‘Fatāwā al-Lajnah ad-Dāimah’, vol. 7, verdict no. 995, p. 340:
Question: “Is is permissible to erect a barrier separating the men from the women within the mosque, and this barrier is not built, rather it is a wooden screen erected by a carpenter or a cloth screen two metres high or less. So the women are able to follow all of the movements of the Imām and they can hear his recitation clearly. All that happens is that they will not be able to see the men during the Prayer. So this is done for fear of falling into something prohibited, and of the women mixing with the men in a manner prohibited in the Legislation, particularly during the Prayer.”
Answer: “It is permissible to erect a barrier separating the men from the women within the mosque, since that is the correct basis — since it produces the benefit of separating the women from the men. Each of them are in their own place of Prayer, so they do not cause temptation to each other and preoccupy themselves away from the Prayer; and that could even lead to tribulation outside the mosque, and he (ﷺ) clearly stated: “The best rows of the men are the first of them, and the worst of them are the last ones; and the best of the rows of the women are their last ones, and the worst of them are the first ones.”
And success is granted by Allāh, and may Allāh extol and grant peace and security to our Prophet Muḥammad, and his family and true followers, and his Companions.”
The Permanent Committee for scholarly research and verdicts:
- ʿAbdullāh ibn Gudayān: Member
- ʿAbdur-Razzāq ʿAfīfī: Deputy head
- Ibrāhīm ibn Muḥammad Āl ash-Shaikh: Head
Question 4 from verdict no.4913 (p. 341):
Question: “Is it permissible to have a screen between the men and women in the Prayer, in Ramaḍān and otherwise?”
Answer: “There is no harm in placing a screen of material (qumāsh) and the like between the men and the women in the Prayer in Ramaḍān, and for other Prayers: whether they be obligatory or optional Prayers; and if the (women) pray in rows behind the rows of the men without any screen then that is permissible, and in this case then must be properly covered; and this was the practice in the time of the Prophet (ﷺ) and his Companions — raḍiyallāhu ʿanhum; and there is scope in this affair, and all praise is for Allāh,
And success is granted by Allāh, and may Allāh extol and grant peace and security to our Prophet Muḥammad, and his family and true followers, and his Companions.”
The Permanent Committee for scholarly research and verdicts:
- ʿAbdullāh ibn Qaʿūd: Member
- ʿAbdullāh ibn Gudayān: Member
- ʿAbdur-Razzāq ʿAfīfī: Deputy head
- ʿAbdul-ʿAzīz ibn ʿAbdullāh ibn Bāz: Head
Translated by Abu Talhah Dawood Burbank.
Be the first to comment