What is the ruling on praying toward a sutrah that has a gap at the bottom?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : The issue of the sutrah is that it is placed on the ground and has legs, and it is not entirely attached to the ground. So, does one take it as a sutrah and leave the legs to his right and left as barriers? Like this table, or does he pray toward this gap?
The Shaykh : One does not pray toward this gap; one prays toward the upright part.
The questioner : Toward the upright part.
The questioner : All right, the hadith of the bed, O Shaykh. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed toward his bed. It was not understood that the bed had open legs?
The Shaykh : He prayed toward the bed?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : All right, we do not have an image, neither an official one nor an expressive one, showing whether it was open or covered. And why do we delve into this depth when we know that the sutrah is anything that is in front of the one praying, even if it is like an arrow? So if he prayed toward a bed, we must assume that it was not the unusual case but the usual case. The usual case is that one is screened by something upright, not by a gap. So if he prayed toward a bed, and we assume the bed is like this table in front of us, there is a gap between the legs. Undoubtedly, he prayed toward one of them. This is if we assume there is a gap, though there may not be a gap. We see this frequently in our current situations in our rooms; we may find a bed with, for example, a cloth on it. This cloth hangs from the bed such that it blocks the gap. So if you pray toward the gap of the bed in this case, it does not mean you prayed toward the gap; you prayed toward the curtain, which is the cloth. As came from 'Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) in al-Musnad, meaning he says: When a hadith comes to you from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), understand the meaning of the hadith, because this is not its exact wording, so interpret it in the best way. Do you remember the phrase?
The questioner : We interpret it as being ... .
The Shaykh : Is there anything in it? Yes.
The questioner : It is also in Ibn Majah.
The Shaykh : So we interpret the hadith in the best way, interpreting it in a manner that is consistent with the other hadiths, not in a manner that conflicts with them. Yes.
The questioner : All right, O Shaykh, let us stay with this same article. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed toward the saddle, and the saddle is known to have a hollow space.
The Shaykh : And the saddle is upright in the air?
The questioner : It is upright on the ground, but I mean...
The Shaykh : The matter is over. Your place is clear. I mean, your hadith is the same as the table.
Another questioner : The same table.
The Shaykh : The same table.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : And you as well.
The Shaykh : One does not pray toward this gap; one prays toward the upright part.
The questioner : Toward the upright part.
The questioner : All right, the hadith of the bed, O Shaykh. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed toward his bed. It was not understood that the bed had open legs?
The Shaykh : He prayed toward the bed?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : All right, we do not have an image, neither an official one nor an expressive one, showing whether it was open or covered. And why do we delve into this depth when we know that the sutrah is anything that is in front of the one praying, even if it is like an arrow? So if he prayed toward a bed, we must assume that it was not the unusual case but the usual case. The usual case is that one is screened by something upright, not by a gap. So if he prayed toward a bed, and we assume the bed is like this table in front of us, there is a gap between the legs. Undoubtedly, he prayed toward one of them. This is if we assume there is a gap, though there may not be a gap. We see this frequently in our current situations in our rooms; we may find a bed with, for example, a cloth on it. This cloth hangs from the bed such that it blocks the gap. So if you pray toward the gap of the bed in this case, it does not mean you prayed toward the gap; you prayed toward the curtain, which is the cloth. As came from 'Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) in al-Musnad, meaning he says: When a hadith comes to you from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), understand the meaning of the hadith, because this is not its exact wording, so interpret it in the best way. Do you remember the phrase?
The questioner : We interpret it as being ... .
The Shaykh : Is there anything in it? Yes.
The questioner : It is also in Ibn Majah.
The Shaykh : So we interpret the hadith in the best way, interpreting it in a manner that is consistent with the other hadiths, not in a manner that conflicts with them. Yes.
The questioner : All right, O Shaykh, let us stay with this same article. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed toward the saddle, and the saddle is known to have a hollow space.
The Shaykh : And the saddle is upright in the air?
The questioner : It is upright on the ground, but I mean...
The Shaykh : The matter is over. Your place is clear. I mean, your hadith is the same as the table.
Another questioner : The same table.
The Shaykh : The same table.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : And you as well.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.