What should a person suffering from religious doubt (waswas) do if his prayers become confused, and he does not know which prayer he is in, or if he doubts having performed a prayer after its time has elapsed?
First: Delaying the prayer beyond its appointed time is one of the major sins. If the prayer were performed on time, the whispers (waswasah) would not occur. Second: If you are afflicted with waswasah, do not pay attention to it. If you doubt whether you are in the first or second raka'ah, consider yourself to be in the second, unless you are certain that you have not performed the first. Third: If you doubt after the prayer whether you have performed it or not, do not pay attention to this doubt and consider that you have performed it. Treat waswasah by ignoring it.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
Read the full answer on Ftawyhttps://ftawy.com/en/questions/149799