Chapter on the Prayer of the Eclipse

Hammad, from Hariz, from Zurarah and Muhammad ibn Muslim, who said: We said to Abu Ja’far عليه السلام, peace be upon him: “These winds and darkness that occur (eclipse), is prayer to be performed for them?” Imam عليه السلام said: “Every fearful occurrence in the sky whether darkness, wind, or terror, perform for it the prayer of ‘al-Kusuf’ (prayer of eclipse) until it subsides.”

Al-Husayn ibn Said, from Ibn Abi Najran, from Muhammad ibn Humran, who said: Abu Abdillah عليه السلام, peace be upon him, said: “The time for the prayer of ‘al-Kusuf’ (prayer of eclipse) is at the hour when the eclipse occurs, whether at sunrise or at sunset.” He (narrator) said that Abu Abdillah عليه السلام, peace be upon him, also said: “It is an obligation (faridah).”

And from him, from Hammad, from Hariz, from Muhammad ibn Muslim, who said: I said to Abu Abdillah عليه السلام, peace be upon him: “May I be your ransom, sometimes we are tested with an eclipse after Maghrib, before the final Isha prayer. If we perform the eclipse prayer, we fear missing the obligatory prayer.” Imam عليه السلام said: “If you fear that, then interrupt your eclipse prayer and perform your obligatory prayer, then return to complete it.” I asked: “And if the eclipse occurs at the end of the night, and we perform the eclipse prayer and miss the night prayer (salat al-layl), which of the two should we begin with?” Imam عليه السلام said: “Perform the eclipse prayer, and make up the night prayer when you reach the morning.”

Al-Husayn ibn Said, from Ibn Abi Umayr, from Umar ibn Udhaynah, from a group, from both of the Imams عليه السلام, peace be upon them, and some have narrated it from one of the Imams عليه السلام, peace be upon them: Imam عليه السلام said: “The prayer for the eclipse of the sun, the moon, the trembling (rajfah), and the earthquake (zalzalah) is ten rak’ahs with four prostrations. The Messenger of Allah سبحانه وتعالى, may Allah سبحانه وتعالى bless him and his family, prayed it with the people behind him during a solar eclipse. And when He صلى الله عليه وعلى آله وسلم finished, the eclipse had cleared.” And the (Imams عليه السلام) narrated that the prayer in all of these signs is the same, and the most intense and the longest of them is the solar eclipse. “You begin by saying the takbir to open the prayer, then you recite the ‘Umm al-Kitab’ (Surah Al Fatihah) and a surah, then you bow (rukuh), then you raise your head from the bowing and recite the ‘Umm al-Kitab’ (Surah Al Fatihah) and a surah, then you bow the second time, then you raise your head from the bowing and recite the ‘Umm al-Kitab’ (Surah Al Fatihah) and a surah, then you bow the third time, then you raise your head from the bowing and recite the ‘Umm al-Kitab’ (Surah Al Fatihah) and a surah, then you bow the fourth time, then you raise your head from the bowing and recite the ‘Umm al-Kitab’ (Surah Al Fatihah) and a surah, then you bow the fifth time. When you raise your head, you say: ‘Sami‘a Allahu liman hamidah’ (‘Allah سبحانه وتعالى hears the one who praises Him عز وجل”), then you go down in prostration and perform two prostrations. Then you stand and do as you did in the first (unit).” He (narrator) said: “I asked, ‘And if he recites one surah in the five bowings and divides it among them?’” Imam عليه السلام said: “It suffices him to recite the ‘Umm al-Kitab’ (Surah Al Fatihah) the first time. And if he recites five surahs, he recites with each surah the ‘Umm al-Kitab’ (Surah Al Fatihah). As for qunut (supplication), it is done in the second rak‘ah before the bowing, after you finish the recitation. Then you perform qunut in the fourth the same way, then in the sixth, then in the eighth, then in the tenth.”

And from him, from Fadalah, from Muawiyah ibn Ammar, who said: Abu Abdillah عليه السلام, peace be upon him, said: “If you complete the eclipse prayer (salat al-kusuf) before the eclipse clears, then repeat it.”

Muhammad ibn Yaqub, from Ali ibn Ibrahim, from his father, and Muhammad ibn Ismail, from al-Fadl ibn Shadhan all from Hammad ibn Isa, from Hariz, from Zurarah and Muhammad ibn Muslim, who said: We asked Abu Ja’far عليه السلام, peace be upon him, about the eclipse prayer (salat al-kusuf), about how many rak’ahs it has and how we should perform it. Imam عليه السلام said: “It is ten rak’ahs and four prostrations. You begin the prayer with a takbir, and you bow with a takbir, and you raise your head with a takbir except in the fifth rak’ah in which you go into prostration; there you say: ‘SamiAllahu liman hamidah’ (‘Allah سبحانه وتعالى hears one who praises Him عز وجل’). You perform qunut in every two rak’ahs before bowing, and you lengthen the qunut and the bowing in proportion to the length of the recitation and the bowing. If you finish before the eclipse has cleared, then sit and supplicate to Allah سبحانه وتعالى until it clears. And if the eclipse clears before you have finished your prayer, then complete whatever remains of your prayer. You recite aloud in this prayer.” He (narrator) said: “I asked, ‘How is the recitation in it?’” Imam عليه السلام said: “If you recite a surah in every rak’ah, then recite ‘Umm al-Kitab’ (Surah Al Fatihah). But if you shorten the surah and stop before completing it, then continue from where you left off, and do not repeat Surah al-Fatihah.” Imam عليه السلام said: “And it was recommended in it to recite Surah al-Kahf and Surah al-Hijr unless the person is leading prayer (as an imam), in which case it may be difficult for those praying behind him. So if you are able to perform your prayer in an open space where no house covers you, then do so. And the eclipse prayer for the sun is longer than the eclipse prayer for the moon although they are equal in recitation, bowing, and prostration.”

Al-Husayn ibn Said, from al-Qasim ibn Muhammad, from Abdullah ibn Muhammad, from Hariz, who said: Abu Abdillah عليه السلام, peace be upon him, said: “If the moon is eclipsed and you were unaware of it until morning, and then it reaches you (you learn about it), then if the entire moon had been darkened (ihtaraqa kulluhu), you are obligated to make up the prayer (qada). But if it had not been completely darkened, then there is no obligation upon you to make it up.”

Al-Husayn ibn Said, from Hammad, from Hariz, from someone who informed him, from Abu Abdillah عليه السلام, peace be upon him, who said: Imam al-Sadiq عليه السلام said: “If the moon is eclipsed and a man wakes up but feels lazy to perform the prayer, then let him perform ghusl the next day and make up the prayer. But if he did not wake up and was unaware of the lunar eclipse, then he is only required to make up the prayer, without ghusl.”

Muhammad ibn Sinan, from Ibn Muskan, from Ubaydullah al-Halabi, who said: I asked Abu Abdillah عليه السلام, peace be upon him, about the eclipse prayer, do we make it up if we miss it? Imam عليه السلام said: “There is no make-up (qadah) for it.”

Al-Husayn ibn Said, from Hammad, from Hariz, from Zurarah and Muhammad ibn Muslim, from Abu Abdillah عليه السلام, peace be upon him, who said: Imam al-Sadiq عليه السلام said: “If the sun is fully eclipsed and completely darkened, and you were unaware of it but came to know afterward, then you are obligated to make it up (qadah). But if it was not fully darkened, then there is no obligation upon you to make it up.”