, as long as it was not taken as a habit. However, most scholars held that combining without an excuse is not permissible.
Ibn Rushd further records in Bidāyat al-Mujtahid Vol. 1, pg. 414 – 415:
As for combining prayers in residence without an excuse, Mālik and most jurists do not permit it, while a group of the Ahl al-Ẓāhir and Ashhab among the followers of Mālik allowed it.
The cause of their disagreement is their differing understanding of the hadith of Ibn ʿAbbās. Some interpreted it as referring to rain, as Mālik said. Others took it in its general, unrestricted meaning.
Muslim also transmitted an additional wording in the hadith: “without fear, travel, or rain,” and the Ahl al-Ẓāhir relied upon this.
Here, he mentions that the Zahiriyyah madhab, which has famous scholars like Ibn Hazm amongst them but became an extinct madhab by the 14th century, used to believe in the permissibility of combining the prayers. That is a whole madhab allowing it!
A Final Comment on this Matter
Despite this issue being, in reality, a minor jurisprudential matter arising from differing interpretations of reports, many Sunnis have long turned it into a major point of contention.
The only reason for addressing it here is its disproportionate use as an argument against the Shi’a, despite Sunnis themselves acknowledging and accepting jurisprudential differences among their four schools, but only objecting to such differences when it occurs with the Shi’a.
Al-Shaykh Ahmad Siddiq al-Ghumari, who is a Shafi’i scholar from Morocco, writes in the introduction of his book Izalat al-Khatar ‘aman jama’ al-Salatayn, pg. 3 the violent reactions he saw after someone combined his prayers:
Some of those among our brothers from Chefchaouen, who were keen to act upon the Sunnah, heard from me that combining ẓuhr with ʿaṣr and maghrib with ʿishāʾ—whether in travel or residence—for a need, without illness or rain, is an established Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah, and that it should be practiced and revived.
When one of them returned to his town, it happened after some time that he went out with a group to a village about eight or ten miles away to bring back a bride. When they decided to leave the village and return to the town—this being after zawāl—and he knew they would not reach the town until sunset, he led the people in combining ẓuhr and ʿaṣr as a jamʿ taqdīm during the middle of ẓuhr time. Then they set off toward the town.
At that point, the students caused an uproar, claiming that the ʿaṣr prayer was invalid and must be repeated. They did not stop there; some said the man should be punished and beaten, others said he should be expelled and banished from the town, and some of the ignorant and foolish among them even said he should be killed.
When the hadith reported on this matter—the hadith of Ibn ʿAbbās recorded in the two Ṣaḥīḥs—was mentioned to them, they said it was false and fabricated.
It is truly strange to see such reactions from the Sunni crowd amongst their own brethren over an issue that merely holds a difference in opinion. Their hostility towards this man was, without a doubt, due to their hostility against the Shi’a and disgust towards resembling them.
We conclude our research with this, and ask our readers to not be like these irrational and hatred-filled people, who avoid and criticise a practice simply for the fact mirroring the practices of the Shi’a. Do not be like the one who attacked and denied authentic Hadiths, because he could not bear to believe he was in fact wrong about a matter as trivial as this issue. And God knows best.
Excellent piece of writing!
May Allah bless you for your efforts.