Question Summary:
We have a local masjid which was a house converted for prayer and has been so now for the past 20 odd years. From the very first day there has always been a room allocated as living quarters… Question Detail:
Assalamu^alaykum I have a question regarding a situation which we are dealing with, inshallah please let us know the rules according to shariah on this issue. We have a local masjid which was a house converted for prayer and has been so now for the past 20 odd years. From the very first day there has always been a room allocated as living quarters for the Imam which has been one of the bedrooms. Over the past years we have had several imams who have lived here. The problem that we are faced with now is the current Imam is having his family join him here in the UK, but they do not have any other living accomodation as of yet, so for temporary means we have sectioned off the Imams living quarters and upstairs bathroom. However, we have been informed by elders from the community that according to the shariah the imam cannot live here with his family as the shariah does not permit this. Please clarify the rules according to shariah if this is permissable or not. Wa salam
Answer :
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
Assalaamu `alaykum waRahmatullahi Wabarakatuh
There are a few possible scenarios when the house was bought for the purpose of prayer:
The property was not declared as a Masjid, even though it has been used for prayers
The property was declared as a Masjid
- The Imām's quarters were excluded from the Masjid
- The Imām's quarters were included in the Masjid
If the property was not declared as a Masjid, or if it was declared as such but the living quarters were excluded, then it would be permissible for the Imām to stay there with his family. However, if the property, along with the living quarters, was declared as a Masjid, then it would not be permissible [i].
In the scenarios where it is permissible for the Imām to stay in the living quarters with his family, it would still be necessary to have a separate exit for these quarters such that the female members of his family do not mix with the male congregants of the Masjid [ii].
[i]
لو بنى فوقه بيتا للإمام لا يضر لأنه من المصالح أما لو تمت المسجدية ثم أراد البناء منع ولو قال عنيت ذلك لم يصدق تاترخانية
قال الإمام ابن عابدين في حاشيته:
قوله ( أما لو تمت المسجدية ) أي فالقول على المفتى به أو بالصلاة فيه على قولهما ط
(رد المحتار، كتاب الوقف: 4/358؛ سعيد)
(فتاوى محمودية، كتاب الوقف، باب أحكام المسجد، الفصل الثامن: 14/559؛ فاروقية)
(أحسن الفتاوى، كتاب الوقف، باب المساجد: 6/444؛ سعيد)
[ii]
(فتاوى محمودية، كتاب الوقف، باب أحكام المسجد، الفصل الثامن: 14/562-563؛ فاروقية)
And Allah knows best
Wassalamu Alaikum
Ml. Abrar Mirza,
Student Darul Iftaa
Checked and Approved by:
Mufti Ebrahim Desai
Darul Iftaa, Madrassah In'aamiyyah
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