Fath al-Rabbani

Benefits: … Sayyiduna Tariq bin Abdullah radi Allahu anhu narrates from the Noble Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, who said: “When you pray, do not spit in front of you, nor to your right, but rather spit to your left if it is vacant, otherwise spit beneath your feet and rub it in.” (Sunan al-Nasa’i: 1/119, Musnad Ahmad: 6/396) That is: When you perform prayer, do not spit in front of yourself nor to your right side, but if the left side is empty, then spit there; otherwise, spit beneath your feet and rub it in. In this, the status and honor of the one praying is mentioned, that Allah Ta’ala also turns His noble countenance towards him, but the condition is that he should adopt concentration both outwardly and inwardly, because Allah Ta’ala dislikes heedlessness and evil. Also, from this hadith, the one praying is given allowance to spit as needed; the detailed discussion on this is as follows.

In the present era, due to the beautiful structures of mosques and the beautiful mats and carpets laid within them, there is difficulty in understanding the above hadith. These ahadith were stated at a time when the floors of mosques consisted of soft soil and sand, and there were not even rows laid out for prayer. In reality, the issue is that, when necessary, it is permissible to spit in the mosque, as Sayyiduna Anas radi Allahu anhu narrates that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam saw spittle in the direction of the qiblah in the mosque, which was very displeasing to him. Nevertheless, he sallallahu alayhi wa sallam cleaned it and said: “When any one of you stands in his prayer, he is indeed conversing privately with his Lord, so he should not spit in the direction of his qiblah, but rather to his left or beneath his feet.” (Bukhari: 405) That is: When any one of you stands in prayer, he is whispering to his Lord, so he should not spit towards the qiblah, but may spit to his left or beneath his feet. Then (while mentioning a third method), he sallallahu alayhi wa sallam took the edge of his cloak, spat in it, and rubbed it in, and said: Or he should do like this. There are several ahadith indicating this subject, but from the following hadith it is understood that this concession is when a person is praying and is compelled to spit. Sayyiduna Anas radi Allahu anhu also narrates that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said: “Spitting in the mosque is a sin, and its expiation is to bury it.” (Bukhari: 415) That is: Spitting in the mosque is a sin, and its expiation is to bury the spit. As for the issue of spitting in the direction of the qiblah, that too is prohibited, as is evident from the aforementioned hadith, and there are several other ahadith on this subject as well. In any case, considering the current state of mosques, the last method should be adopted, i.e., one should spit into a cloth or tissue paper, etc.