THE NECESSARY CONDITIONS OF THE PLACE

[Rajaee]

There are 7 conditions that must be observed regarding the place of the prayer:

• The first condition: it must be permissible to use [i.e. it must not be usurped], based on obligatory precaution.
• The second condition: the place where obligatory prayers are performed must not move so vigorously that it would prevent the person from performing prayers from standing and performing rukūʿ and sujūd normally; in fact, based on obligatory precaution, the movement must not prevent his body from being steady. If one is compelled to perform prayers in such a place due to shortage of time or any other reason – for example, in certain types of cars or on a ship or train – he must remain still and face qibla as much as possible. If the vehicle moves away from the direction of qibla, he must turn and face the qibla again; and if it is not possible to face qibla precisely, he must try to ensure that the difference is less than ninety degrees; and if this is not possible, he must face qibla at least while performing takbīrat al‑iḥrām; and if even this is not possible, it is not necessary for him to face qibla.
• The third condition: one must perform prayers in a place where he deems it probable that he will complete them. However, if one is confident that he will not be able to complete his prayers in a place on account of wind, rain, or there being a lot of people around and suchlike, he must perform prayers with the intention of rajāʾ; and if he happens to complete his prayer, it will be valid.
• The fourth condition: the ceiling of the place where one performs prayers must not be so low that he cannot stand up straight; and the place must not be so small that there is no room to perform rukūʿ and sujūd.
• The fifth condition: If the place where a person performs prayers is impure, it must not be so wet that its moisture reaches his body or clothing in case the impurity is of the type that invalidates prayers. However, if the place where one places his forehead is impure, the prayers are invalid even if the place is dry. And the recommended precaution is that the place where one performs prayers should not be impure at all.
• The sixth condition: Based on obligatory precaution, a woman must stand behind a man at least to the extent that the place of her sajdah is level with the place of his knees when he performs sajdah.
• The seventh condition: The place of one’s forehead must not be higher or lower than the height of four fingers closed together in relation to the place of his knees and big toes. The details of this ruling will be mentioned in the section on sajdah.