What is the ruling on the prayer of one who lets his garment hang below the ankles? And what is the authenticity of the hadith regarding repeating the ablution for one who lets his garment hang below the ankles?
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The questioner : I am speaking to you, O Shaykh, from Saudi Arabia, from the Jubail region.
The Shaykh : Where is Jubail located? Is it in the Eastern Province?
The questioner : Yes, in the Eastern Province.
The Shaykh: Welcome and pleased.
The questioner : Your brother in Allah, Muhammad al-Hajri, ... O Shaykh, may Allah reward you. Regarding the hadith of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that Abu Dawud narrated on the condition of Muslim, in which the man who lets his garment hang below the ankles was told to repeat his ablution: regarding the one who lets his garment hang below the ankles, does his prayer become invalid, O Shaykh? And what is the authenticity of this hadith?
The Shaykh : Ah, you cut off my response to you, you cut off my response to you, you cut off the response I was about to give you.
The questioner : The authenticity?
The Shaykh : Yes, it should have been that you asked about the authenticity first, because we have learned from the scholars of knowledge that interpretation is a branch of authentication. If the hadith is authentic, we should understand its jurisprudence and look at what it indicates; but if its weakness is established, then at that time it is said, as they say in some countries, "this dead person does not deserve this condolence," meaning that a weak hadith should not occupy us with understanding its jurisprudence, but rather we should uproot the subject by saying that it is a weak hadith, containing an unknown man; and therefore we say that the one who lets his garment hang below the ankles is sinful, most severely, like the one who wears a gold ring; but he is sinful and his prayer is valid, because we have also learned from the principles of jurisprudence that it is not permissible to invalidate the prayer of a Muslim man who came with its pillars and its conditions merely because he committed a forbidden sin ... and a bad one. He prayed a valid prayer, but he committed a sin, like the one who prays and a woman passes in front of him and he looks at some of her private parts; this is sinful, but we do not have evidence in the Shari'ah that obligates us, or even permits us, to rule that his prayer is invalid merely because he committed this prohibition. In summary, the hadith is weak, and letting the garment hang below the ankles is forbidden, but there is no evidence for the invalidity of the prayer of the one who lets his garment hang below the ankles. Clear.
The questioner : May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : And you.
The questioner : I entered the mosque and found the imam letting his garment hang below the ankles. Should I pray behind him?
The Shaykh : And why would you not pray behind him, as long as you know that the prayer is valid? But the alternative is that you ask whether you should pray behind him; it is upon you to advise him and remind him in the best manner, but do not do what your companions used to do with their rulers, as they say in our Syria ... those days, when theThe Shaykh : scholar would see the prince and his cloak dragging on the ground like a woman's garment, he would take the scissors and cut it. There is no necessity for such severity in dealing with people, but the good word does its work, so you should advise him and not let him lengthen his garment or his robe or his cloak; this is what I advise; as for the prayer, it is valid.
The Shaykh : Where is Jubail located? Is it in the Eastern Province?
The questioner : Yes, in the Eastern Province.
The Shaykh: Welcome and pleased.
The questioner : Your brother in Allah, Muhammad al-Hajri, ... O Shaykh, may Allah reward you. Regarding the hadith of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that Abu Dawud narrated on the condition of Muslim, in which the man who lets his garment hang below the ankles was told to repeat his ablution: regarding the one who lets his garment hang below the ankles, does his prayer become invalid, O Shaykh? And what is the authenticity of this hadith?
The Shaykh : Ah, you cut off my response to you, you cut off my response to you, you cut off the response I was about to give you.
The questioner : The authenticity?
The Shaykh : Yes, it should have been that you asked about the authenticity first, because we have learned from the scholars of knowledge that interpretation is a branch of authentication. If the hadith is authentic, we should understand its jurisprudence and look at what it indicates; but if its weakness is established, then at that time it is said, as they say in some countries, "this dead person does not deserve this condolence," meaning that a weak hadith should not occupy us with understanding its jurisprudence, but rather we should uproot the subject by saying that it is a weak hadith, containing an unknown man; and therefore we say that the one who lets his garment hang below the ankles is sinful, most severely, like the one who wears a gold ring; but he is sinful and his prayer is valid, because we have also learned from the principles of jurisprudence that it is not permissible to invalidate the prayer of a Muslim man who came with its pillars and its conditions merely because he committed a forbidden sin ... and a bad one. He prayed a valid prayer, but he committed a sin, like the one who prays and a woman passes in front of him and he looks at some of her private parts; this is sinful, but we do not have evidence in the Shari'ah that obligates us, or even permits us, to rule that his prayer is invalid merely because he committed this prohibition. In summary, the hadith is weak, and letting the garment hang below the ankles is forbidden, but there is no evidence for the invalidity of the prayer of the one who lets his garment hang below the ankles. Clear.
The questioner : May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : And you.
The questioner : I entered the mosque and found the imam letting his garment hang below the ankles. Should I pray behind him?
The Shaykh : And why would you not pray behind him, as long as you know that the prayer is valid? But the alternative is that you ask whether you should pray behind him; it is upon you to advise him and remind him in the best manner, but do not do what your companions used to do with their rulers, as they say in our Syria ... those days, when theThe Shaykh : scholar would see the prince and his cloak dragging on the ground like a woman's garment, he would take the scissors and cut it. There is no necessity for such severity in dealing with people, but the good word does its work, so you should advise him and not let him lengthen his garment or his robe or his cloak; this is what I advise; as for the prayer, it is valid.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.