Importance of Sutra & Woman Interrupts Man’s Prayer (Ahadith 473-474)

Salam,
Bismillah.

There have been a few corrections in Hadith no 472. Mistakes were due to my lack of knowledge. Don’t forget to check it out.

Volume 1, Book 9, Number 473:

Narrated Ibn ‘Umar:

Whenever Allah’s Apostle came out on ‘Id day, he used to order that a Harba (a short spear) to be planted in front of him (as a sutra* for his prayer) and then he used to pray facing it with the people behind him and used to do the same while on a journey. After the Prophet , this practice was adopted by the Muslim rulers (who followed his traditions).

This Hadith shows us the importance of having a sutra in front of the Imaam while he leads a congregation in prayer. When praying alone, one should also try to develop the habit of defining his prayer space by keeping a sutra in front of him.

*Sutra is a screen that a person uses to define his prayer space, such as a wall, door etc. The bare minimum requirement for sutra is: that it should be as tall as the length of one hand.

 

Volume 1, Book 9, Number 474:

Narrated ‘Aun bin Abi Juhaifa:

I heard my father saying, “The Prophet led us, and prayed a two-Rak’at Zuhr prayer and then a two-Rak’at ‘Asr prayer at Al-Batha’ with an ‘Anza (planted) in front of him (as a Sutra) while women and donkeys were passing in front of him (beyond that ‘Anza).”

The words “beyond that ‘anza” are of immense importance here. A woman passing in front of a man whose praying invalidates his prayer. It’s not because women are impure (najis) but scholars have said that it’s because she’s a temptation for men. [Ref: islmaqa.com, no. 12717]

It was reported from ‘Abd-Allaah ibn al-Saamit that Abu Dharr said: “The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: ‘If any one of you stands up to pray, then he has a sutrah [an item placed in front of a praying person as a “screen”] if he has something the height of the back of a saddle in front of him. If he does not have something the height of the back of a saddle in front of him, then his prayer is invalidated if a donkey or a woman or a black dog passes in front of him.’” I [‘Abd-Allaah] asked, “O Abu Dharr, what is the difference between a black dog and a red or yellow dog?” He said, “O son of my brother, I asked the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) the same question, and he said, ‘The black dog is a shaytaan (devil).’” (Narrated by Muslim, 510).

Wassalam.