Fath al-Rabbani

Benefits: … The Noble Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam has commanded that, when possible, obligatory prayers be performed in mosques; otherwise, with the exception of a few specific places, the entire earth has been declared a place of prayer. In contrast, for previous communities, it was necessary that they reach their houses of worship to perform prayer. Hafiz Ibn Hajar rahimahullah, while discussing the hadith ((I have been given five things which were not given to anyone before me: … and the earth has been made for me a mosque and a means of purification …)), said: The more preferred opinion is that of Khattabi, that before you sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, it was only permissible for people to perform prayer in specific houses of worship, such as churches and synagogues, etc. This is supported by the narration of Amr ibn Shu'ayb, which contains these words: ((And those before me used to pray only in their churches)), and those before me used to pray in their respective churches. And the wording of the hadith narrated by al-Bazzar from Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Abbas radi Allahu anhu is: ((And there was not among the Prophets anyone who would pray before reaching his mihrab.)) And (before me) there was no Prophet who would pray before reaching his prayer niche (mihrab). (Fath al-Bari: 1/576) Similarly, the concession of tayammum (dry ablution) has also been given only to the ummah of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam; for its details, see the chapters on tayammum.