Ruling on organizing prayers for rain if this is not done by the ruler

If the ruler of a state is neglecting the Sunnah of praying for rain
(salaat al-istisqaa'), and he does not call the people to offer this
prayer when there is no rain or the wells have dried up, is it
permissible for the imaamof one of the mosques in that country to call
the people of his city to offer the prayer for rain and forthem to go
out on their own to offer this prayer?
Praise be to Allaah.
If the people of a city are not ordered by their ruler to offer the
Eid prayers or prayers for rain, then it is prescribed for them to
offer the Eid prayer and prayers for rain in the desert (i.e., outside
the city) if that is possible, or else in the mosques, because the
Messenger (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) prescribed that
for his ummah. Eid prayer is fard kafaayah (i.e., if some members of
the community undertake this duty, the rest are free from blame, but
if no one does it, all will be held to blame), so it is not
permissible for the Muslims in any city to neglect it. Some of the
scholars said that it is fard'ayn (an individual obligation) like
Jumu'ah prayers, because the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) did itand ordered others to do it.
Kitaab Majmoo' Fataawawa Maqaalaat Mutanawwi'ah li Samaahat al-Shaykh
'Abd al-'Azeez ibn 'Abd-Allaah ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy on him)

Praying in Hijr Ismaa‘eel

Is it permissible to pray inHijr Ismaa'eel and what are the virtues thereof?.
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
We have previously explained that it is a mistake to call al-Hijr
"HijrIsmaa'eel", because this Hijr only became a Hijr a long time
after the time of Ismaa'eel (peace be upon him). The correct form is
to call it al-Hijr only, without attributing it to anyone.
See question number 22004 .
Secondly:
The Hijr is part of the Ka'bah, so whoever prays in it has prayed in
the Ka'bah, and praying in theKa'bah is permissible withregard to
naafil prayers only, as the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) did. Al-Bukhaari (505) and Muslim (1329) narrated from
'Abd-Allah ibn 'Umar that the Messenger of Allaah (blessings and peace
of Allah be upon him) entered the Ka'bah, accompanied by Usaamah,
Bilaal and 'Uthmaan ibn Talhah al-Hajabi. He closed the door and
remained inside.Ibn 'Umar said: I asked Bilaal when he came out: What
did the Messenger of Allaah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
do? He said: He put two pillars on his left, onepillar on his right,
and three pillars behind him – and at that time the House was built on
six pillars – then he prayed.
Abu Dawood (2028), al-Tirmidhi (876) and al-Nasaa'i (2912)
narratedfrom 'Aa'ishah that she said: I wanted to enter the House (the
Ka'bah) and pray inside it, but the Messenger of Allah (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) took me by the hand and led me into
al-Hijr and said: "Pray in al-Hijr if you want to enter the House, for
it is a part of the House, but your people ran out of funds when they
(re)built the Ka'bah, so they left it outside the House."
Ibn Qudaamah (may Allahhave mercy on him) said: Obligatory (fard)
prayers are not valid inside the Ka'bah or on its roof, but they were
regarded as permissible by al-Shaafa'i and Abu Haneefah, because it is
a mosque and because it is a place for naafil praying, so it should be
a place for obligatory prayers too, just like the area outside it. But
Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): "And from wheresoever you
start forth (for prayers), turn your face in the direction of
Al-Masjid Al-Haraam (atMakkah)" [al-Baqarah 2:149]. The worshipper who
is inside it or on its roof is not facing towards it. But the basic
principle with regard to naafil prayers is that the rulings on them
are less stringent, based on the fact that they may be prayed whilst
seated, facing a direction other than the qiblah, and, when
travelling, on one's mount.
Then he said: Naafil prayers are valid if offeredinside the Ka'bah or
on its roof, and we do not knowof any difference of opinion concerning
that, because the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
prayed two rak'ahs inside the Ka'bah.
End quote from al-Mughni, 1/406
Shaykh Ibn Baaz (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked about praying
inside it, and whether there is any advantage in doing so.
He replied: Praying inside Hijr Ismaa'eel is mustahabb, because it is
part of the Ka'bah, and it is narrated in a saheeh report from the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) that he entered the
Ka'bah during the year of the conquest (of Makkah) and prayed two
rak'ahs inside it. The soundness of this hadith is agreed upon;
thehadeeth was narrated from Ibn 'Umar and Bilaal (may Allah be
pleased with them).
It is proven that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon
him) said to 'Aa'ishah when she wanted to enter the Ka'bah: "Pray in
al-Hijr," because it is part of the House (the Ka'bah).
With regard to obligatory prayers, it is better not to offer them
inside the Ka'bah or in Hijr Ismaa'eel,because the Prophet (blessings
and peace of Allah be upon him) did not do that, and because some of
the scholars said that it (obligatory prayer) is not valid inside the
Ka'bah or in al-Hijr, because al-Hijr is part of the Ka'bah.
Thus it is known that what is prescribed is to offer obligatory
prayers outside the Ka'bah and outside al-Hijr, following the example
of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), and so as
to avoid differing from those scholars who say that obligatory prayer
offered inside the Ka'bah or in al-Hijr is not valid.
And Allah is the source of strength.
End quote from Fataawa al-Shaykh Ibn Baaz (11/389)
To sum up: prayer inside al-Hijr is mustahabb, but it should be
limited to naafil prayers.
And Allah knows best.

Ruling on child passing in front of one who is praying

What is the ruling on an under-five year old child passing in front of
a worshipper? If we were to stop him he will insist more on passing,
or will sit where we prostrate, oron the worshipper's head,especially
if he is less thanthree years old.
Praise be to Allaah.
What you must do is stop him, because of the general meaning of the
shar'i evidence concerningthat, including the words of the Prophet
(peace andblessings of Allaah be upon him): "When one of you prays
facing something that is screening him from the people, and someone
wants to pass in front of him, let him push him back, and if he
insists thenlet him fight him, for he isno more than a devil." Agreed
upon. What is meant by the phrase "let him fight him" is let him push
him back forcefully. And Allaah is the Source ofstrength. End quote.
Majmoo' Fataawa Ibn Baaz (29/327).
But if the child is passing frequently and stopping him will distract
the worshipper from his prayer, then he should let him be and not
focus on preventing him.
Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar said in Fath al-Baari:
Ibn Battaal and others narrated that there was scholarly consensus
that itis not permissible for him to move away from his spot in order
to push him away, or to move a great deal in doing so, because that
has a greater effect on the prayer than his passing in front of him.
End quote.
And Allaah knows best.

Does he have to wake his children who are seven years old to pray Fajr?

I have a daughter who is 7 years old, she prays Alhamdulillah. Do I
have to wake her up for Fajr prayer, knowing that this made her
dislike praying?.
Praise be to Allaah.
The father is like the shepherd of his householdand is responsible for
his flock, as the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
said. Based on that, he should educate his children and teach them to
fulfil obligations and avoid haraam things. That includes telling them
to pray when they reach the age of seven years, because of the report
narrated by Abu Dawood (495) from 'Amr ibn Shu'ayb, from his father,
from his grandfather, whosaid: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "Tell your children to pray
when they are seven years old and smack them if they do not pray when
they are ten, and separate them in their beds." Classed as saheeh by
al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood.
But the father should be kind in teaching his small children how to
pray, and he should encourage them by praising them, and giving them
gifts and rewards so that they will get used to it and love it.
You can delay waking your daughter up until near sunrise, and
encourage her to sleep early so that it will be easier for her to get
up.
There is nothing wrong with you not waking her up on days when you
think it will be too hard for her to wake up, because – for example –
she went to sleep late or because it is very cold, and so on.
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) was asked: I
havea son who is about nine years old; should I wake him up for Fajr
prayer?
He replied: Yes, if a man has children, male or female, who have
reachedthe age of ten, he should wake them up. With regard to children
who are younger than that, if he wakes them up so thatthey may pray on
time, that is better, but there is no sin on him if he does not do
that. But it is better to wake them up, because the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "Tell your children to praywhen
they are seven tearsold and smack them if they do not pray when they
are ten, and separatethem in their beds." End quote from Fataawa
Noor'ala'l-Darb.
He was also asked: My sonis eight years old; should Iwake him up to
pray Fajr?If he does not pray, am I sinning?
He replied: It seems that itdepends. If it is winter, forexample, and
it is very cold, then there is nothingwrong with leaving him and
telling him to pray when he wakes up. But if the weather is normal and
there is no harm done by waking him up, then you should wake him up so
that he will get used to praying with the people. Nowadays, praise be
to Allaah, there are young boys between the ages of seven and ten whom
we see coming with their fathers to pray Fajr. If a child gets used
tothat from an early age there is a great deal of goodness in that.
But if it causes hardship, then you do not have to wake them up. But
when they wake up you should tell them to pray.

And Allaah knows best.