Answer
Wa `alaykum As-Salamu wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
In this fatwa:
- Friday prayer is not obligatory upon women, but women are allowed to pray it in the mosque along with men.
- If a woman performs Friday prayer, she does not have to prayer Zhuhr prayer after that.
In his well-known book, Fiqh As-Sunnah, the late Sheikh Sayyed Sabiq states,
Friday prayer is not obligatory upon women. There is no difference among Muslim scholars in this regard.
Tariq ibn Shihab reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Jumu`ah prayer is a duty upon every Muslim in congregation, save four: a slave, a woman, a child, or a person who is ill.” (Abu Dawud)
Should a woman pray Jumu`ah, it will be valid and she will no longer be obliged to pray the Zhuhr prayer. Women during the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings b upon him) attended the mosque and used to pray Jumu`ah with him.
Responding to your question, Dr. Muzammil H. Siddiqi, Former President of the Islamic Society of North America, states,
It is correct that Friday prayer is not obligatory upon women, but women are allowed to pray Jumu`ah prayers in the mosque along with men.
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Do not prevent the female servants of Allah to come to the mosques of Allah.” (Al-Bukhari)
Women used to attend the Jumu`ah and other prayers in the Mosque of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) during his lifetime. They were never told to pray Zhuhr also.
Thus, it is clear that if a woman prays Jumu`ah prayer in the mosque with the congregation, then this is sufficient for her. She does not have to pray Zhuhr after that.
Thus, though women are exempted from performing Jumu`ah prayer, they are allowed to perform it, and, in such a case, they need not pray Zuhr.
Allah Almighty knows best.
Editor’s note: This fatwa is from Ask the Scholar’s archive and was originally published at an earlier date.