The minimum and maximum duration of i'tikaf (spiritual retreat in the mosque)
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
The questioner asks: What is the maximum duration for i'tikaf (spiritual retreat in the mosque)?
Answer:
It has no fixed limit; it has no fixed limit. It can be a day, a night, less than that, or an hour. The Messenger did not specify a limit, and Allah did not specify a limit. So if one enters the mosque and stays for a day or two, there is nothing wrong with it. It has no fixed limit. Its essence is staying in the mosque to draw near to Allah, reciting the Qur'an, and engaging in other forms of worship. Therefore, it has no fixed limit. Fasting is not a condition for it, according to the correct view. Rather, one should perform it even if not fasting, as Ibn 'Abbas and others did. Due to a limit imposed by his condition, he once said: "O Messenger of Allah, what is the ruling on staying in the Sacred Mosque at night?" So Abu Bandah said...
The questioner asks: What is the maximum duration for i'tikaf (spiritual retreat in the mosque)?
Answer:
It has no fixed limit; it has no fixed limit. It can be a day, a night, less than that, or an hour. The Messenger did not specify a limit, and Allah did not specify a limit. So if one enters the mosque and stays for a day or two, there is nothing wrong with it. It has no fixed limit. Its essence is staying in the mosque to draw near to Allah, reciting the Qur'an, and engaging in other forms of worship. Therefore, it has no fixed limit. Fasting is not a condition for it, according to the correct view. Rather, one should perform it even if not fasting, as Ibn 'Abbas and others did. Due to a limit imposed by his condition, he once said: "O Messenger of Allah, what is the ruling on staying in the Sacred Mosque at night?" So Abu Bandah said...
Source
فتاوى رمضانية — islamhouse.com (47:12)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.