Salah by an epileptic person

Q 3: A twenty-nine-year-old girl has been physically handicapped since she was two years old, as her left hand has stopped growing and is smaller than the other hand. She also suffers from sporadic hysteric fits. Her mental ability (Part No. 5; Page No. 22) is limited, which means that she thinks and acts like a child. She is uneducated and has never offered Salah (Prayer) all her life although she observes Sawm (Fast) during Ramadan. Is her father sinful because he does not order her to offer Salah? Is she obliged to offer Salah? If the answer is in the affirmative, how then could she perform Wudu' (ablution) and offer Salah? Is there any advice you would like to give as far as this girl and her Muslim parents are concerned?

A: If this girl comes back to her senses at certain times, she should perform the legal duties pertaining to Salah, Sawm, and other obligatory acts of worship. However, when she loses her mind, she is not obliged to observe the obligatory acts of worship. This is according to the Hadith: There are three (persons) whose actions are not recorded... Among the three persons mentioned in the Hadith is the insane person until they recover their mind. Furthermore, it is incumbent upon her parents to be lenient and kind to her and to give her the necessary education to benefit her in her worldly and religious affairs. The most important thing is to teach her how to offer Salah and its related rulings, including Taharah (ritual purification) from major and minor ritual impurity. The parents will definitely be rewarded for that.May Allah grant us success. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.