We have a mosque with a room at its rear, which has a door opening onto the street and another door leading to the restroom, which in turn has a door open to the mosque,
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The questioner : May Allah reward the honorableThe Shaykh : We have a mosque with a room at its rear, which has a door opening onto the street and another door leading to the restroom, which in turn has a door open to the mosque. Is it valid for me to perform i'tikaf in this room or not? Which is better, performing i'tikaf in the Grand Mosque or in a regular mosque? And if I want to perform i'tikaf and memorize some texts of Islamic jurisprudence and other matters, is that better, or should I limit myself to reciting the Qur'an?
The Shaykh : As for the first point, regarding the room whose door is in the mosque, and which has a door to the market and a door to the restroom: if the mosque has enclosed it, meaning it is within the mosque's boundary wall, then it is part of the mosque, and it is valid to perform i'tikaf in it. But if it is outside the mosque's boundary wall, then it is not part of the mosque, and it is not valid to perform i'tikaf in it.
As for performing i'tikaf in the Grand Mosque or in a regular mosque, performing i'tikaf in the Grand Mosque is better because it does not require one to go out for the Friday prayer. As for whether one should occupy oneself with memorizing a text from the texts or with reciting the Qur'an, the better option is to occupy oneself with reciting the Qur'an and dhikr (the remembrance of Allah) and the like, because memorizing a text is not like reciting the Qur'an, nor is it like dhikr.
The Shaykh : As for the first point, regarding the room whose door is in the mosque, and which has a door to the market and a door to the restroom: if the mosque has enclosed it, meaning it is within the mosque's boundary wall, then it is part of the mosque, and it is valid to perform i'tikaf in it. But if it is outside the mosque's boundary wall, then it is not part of the mosque, and it is not valid to perform i'tikaf in it.
As for performing i'tikaf in the Grand Mosque or in a regular mosque, performing i'tikaf in the Grand Mosque is better because it does not require one to go out for the Friday prayer. As for whether one should occupy oneself with memorizing a text from the texts or with reciting the Qur'an, the better option is to occupy oneself with reciting the Qur'an and dhikr (the remembrance of Allah) and the like, because memorizing a text is not like reciting the Qur'an, nor is it like dhikr.