Is it obligatory to correct the Imam if he mispronounces the letter "ẓāʾ" instead of "ḍād" in Sūrat al-Fātiḥah in His saying: (Ghayer al-maghḍūbi ʿalayhim wa lā aḍ-ḍāllīn), and does my prayer become invalid by that?
Source: FtawySummary from Ftawy's records · added here Sep 2, 2026
The worshipper should pronounce the Arabic letters ḍād (ض) and ẓāʾ (ظ) from their correct articulation points. However, if they are unable to distinguish between them, their prayer is valid according to the most preponderant opinion. There is no need for them to correct this during the prayer, due to the closeness of their articulation points and the difficulty in differentiating between them. Replacing ḍād with ẓāʾ is excused, and the imamate of one who does so is valid for those who do not, especially for the common people, due to the difficulty of distinguishing between them.
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
Read the full answer on Ftawyhttps://ftawy.com/en/questions/10434
Where this answer came from
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- Ftawy
- Original fatwa ID
- 10434
- 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.
- Read the full ruling
- Read the full answer on Ftawy