QUESTION ❓
Assalamu
Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh, Sheikh Khamis.
Jumu'ah Mubarak.
May Allah accept your acts of worship and grant you good health.
My question is about a woman passing in front of someone who is performing salah. Does her passing invalidate his prayer if he has placed a sutrah (a barrier) in front of him? If he has not placed a sutrah, must he repeat his prayer if a woman passes in front of him?
Thank you very
much.
ANSWER
❗️
Wa Alaikumus Salam
wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.
All praise is due
to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah (peace and
blessings be upon him).
The ruling on a
woman passing in front of someone performing salah is a matter on which Islamic
scholars have differed because of their different interpretations of the
relevant hadiths.
To understand the
issue properly, we need to distinguish between passing in front of a person who
is praying, passing beyond the barrier placed in front of that person, and the
question of whether the prayer itself becomes invalid.
1.
The Hadith Concerning a Woman Passing in Front of Someone Praying
Abu Dharr (may
Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet Muhammad (peace and
blessings be upon him) said that the prayer is interrupted when a woman, a
donkey, or a black dog passes in front of a person praying without a sutrah.
Reference: Sahih Muslim, Hadith 510 in some numbering systems;
numbering varies by edition.
Scholars have
differed over how to understand the expression that the prayer is interrupted.
Some understand it to mean that the prayer becomes invalid under the conditions
described in the hadith, while others interpret it differently.
This difference of
interpretation is the basis of the disagreement among the schools of Islamic
jurisprudence.
2.
The View of Scholars Who Consider the Prayer Invalidated
Some scholars,
including a reported position associated with Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal and
scholars of the Zahiri school, hold that the passage of an adult woman directly
in front of a person praying without a sutrah invalidates the prayer under the
conditions they specify.
Scholars who adopt
this interpretation take the wording of the hadith seriously and understand it
as indicating that the prayer is interrupted in a legally significant sense.
However, this is
not the only recognised scholarly interpretation of the hadith.
3.
The View of the Majority of Scholars
The majority
position associated with the Hanafi, Maliki, and Shafi'i schools is that a
woman's passing in front of someone praying does not, by itself, invalidate the
prayer.
One of the
evidences cited in this discussion is the report of Aishah (may Allah be
pleased with her), who said that she would lie in front of the Prophet Muhammad
(peace and blessings be upon him) while he was praying. When he wanted to
prostrate, he would touch her legs, and she would draw them back.
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari 513; Sahih Muslim 512, with
numbering varying by edition.
Scholars who rely
on this report explain that the mere presence of a woman in front of someone
praying does not necessarily invalidate the prayer. They interpret the hadith
about interruption in a different way from those who consider the prayer
invalidated.
Accordingly, under
the majority position, if a woman passes in front of a man who is praying, his
prayer remains valid, although he should take reasonable steps to prevent
people from passing directly in front of him.
4.
What If the Person Has Placed a Sutrah?
A sutrah is an
object placed in front of a person praying to mark the area in which others
should not pass. It may be a wall, pillar, chair, or another suitable object.
The Prophet
Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) instructed Muslims to pray towards a
sutrah and to prevent people from passing between them and that barrier.
If a woman passes beyond
the sutrah, her passage does not affect the prayer in the manner
discussed in the hadith.
If she passes between
the worshipper and the sutrah, the situation is different, because she
has passed within the area the sutrah is intended to protect. Nevertheless,
whether that passage invalidates the prayer is subject to the scholarly
disagreement explained above.
Therefore, placing
a sutrah is an important precaution, but the ruling on the validity of the
prayer still depends on the scholarly position being followed.
5.
What If the Person Did Not Place a Sutrah?
A person who did
not place a sutrah should not automatically assume that the prayer has become
invalid merely because a woman passed in front of him.
According to the
majority position, the prayer remains valid, and it does not need to be
repeated solely for that reason.
According to the
stricter position, the prayer may be invalidated if the relevant conditions are
fulfilled. Someone who follows this position should consult a qualified scholar
about the specific circumstances of the incident.
It is important
not to turn a recognised scholarly disagreement into a reason for accusing
others of praying incorrectly.
6.
Is It Permissible to Pass in Front of Someone Performing Salah?
Regardless of the
disagreement about whether the prayer is invalidated, Muslims should avoid
passing directly between a worshipper and their sutrah.
The Prophet
Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) warned against passing in front of
someone who is praying.
Abu Juhaim (may
Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace and
blessings be upon him) said that if someone who passes in front of a person
praying knew the seriousness of the matter, waiting for a long period would be
better for him than passing in front of that person.
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari 510; Sahih Muslim 507, with
numbering varying by edition.
This warning
demonstrates the importance of respecting a person's prayer and avoiding
unnecessary disturbance.
7.
What About Someone Praying Behind an Imam?
When a person is
praying behind an imam, the imam's sutrah serves as the sutrah for the
congregation according to the relevant scholarly discussions.
Consequently, a
person praying behind the imam should not treat every person crossing in front
of the rows as though that person were crossing directly in front of an
individual praying alone.
The circumstances
of the congregation and the position of the imam should be considered when
applying the relevant rulings.
CONCLUSION
The ruling on a
woman passing in front of someone performing salah depends on the circumstances
and the scholarly interpretation being followed.
·
If a sutrah is present and the woman passes beyond it: Her passage does not affect the prayer in the manner
addressed by the hadith.
·
If she passes between the worshipper and the sutrah: Scholars differ on whether the prayer is invalidated.
·
If there is no sutrah: The majority of scholars hold that the prayer remains
valid and does not need to be repeated solely because a woman passed in front
of the worshipper.
·
If someone follows the view that the prayer is
invalidated: They should seek
qualified scholarly guidance concerning the conditions of that ruling.
Muslims should
endeavour to use a sutrah, avoid passing directly in front of people who are
praying, and respect the recognised differences of opinion among qualified
scholars.
Wallāhu
Taʿālā Aʿlam — And Allah knows best.
Zauren Fatawoyi Bisa Alƙur'ani da Sunnah
ﺳُﺒﺤَﺎﻧَﻚَ ﺍﻟﻠَّﻬُﻢَّ ﻭَﺑِﺤَﻤْﺪِﻙَ ﺃﺷْﻬَﺪُ ﺃﻥ ﻟَﺎ ﺇِﻟَﻪَ ﺇِﻻَّ ﺃﻧْﺖَ ﺃﺳْﺘَﻐْﻔِﺮُﻙَ ﻭﺃَﺗُﻮﺏُ ﺇِﻟَﻴْﻚ
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