When wudu breaks during prayer, and continuing it (bina)

What to do if your wudu breaks mid-prayer, the conditions for validly continuing rather than restarting, and how an imam appoints a substitute (khalifa).

If your wudu breaks in the middle of your prayer (for example, you need the toilet, or your nose starts bleeding), your prayer doesn't have to be thrown away. As long as certain conditions are met, you can go make wudu and come straight back to finish it, picking up from where you left off. This is called bina, meaning "building on" what you already prayed.

If your wudu breaks while you're praying

Go make wudu right away, and come back as fast as you can.
Carry on the prayer from exactly where the wudu broke: if it happened in Sujood, go back to Sujood.
If you're praying alone, you can finish in the same spot, or go back to where you started; either is fine.
If you're the imam or a follower and the congregation is still going, join back in and finish with them. You come back the way a Lahiq does: do the parts you missed without reciting, then follow along with everyone else.
If the congregation has already finished by the time you get back, just finish the rest of the prayer by yourself, without reciting.

Note

For bina to be allowed at all, a bunch of things have to be true: the problem has to be something only wudu (not a full ghusl) can fix; it has to happen by itself, not something you did on purpose; it has to be a normal, common kind of thing to happen, not something really unusual; you can't have missed a whole pillar of the prayer because of it; you have to stay where you were when it happened; you can't do anything that would otherwise break the prayer; you can't do anything unnecessary; you can't take so long getting back that you miss a pillar without a good reason; you can't suddenly remember an OLDER hadath from before; a follower has to pick up in the same position they were in if the congregation is still there; the imam mustn't hand over to someone unqualified; and you mustn't lose track of the right order while catching up. If even one of these isn't true, you can't just continue; you have to start again.

If the imam is the one whose wudu breaks, he steps aside right away and lets a follower take over leading, in the very same spot, while he goes to make wudu. This substitute is called a Khalifa.

How a substitute imam (Khalifa) works

It's best for the imam to pick someone capable to be his Khalifa: ideally a Mudrik (someone who's been there since the start), though a Masbooq or Lahiq can be picked too.
If the imam doesn't pick anyone, the followers can choose someone themselves, or someone can just step up and lead; that's fine too, as long as the imam hasn't left the mosque and the rows are properly formed.
If there's only one follower and the imam leaves without picking anyone, that one follower can just become the imam without needing to make any special intention for it.
If a Masbooq is picked as Khalifa, he should first finish his own missed part of the prayer, then hand over to someone else to finish the prayer with everyone, while the original imam catches up on what he missed too.
An imam can only appoint a Khalifa when it's the kind of situation where continuing (bina) is allowed in the first place. If it's not allowed, he can't appoint anyone; everyone has to start over.
Even an imam who can't recite properly out of fear or nervousness, and can't manage even one verse, may still appoint a Khalifa.
Once a Khalifa takes over, the original imam is no longer the imam; he becomes a follower, behind his own Khalifa.

If an impurity (hadath) occurs during prayer (the wudu breaks), the prayer does not automatically become invalid, provided certain conditions are met. It is then permissible to continue the prayer from the position where the impurity occurred (for example, resuming from the sajdah) after performing wudu. It is, however, better to restart the prayer from the beginning, especially for someone praying alone. For an imam or a follower, it is preferable to rejoin and continue with the congregation after performing wudu, as long as the congregation is still present; if the congregation disperses before they can return, it is better to restart the prayer from the beginning.

On returning after wudu:

Resuming the prayer after wudu

Go for wudu immediately and return as quickly as possible.
Continue the prayer from the point where the impurity occurred, resuming the relevant position such as the sajdah or ruku.
If praying alone, one may continue in the same place or return to the original spot; either is valid.
If the congregation is still present, rejoin it and complete the prayer, resuming in the manner of a Lahiq: performing the missed parts without recitation, then following the imam.
If the congregation has left before one returns, the rest of the prayer is completed individually, without recitation, either in the place where wudu was made or back at the original spot.

Valid continuation (bina) requires all of the following conditions to be met:

Conditions for valid bina

The impurity requires only wudu, not a full ghusl.
The impurity is involuntary, not deliberately caused.
The occurrence of the impurity is a common one, not something rare or unusual.
No pillar of the prayer has been missed because of the impurity.
The person has not moved from the place where the impurity occurred.
The person does not perform any action that contradicts the prayer.
The person does not perform any unnecessary actions.
The prayer is not delayed to the extent of missing a pillar without a valid excuse.
The person does not recall an earlier impurity from before the one just experienced.
A follower resumes in the same position as before, if the congregation is still present.
The imam does not appoint someone unqualified to lead in his place.
The order of the prayer is not lost while making up the missed parts.

If the imam experiences an impurity during the prayer, even in the final sitting after the Tashahhud, he should immediately step aside, letting a follower take his place in the same position to complete the prayer, while he himself goes to perform wudu. The follower who takes over is called a Khalifa (substitute).

Rules for appointing a Khalifa

It is preferable for the imam to appoint someone he considers fit for leadership as his Khalifa; it is better to appoint a Mudrik, though appointing a Masbooq or a Lahiq is also allowed.
If the imam does not appoint a Khalifa, but the followers appoint someone themselves, or someone steps forward and intends to lead, this is still valid, provided the imam has not left the mosque, and the setting is not one (such as an open field) where the rows are not properly aligned.
If there is only one follower behind the imam, and the imam leaves without appointing a Khalifa, that single follower may become the imam without needing any specific intention, provided they are capable of leading.
If the imam appoints a Masbooq as Khalifa, the Masbooq should first complete his own missed parts of the prayer, then appoint someone else to finish the prayer with the congregation's final salutation, while the original imam completes his own missed parts separately.
The imam may only appoint a Khalifa in situations where continuing the prayer (bina) is itself permissible; where bina is not valid, he cannot appoint a Khalifa, and the prayer must be restarted.
If an imam is unable to recite the required parts of the prayer due to fear, shyness or another reason, and cannot manage even one verse, it is still permissible for him to appoint a Khalifa.
Once a Khalifa is appointed, the original imam is no longer the imam; he becomes a follower (muqtadi) behind his own Khalifa.

The onset of a ḥadath during the prayer (the breaking of wuḍūʾ) does not of itself invalidate it, provided the conditions of bināʾ (valid continuation) are satisfied. Where they are, the worshipper may, after renewing wuḍūʾ, resume the prayer from the point of interruption (for instance, resuming from the sajdah). Restarting the prayer ab initio is nonetheless preferable, particularly for a munfarid. For an imam or muqtadī, rejoining and continuing with the jamāʿah, where it remains in session, is preferred to completing alone; where the jamāʿah has dispersed before his return, restarting the prayer entirely is preferable.

Procedure on resuming after wuḍūʾ

Proceed to wuḍūʾ at once and return with the least possible delay.
Resume the prayer at the point of interruption, re-entering the relevant rukn (sajdah or rukūʿ, as the case may be).
A munfarid may resume either in the place where wuḍūʾ was performed or return to the original place of prayer; both are valid.
Where the jamāʿah remains in session, the worshipper rejoins it and completes the prayer in the manner of a lāḥiq: making up the missed portion without qirāʾah, then following the imam.
Where the jamāʿah has already dispersed, the remainder of the prayer is completed individually, without qirāʾah, in either location.

Bināʾ is valid only where every one of the following conditions holds:

The conditions of valid bināʾ

The ḥadath is one requiring only wuḍūʾ, not ghusl.
It arose involuntarily (ghayr ikhtiyārī), not through the worshipper's own act.
Its occurrence is of a common (ghālib), not a rare, kind.
No rukn of the prayer has been missed on account of it.
The worshipper has not shifted from the place where it occurred.
No act contradicting the prayer (munāfī li'ṣ-ṣalāh) has been performed in the interval.
No superfluous act has been performed.
The return is not delayed to the point of missing a rukn without a valid excuse.
The worshipper does not, in the interval, call to mind an earlier ḥadath preceding this one.
A muqtadī resumes in the identical position he occupied before, where the jamāʿah remains.
The imam does not appoint an unqualified khalīfah in his place.
The tartīb of the prayer is not lost in the course of making up the interrupted portion.

Where the imam's ḥadath occurs during the prayer (even within the final qaʿdah, after the tashahhud), he withdraws at once, a muqtadī taking his place in situ to complete the prayer while he himself departs for wuḍūʾ. The muqtadī who assumes this role is termed the khalīfah.

The rules of appointing a khalīfah

The imam is to appoint whomever he considers fit to lead; a mudrik is preferred, though a masbūq or a lāḥiq may also be appointed.
Where the imam appoints no one, but the congregation appoints someone itself, or an individual steps forward and forms the intention to lead, this remains valid, provided the imam has not yet left the mosque, and the setting is not one, such as open ground, where the rows are not properly aligned.
Where only a single muqtadī stands behind the imam, and the imam departs without appointing a khalīfah, that muqtadī becomes imam without need of any distinct niyyah, provided he is himself capable of leading.
Where the imam appoints a masbūq as khalīfah, the masbūq first completes his own missed portion, then appoints a further khalīfah to conclude the congregation's prayer with the closing salutation, while the original imam separately completes what he himself had missed.
The imam may appoint a khalīfah only in circumstances where bināʾ is itself valid; where it is not, no khalīfah may be appointed, and the prayer must be recommenced.
An imam prevented by fear, shyness or another cause from reciting even a single āyah of what is required of him may nonetheless validly appoint a khalīfah.
On the khalīfah's appointment taking effect, the original imam ceases to be imam and becomes a muqtadī behind his own khalīfah.

Terms on this page

hadath khalifa