Can a bride abstain from performing prayer for a period of three days?
Fatwa No: 19649

Question

I am about to get married and I have heard that it is permissible for the bride to abstain from performing prayers and ritual Ghusl (i.e. bathing of the entire body) for three days so as to keep her adornment unchanged after the wedding ceremony. Is this true or not? What should a bride do during this period, since I wish to retain the Satisfaction of Allaah The Almighty; especially at the beginning my new (marriage) life? Thank you very much.

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.

Abstaining from performing the obligatory prayers is a grave, major sin. A group of Muslim scholars even considered the Muslim who deliberately abstains from performing the obligatory prayer until the end of its due time a disbeliever because the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: "Between a person and disbelief and polytheism is discarding prayer." [Muslim]

Hence, it is impermissible for any Muslim under any circumstances, either a bride or any other Muslim, to abstain from performing the obligatory prayers. As for what the questioner mentioned about the permissibility for the bride to abstain from performing prayers for three days, no Muslim (scholar or any other) has said such an opinion!

On the contrary, a Muslim bride should be rather grateful to her Lord, express her thankfulness and gratitude towards Allaah The Exalted for the blessing of marriage through performing acts of obedience and worship. She is also obliged to perform the due ritual Ghusl in case of Janaabah or menses.

Allaah Knows best.

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