Fatwa: 633

Category: fatwas about prayer

The ruling regarding the women’s coming out to attend Aïd prayer

The question:

Should women attend Aïd prayer? Benefit us, may Allah bless you.

The answer:

All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds. Peace and blessing be upon whom Allah sent as a mercy to the Worlds, upon his Family, his Companions and his Brothers till the Day of Resurrection.

As a rule, men and women are equals regarding religious rulings. Accordingly, that which is incumbent upon men is also incumbent upon women, save what makes an exception; that exception should be established by evidence.

However, the evidence came to confirm this principle; as the Prophet صلَّى الله عليه وسلَّم ordered women to come out and attend Aïd prayer, even the virgins who stay at home and the menstruating women; the latter are ordered to not perform the prayer. Moreover, he ordered the woman who had not a veil to lend it from her sister, as it is reported on the authority of Um `Atiyya<sup>(1)</sup> رضي الله عنها, and in the hadith which is reported on the authority of Ibn `Abbas رضي الله عنهما who said “I went out with the Prophet صلَّى الله عليه وسلَّم in a day of Fitr or Adha. He prayed and made the sermon, then he went to the women and admonished them, remembered and ordered them to spend in charity”⁽²⁾.

In fact, attending the Aïd prayer makes optional the fact of attending the Friday prayer if they coincide; accordingly, that which is not obligatory cannot annul that which is obligatory.

In addition, the Prophet صلَّى الله عليه وسلَّم did not order the women to attend the Friday prayer, and he allowed them to attend it but he said to them “Praying in your room is better for you than praying in your house; and praying in your house is better for you than praying in the congregational mosque”⁽³⁾.

However, he ordered them to attend the Aïd prayer; what supports this ruling, which is the obligation for women to come out and attend the Aïd prayer, is the hadith reported by Ahmad, Al-Bayhaqi and others on the authority of the sister of `Abd Allâh Ibn Rawâha Al-Ansâri that the Prophet صلَّى الله عليه وسلَّم said, “Every women should come out (.i.e. to Attend the two Aïds prayers)”<sup>(4)</sup>. In fact, it is the opinion of of Abu bakr, Ali and Ibn `Umar according to what is narrated by Al-Qâdhi `Iyâdh and Ibn Abi Shayba⁽⁵⁾.

As a matter of fact, the hadiths which stipulates the women’s coming out to attend the two Aïds prayers do not differentiate between the virgin, the non-virgin, the young, the old, the menstruating women and the other women, except when they have an excuse. Moreover, if the woman comes out, she should observe the rules of going out, i.e. she should neither make perfume nor beautify herself, and she is enjoined to veil herself wholly.

The perfect knowledge belongs to Allah عزَّ وجلَّ. Our last prayer is all praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds. Peace and blessing be upon our Prophet, his Family, his Companions and Brothers till the Day of Resurrection.

Algiers, Safar 10^th, 1428
Corresponding to February 28^th, 2007