The Ruling on Isbal (Letting Garments Hang Below the Ankles)

The question: Hamdan Nafi Al-Otaibi says:
Presenter of the program "Light on the Path"! Peace be upon you, and Allah's mercy and blessings. And after that:
I ask that my letter be presented to His Eminence Shaykh: Abdul Aziz ibn Abdullah ibn Baz, the Grand President, may Allah grant him understanding.
He says: There is no doubt, O His Eminence, that Muslims are in a state of worldly prosperity unlike any other, and many Muslims display this blessing by letting their garments hang down, such as their clothes and abas. Is this action in accordance with the truth? This may be clearly seen in many of the worshippers, where their garment or one of their garments extends behind them. What is the ruling on isbal (letting garments hang below the ankles) specifically in prayer, and in general in other matters?
Answer: In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah, and upon his family and his companions, and whoever follows his guidance.
As for what follows: Isbal is among the great prohibitions and among the major sins, whether it is in the izar (lower garment), the trousers, the shirt, the turban, or the aba. All of this is forbidden for the man.
As for the woman, she may let her garments hang down over her feet; because it is her awrah (nakedness), not for arrogance but for covering. As for the man, he is obligated to raise his garments above the ankles; because he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: narrated by al-Bukhari in the Sahih.
And he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: This indicates that this is among the major sins, and that it is obligatory for the Muslim to raise all his garments and clothes, from the aba, trousers, and izar, above the ankles, so they do not go below the ankles, but from the middle of the shin to the ankle, as came in the hadith of Jabir ibn Sulaym and others: There is no harm for him in what is between that and the ankle. This is the place for the garments, from the middle of the shin to the ankle.
As for letting the garments hang below the ankles, this is not permissible, rather one must beware of it. And if it is done out of arrogance and pride, it becomes greater in sin and a major sin. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: And he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: .
So the one who lets his garments hang down and drags them, or lets them hang below the ankles, is in two states:
The first: That he does so out of arrogance, pride, and vanity. Then his warning is severe, and his sin is greater.
The second state: That he lets them hang down out of negligence without the intention of arrogance, but rather he is negligent. This is also forbidden and an abomination, and the authentic hadiths from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) encompass it, and nothing is excepted from this, except the one who is overcome by the matter, such that his izar hangs down without intention, then he notices it and raises it. This one is excused, as came in the story of Abu Bakr, he said: ; because Abu Bakr used to take care of it and watch it.
As for those who drag their clothes, the hadiths encompass them. If he lets his shirt hang down and lets his trousers hang down... his izar... his aba, the hadiths encompass them. And the saying of whoever says: (If it is not out of arrogance) it is disliked, is a weak saying, rather it is false and contrary to the authentic hadiths. So the information of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) about the one who drags his garment out of arrogance that Allah does not look at him does not indicate the permissibility of what is other than that, rather it indicates that this one is threatened with a specific, great warning if he drags it out of arrogance. And the others who drag their clothes or their abas have another warning, that Allah will not speak to them, nor look at them, nor purify them, and for them is a painful punishment.
So it is obligatory for the believer to beware of that, and not to be negligent in these blameworthy traits. Rather, he should raise his garments in prayer and outside of it, not letting them go below the ankles ever. Rather, it is obligatory for him that his garments be raised and not go below the ankles ever, to the middle of the shin or less.
And in the hadith of Jabir ibn Sulaym, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: meaning: vanity; meaning: arrogance. So it is obligatory for the believer to beware of this blameworthy trait, and not to be negligent. Rather, his clothes should end at the ankle and not go below it, whatever the garment is, from a robe... from a shirt, or an izar, or trousers, or an aba. This is what is obligatory for all Muslims, and it is not permissible to be negligent in this matter.
And if it is in prayer, there is a specific warning in it as well. It is narrated from him (peace be upon him) that when he saw one who was letting his garment hang in prayer, he ordered him to repeat the wudu, to perform wudu two or three times, and he did not order him to make up the prayer. So he was asked about that, and he said: or as he (peace and blessings be upon him) said.
And it came in the hadith of Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that he was asked: .
So the conclusion is that isbal in prayer is more severe and more ugly. It is obligatory to beware of isbal in prayer and isbal in other matters. The prayer is valid; because the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) did not order him to repeat it. But he has committed an abomination and committed an ugly, blameworthy evil; so it is obligatory for the Muslim to beware of that, and not to let his garments hang, neither in prayer nor outside of it. Rather, his garments should be moderate and raised above the ankles, meaning: the limit of the ankles or higher, to the middle of the shin. This is what is prescribed and this is what is obligatory. And it is not permissible to let the garments go below the ankles, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) informed by his saying: And this is a great warning, narrated by al-Bukhari in the Sahih, may Allah have mercy on him, and the other hadiths in its meaning. And Allah is the Helper! And there is no power and no strength except with Allah! And we ask Allah to guide the Muslims, and to make them see what pleases Allah of them, and to help them with that. And there is no power and no strength except with Allah.
The presenter: Regarding the trousers, O His Eminence, you mentioned that they are included in what includes the izar and the clothes. But there are those who say: Isbal does not include them? And also they say: There is no evidence for it. What is the ruling?
The answer: This is an error; because the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) generalized, he said: , and the izar and the trousers have the same ruling; because this one wears trousers and this one wears an izar. Likewise: encompasses both; because the Arabs, the predominant thing for them was the izar, and the predominant thing for them was not the trousers. And the trousers are permissible, it is permissible to wear them and to wear the izar. But the predominant thing for the Arabs was the izar because it is more covering, more covering for the size of the organs, and more covering for the awrah in terms of size. So the izar was more worn than the trousers. And the trousers likewise, if he lets his sleeve hang down until it goes below the ankle, it enters into the hadith. And there is no power and no strength except with Allah. Yes.