The Ruling on a Woman Passing in Front of a Praying Person and the Meaning of the Interruption

Question:
May Allah reward you. Does a woman passing in front of a praying person interrupt the prayer, and what is the meaning of the hadith mentioned in that regard?

Answer:
There is a disagreement among the scholars, and it is authentically reported in the hadith: This is authentic in the hadith from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), but they differed on the meaning of the interruption. The majority hold that the intended meaning of the interruption is the interruption of the constants. That is, it interrupts the perfection, not the validity; the prayer is valid, but its reward is deficient. The second group, consisting of the people of hadith and the meticulous scholars, held that it is a real interruption, an interruption of the validity, so the prayer is thereby invalidated, as stated in the hadith.