Question 260: What is a home mosque?

161 13 Feb 2021
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Answer

✅Please pay attention to the following narrations:

عَنْ حَرِيزٍ عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ قَالَ: اتَّخِذْ مَسْجِداً فِي بَيْتِكَ فَإِذَا خِفْتَ شَيْئاً فَالْبَسْ ثَوْبَيْنِ غَلِيظَيْنِ مِنْ أَغْلَظِ ثِيَابِكَ فَصَلِّ فِيهِمَا

📚Al-Kafi, Vol. 3, p. 480

Translation: Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said: 'Make a mosque in your home, and when you are afraid of something, wear two thick garments from your thickest garments and perform prayer in those garments...'

بُكَيْرٍ عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ قَالَ: كَانَ عَلِيٌّ قَدِ اتَّخَذَ بَيْتاً فِي دَارِهِ لَيْسَ بِالْكَبِيرِ وَ لَا بِالصَّغِيرِ وَ كَانَ إِذَا أَرَادَ أَنْ يُصَلِّيَ مِنْ آخِرِ اللَّيْلِ أَخَذَ مَعَهُ صَبِيّاً لَا يَحْتَشِمُ مِنْهُ ثُمَّ يَذْهَبُ إِلَى ذَلِكَ الْبَيْتِ فَيُصَلِّي.

📚Qurb al-Isnad, p. 75

Translation: Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said: 'Ali (peace be upon him) had a room in his home that was neither small nor large, and when he wanted to pray at the end of the night, he would take a child from whom he was not embarrassed and would take him to that room (so as not to be alone) and would pray.'

✅Also in 📚Mustadrak, Vol. 6, p. 396, in a narration from Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him), it is mentioned:

فَتَوَضَّأَ وَ قَامَ فِي مَسْجِدِ بَيْتِهِ فَصَلَّى رَكْعَتَيْنِ...

Meaning: Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) performed 'wudu' and stood in his home mosque and performed two 'rak'ahs' of prayer...

وَ بِإِسْنَادِهِ قَالَ: كَانَتْ لِعَلِيٍّ خِرْقَةٌ يُعَلِّقُهَا فِي مَسْجِدِ بَيْتِهِ لِوَجْهِهِ إِذَا تَوَضَّأَ يَتَمَنْدَلُ بِهَا.

📚Mahasin, Vol. 2, p. 429

Translation: Barqi narrated with a chain of transmission that Ali (peace be upon him) had a piece of cloth that he had hung in his home mosque for his face, and when he would perform 'wudu' (or wash his face), he would wipe (his face) with it.

✅Also in 📚Al-Kafi, Vol. 8, p. 2, in the well-known letter that Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) wrote to his companions and recommended them to study it, look into it, and act upon it, it is mentioned that the companions placed it in their home mosques and when they finished prayer, they would look at that treatise.

عَنْ عُبَيْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عَلِيٍّ الْحَلَبِيِّ أَنَّهُ سَأَلَ أَبَا عَبْدِ اللَّهِ عَنْ مَسْجِدٍ يَكُونُ فِي الدَّارِ فَيَبْدُو لِأَهْلِهِ أَنْ يَتَوَسَّعُوا بِطَائِفَةٍ مِنْهُ أَوْ يُحَوِّلُوهُ عَنْ مَكَانِهِ فَقَالَ لَا بَأْسَ بِذَلِكَ

📚Man la Yahduruhu al-Faqih, Vol. 1, p. 236

Translation: Halabi asked Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) about a mosque that is in a home and its people decide to expand a part of it or change its location; the Imam said: 'There is no problem.'

عَنْ مَسْعَدَةَ بْنِ صَدَقَةَ قَالَ: سَمِعْتُ جَعْفَرَ بْنَ مُحَمَّدٍ وَ سُئِلَ عَنِ الدَّارِ وَ الْبَيْتِ قَدْ يَكُونُ فِيهِ مَسْجِدٌ فَيَبْدُو لِأَصْحَابِهِ أَنْ يَتَّسِعُوا بِطَائِفَةٍ مِنْهُ وَ يَبْنُوا مَكَانَهُ وَ يَهْدِمُوا الْبِنْيَةَ قَالَ لَا بَأْسَ بِذَلِكَ.

📚Qurb al-Isnad, p. 31

Translation: Mas'adah said: I heard Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) being asked about a house or a room in which there is a mosque and its owners decide to expand a part of it and build a building in its place and (or) demolish the building; the Imam said: 'There is no problem.'

عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ جَعْفَرٍ عَنْ أَخِيهِ مُوسَى بْنِ جَعْفَرٍ قَالَ: سَأَلْتُهُ عَنْ رَجُلٍ كَانَ لَهُ مَسْجِدٌ فِي بَعْضِ بُيُوتِهِ أَوْ دَارِهِ هَلْ يَصْلُحُ أَنْ يُجْعَلَ كَنِيفاً قَالَ لَا بَأْسَ.

📚Qurb al-Isnad, p. 120

Translation: Ali ibn Ja'far said: I asked my brother Musa ibn Ja'far about a person who has a mosque in one of his rooms or his house, is it permissible to place a toilet (latrine) there? He said: 'There is no problem.'

✅From the totality of the above narrations and other narrations on this topic, it becomes clear that: a home mosque is a place in a person's home that they choose as their home mosque, and they pray there. It is clear that Ali (peace be upon him) and Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) and... and their companions had such a place in their homes, which, of course, according to the above narrations and..., this mosque can be changed in location and can even be taken out of being a mosque, and even a latrine can be built in its place.

✅It is appropriate that, if possible, believers establish such a place in their homes and especially when they are afraid of something, they perform two 'rak'ahs' of prayer in that place and supplicate, the narration of which was mentioned at the beginning.