A word on: some people exposing their shoulders outside of tawaf, and their praying with their shoulders exposed

The Shaykh: All praise is due to Allah; we praise Him, seek His help, and seek His forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah from the evil of our own selves and from the evil of our deeds. Whoever Allah guides, none can misguide, and whoever He misguides, none can guide. And I bear witness that there is no god but Allah alone, with no partner, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His slave and His Messenger.
As for what follows: I wish to complete a topic I mentioned when we stood for prayer, which is that we see many pilgrims, before entering Makkah and after finishing tawaf and sa'y, rushing about with their right shoulders exposed. Perhaps you know that it is a sunnah (recommended practice) ... regarding it, to expose the right shoulder until the end of the seventh lap, as is the stronger position, and then to return his izar (lower garment) or rida' (cloak) to its proper place, if he was wearing it before starting tawaf. That is, he must cover the shoulder he exposed for the sake of tawaf. But most people, as the Lord of the Worlds said: , so you see them exposing their shoulders from the time of entering ihram at the miqat, and continuing like that for as long as Allah wills. First, this is contrary to the sunnah, and any act of worship that is contrary to the sunnah must not be taken lightly by the Muslim, nor should he think that the matter is easy. Rather, the matter is that it is misguidance, in the explicit words of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): . And as some of the Companions said, and especially among them Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman (may Allah be pleased with him): "Any act of worship that the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) did not perform, do not perform it; do not worship with it." Any act of worship that the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) did not perform, do not draw near to Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) with it, because the acts of worship that bring us near to Allah are only those that came to us through the path of our Prophet (may Allah's prayers and peace be upon him), because worship is only worship by his specification (peace and blessings be upon him) for us, and not by our opinions and desires. Our righteous Salaf (the earliest generations) knew this reality, which the masses of the Khalaf (the later generations) were blind to, despite the many hadiths that warn that any act of worship that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) did not bring is misguidance. As it came in "Sahih Muslim": , al-Nasa'i added: . Therefore, one should not take lightly the introduction of some innovations in matters under the claim that they bring us near to Allah. And if it is the truth that the scholars say—reality is more eloquent than words—we read from the state of these pilgrims who spend many days with their shoulders exposed, enduring the harm of heat and cold, which would only be so if they claimed it is worship. How can it be worship when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) did not legislate it for us from his Lord except in that place I mentioned just now? Which is during tawaf. This is one thing.
And a second thing, which is more dangerous, is that these people who draw near to Allah (Mighty and Majestic) by exposing their shoulders throughout the days of Hajj, despite the fact that we mentioned they innovated something for which Allah sent no authority, they fall into a serious violation when we see them standing for prayer in the Sacred Mosque, or in other mosques, or in Mina, or in other places of the rites. They stand to pray with their shoulders exposed; at that time, they fall into another violation.
The first violation: their contradiction of the hadiths prohibiting bid'ah (religious innovation), and that every bid'ah is misguidance. They contradict a general legal principle.
As for the first violation; they contradict a specific hadith regarding prayer, where he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: . This hadith is very important, first in terms of its narration; it is a valid (sahih) hadith in al-Bukhari. Second, in terms of its understanding and implication, because it indicates the invalidity of the prayer of one who prays with his shoulder exposed, or both shoulders exposed, and a fortiori with the upper part of the body exposed.
We are now among some of our brothers who expose the upper part of their bodies. There is no harm in that for them, because they are cooling off. But they must be aware that when the prayer is established, they must put this garment back and throw it over their shoulders, due to the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): . His saying (Glorified and Exalted is He): . This noble verse, although the original reason for its revelation, or the cause of its revelation, was that the Arabs in the jahiliyyah (the pre-Islamic age of ignorance) used to circumambulate the Ka'bah naked, women and men—and this was part of their ignorance!—when Islam came, Allah (Mighty and Majestic) revealed this verse to discipline and teach them, saying: . The intended meaning of "adornment" in this hadith, considering the reason for revelation, is covering the 'awrah (the part of the body that must be covered). The 'awrah for which prayer is invalid by the consensus of the four schools of jurisprudence if it is exposed. But there is in the madhhab (school of jurisprudence) of Imam Ahmad a specific 'awrah for prayer, specific for prayer, which is the upper part of the body. It is not permissible for the one praying, if he has a garment with which to cover his upper body, to pray with his upper body exposed. Why? Because of the previous hadith in al-Bukhari: , and the other hadith, which I mentioned just now, which is in "Sunan Abu Dawud" from the hadith of Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him). He said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: . We take from this hadith and the one before it that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) expanded the implication of His saying (Glorified and Exalted is He): , because the reason for revelation limits the implication of the verse to covering the 'awrah; because they—as we mentioned—used to circumambulate naked, even the women, until one of them, when she circumambulated naked, would say, making an excuse, and what an ugly excuse it is! But there is no sin after kufr (disbelief)—as it is said!—she would say while circumambulating naked:
"Today some of it is exposed, or all of it, / And what is exposed of it, I do not make lawful"
To whom is this address? To the people of the jahiliyyah. Is this their excuse valid? This is the whispering of Shaytan (Satan) to the children of Adam who do not take refuge in the sanctuary of the Most Merciful with the Shari'ah (Islamic sacred law) of Islam. Shaytan beautified for them the ugliness of tawaf with clothes and said to them, and some of them transmitted it to others: "We do not circumambulate with clothes in which we have disobeyed Allah." Thus Shaytan beautified it for them, but they circumambulate with hearts in which they have disobeyed Allah, and that is uglier and uglier. So Allah (Mighty and Majestic) revealed this verse specifically regarding this tawaf with the 'awrah exposed: . So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) expanded the implication of the verse and included in it every prescribed adornment, saying: , and he explained the reason for it by his saying (peace be upon him): .
Therefore, it is not permissible for the one praying to be lenient when he stands for prayer on ordinary days ... It is not permissible for the one praying to enter his prayer in his suit clothes, in his house clothes—and upon you be peace and the mercy of Allah and His blessings ...—rather, they must first realize: the text of the hadith, and second: its explanation. The text: , the explanation: .
The point is that among the principles of the Shari'ah is that “what leads to an obligatory act is itself obligatory, and what leads to a forbidden act is itself forbidden.” Therefore, the pilgrims uncovering their shoulders: first, it involves the first prohibition, which is drawing near to Allah by means of what Allah has not prescribed. Second, they expose their prayer to invalidity by contradicting the saying of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him): . It is inevitable that some students of knowledge will find difficulty with such a hadith. One day, he either read or heard the hadith in the *Sahihayn* from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that a man said: He said: . This hadith may appear to conflict with the hadith: . It conflicts in the minds of some people, and is more difficult than this hadith of Jabir ibn 'Abd Allah al-Ansari, when a man saw him praying without a garment on his shoulders, but rather saw him praying wearing only a waist-wrapping. So he asked him about it: “How do you pray with one garment while your other garment is hanging on the peg?” — and the peg is the pole on which clothes are hung, which in the language of the present day is called...
Al-Hawini: The hanger.

The Shaykh: Yes? A hanger. The peg is better than a hanger; it is the device on which clothes are hung. One of the attendees objected to Jabir ibn 'Abd Allah al-Ansari (may Allah be pleased with them both) for praying in one garment while his other garment was hanging on the peg. He said, “That is so that a fool like you sees me and thinks that the prayer is not valid except with two garments!”
This is undoubtedly more difficult than the hadith of Abu Hurayrah: . So here, we must inform our students of knowledge to remember with us the method of the scholars in reconciling hadiths that appear to conflict, even at first glance.
First: — and this is the most important — the hadith of Jabir: There is no doubt that the action of Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) indicates the validity of the prayer of one who prays with the upper part of the body uncovered. But does the action of this Companion have the strength to contradict the indication of a hadith that is traced to the Prophet, is authentic in its transmission, and is explicit in its meaning? The answer is: No, by the consensus of the scholars. Therefore, it was said: “When a report (athar) comes, reasoning (nazar) is void,” and “When the river of Allah comes, the river of Ma'qil is void.” And the scholars of usul al-fiqh said: “There is no independent legal reasoning (ijtihad) in the place of an explicit text.” Here, there is the opinion of a noble Companion and an explicit hadith that contradicts the opinion or action of that Companion. Therefore, we must return to the one to whom we are commanded to return in case of disagreement, as Allah (Mighty and Majestic) said: . Therefore, the school of the Imam of the Sunnah and the most knowledgeable of the four Imams regarding the Sunnah, Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (may Allah have mercy on him), was to act according to the first hadith: . This is because, first, the hadith is established, and second, its indication is explicit. This indication admits no discussion or debate. As for the hadith of Abu Hurayrah, the matter is easy; because his (peace and blessings be upon him) answer was pointing to the fact that one who prays in one garment does so because he may not find another garment. Therefore, he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: . Perhaps Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him), when he did what we mentioned earlier, was first relying on this second hadith of Abu Hurayrah: . And second: the prohibition of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) against praying in one garment when one possesses two garments had not reached him. And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) emphasized the importance of covering the upper part of the body, even if one has only one garment. He said: . So, if a person has only one garment, and he is able to cover his upper part along with the lower part, then this is his obligation. If the garment does not help him do so because it is narrow or short, then at that time, he must cover the 'awrah, which is the 'awrah in prayer and outside of prayer.
This is what I wanted to clarify on the occasion of some people performing *idtiba'* (draping the garment over the left shoulder) outside of the tawaf, and praying with their shoulders uncovered. This is not permissible. The legislation of Allah is based on following, not on innovation. Please.

The questioner: The statement of Jabir to the man; should it not have the status of being traced to the Prophet? And consequently, we should interpret the prohibition of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) as being disliked (makruh) rather than forbidden (haram)?

The Shaykh: Why? First, it is assumed that the opinion of a Companion should have the status of being traced to the Prophet? And there is a discussion that students of knowledge must be aware of due to its importance; which is: — and I remind you as an interjection that some of our brothers drink while standing, and drinking while standing has been prohibited by the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) — and this is an interjection; I do not want to hold a lecture on it so that we do not lose the answer to the last question. As for drinking while standing, it has a specific discussion, perhaps we will have the opportunity to delve into it on another occasion — if Allah wills —.
= So I return to say: If a statement comes from some of the Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), are Muslims obligated by it? Are they obligated to adopt it or not?
The answer: If the statement of that Companion has the status of being traced to the Prophet, such that it cannot be said to be based on independent legal reasoning (ijtihad), which is sometimes subject to error and sometimes to correctness, if it has the status of being traced to the Prophet, it is adopted. Otherwise, it is left to its speaker. This is the ruling on reports (mawquf) stopping at the Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family). We must look at them: are they such that they cannot be said except by a command from the Prophet, as we mentioned to you earlier regarding Ibn Mas'ud, who said: “When the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) died, we said: Peace be upon the Prophet.” This is specific to him; because it is not possible to manipulate the matters of his (peace and blessings be upon him) affairs based merely on opinion and independent legal reasoning. As for a statement coming to us from a Companion, it is possible that this statement is based on the original presumption of permissibility, and the original ruling for things is permissibility. And it is possible that the prohibition transferring from the original presumption of permissibility to a new ruling has not reached him.
...
The reports that came stopping at one of the Companions, the statement of Ibn 'Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him), he said: “The Qur'an was sent down as a single unit to the House of Glory in the lowest heaven, then it was sent down in scattered verses according to events.” End of the hadith of Ibn 'Abbas, or we say end of the statement of Ibn 'Abbas. This is a statement in which Ibn 'Abbas did not say “The Messenger of Allah said” or “I heard the Messenger of Allah.” So is this adopted or not? The answer: Such a statement cannot be said based on opinion and independent legal reasoning, because it speaks about some of the unseen matters. How would Ibn 'Abbas know, and he is not revealed to, that the Qur'an was sent down as a single block, a single unit, to the lowest heaven without the second heaven or others? And how would he know that it was sent down to a place called the House of Glory? And it is from the lowest heaven. These are unseen matters, and humans have no ability to speak about them except by guessing about the unseen, as the astrologers, fortune-tellers, and diviners do. And far be it from Ibn 'Abbas — who is the interpreter of the Qur'an — to guess and speak by guessing about the unseen... Therefore, the scholars say: This report is mawquf (stopping at a Companion) but has the status of being traced to the Prophet, because it cannot be said based merely on opinion. If we know this principle that must be applied to mawquf reports, some of them have the status of being traced to the Prophet, and we have no choice but to accept them, and some of them we have the choice to accept or reject, on the condition that we do not contradict an explicit text traced to the Prophet. This condition here regarding the action of Jabir — we say on the condition that we do not contradict — if we do the action of Jabir, we have contradicted the explicit saying of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him): .
Reconciling this hadith with the athar of Jabir is precluded on two counts. The first is that one only reconciles two explicit texts... but since we mentioned earlier that Jabir's athar is mawquf (stopping at a Companion) and not in the category of marfu' (traced to the Prophet), we are under no obligation to reconcile it with the marfu' hadith. The second point is that the heavy emphatic nun (nun al-ta'kid al-mushaddadah) accompanying the prohibition: prevents that interpretation and compels us to be certain that this hadith contains a new ruling in addition to the previous ruling known to all scholars, which is that it is obligatory for a Muslim to cover his 'awrah (part of the body that must be covered) from below the navel to the knee. His statement: is a prohibition of prayer, and this confirms the invalidity of the prayer, as long as there is no marfu' hadith from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that compels us to reconcile it with this hadith in any of the ways of reconciliation, which are numerous and well-known among jurists.