Discussion on the ruling regarding the sutrah in prayer.
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The questioner : Shaykh, I am asking you to research the issue of the sutrah. Some of the brothers, I mean, I saw some of the brothers in the mosque who did not take one.
The Shaykh : Ah, and this is one of the neglected recommended practices, and consequently abandoned. It is that the Muslim prays in the mosque, let alone outside the mosque, facing a sutrah. By this I mean, for example, the wall of the mosque. If I stand and pray here, it is not permissible; I must place the sutrah in front of me such that when I prostrate, the space between me and the sutrah is the passage of a sheep, meaning one or two hand-widths at most. But here, if I pray here, God forbid, and the sutrah is over there, that is the passage of donkeys, not the passage of sheep. So the one praying must be close to the sutrah.
The questioner : Shaykh, is it possible...
The Shaykh : In the mosque, facing the front wall of the mosque, not occupied with the people praying behind one of the worshippers, the pillars of the mosque can be taken as a sutrah for you. So here are two matters to which attention must be paid. The first: that one does not pray unless there is a sutrah close to him in front of him.
The questioner : Shaykh, you are speaking and I am applying it.
The Shaykh : And the second matter is that the space between him and the sutrah should be the passage of a sheep. Now, please, prostrate. Where is your sutrah? These legs, these are approximately the passage of a sheep. We do not need to bring a meter and measure in centimeters; approximately the passage of a sheep. But if he prays over there, there is no doubt that he is not close to the sutrah. As we said, that hour, a donkey would pass between my hands, whereas he (peace and blessings be upon him) said "the passage of a sheep." What does a sheep take up in size? This is approximately it. People now are in heedlessness, distracted. One of them enters the mosque and prays however it happens, however the matter turns out. Why? Because their minds are empty of beneficial knowledge.
The questioner : By Allah, Shaykh, he used to speak about this in the mosque, and they did not care, except for a very few. And we repeat and repeat.
The Shaykh : Allahu Akbar... Yes.
The questioner : And about standing in close rows.
The Shaykh : This ruling and its evidence are many proofs. First: he (peace and blessings be upon him) said, yes:Mishkat al-Masabih 782. A second hadith: Musannaf Abd al-Razzaq 9:605. The first: Sunan Ibn Majah 954Sahih (Darussalam), the second: Sunan Abi Dawud 695Sahih (Al-Albani); meaning: that the Muslim’s distance from the sutrah, or his prayer without a sutrah, is a cause for Satan to intervene in his prayer, to invalidate it, or to reduce its reward, as he (may Allah’s prayer and peace be upon him) said: . The levels of causes that make the prayer deficient include not praying facing a sutrah. Then his prayer may be exposed to invalidity, not just deficiency, but invalidity. And that is his saying (may Allah’s prayer and peace be upon him): , . The back of the saddle is the pole that exists on the saddles of camels. If your gaze falls upon it, they hang the bags or the sacks containing their belongings on it, and they tie them there. This is the back of the saddle. In the front, sometimes there is something like a pole, and they wrap their leg around it. If you see something like this, it will be at the back, meaning the height of one or two hand-widths. The sutrah must be at this height. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Bulugh al-Maram 2:98. And this is what the one praying is exposed to in the two mosques, the Sacred Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque. There, people do not care, until their ignorance has reached the point where they say, "The Sacred Mosque does not need a sutrah."
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : This is ignorance.
The questioner : By Allah, I heard...
The Shaykh : This is terrible ignorance.
The questioner : Is it permissible, Shaykh, for us to pass in front of him?
The Shaykh : How?
The questioner : In prostration, is it permissible for us to pass in front of him?
The Shaykh : Meaning, he has raised his head from prostration.
The questioner : He has finished prostration and is in the tashahhud, the final tashahhud.
The Shaykh : It is not permissible to pass except behind the place of prostration.
The questioner : Until he finishes the salam, he gives the salam.
The Shaykh : Until he gives the salam.
The questioner : If he does not have a sutrah, Shaykh, what is the distance?
The Shaykh : Behind the place of prostration.
The questioner : Behind the place of prostration.
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : Likewise, a woman, after the place of prostration, does she not cut across?
The Shaykh : If she passes between him and the sutrah, she does not cut across.
The questioner : No, without a sutrah, after prostration, can she pass?
The Shaykh : Yes, she does not cut across unless she passes between him and the place of prostration.
The questioner : Which is the passage of the sheep, our Shaykh, meaning after the passage of the sheep.
The Shaykh : Meaning, if she passes...
The questioner : Yes, after the passage of the sheep.
The Shaykh : No, no, the passage of the sheep.
The questioner : The passage of the sheep.
The Shaykh : Yes, yes, meaning this is the passage of the sheep, and here is the place of prostration. And this man is praying. The woman passed here, it does not harm. But she passed here.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : It harms.
The questioner : Meaning, from his prostration and coming, our Shaykh.
The Shaykh : We said, between him and the place of prostration.
The questioner : If he is not placing a sutrah, he is sitting and praying in the middle of the mosque.
The Shaykh : We are saying, oh professor...
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : We spoke about the sutrah, was it clear?
The questioner : It was clear.
The Shaykh : Now, here there is no sutrah. She passed here, the prayer is invalid. She passed here, here, she passed here, it does not harm. The important thing is that she does not pass between the one praying and the place of prostration.
The questioner : Yes, the calculation of the passage of the sheep is not present in our case.
The Shaykh : How?
The questioner : The calculation of the passage of the sheep is not present in this case.
The Shaykh : No, I did not understand.
The questioner : The calculation of the passage of the sheep after prostration is not present in this case.
The Shaykh : It is not present in this case, what do you mean, it is not present?
The questioner : Meaning, you said after prostration, there is no calculation for another hand-width.
The Shaykh : Oh brother, we gave an example, may Allah guide you. This is the passage of the sheep.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : This is the passage of the sheep, this is the place of prostration.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : She passed here, she passed here, she passed here, she passed over there, it does not harm.
The questioner : Yes, the place of prostration.
The Shaykh : This, now we raised what?
The questioner : The passage of prostration.
The Shaykh : The sutrah, the sutrah, the sutrah, we raised it.
The questioner: All right.
The Shaykh : Where did you pass? Here, here, here, here, here, here, it does not harm. She passed here, it harms.
The questioner : After prostration, meaning.
The Shaykh : Before, before.
The questioner : Before prostration. As for the passage of prostration after prostration, is there a passage of the sheep? Is the ratio of the passage of the sheep calculated here?
Another questioner : No, he will tell you, "That’s fine, if she passes, it does not harm."
Another questioner : No, I mean the sutrah is far away now, the sutrah is far away now.
The Shaykh : For you, my dear, this is what we did not place, the sutrah. This is the path of the sheep. She passed here, she passed here, she passed here, it does not cut the prayer. She passed here, between him and the place of prostration, it cuts the prayer.
The questioner : Our Shaykh, now we do not prevent anyone after prostration.
The Shaykh : We do not prevent.
The questioner : We do not prevent anyone from passing.
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.
Another questioner : Can he pass in front of him? There are people praying in the mosque... How?
The Shaykh : We did not say that it is not permissible to pray unless there is a sutrah in front of him. And this is among its good and bad consequences. I think you understood. Among its good consequences is that if one of the three passes between him and the place of prostration, and he has taken a sutrah, his prayer is valid. But if he has not taken a sutrah, his prayer is invalid. Is this clear up to here, or is it not clear?
The questioner : Meaning, if he has placed a sutrah and anyone passes.
The Shaykh : It does not harm him.
The questioner : Nothing harms him, yes.
The Shaykh : Nothing harms him. From the effects of taking a sutrah: you have taken a sutrah, this is the sutrah, and if someone wants to pass between you and it, you prevent him.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : You prevent him, you prevent him. If he wants to push you, you hit him. If, against your will, you throw him to the ground while you are praying. But if there is no sutrah, you cannot prevent him. Did you understand me?
The questioner : Except if he is between him and the prostration.
The Shaykh : Ah, and this is one of the neglected recommended practices, and consequently abandoned. It is that the Muslim prays in the mosque, let alone outside the mosque, facing a sutrah. By this I mean, for example, the wall of the mosque. If I stand and pray here, it is not permissible; I must place the sutrah in front of me such that when I prostrate, the space between me and the sutrah is the passage of a sheep, meaning one or two hand-widths at most. But here, if I pray here, God forbid, and the sutrah is over there, that is the passage of donkeys, not the passage of sheep. So the one praying must be close to the sutrah.
The questioner : Shaykh, is it possible...
The Shaykh : In the mosque, facing the front wall of the mosque, not occupied with the people praying behind one of the worshippers, the pillars of the mosque can be taken as a sutrah for you. So here are two matters to which attention must be paid. The first: that one does not pray unless there is a sutrah close to him in front of him.
The questioner : Shaykh, you are speaking and I am applying it.
The Shaykh : And the second matter is that the space between him and the sutrah should be the passage of a sheep. Now, please, prostrate. Where is your sutrah? These legs, these are approximately the passage of a sheep. We do not need to bring a meter and measure in centimeters; approximately the passage of a sheep. But if he prays over there, there is no doubt that he is not close to the sutrah. As we said, that hour, a donkey would pass between my hands, whereas he (peace and blessings be upon him) said "the passage of a sheep." What does a sheep take up in size? This is approximately it. People now are in heedlessness, distracted. One of them enters the mosque and prays however it happens, however the matter turns out. Why? Because their minds are empty of beneficial knowledge.
The questioner : By Allah, Shaykh, he used to speak about this in the mosque, and they did not care, except for a very few. And we repeat and repeat.
The Shaykh : Allahu Akbar... Yes.
The questioner : And about standing in close rows.
The Shaykh : This ruling and its evidence are many proofs. First: he (peace and blessings be upon him) said, yes:
When one of you prays facing a sutra * he should keep close to it and not let the devil interrupt his prayer.
إذا صلى أحدكم فليصلِّ إلى سترة ؛ لا يقطع الشيطان عليه صلاتهIf one of you prays, let him be close to his sutrah.
إذا صلَّى أحدكم فَلْيَدْنُ من سترتهWhen anyone of you performs prayer, let him pray facing towards a Sutrah
إذا صلَّى أحدكم فليصلِّ إلى سترةhe should keep close to it, and not let the devil interrupt his prayer
فَلْيَدْنُ من سترته ؛ لا يقطع الشيطان عليه صلاتهA man may pray a prayer for which only a tenth, a ninth, an eighth, a seventh, a sixth, a fifth, a quarter, or a half of it is recorded for him.
إن الرجل لَيُصلي صلاة ما يكتب له منها إلا عشرها ، تسعها ، ثمنها ، سبعها ، سدسها ، خمسها ، ربعها ، نصفهاIf one of you prays and there is not before him the equivalent of the rear of a saddle, then his prayer is cut off by: a woman, a donkey, and a black dog.
إذا صلَّى أحدكم وليس بين يديه مثل مؤخرة الرحل ؛ فإنه يقطع صلاته : المرأة ، والحمار ، والكلب الأسودIf one of you prays and there is not before him the equivalent of the rear of a saddle.
إذا صلى أحدكم وليس بين يديه مثل مؤخرة الرحلIn case there is not before him (an object) like the back of a saddle, a Muslim's Salat (prayer) would be cut off by (the passing of) a woman, a donkey and a black dog.
يقطع صلاة أحدكم إذا لم يكُنْ بين يديه مثل مؤخرة الرحل : المرأة ، والحمار ، والكلب الأسودThe questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : This is ignorance.
The questioner : By Allah, I heard...
The Shaykh : This is terrible ignorance.
The questioner : Is it permissible, Shaykh, for us to pass in front of him?
The Shaykh : How?
The questioner : In prostration, is it permissible for us to pass in front of him?
The Shaykh : Meaning, he has raised his head from prostration.
The questioner : He has finished prostration and is in the tashahhud, the final tashahhud.
The Shaykh : It is not permissible to pass except behind the place of prostration.
The questioner : Until he finishes the salam, he gives the salam.
The Shaykh : Until he gives the salam.
The questioner : If he does not have a sutrah, Shaykh, what is the distance?
The Shaykh : Behind the place of prostration.
The questioner : Behind the place of prostration.
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : Likewise, a woman, after the place of prostration, does she not cut across?
The Shaykh : If she passes between him and the sutrah, she does not cut across.
The questioner : No, without a sutrah, after prostration, can she pass?
The Shaykh : Yes, she does not cut across unless she passes between him and the place of prostration.
The questioner : Which is the passage of the sheep, our Shaykh, meaning after the passage of the sheep.
The Shaykh : Meaning, if she passes...
The questioner : Yes, after the passage of the sheep.
The Shaykh : No, no, the passage of the sheep.
The questioner : The passage of the sheep.
The Shaykh : Yes, yes, meaning this is the passage of the sheep, and here is the place of prostration. And this man is praying. The woman passed here, it does not harm. But she passed here.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : It harms.
The questioner : Meaning, from his prostration and coming, our Shaykh.
The Shaykh : We said, between him and the place of prostration.
The questioner : If he is not placing a sutrah, he is sitting and praying in the middle of the mosque.
The Shaykh : We are saying, oh professor...
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : We spoke about the sutrah, was it clear?
The questioner : It was clear.
The Shaykh : Now, here there is no sutrah. She passed here, the prayer is invalid. She passed here, here, she passed here, it does not harm. The important thing is that she does not pass between the one praying and the place of prostration.
The questioner : Yes, the calculation of the passage of the sheep is not present in our case.
The Shaykh : How?
The questioner : The calculation of the passage of the sheep is not present in this case.
The Shaykh : No, I did not understand.
The questioner : The calculation of the passage of the sheep after prostration is not present in this case.
The Shaykh : It is not present in this case, what do you mean, it is not present?
The questioner : Meaning, you said after prostration, there is no calculation for another hand-width.
The Shaykh : Oh brother, we gave an example, may Allah guide you. This is the passage of the sheep.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : This is the passage of the sheep, this is the place of prostration.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : She passed here, she passed here, she passed here, she passed over there, it does not harm.
The questioner : Yes, the place of prostration.
The Shaykh : This, now we raised what?
The questioner : The passage of prostration.
The Shaykh : The sutrah, the sutrah, the sutrah, we raised it.
The questioner: All right.
The Shaykh : Where did you pass? Here, here, here, here, here, here, it does not harm. She passed here, it harms.
The questioner : After prostration, meaning.
The Shaykh : Before, before.
The questioner : Before prostration. As for the passage of prostration after prostration, is there a passage of the sheep? Is the ratio of the passage of the sheep calculated here?
Another questioner : No, he will tell you, "That’s fine, if she passes, it does not harm."
Another questioner : No, I mean the sutrah is far away now, the sutrah is far away now.
The Shaykh : For you, my dear, this is what we did not place, the sutrah. This is the path of the sheep. She passed here, she passed here, she passed here, it does not cut the prayer. She passed here, between him and the place of prostration, it cuts the prayer.
The questioner : Our Shaykh, now we do not prevent anyone after prostration.
The Shaykh : We do not prevent.
The questioner : We do not prevent anyone from passing.
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.
Another questioner : Can he pass in front of him? There are people praying in the mosque... How?
The Shaykh : We did not say that it is not permissible to pray unless there is a sutrah in front of him. And this is among its good and bad consequences. I think you understood. Among its good consequences is that if one of the three passes between him and the place of prostration, and he has taken a sutrah, his prayer is valid. But if he has not taken a sutrah, his prayer is invalid. Is this clear up to here, or is it not clear?
The questioner : Meaning, if he has placed a sutrah and anyone passes.
The Shaykh : It does not harm him.
The questioner : Nothing harms him, yes.
The Shaykh : Nothing harms him. From the effects of taking a sutrah: you have taken a sutrah, this is the sutrah, and if someone wants to pass between you and it, you prevent him.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : You prevent him, you prevent him. If he wants to push you, you hit him. If, against your will, you throw him to the ground while you are praying. But if there is no sutrah, you cannot prevent him. Did you understand me?
The questioner : Except if he is between him and the prostration.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.