Which is better: a woman praying alone or in congregation
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Q: Is it better for a woman to pray alone or to pray in a congregation of women?
A: All of this is permissible. If she prays alone, there is no harm, and if she prays with the women, there is no harm. The matter is broad in this regard. The women in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to pray separately, each one praying alone. If a group of women is available, they should pray together in the house, and they should appoint the best of them as their imam; that is good. It has been narrated from Umm Salama and Aisha (may Allah be pleased with them both) that they appointed some women as imams on some occasions.
So the conclusion is that there is no harm in her praying in a congregation of women, with the imam being in the middle of them, some of them on her right and some on her left. She should raise her voice for the takbir and recitation in the times of loud recitation, such as Maghrib, Isha, and Fajr. She should do as the man does: she says takbir and raises her hands to the level of her shoulders, and after the takbir she says: "Subhanaka Allahumma wa bihamdika wa tabarakasmu wa ta'ala jadduka wa la ilaha ghayruk," or she uses one of the types of correct, established opening supplications from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). Then she says: "I seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan." Then she says the name of Allah and recites al-Fatihah, then she recites a surah with it. And so it is in the second rak'ah of Maghrib and Isha. As for the third, she recites only al-Fatihah, and so it is in the fourth. In Fajr, she recites al-Fatihah and whatever surahs are easy for her to recite with it, but longer than in Isha and Maghrib. And so it is in Zuhr and Asr, where she prays with them quietly, without loud recitation. So the conclusion is that it is like what the man prays, except that she does not stand in front; she is in the middle of them.
A: All of this is permissible. If she prays alone, there is no harm, and if she prays with the women, there is no harm. The matter is broad in this regard. The women in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to pray separately, each one praying alone. If a group of women is available, they should pray together in the house, and they should appoint the best of them as their imam; that is good. It has been narrated from Umm Salama and Aisha (may Allah be pleased with them both) that they appointed some women as imams on some occasions.
So the conclusion is that there is no harm in her praying in a congregation of women, with the imam being in the middle of them, some of them on her right and some on her left. She should raise her voice for the takbir and recitation in the times of loud recitation, such as Maghrib, Isha, and Fajr. She should do as the man does: she says takbir and raises her hands to the level of her shoulders, and after the takbir she says: "Subhanaka Allahumma wa bihamdika wa tabarakasmu wa ta'ala jadduka wa la ilaha ghayruk," or she uses one of the types of correct, established opening supplications from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). Then she says: "I seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan." Then she says the name of Allah and recites al-Fatihah, then she recites a surah with it. And so it is in the second rak'ah of Maghrib and Isha. As for the third, she recites only al-Fatihah, and so it is in the fourth. In Fajr, she recites al-Fatihah and whatever surahs are easy for her to recite with it, but longer than in Isha and Maghrib. And so it is in Zuhr and Asr, where she prays with them quietly, without loud recitation. So the conclusion is that it is like what the man prays, except that she does not stand in front; she is in the middle of them.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.
