Investigation of the Hadith: “لَا خَيْرَ فِي جَمَاعَةِ النِّسَاءِ” (No Good in the Congregation of Women)
Excerpted from: Fatāwā ʿIlmiyyah, Vol. 1, Kitāb al-Ṣalāh, p. 266
(Question by: Muhammad Mohsin Salafi, Karachi)
✿ Question
Is the following narration authentic?
“لا خير في جماعة النساء إلا في مسجد“
“There is no good in the congregation of women except in a mosque.”
This narration is cited in:
◈ Majmaʿ al-Zawā’id, Kitāb al-Ṣalāh (2/118, Ḥadīth 2104)
◈ al-Muʿjam al-Awsaṭ by al-Ṭabarānī (Ḥadīth 9359 – new edition)
✿ Answer
All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah. To proceed:
➊ Source Verification of the Narration
This narration appears with multiple chains in Hadith collections. Some examples:
◉ Musnad Aḥmad (6/66, Ḥadīth 24888)
From ʿĀ’ishah (RA):
“There is no good in women gathering except in a mosque or at the funeral of a martyr.”
◉ Musnad Aḥmad (6/154, Ḥadīth 25728)
Similar wording, narrated through Ibn Luhayʿah via al-Walīd ibn Abī al-Walīd from al-Qāsim ibn Muḥammad.
◉ al-Muʿjam al-Awsaṭ by Ṭabarānī (10/166, Ḥadīth 9355)
➋ Analysis of the Chain (Isnād)
The main issue lies in the presence of ʿAbdullāh ibn Luhayʿah, a weak narrator due to ikhtiṭāṭ (confusion after memory loss).
◉ Conditions for His Narration to Be Accepted:
- Clear statement of hearing (سماع) – since he was a mudallis (obfuscator)
- Narrators must have heard from him before his ikhtiṭāṭ (confusion)
However, in this chain:
- The narrators from him (Ḥajjāj, Ḥasan ibn Mūsā al-Ashīb, Abū Ṣāliḥ al-Ḥarrānī)
- Are not proven to have narrated from him prior to his ikhtiṭāṭ
Hence, the chain is weak.
➌ Other Weak Narrations
al-Muʿjam al-Awsaṭ (8/64, Ḥadīth 7126):
“There is no good in the congregation of women except at a funeral, for when they gather, they say things they shouldn’t.”
This includes al-Wāziʿ ibn Nāfiʿ, a matrūk (abandoned) narrator, making the narration unacceptable even as supporting evidence.
Similarly, al-Muʿjam al-Kabīr (12/317, Ḥadīth 1228) has the same problem.
➍ Authentic Narrations Supporting Women’s Congregational Prayer
Contrary to the above, authentic Hadiths prove the permissibility of women leading or participating in congregation:
✅ Sunan Abī Dāwūd (Ḥadīth 592)
The Prophet ﷺ instructed Umm Waraqah (RA) to lead her household in prayer.
✔ Authenticated by Ibn Khuzaymah (1676), Ibn Jarūd (333), and declared ḥasan by Shaykh al-Albānī.
✅ Muṣannaf ʿAbd al-Razzāq (5086), al-Sunan al-Kubrā by al-Bayhaqī (3/131)
ʿĀ’ishah (RA) led women in prayer.
✔ Chain is ḥasan, with Sufyān al-Thawrī explicitly stating he heard it.
✅ Muṣannaf ʿAbd al-Razzāq (5082)
Umm Salamah (RA) led women in prayer, standing among them.
✔ Chain is ṣaḥīḥ; Sufyān al-Thawrī and Sufyān ibn ʿUyaynah support it.
➎ Rebuttal of the Narration “Lā Ta’um al-Marʾah” (A Woman Should Not Lead Prayer)
Cited in Iʿlā’ al-Sunan (4/243, Ḥadīth 1220) and attributed to ʿAlī (RA). However:
◈ The narration is from al-Mudawwanah and has no sound chain
◈ Narrator Mawlā Banī Hāshim is unknown (majhūl)
◈ The narration is not traceable to ʿAlī (RA) with an authentic chain
Thus, not reliable as evidence.
✿ Summary
❌ The narration “Lā Khayra fī Jamāʿat al-Nisā’” is weak or fabricated depending on the chain.
✅ Authentic and ḥasan narrations confirm the validity of women’s congregational prayer, including leadership by women for other women.
✅ The Prophet ﷺ himself approved such practice for Umm Waraqah (RA), and leading female Companions practiced it.
✅ Weak or fabricated narrations cannot override established authentic Sunnah.
﴿وَاللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ بِالصَّوَابِ﴾
And Allah knows best what is correct.
