SECTION ON PRAYER · 89 – PRAYING WITH SANDALS
648 – From ʿAbdullāh ibn Sāʾib (may Allah be pleased with him): I saw the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) praying on the day of the conquest. He placed his sandals to his left side. [419]
649 – From ʿAbdullāh ibn Sāʾib (may Allah be pleased with him): The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) led us in the morning prayer in Mecca. He began with Sūrat al-Muʾminūn. When he reached the mention of Mūsā and Hārūn, or Mūsā or ʿĪsā—here, the narrator Ibn ʿUbbād was uncertain, or there was disagreement as to whether he was the one who doubted—the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) was seized by a cough. He stopped reciting and bowed (performed rukūʿ). ʿAbdullāh ibn Sāʾib was also present in this prayer. [420]
EXPLANATION
This hadith indicates that if an excuse such as coughing arises during prayers in which it is sunnah to prolong the recitation, it is better to bow (go to rukūʿ) with what has already been recited, rather than continuing the prayer while the recitation is interrupted by coughing.
650 – From Abū Saʿīd al-Khudrī (may Allah be pleased with him): Once, the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) was leading his Companions (ṣaḥāba) in prayer. He removed his sandals and placed them to his left. When the congregation saw this, they immediately removed their sandals. When the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) finished his prayer, he asked, “What made you take off and throw aside your sandals?” (They replied): “We saw you take off your sandals, so we took off ours as well.” The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Jibrīl (Gabriel) came to me and informed me that there was impurity on my sandals. When any of you comes to the mosque, let him look; if he sees human filth or something detestable on his sandals, let him wipe it off, and then pray in those sandals.”
EXPLANATION
This noble hadith indicates that it is permissible to pray in shoes that do not contain impurity and do not prevent humility (khushūʿ) in prayer. The sandals mentioned in these hadiths refer to footwear in general, and should not be understood as the wooden clogs used for ablution.
651 – It is narrated from Bakr ibn ʿAbdullāh (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: He narrated the aforementioned hadith from the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him): Jibrīl said, "There was hubus (impurity) on the sandals." In both places, he used the word "hubus" instead of "kazr."
EXPLANATION
As previously explained, "hubus" means the male of the devil and also impurity. Here, it is used in the sense of impurity. In the previous hadith, it was reported that Jibrīl informed that there was "adhā" (filth) or "kazr" (something detestable) on the sandals. In this hadith, instead of the words "adhā" and "kazr," it is stated that there was "hubus" on the sandals. Both in the report of Jibrīl and in the statement of our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), "When any of you comes to the mosque, let him look. If he sees 'adhā' or 'kazr' on his sandals, let him wipe it off and pray in those sandals," the word "hubus" is used in place of "kazr" and "adhā."
652 – It is narrated from Yaʿlā ibn Shaddād ibn Aws (may Allah be pleased with him), from his father Aws (may Allah be pleased with him): The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Oppose the Jews, for they do not pray in their sandals or their leather socks (khuffs).”
EXPLANATION
These noble hadiths are evidence that it is permissible to pray in shoes if there is no impurity on them, but this is more applicable outside the mosque. Today, since mosques are carpeted, stepping on the place of prostration with shoes worn outside would cause dust and is therefore not considered appropriate.
653 – It is narrated from ʿAmr ibn Shuʿayb (may Allah be pleased with him), from his father, from his grandfather: I saw the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) praying both barefoot and with sandals. [421]