He shook my hand... while I was praying :P

(Attention: Kalau ada iklan2 pasal ajaran2 tak betul... mcm scientology ke... atau yg bunyik pelik2 tu, abaikan aje iye :D)

Two days ago... I was a bit late for the Zuhr prayers at the USM mesjid [sebelah school je, so kalau tak turun melampau aa :P]. So I masbuq-ed (late) 1-rakaah. Anywayz... as I was praying the last rakaah, and sitting for the final tahhiyat, a man in his 40-s wanted to pass in front of me. Of course, we are all taught that you simply cannot pass directly in front of someone who is doing prayers... right? I mean, it's actually a big offense (is it a sin or big sin tho? can anyone please confirm this...). Unless of course there's an emergency and there is no other way to go except in front of the praying guy.

Anywayz... I sort'a realized that the guy was contemplating whether or not to pass. After a few seconds, he made the decision to pass. And in being a polite Malay... he adopted the ever famous custom of bowing a bit (jalan tunduk tu... tanda hormat nak lalu depan orang.... apa nama dia ek?) and started to walk.

As I saw him starting move, I immediately put my hand out as a gesture to halt him from going any further. As a result, he stopped for a few milliseconds... I believe this guy (as well as many other Malaysians) was not familiar with people doing this. I mean, what is this guy doing putting out his hand during prayers....???

Anywayz... after those milliseconds passed, he made up his mind... he actually reached for my hand, and gave me a hand shake. Walllaweeehhh......!!!!

I shook back to release his grip as well as to to signal "No... I am not asking for your hand in friendship or brotherhood... I am asking you not to pass....". But undeterred, he shook my hand anyway and just passed in front of me.

This was a first for me. LOL! At first I was a bit shocked, but at the same time I understood that not many people know about things related to what you can or can't do regarding solat.

For example... you can gesture during solat... No problem with that... as long as it's necessary and not overly excessive. Even scratching an itch! Some people believe that you can't scratch as it would invalidate the 3-movement rule... But think about it... The concentration level would be better if that itch was gone right? (I actually asked an 'alim about this)

And also... People know that you cannot pass directly in front of others who are performing solat. But somehow, they believe that by employing the jalan-tunduk (the sign of respect)... passing in front can be done. This is a definite NO-NO! Jalan tunduk macam mana pon, you cannot pass in front of someone performing prayers. You either have to wait... or find an alternative path.

I see this phenomenon happening so very often in mesjids around Malaysia... mostly due to misinformation (self-misinformation that is :P) I guess. I'm not an ustaz or hadith expert for that matter... but I think we should try to educate ourselves regarding these matters... ya?

Anywayz... that is what I experienced :D Quite an interesting thing... But at the same time, it was quite a serious offense. Because it violates the adab of solat... and I think it really2 makes Allaah angry. Mostly, people do NOT know the magnitude of the offense, and that's why many don't mind doing it! And worst... many take it rather lightly :(

So... after this... for those who are doing it... DO NOT PASS DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF PEOPLE DOING SOLAT! ... You can pass in front, but it must be at a certain distance. But never pass directly in front of his/her prostration area... as I think this is the limit!... (if this info. is wrong, please anyone, correct me...)

With all that being said... I sincerely hope that this the first and last time my hand gets shaken during prayers :) Shelamaat.

Some hadith I got regarding this from http://www.zaharuddin.net/content/view/726/89/:

"Ertinya : Sekiranya seorang yang melalui di hdapan orang yang sedang bersolat ini mengetahui apa jenis dosanya (lalu di hadapan orang solat) nescaya untuk berhenti menunggu empat puluh lebih baik dari lalu di hadapan orang solat ini, berkata perwai : aku tidak tahu samada Nabi menyebut EMPAT PULUH hari atau bulan atau tahun" ( Riwayat Al-Bukhari) [1]"

Ertinya : Apabila seorang kamu sedang solat dan mempunyai sutrah menghalangnya, dan jika tiba-tiba ada orang yang ingin mencerobohi hadapannya maka hendaklah ingin menegahnya, jika ia (yang ingin menyeberang) enggan berhenti, hendaklah kamu bersungguh menghalangnya kerana ia adalah Syaitan" ( Riwayat Al-Bukhari) [2]

* sutrah here... I think it refers to a divider sort'a thinggy... to indicate the area up to where your head lies when prostrating (sujud). If performing sunnah prayers, it would be good to put something in front of you... as I believe this is sunnah (some even say Wajib...). This could also serve as an indicator as to the limit of where people should not cross...

## But for those who know better, and seen that I have erred in giving these information... please correct me for I do not want to be the disseminator of false facts, especially pertaining to Islam :)