What is the ruling concerning my past prayers behind an Imam who substitutes the letter "dhāl" with "zāy" in Al-Fatiḥah, given that I only recently became aware of this?
Source: FtawySummary from Ftawy's records · added here Sep 2, 2026
The prayer of one who replaces the letter dhāl with zāy in Al-Fatiḥah is valid if he is unable to learn or cannot find a teacher. And it is permissible for someone similar to him to follow him in prayer. This is the opinion of most scholars. Some later Hanafi scholars went further, holding that it is permissible to pray behind someone who replaces dhāl with zāy or similar substitutions, because "it is a widespread affliction." It is permissible to follow this opinion, even if it is a less preferred one. Therefore, there is no need to repeat past prayers.
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
Read the full answer on Ftawyhttps://ftawy.com/en/questions/180163
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- Ftawy
- Original fatwa ID
- 180163
- Added here
- . This is when the answer was added to El Fatwa, not the fatwa's date.
- Text
- Summary from Ftawy's records, reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
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- Read the full answer on Ftawy