Our mosque has two places that are separate, outside the mosque. We
had got used to praying in this place, but since construction on the
mosque was completed, we pray inside the mosque. Is it permissible for
us to observe i'tikaaf in these two places?.
Praise be to Allaah.
I'tikaaf means staying in the mosque to worship Allah, and it is
something that is done only in the mosques and is not valid if done
elsewhere.
Ibn Qudaamah (may Allahhave mercy on him) said: I'tikaaf observed
anywhere but in a mosque is not valid if the person observing i'tikaaf
is a man. We do not knowof any difference among the scholars
concerning this. The basic principle with regard to that is the verse
in which Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): "And do not have
sexual relations withthem (your wives) while you are in I'tikaaf (i.e.
confining oneself in a mosque for prayers and invocations leaving the
worldly activities) in the mosques" [al-Baqarah 2:187]. So it is
something that is only for the mosques. If it were valid to preserve
i'tikaaf anywhere else, the prohibition on intimacy would not have
been mentioned only with regard to the mosques, because intimacy is
forbidden during i'tikaaf in all cases. According to the hadeeth of
'Aa'ishah, she said: "The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) used to put his head into (my room) when he was in
the mosque, and I would comb his hair. He did not enter the house
except for some need when he was observing i'tikaaf." Al-Daaraqutni
narrated with his isnaad from al-Zuhri, from 'Urwah and Sa'eed ibn
al-Musayyab from 'Aa'ishah in a hadeeth: The Sunnah is for the person
who is observing i'tikaaf not to go out except for necessary purposes,
and there is no i'tikaaf except in a mosque where prayers are offered
in congregation (jamaa 'ah).
End quote from al-Mughni, 3/65
With regard to this separate place, it does notseem that it is part of
the mosque that is built for prayer, so it is not valid toobserve
i'tikaaf there. The guideline in defining whatis included in the rooms
of the mosque and what is not included is as follows:
1. If the room that is connected to the mosque was built to be a
mosque, i.e., the builder of the mosque intended it to be part of the
mosque in which prayers are offered,then it comes under the same
rulings as the mosque and it is permissible to observe i'tikaaf there,
and women who are menstruating or bleeding following childbirth
(nifaas) should not be allowed to enter it.
But if it was intended to be extra space for teaching or holding
meetings, or as accommodation for the imam or muezzin, and notas a
place for prayer, it does not come under the same rulings as a mosque
in that case.
2. If the intention of theone who built the mosque is not known,
then the basic principle is that whatever is within the wall of the
mosque and has a door into the mosque comes under the same rulings as
the mosque.
3. The courtyard that is enclosed within the wall of the mosque
comes under the same rulings as the mosque.
Al-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said: The walls of the mosque,
both inside and outside, comes under the same rulings as the mosque
andit is obligatory to protect them and respect their sanctity. The
same appliesto its roof, the well inside it, and its courtyard.
Al-Shaafa'i and his companions (may Allah have mercy on them) stated
that it is valid to observe i'tikaaf in its courtyard or on its roof,
and the prayer of one who follows an imam who is inside the mosque in
these places is valid.
End quote from al-Majmoo', 2/207
It says in Mataalib Ooli al-Nuha (2/234): Also included as part of the
mosque are its roof and its enclosed courtyard. Al-Qaadi said: If it
has a wall and gate, then they are like the mosque, because they are
part of itand belong to it. If it is not enclosed, then it does not
come under the same rulings as the mosque. Also part of the mosque
isthe minaret, if it or its door is in the mosque; butif it or its
gate is outside, even if they are close, andthe person who is
observing i'tikaaf goes out to them to give the adhaan, his i'tikaaf
is rendered invalid. End quote.
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy onhim) was asked: With
regard to a room that is inside the mosque, is it permissible to
observe i'tikaaf in it? He replied: That depends. The one who studies
the words of the fuqaha' in general willsay that it is part of the
mosque, because they saythat the room that is enclosed by the walls of
the mosque are part of the mosque. But the one who thinks that it was
not built as part of the mosque and that it is a room for the imam,
will regard it as being like the houses of the Messenger (blessings
and peace of Allah be upon him), :->
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