:sl:
a related fatwa.
Q. I did not say any prayers between the ages of 20 and 27. Thus, I have so far missed about 90,000 fard (obligatory) prayers. Now my question is: Should I make up (i.e. offer qadha’) all of the 90,000 fard prayers I have missed? Or should I simply beg Allah to forgive me? Jazakum Allah khayran.
.... the vast majority of scholars and imams are of the opinion that one must make up for all of the prayers one has missed in life, no matter how many they are. So according to them, you should make up for all of these prayers. One of the best ways to do this—as has been suggested by one scholar—is to pray with each fard that you perform another fard in lieu of what you missed in the past. Thus, for instance, before or after praying Zuhr, pray another four rak`ahs of Zuhr as qadha’, and pray another four rak`ahs of `Asr every time you pray `Asr; you should continue to do this until such time that you can be pretty sure that you have made up for all of the missed prayers.
However, the above view has been rejected by scholars such as Imam Ibn Taymiyah, Shawkani, and Ibn Hazm. They are of the view that a person who has deliberately missed his prayers can never make up for them. Therefore, the only option left for him is to repent, ask forgiveness of Allah, and do lots of good works; by doing so he can hope to receive Allah’s mercy.
Ibn Taymiyyah, while advancing this point of view, further states: “To insist that a person who has strayed away from Islam for a number of years and then returns to the fold of Islam must make qadha’ of all his missed prayers serves only as a deterrent against his repentance, and thus it amounts to limiting the infinite mercy of Allah.” He, therefore, dismisses this view and rules that it is sufficient for him to repent, make lots of istighfar (asking forgiveness) and good works.
Having said this, I must add that you must never be slack again in your prayers.
May Allah shower us all with His mercy and help us to remain steadfast in His religion. Ameen.”
Excerpted, with slight modifications, from:
www.islam.ca
http://infad.usim.edu.my/modules.php...ticle&sid=9326