the school of Ishaq and Abu Thawr. The Qadi said: One does not pray for tremors, severe wind, darkness, and the like. Al-Amidi said: One prays for that, as well as for falling stars, thunderbolts, and heavy rain. He attributed this to Ibn Abi Musa. The proponents of opinion (Ashab al-Ra'y) said: Praying for all portents is commendable; because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) explained the eclipse by stating that it is one of the signs of Allah Almighty, with which He frightens His servants, and Ibn 'Abbas prayed for an earthquake in Basra. This was narrated by Sa'id (4). Malik and al-Shafi'i said: One does not pray for any of the portents except the eclipse; because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) did not pray for anything else, even though some of these portents occurred in his era, and likewise [during the eras of] his successors. The justification for the prayer for an earthquake is the action of Ibn 'Abbas, but for others, one does not pray; because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) did not pray for them, nor did any of his companions. And Allah knows best.
(4) Recorded by al-Bayhaqi, in: The Chapter on the One Who Prays During an Earthquake with an Increased Number of Bowings and Standings by Analogy to the Eclipse Prayer. Al-Sunan al-Kubra 3/343. And by Ibn Abi Shaybah, in: The Chapter on Prayer During an Earthquake, from the Book of Prayers. Al-Musannaf 2/472.
