Title:  i have been suffering from constant waswasa's relating to the truth of Islam and about the things to be done in it for the past 5 years. these things had caused a lot of depression in me but now things are becoming better and i have stopped paying attention to them. i started praying 5 times about 8 months ago but praying 5 times has not been easy at times. i just force myself to pray sometimes causing me to get even more depressed. even while praying i feel more burdened. so can i decrease the number of times to pray or the number of rakaths to my liking so that i do not get depressed.

Question: as-salamu alaikum i have been suffering from constant waswasa's relating to the truth of Islam and about the things to be done in it for the past 5 years. these things had caused a lot of depression in me but now things are becoming better and i have stopped paying attention to them. i started praying 5 times about 8 months ago but praying 5 times has not been easy at times. i just force myself to pray sometimes causing me to get even more depressed. even while praying i feel more burdened. so can i decrease the number of times to pray or the number of rakaths to my liking so that i do not get depressed.

Answer ID: 20841Posted on: Sep 1, 2020

Bismillah hir-Rahman nir-Rahim !

(Fatwa: 585/385/L=1431)

The time of salah and the number of rakah are fixed by Almighty Allah; one cannot make addition and subtraction in it. In order to instill the truth of Islam in heart and to remove the misconception regarding Islamic practices, you are advised to recite the following dua extensively.

لا حول ولا قوۃ الا باللہ، يا مقلب القلوب ثبت قلبى على دينك