Women's Performing Salah with Men in the Mosque: An Analytical Discussion

Abstract

During the era of Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, women used to perform the Salah with Jamaat in the mosque, including Friday and two Eid Jama’ats. This trend had been continued from the era of Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam to the Khalif Hazrat Abu Bakr Siddiq Radiyallahu Tayala Anhu in general. But Due to the fear of temptation between men and women, Hazrat Umar Farooq Radiyallahu Tayala Anhu had disliked women’s performing their Salah in the mosque with Jamaat. Later many scholars disliked it and the Islamic Jurists considered it as ‘makrooh’. Thus, the trend of women attending the mosques for performing their prayers in men's Jama’at was stopped. Later most of the Ulama e-Kiram also supported the opinion above. As a result, women do not attend the Masjid for performing their daily prayers five times with Jama'at until now. The followers of Madhhab still hold to this point of view. In four schools of thoughts in Islam, women are allowed to participate in Jama’at for a few times. But recently madhab scholars do not consider it as valid. As a result, women are permanently prevented from participating in the mosque Jama’at. On the other hand, according to the some researchers in the world, especially the Salafis, women can still participate in the Jama’at of the mosque as before. As a result of their fatwas and campaigns, women from different countries are now participating in their prayer with Jama’at in the mosques. Both the point of views have created confusion in the thinking of the Muslim people. Although, temptation is being created in different areas. In this article an attempt is made to resolve the confusion created by using qualitative methods. We think that women in the society in general are not required to attend regular five times performing their Salah with Jama’at in their society mosques. On the other hand, women who stay outside the home for their personal, social, political, etc. reasons, can participate in the Jama’at of their nearest mosque; However, in this case, there should be necessary provision for women in the mosque performing their five times Salah.