Why did God forbid the call to prayer for women? A question that occupies the minds of many, especially since there is rumor about the prohibition of the call to prayer for women, and the permissibility of performing prayer for herself or in a group of women. What is the truth about that?
Why did God forbid the call to prayer for women?
The Fatwa House received a question, the author of which said: Why is it not permissible for a woman to pronounce the call to prayer out loud in the mosque in the presence of men? What is the wisdom behind this being the sole jurisdiction of men? To confirm that it is stipulated in Islamic law that the matter is the secrets related to women, such as acts of worship such as the call to prayer, and the like. The call to prayer is not prescribed for a woman; When the two sheikhs narrated on the authority of Malik bin Al-Huwayrith, may God be pleased with him, that the Prophet, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him and his family, said: “When the time for prayer comes, let one of you call the call to prayer, and let the eldest of you lead you in prayer,” this indicates that the call to prayer is the worship of men; Because they are the ones being addressed.
Al-Bayhaqi narrated in his “Sunan” on the authority of Asma, may God be pleased with her: That the Prophet, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him and his family, said: “Women are not obligated to call the call to prayer or to say the iqama,” and it is weak in the chain of transmission, as stated by Al-Bayhaqi himself. See “Al-Sunan Al-Kubra” (1/600, ed. Dar Al-Kutub Al-Ilmiyyah). But Abdul Razzaq narrated it in “Al-Musannaf” with an authentic chain of transmission based on the hadith of Abdullah bin Omar, may God be pleased with them both.
The scholar Al-Kharshi Al-Maliki said in his “Explanation on Mukhtasar Khalil” in explaining the conditions for the validity of the call to prayer (1/231, ed. Dar Al-Fikr): [وَلَا يَصِحُّ مِنْ امْرَأَةٍ وَلَا خُنْثَى مُشْكِلٍ] Oh.
The scholar Al-Qalyubi said in his “Hashīt ‘ala Sharh al-Mahli ‘ala al-Minhaj” (1/145, ed. Dar Ihya’ al-Kutub al-Arabiyyah), commenting on the phrase “Sharh al-Muhadhdhab”: “The hermaphrodite who is problematic in all of this is like a woman” – that is, in the rulings on the call to prayer and the iqamah from the permissibility of the iqama, not Adhan-: [وخرج بالأذان: قراءة القرآن والغناء ممن ذُكِر -يعني: الخنثى والمرأة-، فلا يحرمان، ولو برفع الصوت] Oh.
Imam Najm al-Din ibn al-Rif`ah said in “Kifayat al-Nabih Sharh al-Tanbih” (7/172, ed. Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah): [قال القاضي الحسين: ويشرع لها -أي المرأة-: أن تقيم ولا تؤذن] Oh.
The wisdom behind making the call to prayer specific to men is that this protects women and protects them more, as is the intention of Sharia law. Al-Shihab Al-Ramli said in his “Fatawa” (1/125-126, ed. Al-Maktabah Al-Islamiyya) in answer to a question that was submitted to him: [الأذان عبادة الرجال، والمرأة ليست من أهلها، وإذا لم تكن من أهلها حَرُم عليها تعاطيها، كما يحرم عليها تعاطي العبادة الفاسدة، وأنه يستحب النظر إلى المؤذن حالة الأذان، فلو استحببنا للمرأة لَأُمِر السامع بالنظر إليها، وهذا مخالف لمقصود الشارع] Oh.
Is it permissible for a woman to give the call to prayer and perform prayer?
For his part, Sheikh Muhammad Wissam, Secretary of Fatwa at the Egyptian Fatwa House, said that there is a difference among scholars regarding women’s call to prayer and the iqama for prayer. Some of them said that it is permissible for a woman to call the call to prayer and perform the prayer, but this is among women like her, and among them are those who said that she only performs the call to prayer and does not perform the call to prayer. Because the call to prayer was prescribed loudly to bring people together, and it is not commanded to do so.
Wissam added, in his answer to a question whose content was: “Is it permissible for a woman to give the call to prayer and perform the prayer if she is in a group of women?”, that Imam Ahmad Ibn Hanbal was asked about this issue and he said and narrated the incident of Ibn Omar that he was asked, “Does a woman give the call to prayer and perform the call to prayer among her children and her wife?” And among her sisters, he said: How did he stop mentioning God? He repeated that twice, in addition to the fact that Mrs. Aisha, may God Almighty be pleased with her, used to perform the prayer among the women and stand in their midst, so if she performed it in a low voice among the women, then there was nothing wrong with it.
