Do we face the sutrah directly, or to its right or left?

The Shaykh : What do you have? Yes.

The questioner : Is the sutrah to the right or to the left?

The Shaykh : Yes, well done. It is reported in Sunan Abu Dawud with a weak chain that does not serve as proof. This, along with the weakness of its chain as I mentioned earlier, contradicts the apparent meanings of some of the hadiths we mentioned earlier, The apparent meaning of the phrase "to a sutrah" is facing it. If the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) had intended for the one praying not to face the sutrah directly, he would have said, "Let him pray to its right or to its left." Similarly, it is reported in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim from the hadith of Abu Juhayfah al-Sa'idi that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), when he went out for the Eid prayer, would have Bilal go out with him carrying the spear, which is a staff with a bent head, and it would be set up in front of him in the prayer area, and he would pray facing it. All the hadiths, whether they are about actions or statements, are abundant and mutually supporting in that the sutrah is faced directly, without tilting to the right or left, because the hadith that says otherwise is weak.

The questioner : What about the length of the sutrah? And is a line or an object sufficient if it is open at the bottom?

The Shaykh : The length of the sutrah is indicated in the hadith about the three things that break the prayer, in which he (peace be upon him) said: The rear of the saddle is the rear part of the camel’s saddle, and you Arabs, who are people of the desert, know better than the non-Arabs what the rear of the saddle is. It is the staff that is at the rear of the saddle, on which the rider hangs his provisions and belongings, and so on. It is usually about one and a half to two shibr (hand spans) in length. If it is longer, then the sutrah should be about this length. As for its thickness, there is no specific limit; even if it is a thin arrow or a pole like this one, or thicker, it is a sutrah. As for the hadith about the line, which was asked about last, it is, as I say in response to such a question, a weak hadith that is rejected because it contradicts the authentic hadiths, including No one should strain themselves to say, "What if one is in the desert and finds no sutrah, so does he draw a line?" We say that, in Allah’s knowledge, this is a hypothetical scenario that rarely occurs, even on the surface of the moon. There must be something raised that a person can face, whether it is a small plant, a protruding rock, or anything else. We do not imagine a desert where travelers find no sutrah except by drawing a line in front of them. However, we expand the answer and say that if such a situation were to occur, there is no line, because the ruling of the line is a new legislation, and it is not permissible for a Muslim to legislate in the religion of Allah except by transmission from Allah and His Messenger. And if there is no sutrah that fulfills the Prophetic command, then we say: The general principle is So if you are able to obtain the legislated sutrah, do not invent a sutrah from your mind, which is a line on the ground. This is my answer.

The questioner : Is a pile of sand sufficient?

The Shaykh : It is possible. One might say there is no sand.

The questioner : One person is confused and asks how he can prostrate if the distance is one and a half shibr. He did not understand the statement.

The Shaykh : A questioner asks how he can prostrate if the distance is one and a half shibr. We said that the distance is between the place of the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) prostration, not between his standing position and the sutrah. Now I say that when the Messenger (peace be upon him) entered the Ka'bah during the Conquest and prayed two rak'ahs, Bilal said, and Abdullah ibn Umar ibn al-Khattab reported this from him: The distance between the Messenger (peace be upon him) and the wall of the Ka'bah was three cubits. So the questioner should be reassured. We did not say that the distance between his standing position and the sutrah is one and a half shibr. No, rather, the distance between the place of his prostration, meaning between his head and the sutrah, is about one and a half shibr. As for the distance between his standing position and the sutrah, it is about three cubits. Yes.