Bismillahi Al-Rahmani Al-Rahim

 Prayer And Adverse Weather Conditions (2)
Q
 Assalaamu 'Alaikum wa rahmatu-allahi wa barakatuhu,

Thank you for your kind reply.  You mentioned Maghrib
and 'Isha being joined, does this same ruling apply to
Dhur and 'Asr?  I assume that the dispensation that
you mentioned is the the position that school stands
upon.  Is there a minority opinion that has a more
loose application, such as expected hardship (forecast
of rain, ice, fierce wind, or snow)which has not
occurred at the beginning of either of the salats that
are to be combined?  Or are the only acceptable
rulings existing with the Handbali Mathhab essentially
the same ruling which exist in the other mathahab? May
Allah grant you success in this life and the next.

 A
 wa `alaykum al-salam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu

The adverse weather conditions mentioned in the previous message apply only to Maghrib and Isha`. Al-`Uddah Sharh Al-`Umdah does not indicate an alternative position that includes joining between Zuhr and `Asr.

The positions given on the list are the mufta bihi positions of the madhhab--the positions used for fatwa--unless stated otherwise.

I have never seen expected hardship with regards to this issue. The existence of hardship [mushaqah] is the underlying cause for this ruling. Since rain alone is not strong enough for this dispensation to apply--rather, the rain must make the clothes damp--the forecast of rain would not be either.

The Shafi`i madhhab allows for Zuhr and `Asr or Maghrib and Isha` to be joined because of rain, but with slightly different conditions. The mu`tamad position in the madhhab is that prayers cannot be joined as a result of sickness, mud or fear. Some Shafi`is even went to it being permissible for someone to join between prayers even while traveling provided it does not become habitual--but this is contrary to the mu`tamad. (See Kifayat Al-Akhyar (1:175, Dar Al-Basha'ir edition) for more details.)

As for the conditions in each madhhab for joining: it is imperative to actually see the position of each madhhab from the madhhab in question. While being a great scholar in one discipline does contribute to understanding other disciplines, it does not free one from the need of taking knowledge from its living masters.

wa al-salamu `alaykum
--musa