Performing Ṣalāh with Shoes

Question

السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته

Respected Mufti Saheb

What is the ruling on performing salah with shoes on? Please provide a detailed answer.

جزاكم الله خيرا

Darul Ifta, Madrasah Urwah bin Az-Zubayr · Accepted Answer

As salām ʿalaikum wa raḥmatullāhī wa barakātuhu

In the Name of Allāh, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

Sister in Islām,

There are a number of ḥadīth which indicate the permissibility of performing ṣalāh with shoes. Consider the following:

قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم: ‌صلوا ‌في ‌نعالكم، ولا تشبهوا باليهود

Rasūlullāh صلى الله عليه وسلم said, “Perform ṣalāh with your shoes and do not emulate the Jews.

ʿAbd Allāh ibn Masʿūd رضي الله عنه says:

لقد رأيت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم: يصلي ‌في ‌الخفين ‌والنعلين

I saw Rasūlullāh صلى الله عليه وسلم performing ṣalāh in leather socks and shoes.

Shaddād ibn Aws رضي الله عنه narrated that Rasūlullāh صلى الله عليه وسلم said:

‌خالفوا ‌اليهود فإنهم لا يصلون في نعالهم، ولا خفافهم

Oppose the Jews as they do not pray in their shoes and leather socks

Saʿīd ibn Yazīd al-Azdī said:

سألت أنس بن مالك: أكان النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم يصلي ‌في ‌نعليه؟ قال: نعم

I asked Anas ibn Mālik, “Did Nabī صلى الله عليه وسلم perform ṣalāh with his shoes?” He replied, “Yes”.

On the other hand, there are aḥādīth which show that the latter practice of Rasūlullāh صلى الله عليه وسلمwas to perform ṣalāh after having removed his shoes. Consider the following narration:

ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Sāʾib رضي الله عنه says:

رأيت النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم يصلي يوم الفتح ووضع نعليه عن يساره

I saw Nabī صلى الله عليه وسلم performing ṣalāh at the conquest of Makkah and he had placed his shoes to his left.

It is for this reason that ʿAllāmah al-Kawtharī has stated:

ومن الدليل على أن نزع التعلين آخر الأمرين حديث عبد الله ابن السائب عند أبي داود أنه رآه عام الفتح يصلى وقد خلع نعليه

Among the proofs that removing the footwear was from the later practices is the ḥadīth of ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Sāʾib in Abū Dāwūd, that he saw (the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم) on the day of the Conquest (of Makkah) praying while he had removed his sandals.

The narrations that indicate permissibility are underscored by the following:

- Opposing the practice of the Jews and Christians. Those who considered wearing footwear in prayer preferable (mustaḥabb) did so on the basis of opposing Jewish practice. However, this rationale no longer applies, as the People of the Book today enter their churches and pray with their footwear on. Accordingly, opposition would now be achieved by removing footwear, not by wearing it.

- The ḥadīth of Anas رضي الله عنه in which he confirms Rasūlullāh صلى الله عليه وسلم would perform ṣalāh with his shoes on. The statement of Anas رضي الله عنه when asked whether Rasūlullāh صلى الله عليه وسلم prayed in his sandals: “Yes”, does not establish continuous practice. Al-Nawawī clarifies this in his commentary on Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim in his discussion of night prayer. Hence, the claim advanced by certain marginal Ḥanbalī figures that wearing footwear in prayer is a Sunnah lacks substantiation.

Notwithstanding the above, the jurists have noted that performing ṣalāh while wearing footwear is valid provided:

- The footwear is pure and

- It does not impede placing the undersides of the toes flat on the earth.

The sandals commonly worn during the time of the Prophet ﷺ were soft and had toe-straps, similar to the traditional Ḥijāzī sandals observed today. This contrasts with many modern shoes, which are rigid and hinder the worshipper from properly placing the undersides of their toes on the ground, which constitutes a complete sajdah.

Sister, this permissibility does not call for preferability. Further, although it is permissible when it is possible to complete the prostration in them and they are pure, it is not appropriate to do so, especially in the masjids, for shoes, as worn today and masjids as they are, desecrate the sanctity and cleanliness of the masjid.

Muftī Maḥmūd al-Ḥasan Gangohī states:

“Praying while wearing shoes has also been transmitted from the Rasūlullāh r and from the Noble Companions y. However, the condition of our mosques today is not as it was in that era. The jurists have now written that entering the mosque while wearing shoes is disliked”.

Mawlānā ʿAbd al-Ḥayy al-Lakhnawī states:

“As for the jurists, their discussion is restricted to their statement that it is recommended to perform the prayer in three garments: the izār (lower wrap), the qamīṣ (upper garment), and the ʿimāmah (turban). They did not mention sandals”.

To conclude, it is permissible, though not preferable to perform ṣalāh whilst wearing shoes in an individual capacity due to the possibility of impurities being on the shoes and inability to perform sajdah correctly. In the congregational setting it is disliked to wear shoes, especially in the masjid.

And Allāh Taʿālā knows best.

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