I say, and with God's success: From Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) who said: "Between a man and polytheism and disbelief is the abandonment of prayer," in Sahih Muslim 1: 88, and Sunan al-Tirmidhi 5: 13. In another narration: "There is nothing between the servant and disbelief except the abandonment of prayer," in Musnad Abu Awana 1: 63, and Musnad al-Shihab 1: 18. These hadiths should not be taken at face value, but rather can be interpreted as follows: First: They are meant to emphasize the seriousness and importance of prayer. Imam al-Laknawi said in Naafi al-Mufti, p. 177: "The hadiths indicating the disbelief of the one who abandons prayer are meant for admonition and reproach." Second: They are understood in the linguistic sense of disbelief. Imam al-Tahawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said: "The disbelief mentioned in this hadith is not the disbelief in Allah, but rather, according to the scholars of language, it covers the faith of the one who abandons prayer and obscures it until it becomes predominant over him, covering it. From this is the saying of Allah, Glorified and Exalted: {The example of a rain that amazed the farmers} (Al-Hadid: 20), meaning the farmers who cover what they plant in the earth, not the disbelievers in Allah, Glorified and Exalted. From this is what has been narrated about the Prophet (peace be upon him) in the hadith of the solar eclipse: "I was shown the fire, and I saw that most of its inhabitants were women." They said: "Why, O Messenger of Allah?" He said: "Because of their disbelief." It was said: "Do they disbelieve in Allah, the Mighty and Majestic?" He said: "They disbelieve in their husbands and disbelieve in kindness. If you were to do good to one of them for a lifetime, and then she saw something from you, she would say: 'I have never seen any good from you.'" In Sahih Muslim 2: 626, and Sahih Bukhari 1: 357. He named what they do in covering kindness as disbelief. From this is what has been narrated from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) in his saying: "Cursing a Muslim is wickedness, and fighting him is disbelief," in Sahih Muslim 1: 61, and Sahih Bukhari 1: 27. This was not about disbelief in Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, but rather it was about what has obscured his faith due to his vile actions... and Allah knows best so that these narrations are sound and do not differ," and Allah knows best.