Miscellaneous rulings of Jumu'ah
Travelling on Friday, visiting graves, fasting alone on Friday, the two views on the hour of acceptance, and other rulings that don't fit elsewhere.
If Jumu'ah is obligatory on you, it is badly disliked to set off on a journey once Zuhr time has started, if you haven't prayed Jumu'ah yet. A hadith says that travelling before Jumu'ah brings the curse of the angels, and some say the day of Jumu'ah itself curses that person.
1It is disliked to leave home late for Jumu'ah, once the sermon has already begun.
Fasting on Friday by itself is disliked. It should be paired with a fast on Thursday or Saturday too.
There is a special hour on Friday when Allah answers whatever a Muslim asks for. Scholars have many different opinions about exactly when it is, as many as 42, but two are the most well known.
The two main opinions on the hour of acceptance
- From when the imam sits on the pulpit until the Jumu'ah prayer ends. So it is good to be present and quietly making du'a in your heart before the sermon starts, since you must stay silent once it begins.
- Sometime between Asr and sunset on Friday. So it is good not to waste this time, and to spend it in dhikr and du'a instead.
Praying sunnah prayers is not allowed during the first sermon, and not allowed during the second one either. Some people think the short pause between the two sermons is a good time to slip in a sunnah prayer: it is not; doing that is not valid at all.
It is severely disliked (makruh tahrimi) for someone obligated to attend Jumu'ah to travel after Zuhr time has begun without having prayed it. A hadith states that those who travel before Jumu'ah are cursed by the angels, and some narrations add that the day of Jumu'ah itself curses them, depriving them of divine blessing and help.
1Delaying one's departure for Jumu'ah until after the sermon has begun is disliked.
According to the two disciples, Imam Abu Yusuf and Imam Muhammad, praying nafl at the exact time of zawal (midday) on Friday is permitted without dislike, a characteristic specific to Jumu'ah, since praying nafl at that exact time is disliked on every other day. According to Imam Abu Hanifah, it remains disliked even on Friday.
Visiting graves on Friday is recommended, as it is said that souls gather on this day.
Fasting on Friday alone is disliked; it should be accompanied by a fast on the Thursday or Saturday adjoining it.
There is a special hour on Friday in which a Muslim's supplication is accepted, established by several hadiths, though the scholars differ over its exact timing; as many as forty-two opinions are recorded. Two of these are the most reliable.
The two most reliable opinions on the hour of acceptance
- That it falls from when the imam sits on the pulpit until the Jumu'ah prayer ends. On this view, one should be present before the khutbah begins and supplicate silently, in the heart, since silence is required once it starts.
- That it falls at the end of Friday, between Asr and sunset. This is the preferred view; on it, one should avoid wasting this window and spend it in dhikr and du'a instead.
Praying sunnah prayers during the first khutbah is not permitted, nor during the second. The brief sitting between the two khutbahs is sometimes mistaken for an opportunity to pray a sunnah prayer; doing so is not valid at all.
It is makruh tahrimi for one obligated in Jumu'ah to set out on a journey after the onset of Zuhr time on Friday without having prayed it. A hadith reports that those who travel before Jumu'ah are cursed by the angels, and some narrations add that the day itself curses them, so that they are deprived of divine blessing and assistance.
1Delaying one's departure toward Jumu'ah until after the khutbah has begun is makruh.
According to the sahibayn, Imam Abu Yusuf and Imam Muhammad, offering nafl prayer at the precise time of zawal on Friday carries no dislike, this being a characteristic peculiar to Jumu'ah; on every other day, nafl at this exact time is makruh. Imam Abu Hanifah holds it disliked on Friday as well.
Ziyarat al-qubur on Friday is mustahabb, souls being reported to gather on this day.
Singling out Friday for fasting is makruh; it is to be joined with a fast on the adjoining Thursday or Saturday.
A specific hour exists within Friday in which a Muslim's du'a is answered, its existence established by numerous hadiths, though its precise timing is a matter of scholarly difference running to some forty-two opinions. Two of these are held to be the most reliable.
The two most reliable opinions on the hour of acceptance
- That it extends from the imam's taking his seat on the minbar until the conclusion of the Jumu'ah prayer, on this view, one should be present before the khutbah begins, supplicating silently in the heart, silence being obligatory once it starts.
- That it falls at the close of Friday, between 'Asr and sunset, the preferred view, on which this window should not be spent carelessly, but in dhikr and du'a.
Offering sunnah prayers during the first khutbah is not permitted, nor during the second; the brief julus between the two is likewise not a valid occasion for one, notwithstanding the practice of some who pray a sunnah prayer in that interval.
Related
- The method of offering the Friday sermon and prayer The rak'ahs of Jumu'ah in order, the intention to use, who may lead, and step by step how the imam moves from the sermon into the prayer.
- The etiquettes of Friday How to prepare for Jumu'ah from Thursday onward: ghusl, clean clothes and perfume, going early, and what to do between Asr and Maghrib.
- The conditions for the Friday prayer to be valid The six conditions without which Jumu'ah does not count at all, how each is defined, why they differ from the conditions of obligation, and praying it in more than one mosque.
- Missing and postponing the Eid prayer What to do about a missed Eid prayer, when it may be delayed to another day, and how it interacts with nafl prayers, a funeral, or Jumu'ah.