Fatwa ID: 08630
Answered by: Alimah Maryam Badshah
Question:
To give context to the questions I will provide some detail of the demographic of the city we live in.
30.5% of the population of our city is Muslim. We have only 3 Islamic Primary schools out of 175 in this city. We are one out of the 3. As you will appreciate the need to educate these masses in Islam is of the immense importance. Furthermore, from among the challenges of living in secular western societies is safeguarding the iman of our Muslim children.
It is with this in mind we have set up a Muslim school for primary aged children which has been operational since 2005. This school building is adjacent to the musalla building also set up by us. The school building and musalla building are joined from inside. The musalla hosts 5 daily prayers, Jumma prayers. The only reason we have not made intention for a Sharee Masjid is because the school needs a hall and uses the hall in the musalla for school purposes. Without a hall the school loses registration and must close putting an end to the work being done to safeguard iman.
The barriers to it being a Sharee Masjid are that our staff (all are females) cannot then enter the building when they are on their menstrual cycle, nor can female students, parents etc. So ‘majbooran’ we have made the intention of a musalla so that the school children, staff, parents and muqtadees can have access to the halls.If it were just a masjid this would compromise the school.
My questions are:
- Due to this majboori, would our muqtadees receive the same reward as reading in a sharee masjid?
- Will the Prayer performed there be 27 times better than individual prayer?
- Are the other advantages of masjid applied to it e.g. The reward that will be given on every step for going to the masjid?
- Can the dua used for entering masjid be read there. What about the intention of ‘itikaaf?
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
Answer:
A Masjid is a location that has been given as an endowment to the community for the purpose of being a Masjid indefinitely. A Masjid can neither be sold nor repurposed, and neither does it belong to an individual. The area of a Masjid cannot have any other rooms built above or below it that are used for any purpose other than maintaining the Masjid (e.g. a storage room). No-one should prevent the congregational prayers from being performed in it. Care should be taken to prevent impurities from being brought into a Masjid, therefore those in a state of major ritual impurity are not permitted to enter the area of congregation, and neither should infants and those who are not sane be brought inside if they may soil the place of worship. The dua should be recited and Tahiyyatul Masjid is required from those who enter it.[1]
Historically, in Islam a Musallah is not a type of Masjid, but rather the spot where a person is praying salah. “Musallah” literally translates to “place of prayer” and is anywhere a person prays. As a Musallah is not a Shar’i Masjid, a Muqtadi will not be required to recite the dua or the Tahiyyatul Masjid salah when entering. It also has no restrictions to its function and can therefore have other buildings and rooms for other purposes made above and below it, be sold, be closed to the public, and no one is explicitly prevented from entering its space even if they are in major ritual impurity. It is said that every Masjid is a Musallah, but not every Musallah is a Masjid.[2]
Scholars have stated that it is permissible for a person to perform i’tikaf in the Musallah hall if the person is truly unable to perform it in a Shar’i Masjid. The requirement for the place of I’tikaf is that it is a place where the five daily prayers with congregation take place. If your hall fulfills this condition then one could use the hall for I’tikaf, keeping in mind any safeguarding requirements your school may need to follow.[3]
Allah’s Messenger (saw) said, “The reward of the prayer offered by a man in congregation is twenty five times greater than that of the prayer offered in one’s house or in the market (alone). And this is because if he performs ablution and does it perfectly and then proceeds to the mosque with the sole intention of praying, then for every step he takes towards the mosque, he is upgraded one degree in reward and his one sin is taken off (crossed out) from his accounts (of deeds). When he offers his prayer, the angels keep on asking Allah’s Blessings and Allah’s forgiveness for him as long as he is (staying) at his Musallah. They say, ‘O Allah! Bestow Your blessings upon him, be Merciful and kind to him.’ And one is regarded in prayer as long as one is waiting for the prayer.” (Bukhari)
The hadeeth regarding twenty-five times increased reward mentions prayer in congregation made at the Masjid due to the reasons mentioned in the above hadeeth. As for the other reward for taking each step, the hadeeth does mention the destination being a Masjid, and therefore may or may not necessarily apply to a Musallah. It should be kept in mind that there are several reasons for the reward of salah being multiplied. A Hasan narration has been mentioned in Fath al-Bari regarding a conversation between Aws al-Ma’afiri and Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-‘As (ra), where Abdullah ibn Amr (ra) estimates that the salah prayed in congregation not in a Masjid with wudhu that has been performed well to be fifteen times more reward than praying alone. So while you may not get the full reward for praying in the Masjid, your reward may be increased by fulfilling the other conditions.[4]
It should be kept in mind that it is not necessary for a Masjid to be an actual structure or building. This means that if a piece of land is partitioned and designated as a Masjid (e.g. a playground) it would be considered as such. The same goes for if you partitioned a smaller portion of your school hall solely for the use of being a permanent Masjid (if you had the space) as long as it fulfills the conditions mentioned previously.[5]
As a final note, one should always hope in the mercy and generosity of Allah (swt) and know that all rewards are from Him. Remember that the reward for praying in congregation at places other than a Masjid have not been mentioned. All actions are based on intention, and it may be that your intention to provide both a school and Masjid for the community to the best of your ability will also be a place of immense reward and benefit.
References:
[1]
(الْفَصْلُ الْأَوَّلُ فِيمَا يَصِيرُ بِهِ مَسْجِدًا وَفِي أَحْكَامِهِ وَأَحْكَامِ مَا فِيهِ) : مَنْ بَنَى مَسْجِدًا لَمْ يَزُلْ مِلْكُهُ عَنْهُ حَتَّى يُفْرِزَهُ عَنْ مِلْكِهِ بِطَرِيقَةٍ وَيَأْذَنَ بِالصَّلَاةِ أَمَّا الْإِفْرَازُ فَلَا؛ لِأَنَّهُ لَا يَخْلُصُ لِلَّهِ تَعَالَى إلَّا بِهِ
Al-Fatāwa al-Hindiyyah (Vol.2, pg.454, Dār Al-Fiqr)
… وَيَحْرُمُ إدْخَالُ صِبْيَانٍ وَمَجَانِينَ حَيْثُ غَلَبَ تَنْجِيسُهُمْ وَإِلَّا فَيُكْرَهُ…
وَلَا يَبْطُلُ الِاعْتِكَافُ بِالصُّعُودِ إلَيْهِ وَلَا يَحِلُّ لِلْجُنُبِ وَالْحَائِضِ وَالنُّفَسَاءِ الْوُقُوفُ عَلَيْهِ؛ وَلَوْ حَلَفَ لَا يَدْخُلُ هَذِهِ الدَّارَ فَوَقَفَ عَلَى سَطْحِهَا يَحْنَثُ اهـ (قَوْلُهُ إلَى عَنَانِ السَّمَاءِ) …وَكَذَا إلَى تَحْتِ الثَّرَى…
… وَيُصَلِّي كُلَّ يَوْمٍ تَحِيَّةَ الْمَسْجِدِ مَرَّةً بَحْرٌ عَلَى الْخُلَاصَةِ: أَيْ إذَا تَكَرَّرَ دُخُولُهُ تَكْفِيه التَّحِيَّةُ مَرَّةً…(قَوْلُهُ وَإِدْخَالُ نَجَاسَةٍ فِيهِ) عِبَارَةُ الْأَشْبَاهِ: وَإِدْخَالُ نَجَاسَةٍ فِيهِ يُخَافُ مِنْهَا التَّلْوِيثُ. اهـ.
Raddul Muhtār (Vol.1, pg.656, Dār Al-Fiqr)
[2]
(لَا) يُكْرَهُ مَا ذُكِرَ (فَوْقَ بَيْتٍ) جُعِلَ (فِيهِ مَسْجِدٌ) بَلْ وَلَا فِيهِ لِأَنَّهُ لَيْسَ بِمَسْجِدٍ شَرْعًا… فَهُوَ (مَسْجِدٌ فِي حَقِّ جَوَازِ الِاقْتِدَاءِ)… (لَا فِي حَقِّ غَيْرِهِ) بِهِ يُفْتَى نِهَايَةٌ (فَحَلَّ دُخُولُهُ لِجُنُبٍ وَحَائِضٍ) كَفِنَاءِ مَسْجِدٍ وَرِبَاطٍ وَمَدْرَسَةٍ وَمَسَاجِدَ حِيَاضٍ وَأَسْوَاقٍ لَا قَوَارِعَ.
Raddul Muhtār (Vol.1, pg.657, Dār Al-Fiqr)
[3]
(وَأَمَّا شُرُوطُهُ) فَمِنْهَا النِّيَّةُ حَتَّى لَوْ اعْتَكَفَ بِلَا نِيَّةٍ لَا يَجُوزُ بِالْإِجْمَاعِ كَذَا فِي مِعْرَاجِ الدِّرَايَةِ.
وَمِنْهَا مَسْجِدُ الْجَمَاعَةِ فَيَصِحُّ فِي كُلِّ مَسْجِدٍ لَهُ أَذَانٌ، وَإِقَامَةٌ هُوَ الصَّحِيحُ كَذَا فِي الْخُلَاصَةِ، وَأَفْضَلُ الِاعْتِكَافِ مَا كَانَ فِي الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ ثُمَّ فِي مَسْجِدِ النَّبِيِّ – عَلَيْهِ الصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ – ثُمَّ فِي بَيْتِ الْمُقَدَّسِ ثُمَّ فِي الْجَامِعِ ثُمَّ فِيمَا كَانَ أَهْلُهُ أَكْثَرَ، وَأَوْفَرَ كَذَا فِي التَّبْيِينِ.
Al-Fatāwa al-Hindiyyah (Vol.1, pg.211, Dār Al-Fiqr)
[4]
حَدَّثَنَا مُوسَى بْنُ إِسْمَاعِيلَ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ الْوَاحِدِ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا الأَعْمَشُ، قَالَ سَمِعْتُ أَبَا صَالِحٍ، يَقُولُ سَمِعْتُ أَبَا هُرَيْرَةَ، يَقُولُ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم “ صَلاَةُ الرَّجُلِ فِي الْجَمَاعَةِ تُضَعَّفُ عَلَى صَلاَتِهِ فِي بَيْتِهِ وَفِي سُوقِهِ خَمْسًا وَعِشْرِينَ ضِعْفًا، وَذَلِكَ أَنَّهُ إِذَا تَوَضَّأَ فَأَحْسَنَ الْوُضُوءَ، ثُمَّ خَرَجَ إِلَى الْمَسْجِدِ لاَ يُخْرِجُهُ إِلاَّ الصَّلاَةُ، لَمْ يَخْطُ خَطْوَةً إِلاَّ رُفِعَتْ لَهُ بِهَا دَرَجَةٌ، وَحُطَّ عَنْهُ بِهَا خَطِيئَةٌ، فَإِذَا صَلَّى لَمْ تَزَلِ الْمَلاَئِكَةُ تُصَلِّي عَلَيْهِ مَا دَامَ فِي مُصَلاَّهُ اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلَيْهِ، اللَّهُمَّ ارْحَمْهُ. وَلاَ يَزَالُ أَحَدُكُمْ فِي صَلاَةٍ مَا انْتَظَرَ الصَّلاَةَ ”.
Sahih Al-Bukhāri 647 (Bk.10, ch.30, sunnah.com)
وَرَوَى سَعِيدُ بْنُ مَنْصُورٍ بِإِسْنَادٍ حَسَنٍ عَنْ أَوْسٍ الْمَعَافِرِيِّ أَنَّهُ قَالَ لِعَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عَمْرِو بْنِ الْعَاصِ: أَرَأَيْتَ مَنْ تَوَضَّأَ فَأَحْسَنَ الْوُضُوءَ ثُمَّ صَلَّى فِي بَيْتِهِ؟ قَالَ: حَسَنٌ جَمِيلٌ. قَالَ: فَإِنْ صَلَّى فِي مَسْجِدِ عَشِيرَتِهِ؟ قَالَ: خَمْسَ عَشْرَةَ صَلَاةً. قَالَ: فَإِنْ مَشَى إِلَى مَسْجِدِ جَمَاعَةٍ فَصَلَّى فِيهِ؟ قَالَ: خَمْسٌ وَعِشْرُونَ. انْتَهَى. وَأَخْرَجَ حُمَيْدُ بْنُ زَنْجَوَيْهِ فِي كِتَابِ التَّرْغِيبِ نَحْوَهُ مِنْ حَدِيثِ وَاثِلَةَ، وَخُصَّ الْخَمْسُ وَالْعِشْرُونَ بِمَسْجِدِ الْقَبَائِلِ. قَالَ: وَصَلَاتُهُ فِي الْمَسْجِدِ الَّذِي يُجْمَعُ فِيهِ – أَيِ الْجُمُعَةُ – بِخَمْسِمِائَةٍ، وَسَنَدُهُ ضَعِيفٌ.
قَوْلُهُ: (وَذَلِكَ أَنَّهُ إِذَا تَوَضَّأَ) ظَاهِرٌ فِي أَنَّ الْأُمُورَ الْمَذْكُورَةَ عِلَّةٌ لِلتَّضْعِيفِ الْمَذْكُورِ، إِذِ التَّقْدِيرُ: وَذَلِكَ لِأَنَّهُ، فَكَأَنَّهُ يَقُولُ: التَّضْعِيفُ الْمَذْكُورُ سَبَبُهُ كَيْتُ وَكَيْتُ، وَإِذَا كَانَ كَذَلِكَ فَمَا رُتِّبَ عَلَى مَوْضُوعَاتٍ مُتَعَدِّدَةٍ لَا يُوجَدُ بِوُجُودِ بَعْضِهَا إِلَّا إِذَا دَلَّ الدَّلِيلُ عَلَى إِلْغَاءِ مَا لَيْسَ مُعْتَبَرًا أَوْ لَيْسَ مَقْصُودًا لِذَاتِهِ. وَهَذِهِ الزِّيَادَةُ الَّتِي فِي حَدِيثِ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ مَعْقُولَةُ الْمَعْنَى، فَالْأَخْذُ بِهَا مُتَوَجَّهٌ، وَالرِّوَايَاتُ الْمُطْلَقَةُ لَا تُنَافِيهَا بَلْ يُحْمَلُ مُطْلَقُهَا عَلَى هَذِهِ الْمُقَيَّدَةِ، وَالَّذِينَ قَالُوا بِوُجُوبِ الْجَمَاعَةِ عَلَى الْكِفَايَةِ ذَهَبَ كَثِيرٌ مِنْهُمْ إِلَى أَنَّ الْحَرَجَ لَا يَسْقُطُ بِإِقَامَةِ الْجَمَاعَةِ فِي الْبُيُوتِ
Fatḥ Al-Bāri (Vol.2, pg.135-6, Dār al-Ma’rifah)
[5]
دَارٌ فِيهَا مَسْجِدٌ إنْ كَانَتْ الدَّارُ إذَا أُغْلِقَتْ كَانَ لِلْمَسْجِدِ جَمَاعَةٌ مِمَّنْ كَانَ فِي الدَّارِ فَهُوَ مَسْجِدُ جَمَاعَةٍ تَثْبُتُ فِيهَا أَحْكَامُ الْمَسْجِدِ مِنْ حُرْمَةِ الدُّخُولِ لِلْجُنُبِ إذَا كَانُوا لَا يَمْنَعُونَ النَّاسَ مِنْ الصَّلَاةِ فِيهِ، وَإِنْ كَانَتْ الدَّارُ إذَا أُغْلِقَتْ لَمْ يَكُنْ فِيهَا جَمَاعَةٌ وَإِذَا فُتِحَ بَابُهَا كَانَ لَهَا جَمَاعَةٌ فَلَيْسَ هَذَا مَسْجِدًا وَإِنْ كَانُوا لَا يَمْنَعُونَ النَّاسَ مِنْ الصَّلَاةِ فِيهِ. كَذَا فِي فَتَاوَى قَاضِي خَانْ.
Al-Fatāwa al-Hindiyyah (Vol.1, pg.110, Dār Al-Fiqr)
Only Allah (عز و جل) knows best.
Written by Alimah Maryam Badshah
Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah
Darul Ifta Birmingham
