The ruling on covering the shoulders in prayer while in the state of ihram

Question:
The questioner asks: Is it obligatory to cover the shoulders in prayer while in the state of ihram? When doing so, the abdomen becomes exposed. What if one does it as if intending to perform tawaf, or covers the right shoulder and the area under the left armpit? What is the ruling on covering the head?

Answer:
Covering the shoulder. The command came regarding this: “None of you should pray in a single garment with nothing of it on his shoulder.” In some narrations, it is “with nothing of it on his shoulders.” Imam Ahmad and a group of scholars stated that it is obligatory, although some of them hold that the command here is for recommendation. However, the command here is explicit and there is nothing to divert it from its meaning. Therefore, it is obligatory to cover both shoulders according to the second narration, or at least one of them, even if that results in the abdomen being exposed, provided the exposure is above the navel, because what is above the navel is not an awrah (part of the body that must be covered).