⌘ K
In plain terms
Ada
Pronunciation guide not yet available.
Source entry · Editorial review pending ↗
Ada is performing an act of worship inside the time the law set for it.
What it means for me: This is why a mufti's first question about a missed or delayed prayer is often 'when did you pray it?'. The answer decides which chapter of fiqh applies: ada, or the different rules for qada. Knowing the time matters as much as knowing the act itself.
Example: A man wakes to find the sun already up and asks about the dawn prayer. From the answer's first line, he learns his question is no longer about ada. It has moved to a different chapter.
Do not confuse with: Qada and i'adah. Ada is done in time, and qada is done after time runs out. I'adah repeats the act within the same time, for a defect in the first try.
If scholars differ: Some scholars call a person who caught part of the time and finished after it ended a performer of ada. Others call the same person someone who is making qada. The difference is named here as a difference and not decided; the mufti is the reference.
Related terms
Qada
Qada is making up a missed obligatory act of worship, most often a fast or a prayer, at a later time. It applies when the original was missed for a valid reason, such as illness…
I'adah
I'adah is repeating an act of worship within its original time window, to fix a defect or reach greater completeness.
Sihhah
Sihhah names an act or contract that met every pillar and condition required, so its intended legal effect applies in full.
Shart
Shart names something required for an act to count, standing outside the act itself rather than forming one of its essential parts.
Rukn
Rukn names a part so essential to an act or contract that without it, nothing recognizable as that act exists at all.
Udhr
Udhr is a valid excuse — illness, travel, or forgetfulness, among others — that Islamic law recognizes and eases a duty for.