Then he mentioned—may Allah have mercy on him—the chapter on i'tikaf: i'tikaf is staying in the mosque for the worship of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), and it is prescribed in the last ten days of Ramadan.
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The Shaykh : Then he mentioned—may Allah have mercy on him—the chapter on i'tikaf:
And i'tikaf is staying in the mosque for the worship of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), and it is prescribed in the last ten days of Ramadan, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) used to perform i'tikaf in the first ten days, then he performed i'tikaf in the middle ten days seeking the Night of Decree, then it was said to him: : And by this we know that i'tikaf is not prescribed in other than Ramadan, and that what some scholars mentioned, namely that it is befitting for a person when he intends to go to the mosque to intend i'tikaf for the duration of his stay in it, is a statement with no evidence for it, for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) did not prescribe it for his Ummah, neither by his saying nor by his doing, meaning he did not say to the people: when you enter the mosque, intend i'tikaf in it at any time and in any state, and he did not do it himself, rather he used to perform i'tikaf in the last ten days seeking the Night of Decree, for this reason it is befitting for the one performing i'tikaf not to be occupied except with obedience, from prayer and reading the Qur'an and dhikr and other than that, even teaching knowledge; the scholars said: "It is not befitting for the one performing i'tikaf to be occupied with teaching knowledge, rather he should turn to the specific acts of worship", because this time is specific for the specific acts of worship, and it is not permissible for the one performing i'tikaf to leave the mosque except for what is absolutely necessary:
Either he has no one to bring him food and drink, so he goes out to eat and drink, or he needs to go out to relieve himself, whether urination or defecation, or he needs to go out for the ghusl of janabah and the like, or he needs to go out because he is in a mosque that is not a congregational mosque, so he goes to the Friday prayer, so the important point is that the one performing i'tikaf does not leave the mosque except for something that is absolutely necessary for him religiously or naturally.
Then it is befitting for the one performing i'tikaf, when someone comes to him wanting to occupy him with idle talk that has no benefit, to say to him: My brother, I am performing i'tikaf, either help me in obedience or stay away from me, and Allah the Exalted is not shy of the truth, and as for sitting briefly with the one performing i'tikaf and talking briefly, this is permissible,, and success is from Allah. Yes.
The student: And your lessons in the Haram in Ramadan?
The Shaykh : Yes, our lessons in the Haram in Ramadan are a pressing need, because it is not possible for us to teach at all times, meaning our stay in Ramadan, or our presence in al-Masjid al-Haram, is only in the last ten days, so because of the pressing need we do this.
And i'tikaf is staying in the mosque for the worship of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), and it is prescribed in the last ten days of Ramadan, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) used to perform i'tikaf in the first ten days, then he performed i'tikaf in the middle ten days seeking the Night of Decree, then it was said to him:
It is in the last ten days, so he used to perform i'tikaf in the last ten days of Ramadan
إنها في العشر الأواخر فصار يعتكف العشر الأواخر من رمضانEither he has no one to bring him food and drink, so he goes out to eat and drink, or he needs to go out to relieve himself, whether urination or defecation, or he needs to go out for the ghusl of janabah and the like, or he needs to go out because he is in a mosque that is not a congregational mosque, so he goes to the Friday prayer, so the important point is that the one performing i'tikaf does not leave the mosque except for something that is absolutely necessary for him religiously or naturally.
Then it is befitting for the one performing i'tikaf, when someone comes to him wanting to occupy him with idle talk that has no benefit, to say to him: My brother, I am performing i'tikaf, either help me in obedience or stay away from me, and Allah the Exalted is not shy of the truth, and as for sitting briefly with the one performing i'tikaf and talking briefly, this is permissible,
Because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) used to face his women while he was performing i'tikaf, so he would talk to them and they would talk to him
لأن النبي صلى الله عليه وعلى آله وسلم كان يستقبل نساءه وهو معتكف ، فيتحدث إليهن ويتحدثن إليهThe student: And your lessons in the Haram in Ramadan?
The Shaykh : Yes, our lessons in the Haram in Ramadan are a pressing need, because it is not possible for us to teach at all times, meaning our stay in Ramadan, or our presence in al-Masjid al-Haram, is only in the last ten days, so because of the pressing need we do this.