Some of the brothers in some mosques recite the Qur'an aloud before the prayer, which disturbs the worshippers. What is the ruling on that?
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The questioner : There are some brothers in some mosques who recite the Qur'an aloud before the prayer, which disturbs the worshippers. What is the ruling on that? May you be rewarded.
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and I send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, the Seal of the Prophets and the Imam of the Pious, and upon his family and his Companions, and those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment:
It is permissible for the reciter to recite the Qur'an quietly or aloud, and there is good in both. A person should do what is more energizing and more humble for him. If what is more energizing and humble for him is to recite quietly, he should recite quietly. If what is more energizing and humble is to recite aloud, he should recite aloud. This is provided it is not during prayer. If it is during prayer, let him follow what the Sunnah has brought regarding quietness or loudness.
This is also provided there is no one around him whom he would disturb or harm if he recited aloud. If there is someone around him whom he would disturb or harm if he recited aloud, he should not recite aloud. This is because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) came out to his companions while they were praying in groups, and some of them were reciting aloud. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: meaning in his prayer This hadith was authenticated by Ibn 'Abd al-Barr (may Allah have mercy on him).
Based on this, these people who recite the Qur'an before the iqamah of the prayer and recite loudly, disturbing others with it, should be prevented from doing so. They are closer to sin than to safety. The Book of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) was not made for harming others; rather, it is a means of drawing near to Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He), on the condition that it does not cause harm to their Muslim brothers.
It is well known that people come to the mosque in groups. Some come a while after the adhan, and some come less than that, and they begin the voluntary prayer, such as the greeting of the mosque or others. If there is someone around the worshipper who raises his voice, he will certainly disturb him and prevent him from being humble in his prayer. This is especially true if the person with the loud voice has a beautiful recitation and delivery, as he will captivate the listener and occupy him with what he is trying to focus on. For this reason, I advise my Muslim brothers who love good to refrain from this action by which they harm others.
On this occasion, I would like to mention some of our brothers among the imams who raise the prayer from the loudspeaker on the minarets. This causes harm to those around them in the mosques and to those around them in the houses. Close mosques disturb one another if the prayer is raised from the minarets. We have even heard that some worshippers in their mosques, when they hear the recitation of someone nearby, become preoccupied with it and stop listening to the recitation of their imam. This may be due to the beauty of the reciter's delivery, the strength of his voice, or other factors that occur.
I have heard that some people bowed when they heard the takbir of the mosque nearby, thinking that it was their imam. There is no doubt that such harm, which disrupts the prayer of others, may lead a person to sin. This is because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade people from reciting the Qur'an loudly over one another. It may also harm the neighbors of the mosque from the people of the houses. There may be someone in the house who is sleeping deeply, or someone who is sick, or someone who has rested and fallen asleep, and he wakes up with the voice of this reciter.
I say: There are people in the houses who are sleeping and for whom prayer is not obligatory, such as a menstruating woman, for example, or someone who performed the prayer as soon as he heard the adhan and then slept. Otherwise, it is well known that it is not permissible for anyone for whom congregation is obligatory to sleep through the congregational prayer in his house and leave the mosque.
I repeat my advice to my brothers in this matter and say to them: Look at the benefits and look at the harms. What is the benefit that returns to the imam, or to the worshippers behind him, or to the people, in the prayer being raised from the minaret? What benefit is there in that?
There may be harm in it. Some lazy people may stay in their houses until the last rak'ah. If only one rak'ah remains, they come running and hurrying intensely. They may catch this rak'ah, or they may not. Some people have complained to me about this and said: We order our children to pray, but they say, "The imam is at the beginning of the prayer. Wait until the time when we can catch the congregation."
It is obligatory for a person to follow in his actions what is most beneficial for him and for others, to ward off what contains harm and to stay away from it. As for what some people think is a benefit in this action, such as it being an announcement of one of the symbols of Islam or the like, we say: The symbol that should be announced is the adhan, and that has already happened. As for the prayer, it is a worship that is specific to the imam and those behind the imam only. Those outside the mosque have no connection to it, except for what I mentioned of waiting for the last rak'ah and then attending. This is not beneficial, but rather harmful. A person of sound mind, if his action is between sin and safety, will certainly leave that action, because if it is either safe or sinful, everyone chooses to take the path of safety.
The questioner : May Allah reward you, O honorable Shaykh, for this blessed guidance.
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and I send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, the Seal of the Prophets and the Imam of the Pious, and upon his family and his Companions, and those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment:
It is permissible for the reciter to recite the Qur'an quietly or aloud, and there is good in both. A person should do what is more energizing and more humble for him. If what is more energizing and humble for him is to recite quietly, he should recite quietly. If what is more energizing and humble is to recite aloud, he should recite aloud. This is provided it is not during prayer. If it is during prayer, let him follow what the Sunnah has brought regarding quietness or loudness.
This is also provided there is no one around him whom he would disturb or harm if he recited aloud. If there is someone around him whom he would disturb or harm if he recited aloud, he should not recite aloud. This is because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) came out to his companions while they were praying in groups, and some of them were reciting aloud. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
Each of you is conversing with his Lord
كلكم يناجي ربهSo do not recite the Qur'an loudly over one another, or he said: in the recitation
فلا يجهر بعضكم على بعض في القرآن أو قال : في القراءةBased on this, these people who recite the Qur'an before the iqamah of the prayer and recite loudly, disturbing others with it, should be prevented from doing so. They are closer to sin than to safety. The Book of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) was not made for harming others; rather, it is a means of drawing near to Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He), on the condition that it does not cause harm to their Muslim brothers.
It is well known that people come to the mosque in groups. Some come a while after the adhan, and some come less than that, and they begin the voluntary prayer, such as the greeting of the mosque or others. If there is someone around the worshipper who raises his voice, he will certainly disturb him and prevent him from being humble in his prayer. This is especially true if the person with the loud voice has a beautiful recitation and delivery, as he will captivate the listener and occupy him with what he is trying to focus on. For this reason, I advise my Muslim brothers who love good to refrain from this action by which they harm others.
On this occasion, I would like to mention some of our brothers among the imams who raise the prayer from the loudspeaker on the minarets. This causes harm to those around them in the mosques and to those around them in the houses. Close mosques disturb one another if the prayer is raised from the minarets. We have even heard that some worshippers in their mosques, when they hear the recitation of someone nearby, become preoccupied with it and stop listening to the recitation of their imam. This may be due to the beauty of the reciter's delivery, the strength of his voice, or other factors that occur.
I have heard that some people bowed when they heard the takbir of the mosque nearby, thinking that it was their imam. There is no doubt that such harm, which disrupts the prayer of others, may lead a person to sin. This is because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade people from reciting the Qur'an loudly over one another. It may also harm the neighbors of the mosque from the people of the houses. There may be someone in the house who is sleeping deeply, or someone who is sick, or someone who has rested and fallen asleep, and he wakes up with the voice of this reciter.
I say: There are people in the houses who are sleeping and for whom prayer is not obligatory, such as a menstruating woman, for example, or someone who performed the prayer as soon as he heard the adhan and then slept. Otherwise, it is well known that it is not permissible for anyone for whom congregation is obligatory to sleep through the congregational prayer in his house and leave the mosque.
I repeat my advice to my brothers in this matter and say to them: Look at the benefits and look at the harms. What is the benefit that returns to the imam, or to the worshippers behind him, or to the people, in the prayer being raised from the minaret? What benefit is there in that?
There may be harm in it. Some lazy people may stay in their houses until the last rak'ah. If only one rak'ah remains, they come running and hurrying intensely. They may catch this rak'ah, or they may not. Some people have complained to me about this and said: We order our children to pray, but they say, "The imam is at the beginning of the prayer. Wait until the time when we can catch the congregation."
It is obligatory for a person to follow in his actions what is most beneficial for him and for others, to ward off what contains harm and to stay away from it. As for what some people think is a benefit in this action, such as it being an announcement of one of the symbols of Islam or the like, we say: The symbol that should be announced is the adhan, and that has already happened. As for the prayer, it is a worship that is specific to the imam and those behind the imam only. Those outside the mosque have no connection to it, except for what I mentioned of waiting for the last rak'ah and then attending. This is not beneficial, but rather harmful. A person of sound mind, if his action is between sin and safety, will certainly leave that action, because if it is either safe or sinful, everyone chooses to take the path of safety.
The questioner : May Allah reward you, O honorable Shaykh, for this blessed guidance.