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To what extent is the hadith "He whose prayer does not restrain him from indecency and evil has no prayer" authentic, and does 'indecency' differ from 'evil'?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The hadith referred to in the question is not authentically attributed to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, but it was narrated as a saying of Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, attributed to him [mawquf]. Al-Munkar (the reprehensible) is what the Sharia has forbidden, encompassing all sins and vices. Al-Fahsha' (indecency/lewdness) specifically refers to adultery, and it has also been said to mean every repulsive act, whether in speech or deed. Thus, al-munkar is more general than al-fahsha'. There are authentic hadiths established from the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and weak hadiths that are not established from him.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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