What is the ruling on heaters in the mosque, and is it permissible for a person to face them during prayer? Is there evidence regarding their being disliked?
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The questioner : What is the ruling on heaters in the mosque? Is it permissible for a person to face them during prayer? Is there evidence regarding the dislike? We ask for clarification because the need to use them has become urgent, as people are disputing this matter inside the mosques. And what is the ruling on insect killers placed in the mosque that kill by electric sparks?
The Shaykh : What should be done by the general public, what should be done by the general public, is that there should be no dispute among them over this issue or any other, because there are scholars to whom they can refer, and the books of the scholars are available, praise be to Allah. Heaters in the mosques are among the things that aid in obedience, because it is better for a person to pray with tranquility and warmth than to pray while shivering from the cold and not being at peace. This is a blessing from Allah (Mighty and Majestic) and His making things subservient to us, in that He has facilitated such heaters for us. Their being in front of the worshippers does no harm. Their being in front of the worshippers does no harm. First: because they are not in front of the imam, and the imam is the role model for his congregation, and therefore the imam's barrier is a barrier for those behind him. That is, if they were placed in front of the imam, a person would question it. But now they are not in front of them; in reality, they are in front of the followers, and the followers follow their imam. This is one point.
The second point: that there is no evidence from the Sunnah that praying with fire in front of you is disliked. Some scholars disliked it because it resembles the worship of fire by the Zoroastrians.
The third point: that the resemblance to the Zoroastrians only applies to a blazing, burning fire, because that is what the Zoroastrians worship. As for embers, like an incense burner in front of people, or heaters in front of people, they do not fall under the category of dislike, and there is nothing wrong with them; they are permissible. Whoever claims dislike or prohibition must provide evidence. Also, it should not be a matter of disliked things. Even if we hypothetically conceded that it is disliked, it should not be a subject of dispute, and not in the mosque. Rather, one should refer to the scholars in this matter. In any case, we say in answer to it that there is no harm in it. As for placing mosquito and bird traps in the mosques or in the houses, there is no harm in that, because this is not torturing them with fire, as they do not burn, but they are electrocuted. The light in these tubes is not fire. The evidence for this is that if you placed a paper on it, it would not burn, and if it were fire, it would have burned. So it is of the category of electrocution, not of the category of burning. Yes.
The Shaykh : What should be done by the general public, what should be done by the general public, is that there should be no dispute among them over this issue or any other, because there are scholars to whom they can refer, and the books of the scholars are available, praise be to Allah. Heaters in the mosques are among the things that aid in obedience, because it is better for a person to pray with tranquility and warmth than to pray while shivering from the cold and not being at peace. This is a blessing from Allah (Mighty and Majestic) and His making things subservient to us, in that He has facilitated such heaters for us. Their being in front of the worshippers does no harm. Their being in front of the worshippers does no harm. First: because they are not in front of the imam, and the imam is the role model for his congregation, and therefore the imam's barrier is a barrier for those behind him. That is, if they were placed in front of the imam, a person would question it. But now they are not in front of them; in reality, they are in front of the followers, and the followers follow their imam. This is one point.
The second point: that there is no evidence from the Sunnah that praying with fire in front of you is disliked. Some scholars disliked it because it resembles the worship of fire by the Zoroastrians.
The third point: that the resemblance to the Zoroastrians only applies to a blazing, burning fire, because that is what the Zoroastrians worship. As for embers, like an incense burner in front of people, or heaters in front of people, they do not fall under the category of dislike, and there is nothing wrong with them; they are permissible. Whoever claims dislike or prohibition must provide evidence. Also, it should not be a matter of disliked things. Even if we hypothetically conceded that it is disliked, it should not be a subject of dispute, and not in the mosque. Rather, one should refer to the scholars in this matter. In any case, we say in answer to it that there is no harm in it. As for placing mosquito and bird traps in the mosques or in the houses, there is no harm in that, because this is not torturing them with fire, as they do not burn, but they are electrocuted. The light in these tubes is not fire. The evidence for this is that if you placed a paper on it, it would not burn, and if it were fire, it would have burned. So it is of the category of electrocution, not of the category of burning. Yes.