Conditions for Establishing the Jumu'ah Khutbah

Written by: Shaykh Mubashir Ahmad Rabbani (Hafidhahullah)

Question:​

Are there any conditions for starting the Jumu'ah Khutbah in a mosque? Is there any Hadith specifying the size of the village or the number of people required to establish the Jumu'ah prayer?

Answer:​

The Jumu'ah prayer is Fard 'Ayn (individually obligatory) upon every Muslim except for four categories of people:

1. Slaves
2. Women
3. Children
4. The Sick

This ruling is based on the Hadith:

"Jumu'ah is not obligatory upon a slave, a woman, a child, or a sick person."
(Sunan Abi Dawood, Kitab al-Salah: Bab al-Jumu'ah lil-Mamluk wal-Mar’ah, Hadith No. 1067)

Evidence from the Qur'an:​

The obligation of Jumu'ah is proven from the Qur'an:

"O you who believe! When the call for prayer is proclaimed on Friday, hasten to the remembrance of Allah and leave off trade."
(Surah Al-Jumu'ah: 9)

This verse clearly indicates that wherever there are believers, the Jumu'ah prayer is to be established. Some argue that this verse refers to marketplaces found only in cities, but this claim is incorrect. Trade, business, and worldly occupations exist in villages as well as cities. Whether the work involves farming, shops, or other occupations, these activities are worldly engagements and must be abandoned at the call to prayer.

Hadith Evidence Supporting Jumu'ah in Villages:​

1. Jumu'ah in Hura Bani Bayadah (a Village):

• Abu Dawood and Ibn Majah report that Jumu'ah was performed in a location called Hura Bani Bayadah (a village near Madinah), where only forty people were present.
• This village was located one mile from Madinah.

1. Jumu'ah in Joatha (a Village in Bahrain):

• Abdullah bin Abbas (رضي الله عنهما) narrates that:
  "After the mosque in Madinah, the first Jumu'ah prayer in Islam was performed in Joatha, a village in Bahrain."
  (Sahih Bukhari, Kitab al-Jumu'ah; Sunan Abi Dawood)

No Fixed Number of People or Size of Settlement:​

There is no specific condition in the Qur'an or Hadith regarding the number of people or the size of the village required to establish Jumu'ah prayer. Such conditions are man-made and have no basis in the Shariah.

Ruling of Umar ibn Al-Khattab (رضي الله عنه):​

Umar ibn Al-Khattab (رضي الله عنه) wrote to the people of Bahrain:

"Perform Jumu'ah wherever you are."
(Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah, Kitab al-Salah: Bab Man Kana Yara al-Jumu'ah fi al-Qura wa Ghayriha, Hadith No. 5068)

Conclusion:​

1. Jumu'ah prayer is obligatory wherever there are Muslims, whether in cities or villages.
2. There is no specified number of people or size of the settlement required for Jumu'ah to be valid.
3. The establishment of Jumu'ah is based on the presence of believers, regardless of location.

For further details, refer to Allama Shams al-Haq Azimabadi’s book "Al-Tahqiqaat al-Aliyah."