Q. A brother in a nearby masjid is claiming that it is permissible to make salah in ones shoes and the only reason people don’t enter masaajid nowadays with their shoes on is because of the carpet. Is there a refutation against this that would help the other people in the masjid understand what the correct position is? He also had a question about masah on shoes/cotton socks that I was trying to research. He said that fiqhus-sunan claimed Imam Abu Hanifah (RA) made ruju’a before his death and said that it was permissible to make masah on cotton socks. I remember it saying that he made ruju’a about the jurabain in hidayah, but I don’t remember jurabain being translated as cotton socks.
A. If one’s shoes are clean and free from impurities, then it is allowed to perform Salaah in them when one is in an area where shoes are normally worn. As for wearing them in the prayer area of the masjid to perform Salaah, this is not acceptable, seeing that the masjid is the house of Allah and hence, utmost respect and reverence must be shown to it. In the Holy Quran, Allah commanded Moosa (AS) to take off his shoes when he was on a holy area. In Sura Taha verse 12, Allah said to him, ‘Remove your shoes, you are in the sacred valley of Tuwa’. While commenting on this verse, the Mufassireen have stated that Moosa (AS) was commanded by Allah to take off his shoes while he was on Mt. Tuwa because it was a sacred and holy place. As such, all other places that are known to be sacred and holy in Islam would take the same law, and this also includes a masjid which is the house of Allah.
Imam Abu Hanifa (RA) made ruju, that is, he revoked his former opinion of non-permissibility of masah on Jurabain, and accepted the opinion of his two students Imam Abu Yusuf and Imam Muhammad. They held the opinion that masah will be allowed on non-leather socks when they fulfilled three conditions. These are:-
1) These must be so thick that water does not seep through the socks to wet the feet.
2) That one can walk on these socks (alone) to a reasonable distance without being torn.
3) That they (the socks) will remain firm on the feet while walking without using anything to keep it on the feet. That is, while walking in them, they will not move downwards to the feet from the shin. They must be able to grip the feet firmly.
Imam Abu Hanifa accepted this opinion, and this is also the opinion of Imam Shafi and Imam Ahmad. Imam Malik does not accept the validity of masah over the jurabain.
All the Fuqaha (jurists) and the four Imams are unanimous that masah will not be permissible upon the cotton or nylon socks.
And Allah knows best.
Mufti Waseem Khan