A woman praying while sitting despite being able to stand
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
This questioner asks, saying: Is it permissible for a woman to pray while sitting when she is able to stand?
Answer:
The prayer is of two types: obligatory and voluntary. It is not permissible for a man or a woman to pray the obligatory prayer while sitting; rather, both the woman and the man must pray it while standing, provided they are able to do so. Allah the Exalted said:[Al-Baqarah 2:238] And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to 'Imran ibn al-Husayn when he was afflicted with illness: Bulugh al-Maram 2:357 Al-Bukhari narrated it in his Sahih.
As for voluntary prayer, there is no harm in it. If a person prays voluntary prayer while sitting, such as the night prayer, the Duha prayer, and the like, there is no blame on him. However, standing is better. If he prays while standing, it is worth two [units of reward]. As for the obligatory prayer, it must be performed while standing if one is able: the Dhuhr, 'Asr, Maghrib, 'Isha', and Fajr. Likewise, a vowed prayer is performed while standing.
This questioner asks, saying: Is it permissible for a woman to pray while sitting when she is able to stand?
Answer:
The prayer is of two types: obligatory and voluntary. It is not permissible for a man or a woman to pray the obligatory prayer while sitting; rather, both the woman and the man must pray it while standing, provided they are able to do so. Allah the Exalted said:
and stand before Allah, devoutly obedient.
وَقُومُوا لِلَّهِ قَانِتِينَPray standing; and if you are unable, (pray) sitting; and if you are unable, (pray) lying on your side.
صل قائما، فإن لم تستطع فقائدا، فإن لم تستطع فعلى جنبAs for voluntary prayer, there is no harm in it. If a person prays voluntary prayer while sitting, such as the night prayer, the Duha prayer, and the like, there is no blame on him. However, standing is better. If he prays while standing, it is worth two [units of reward]. As for the obligatory prayer, it must be performed while standing if one is able: the Dhuhr, 'Asr, Maghrib, 'Isha', and Fajr. Likewise, a vowed prayer is performed while standing.
Source
واجب الرجل والمرأة — islamhouse.com (1:07:55)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.