*Ruling on a womanperforming the adhaan.

*What is the ruling on a woman performing the adhaan for men?.
Praise be to Allaah.
For fourteen hundred years the custom among the Muslims has been that
the adhaan has not been performed by anyone except men. This alone
should be sufficient evidence that women are not allowed to perform
the adhaan for men. Going against this is going against the way of the
believers. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
"And whoever contradicts and opposes the Messenger (Muhammad) after
the right path has been shown clearly to him, and follows other than
the believers' way, We shall keep him in the path he has chosen, and
burn him in Hell — what an evil destination!"
[al-Nisa' 4:115]
The matter would be too clear to need any evidence or argument, were
it not for the fact that there are people whose eyes have been sealed
by Allaah and who are arguing about matters that should be regarded as
firmly-established aspects of this religion.
The evidence for that from the Sunnah is as follows:
1 – al-Bukhaari (604) and Muslim (377) narrated that Ibn 'Umar (may
Allaah be pleased with him) said: When the Muslims came to Madeenah,
they used to gather and wait for the prayer, and there was no call for
the prayer. One day they spoke about that and some of them said, "Let
us use a bell like the bell of the Christians." Others said, "No, let
us use a horn like the horn of the Jews." 'Umar said, "Why don't you
send a man to give the call to prayer?" The Messenger of Allaah(peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, "O Bilaal, get up and call
the people to prayer."
This hadeeth indicates that the decision of the Sahaabah was that no
one should give the call to prayer except men, and there is no room
for women to do that, because 'Umar said, "Why don't you send a man to
give the call to prayer?"
2 – al-Bukhaari (684) and Muslim (421) narrated from Sahl ibn Sa'd
al-Saa'idi (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of
Allaah(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "Whoever
notices anything amiss during the prayer, let him say tasbeeh, for if
he does so it will be noticed; and clapping is only for women."
al-Haafiz said:
It is as if women are not allowed to say tasbeeh because they are
enjoined to keep their voices low in prayer at all times, because of
the fear of fitnah. End quote.
If women are forbidden to alert the imam by speaking if he makes a
mistake, and should clap instead, so that they will not raise their
voices in the presence of men, then how can it be allowed for a woman
to give the adhaan?
The scholars are agreed that it is not prescribed for women to give
the adhaan for men. There follow some of their comments on this topic:
It says inBadaa'i' al-Sanaa'i'(1/411) (Hanafi):
It is not allowed for a woman to give the adhaan, according to all the reports.
It says inMawaahib al-Jaleel(2/87) (Maaliki):
The adhaan of a woman is not valid. End quote.
Al-Shaafa'i said inal-Umm(1/84):
A woman should not give the call to prayer, and if she gives the
adhaan for men, her adhaan is not valid (and they should repeat it).
End quote.
It says inal-Insaaf(1/395) (Hanbali):
The adhaan of a woman is not valid. End quote.

*Dought & clear, - Why is the Prophet’s grave in his mosque even though it is forbidden to take graves as places of worship?.

The hadeeth says, "May Allaah curse the Jews, for they have taken the
graves of their Prophets as places of worship". So how come the grave
of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) is inside
his mosque in Madeenah?.
Praise be to Allaah.
The scholars have discussed this issue, in the past and more recently,
and they refuted those who quote the fact that the grave of the
Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) is inside his
mosque as evidence that it is permissible to take graves as places of
worship, or to include graves in mosques. We will quote the fatwas of
some of our prominent scholars, which discuss in detail the matter
raised in the question.
1 – Shaykh 'Abd al-'Azeez ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
There is a specious argument put forward by those who worship graves,
namely the fact that the grave of the Prophet(peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) is in his mosque. The answer to that is that the
Sahaabah (may Allaah be pleased with them) did not bury him in his
mosque, rather they buried him in the house of 'Aa'ishah (may Allaah
be pleased with her). When al-Waleed ibn 'Abd al-Malik expanded the
Mosque of the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) at
the end of the first century, he incorporated the room into the
mosque, but he did wrong thereby, and some of the scholars denounced
him for that, but he believed that there was nothing wrong with it for
the sake of expanding the mosque.
It is not permissible for a Muslim to take that as evidence that
mosques may be built over graves, or that people may be buried inside
mosques, because that goes against the saheeh ahaadeeth, and because
it is a means that may lead to shirk by associating the occupants of
the graves in worship with Allaah. End quote.
Majmoo' Fataawa al-Shaykh Ibn Baaz, 5/388, 389.
2 – Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-'Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on
him) was asked about the ruling on praying in a mosque in which there
is a grave.
He replied:
Praying in a mosque in which there is a grave falls into two categories:
(i)Either the grave was there before the mosque, and the mosque was
built over the grave. It is essential to shun this mosque and not pray
therein, and the one who built it must knock it down; if he does not
do so, then the Muslim authorities must knock it down.
(ii)Or the mosque was there before the grave, and the deceased was
buried after the mosque was built. In the case the grave must be dug
up, and the remains taken out and buried with the people (in the
graveyard).
As for praying in such a mosque, it is permissible so long as the
grave is not in front of the worshipper, because the Prophet(peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) forbade praying in the direction of
graves.
With regard to the grave of the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) which is incorporated into his mosque, it is well known
that the Mosque of the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) was built before his death, and was not built over his grave. It
is also well known that the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) was not buried in the mosque, rather he was buried in his
house which was separate from the mosque. At the time of al-Waleed ibn
'Abd al-Malik he wrote to his governor in Madeenah, who was 'Umar ibn
'Abd al-'Azeez, in 88 AH, ordering him to dismantle the Prophet's
Mosque and add to it the rooms of the wives of the Prophet(peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him). 'Umar gathered the prominent people
and fuqaha', and read the letter of the caliph al-Waleed to them. That
caused them distress, and they said: "Leave it as it is, that is
better." And it was narrated that Sa'eed ibn al-Musayyib denounced the
incorporation of 'Aa'ishah's room into the mosque, as if he feared
that the grave would be taken as a place of worship.
Umar wrote a letter to that effect to al-Waleed, and al-Waleed sent
word to him ordering him to carry out his instructions, so 'Umar had
no other choice. So you see that the grave of the Prophet(peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) was not placed in the mosque, and the
mosque was not built over it, so there are no grounds for those who
try to quote this as evidence that people may be buried inside mosques
or that mosques may be built over graves.
It is proven that the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) said: "May the curse of Allaah be upon the Jews and the
Christians; they have taken the graves of their Prophets as places of
worship." He said that as he was dying, as a warning to his ummah
against doing what they did. When Umm Salamah told him of a church
that she had seen in Ethiopia and the images therein, he said: "Those
people, if a righteous man among them died, they would build a place
of worship over his grave. They are the most evil of people before
Allaah." And it was narrated from Ibn Mas'ood (may Allaah be pleased
with him) that the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
said: "Among the most evil of people upon whom the Hour will come when
they are still alive are those who take graves as places of worship."
Narrated by Imam Ahmad with a jayyid isnaad.
The believer should not accept to follow the ways of the Jews and the
Christians, or to be among the most evil of people.
Majmoo' Fataawa al-Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen, 12/question no. 292
And Allaah knows best.

Dought & clear, - The difference between a Jewish or Christian wife and a wife who does not pray.

I read a fatwa which you issued to a Muslim man whose Muslim wife does
not pray, and you told him that he had to divorce her. I know that it
is permissible for a Muslim man to have a Jewish or Christian wife,
and Jewish and Christian women do not pray. Is there some mistake?.
Praise be to Allaah.
There is no mistake in the fatwa referred to. Rather the mistake comes
from the questioner wanting to regard as equal a woman who is
supposedly Muslim but does not pray and a woman who is Jewish or
Christian, on the basis that neither of them prays.
This regarding them as equal is not valid, because there is a
difference between them, which is that not praying is major kufr and
apostasy that puts a person beyond the pale of Islam. This has been
explained in many answers on this site, such as the answers to
questions no. 9400and 5208.
Based on this, the woman who does not pray is a kaafir and an apostate
from Islam.
The ruling on one who has apostatized from Islam is more severe than
the ruling on a Jew or Christian.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah said:
The apostate is worse than a kaafir in many ways. End quote.
Majmoo' al-Fataawa, 2/193
Hence meat slaughtered by an apostate cannot be eaten, whereas meat
slaughtered by a Jew or Christian may be eaten. It is not permissible
for a Muslim to marry an apostate woman, and if his wife apostatizes,
the marriage contract becomes null and void, but it is permissible for
a Muslim to marry a Jewish or Christian woman.
The crux of the matter is the ruling that one who does not pray is a
kaafir. Those who are of this view forbade marriage to a woman who
does not pray, and said that it is obligatory to leave a woman if she
stops praying. This is the view of Imam Ahmad (may Allaah have mercy
on him) and was stated in fatwas by a number of scholars, such as
Shaykh Ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy on him), Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen
(may Allaah have mercy on him) and Shaykh Saalih al-Fawzaan (may
Allaah preserve him). Our fatwa on this issue and similar issues is
based on their fatwas.
Similarly, if a woman does something that implies kufr, such as
vilifying Allaah, may He be exalted, or vilifying His Messenger(peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him), and she persists in her kufr and
does not repent, then it is not permissible for her to remain the wife
of a Muslim. The same applies if a husband is ruled to be an apostate,
then he and his wife must be separated.
And Allaah knows best.

Dought & clear, - Is there a difference between subh prayer and fajr prayer?.

Is there a difference between subh prayer and fajr prayer?.
Praise be to Allaah.
Fajr prayer is subh prayer - there is no difference between them. It
consists of two rak'ahs. The time for this prayer starts when the true
dawn begins, and lasts until the sun rises. There is a prayer that
comes before it, consisting of two rak'ahs, which is known as the
Sunnah of subh or the two rak'ahs of Fajr.
The phrasessalaat al-subhandsalaat al-fajrare both used in the Sunnah
to refer to this prayer, such as the report narrated by Muslim (656)
from 'Abd al-Rahmaan ibn Abi 'Amrah who said: 'Uthmaan ibn 'Affaan
entered the mosque after Maghrib prayer and sat by himself. I sat
beside him and he said: O son of my brother, I heard the Messenger of
Allaah(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) say: "Whoever prays
'Isha' in congregation, it is as if he spent half the night in prayer,
and whoever prays Subh (Fajr) in congregation, it is as if he spent
the entire night in prayer."
Al-Bukhaari (556) and Muslim (608) narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may
Allaah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allaah(peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "If one of you catches up with
a rak'ah of 'Asr prayer before the sun sets, let him complete his
prayer, and if he catches up with a rak'ah of Subh (Fajr) prayer
before the sun rises, let him complete his prayer."
As for calling it Fajr prayer, Muslim (670) narrated from Jaabir ibn
Samurah that when the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) prayed Fajr he would sit in the place where he had prayed until
the sun was well risen.
And al-Bukhaari (891) and Muslim (880) narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may
Allaah be pleased with him) said: The Prophet(peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) used to recite in Jumu'ah and in Fajr
prayer,"Alif-Laam-Meem. The revelation of the Book... " [Soorat
al-Sajdah, no. 32]and"Has there not been over man a period of time"
[Soorat al-Dahr, no. 76].
And al-Bukhaari (555) and Muslim (632) narrated from Abu Hurayrah (may
Allaah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allaah(peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "Angels come to you in
succession by night and by day, and they meet at Fajr prayer and at
'Asr prayer, then those who stayed among you ascend and He (Allaah)
asks them, although He knows best, 'How did you leave My slaves?' They
say: 'We left them when they were praying and we came to them when
they were praying.'"And Allaah knows best.