Ruling on listening to a tape inside the restroom
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This questioner asked me to present this question to your eminence: What is the ruling on playing a tape inside the restroom, whether it is Qur'an or a lecture?
If this tape is outside the place, there is nothing wrong with it; because if a person heard a reciter reading by himself outside the bathroom, listening would be permissible. However, if it is inside the bathroom, I have some reservations about this; because the sound is now coming from inside the bathroom. So it is better not to listen to anything containing Qur'an. As for if it is a lecture, there is nothing wrong with it. Then, it is not befitting to do this even if it is a lecture; because this leads to prolonging sitting to relieve oneself, and prolonging the time spent relieving oneself is forbidden; because the original ruling regarding exposing the 'awrah is prohibition except for a need, and when his need is finished, he stands up and does not remain with his 'awrah exposed.
The summary of the answer now is that we say: It is not befitting to listen to anything while relieving oneself; because that usually leads to prolonging the sitting.
As for if it does not lead to this, and the man is a student of knowledge and knows that it is not permissible to remain beyond his need, then if it is not Qur'an, there is nothing wrong with it, even if the recorder is inside the bathroom. And if it is Qur'an, he does not put the recorder inside the bathroom, but puts it outside, and there is nothing wrong with that.
If this tape is outside the place, there is nothing wrong with it; because if a person heard a reciter reading by himself outside the bathroom, listening would be permissible. However, if it is inside the bathroom, I have some reservations about this; because the sound is now coming from inside the bathroom. So it is better not to listen to anything containing Qur'an. As for if it is a lecture, there is nothing wrong with it. Then, it is not befitting to do this even if it is a lecture; because this leads to prolonging sitting to relieve oneself, and prolonging the time spent relieving oneself is forbidden; because the original ruling regarding exposing the 'awrah is prohibition except for a need, and when his need is finished, he stands up and does not remain with his 'awrah exposed.
The summary of the answer now is that we say: It is not befitting to listen to anything while relieving oneself; because that usually leads to prolonging the sitting.
As for if it does not lead to this, and the man is a student of knowledge and knows that it is not permissible to remain beyond his need, then if it is not Qur'an, there is nothing wrong with it, even if the recorder is inside the bathroom. And if it is Qur'an, he does not put the recorder inside the bathroom, but puts it outside, and there is nothing wrong with that.