STRAIGHTENING OF THE ROWS IN PRAYER BY SHAYKH IBN JIBREEN رحمه الله
موضوع الفتوى حكم المماسة عند صف الصفوف في الصلاة
سئل الشيخ ابن جبرين رحمه الله
9604:الفتوى
السؤال س: من المعلوم أنه ورد عن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم عدة أحاديث في تسوية الصفوف ورصها، وبعض المصلين يلصق القدم بالقدم، فهل ورد عن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم ما يدل على شرعية ذلك؟
الاجابـــة
ورد فيه حديث عن النعمان رضي الله عنه وغيره يقول: “حتى رأينا يلصق أحدنا كعبه بكعب صاحبه ومنكبه بمنكبه “، والعلماء قالوا المراد بذلك
المبالغة في ترك الفرج والتراص في الصفوف، وعدم تخليه فرج بينها، وليس المراد الاحتكاك، فإن في ذلك شيء من المضايقات، وبعض الناس يتأثر بمماسة غيره له، فالمصلي مأمور أن يرص أخاه أي يقترب منه، ولا يترك بينه وبينه فرجه، ولكن لا تلزم المماسة لبشرة الكعب للكعب الثاني، وبعض الناس يحرص على تحقيق ذلك، فتراه يفرق بين قديمه، حتى يجعل بين قدميه ذراعًا أو أكثر، حتى تلتصق قدماه بمن عن يمينه وبمن عن يساره، وهذا فيه شيء من الضرر على نفسه، وعلى غيره، فالأولى عدم الإضرار، والاقتصار على التقارب دون مماسة. والله أعلم
Sheikh Ibn Jibreen, may Allah have mercy on him) was asked :
# Fatwa 9604
**Subject of the Fatwa**: The ruling on physical contact when Straightning rows in prayer
**Question**:
It is known that several hadiths have been reported from the Prophet, peace be upon him, regarding straightening and arranging the prayer rows. Some worshippers press their feet against the feet of others. Is there evidence from the Prophet, peace be upon him, indicating the legitimacy of this practice?
**Answer**:
There is a hadith reported from Al-Nu'man, may Allah be pleased with him, and others, saying:
"Until we saw one of us pressing his heel against the heel of his companion and his shoulder against his companion's shoulder."
Scholars have stated that the intent of this is to emphasize leaving no gaps and maintaining compact rows, not physical contact itself, as this can cause discomfort. Some people are bothered by others touching them during prayer.
The worshipper is instructed to stand close to his brother, meaning to be near him without leaving a gap, but physical contact between heels is not required. Some people are keen on achieving this contact, so they spread their feet wide apart, placing their feet as much as a forearm's length or more, so that their feet touch those on their right and left. This causes some harm to themselves and others. It is preferable to avoid causing harm and to be content with proximity without physical contact.
And Allah knows best.
(This fatwa was issued by Sheikh Ibn Jibreen, may Allah have mercy on him)
The question of women attending the masjid should be understood through the Qur’ān, the authentic Sunnah, and the practice and understanding of the Companions رضي الله عنهم.
The authentic Sunnah establishes that women were permitted to attend the masjid and that they were not to be generally prevented from doing so.
At the same time, the Sunnah also establishes important guidelines concerning modesty, clothing, perfume, conduct, and respect for the masjid.
Therefore, the subject should be approached with both sides of the Prophetic guidance:
PERMISSION
and
PROPER ISLAMIC ETIQUETTE.
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❶ DO NOT PREVENT THE FEMALE SERVANTS OF ALLAH FROM THE MASĀJID
One of the clearest narrations on this subject was reported by Abū Hurayrah رضي الله عنه.
“One of the wives of ʿUmar used to attend the Fajr and ʿIshāʾ prayers in congregation in the mosque.
She was asked, ‘Why do you go out when you know that ʿUmar dislikes it and is protective?’
She replied, ‘What prevents him from forbidding me?’
It was said: ‘What prevents him is the statement of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ:
“Do not prevent the female servants of Allah from the mosques of Allah.”’”
🌸 Important point
Important: Al Bukhārī 900 itself does not name the wife; it simply says كَانَتِ امْرَأَةٌ لِعُمَرَ — “one of ʿUmar’s wives.” Some later sources identify her as ʿĀtikah bint Zayd, but that identification is not stated in the wording of Bukhārī 900.
تَخْرِيجُ الْحَدِيثِ — TAKHRĪJ
Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Ḥadīth 900.
This demonstrates that women attending the masjid was known during the time of the Companions. (Sunnah)
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❾ THE PROPHET ﷺ FORBADE PERFUME WHEN GOING TO THE MASJID
Amrah bint ʿAbd al-Raḥmān reported that she heard ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها say:
“If the Messenger of Allah ﷺ had seen what the women had introduced, he would have prevented them from the mosque, just as the women of Banī Isrāʾīl were prevented.”
تَخْرِيجُ الْحَدِيثِ — TAKHRĪJ
Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Ḥadīth 445a.
It is also narrated in:
Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Ḥadīth 869. (Sunnah)
This is an authentic statement of ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها, and therefore it should be treated with respect.
However, understanding the exact wording is very important.
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⓯ THE IMPORTANT WORD: لَوْ — LAW — “IF”
ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها began her statement with:
لَوْ -“IF”
She said:
لَوْ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ رَأَى
“If the Messenger of Allah ﷺ had seen...”
She did not report that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ actually said:
“Prevent women from attending the masjid.”
Rather, she was saying that if he had witnessed what she had later observed among women, she believed that he would have prevented them.
This is therefore a conditional statement concerning what she believed the Prophet ﷺ would have done under circumstances that she had witnessed.
It is different from an actual Prophetic command.
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⓰ WHY THIS STATEMENT SHOULD NOT BE USED AS A BLANKET PROHIBITION
The direct Prophetic narrations already presented are explicit:
قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ
لَا تَمْنَعُوا إِمَاءَ اللَّهِ مَسَاجِدَ اللَّهِ
“Do not prevent the female servants of Allah from the mosques of Allah.”
“When the wife of one of you asks permission to go to the mosque, he should not prevent her.”
Therefore, the statement of ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها should not be presented as though it were an actual Prophetic blanket prohibition.
Rather, it should be understood in its own wording and context.
It remains an important warning from the Mother of the Believers رضي الله عنها concerning changes in women's conduct.
But it is not the same type of evidence as an explicit statement in which the Prophet ﷺ himself commanded:
“Prevent women from attending the masjid.”
No such actual Prophetic blanket command is contained in this narration.
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⓱ WHAT WAS ʿĀʾISHAH رضي الله عنها WARNING ABOUT?
Her statement should not simply be dismissed.
Rather, it reminds Muslims that conduct and circumstances matter.
The Prophet ﷺ had already prohibited women from going to the masjid wearing perfume.
So the statement of ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها can be understood as a serious warning concerning the changes she observed among women and the importance of preserving:
🌸 Ḥayāʾ
🌿 Modesty
❀ Proper Clothing
🌷 Avoiding Perfume
❁ Avoiding Attention-Attracting Behavior
Thus, her statement reinforces the importance of the etiquette already taught by the Prophet ﷺ.
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⓲ A FRIENDLY WAY TO UNDERSTAND THE TWO SETS OF EVIDENCE
There is no need to create confusion between these narrations.
We can respectfully place them together:
THE PROPHET ﷺ GAVE THE PERMISSION
“Do not prevent the female servants of Allah from the mosques of Allah.”
THE PROPHET ﷺ GAVE THE GUIDELINES
“Let them go out without perfume.”
ʿĀʾISHAH رضي الله عنها GAVE A LATER WARNING
She observed changes among women and stated what she believed the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would have done had he witnessed those circumstances.
Therefore:
THE PROPHETIC PERMISSION SHOULD BE PRESERVED.
THE PROPHETIC ETIQUETTE SHOULD BE PRESERVED.
THE WARNING OF ʿĀʾISHAH رضي الله عنها SHOULD ALSO BE UNDERSTOOD AND RESPECTED.
This gives the reader a fuller picture of the subject rather than presenting only one side.
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⓳ THE COMPLETE PICTURE FROM THE SUNNAH
After gathering the narrations together, the subject can be summarized as follows:
① Women are permitted to attend the masjid.
② They should not be generally prevented from attending.
③ The Prophet ﷺ explicitly commanded that they not be prevented.
④ Women were permitted to attend even at night.
⑤ Women among the Companions attended the congregational prayers.
⑥ Women should not wear perfume when going to the masjid.
⑦ Proper Islamic modesty should be observed.
⑧ Good manners and dignity should be maintained.
⑨ A woman's home may be better for her prayer, but this does not establish a blanket prohibition from the masjid.
⑩ The statement of ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها should be understood as a conditional statement and warning, not presented as an actual Prophetic blanket prohibition.
This is the approach that allows the various authentic narrations to be considered together.
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⓴ A FINAL BALANCED CONCLUSION
The subject of women attending the masjid should not be reduced to one narration while the other authentic narrations are ignored.
The Sunnah gives us a balanced picture:
WOMEN MAY ATTEND THE MASJID.
THEY SHOULD NOT BE GENERALLY PREVENTED.
THEY SHOULD OBSERVE MODESTY AND ISLAMIC ETIQUETTE.
THEY SHOULD NOT WEAR PERFUME WHEN GOING TO THE MASJID.
THEIR HOMES MAY BE BETTER FOR THEM FOR PRAYER.
THE AUTHENTIC STATEMENT OF ʿĀʾISHAH رضي الله عنها SHOULD BE UNDERSTOOD ACCORDING TO ITS CONDITIONAL WORDING AND CONTEXT.
In this way, we respect the direct words of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ while also respecting the warning of ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها.
PERMISSION DOES NOT MEAN WITHOUT LIMITS.
PREFERENCE FOR HOME PRAYER DOES NOT MEAN PROHIBITION FROM THE MASJID.
AND A WARNING ABOUT CONDUCT DOES NOT AUTOMATICALLY BECOME A BLANKET PROHIBITION.
And Allah knows best.
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📚 SELECTED HADĪTH REFERENCES
SUNAN ABĪ DĀWŪD
Ḥadīth 565 — Abū Hurayrah رضي الله عنه — Do not prevent women from the masjid; they should go without perfume.
Ḥadīth 566 — Ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما — Do not prevent the female servants of Allah from the masājid.
Ḥadīth 567 — Ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما — Do not prevent women from the masājid; their homes are better for them.
Ḥadīth 568 — Ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما — Permit women to attend the masājid at night.
ṢAḤĪḤ AL-BUKHĀRĪ
Ḥadīth 869 — ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها — Her conditional statement concerning what the Prophet ﷺ would have done had he witnessed later changes among women.
Ḥadīth 899 — Ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما — “Permit women to go to the mosques at night.”
Ḥadīth 900 — Reports the attendance of women at Fajr and ʿIshāʾ.
ṢAḤĪḤ MUSLIM
Ḥadīth 442a — Ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما — When women seek permission to go to the mosque, they should not be prevented.
Ḥadīth 442g — Ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما — Permit women to go to the mosque at night.
Ḥadīth 442h — Ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما — “Do not prevent women from their share of the mosques.”
Ḥadīth 444 — Abū Hurayrah رضي الله عنه — A woman wearing perfume should not attend the ʿIshāʾ prayer with the people.
Ḥadīth 445a — ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها — Her conditional statement concerning women and the masjid.
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🌿 FINAL REMINDER
The authentic Sunnah gives us a beautiful balance.
Women were not generally excluded from the masjid during the time of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
The Prophet ﷺ said:
لَا تَمْنَعُوا إِمَاءَ اللَّهِ مَسَاجِدَ اللَّهِ
“Do not prevent the female servants of Allah from the mosques of Allah.”
But he also taught women to attend with proper Islamic etiquette and without perfume.
And ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها gave a valuable warning about changes that she witnessed among women after the time of the Prophet ﷺ.
Therefore, the Muslim should not take one narration and leave the others.
Rather, we should strive to understand:
╰─❀ THE PERMISSION
╰─❁ THE ETIQUETTE
╰─✿ THE CONTEXT
╰─🌷 THE WARNINGS
╰─🌸 THE COMPLETE GUIDANCE OF THE SUNNAH
May Allah سبحانه وتعالى grant us the ability to understand the Qur’ān and Sunnah correctly, to honor the words of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and to respect the understanding and warnings of the Companions رضي الله عنهم.
آمِينَ يَا رَبَّ الْعَالَمِينَ
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🌙 AHMADTRINI
QUR’ĀN • SUNNAH • KNOWLEDGE • REMINDER
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🌱 END NOTE
If this reminder benefits you, pass it on so that others may benefit as well.
