Ruling on doing tawaaf during the Friday khutbah

The scholars differed concerning the ruling on doing tawaaf during the Friday khutbah, whether that is an obligatory tawaaf such as tawaaf al-ifaadah, the farewell tawaaf and the tawaaf of ‘umrah, or it is mustahabb. 

The Maalikis are of the view that it is not allowed, by analogy with prayer, because the one who is praying behind the imam is not allowed to pray during the Friday khutbah, except for tahiyyat al-masjid (“greeting the mosque”, two rak’ahs performed upon entering the mosque). That is because it involves ignoring the khateeb and his khutbah, and tawaaf is like prayer in this regard. 

See Mawaahib al-Jaleel (3/78). 

The Shaafa’is are of the view that it is permissible to do tawaaf during the Friday khutbah, and they rejected the analogy with prayer, because tawaaf does not prevent one from listening to the khutbah, unlike prayer which is a greater distraction. 

See al-Ghurar al-Bahiyyah (2/29) and al-Fataawa al-Fiqhiyyah al-Kubra (1/239). 

Shaykh Ibn Jibreen was of the view that tawaaf during the Friday khutbah is not allowed. He was asked: What is the ruling on residents and travellers doing tawaaf when the khateeb is delivering the khutbah on Friday? 

He replied: Once the khateeb begins his khutbah, the worshippers must listen attentively to the khutbah and stay where they are, and it is not permissible to busy oneself with something other than that, except for one who comes in during the khutbah, who may pray two rak’ahs but he should make them short, whether he is one of the people of Makkah or not. The evidence that it is forbidden to move and speak during the khutbah is general in meaning, to such an extent that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “If you say to your companion, ‘Listen attentively’ when the imam is delivering the khutbah, then you have engaged in idle speech.” Thus he warned against asking someone to be quiet even though it is done for the right reason. Based on this, we think that it is not permissible to do tawaaf at all so long as the imam is delivering the Friday khutbah. The imams of old forbade doing tawaaf during the khutbah, but the later imams were more lenient and claimed that they could not prevent those people who were doing tawaaf and those who gave the reason that they were travelling and were bidding farewell to the Ka’bah in this tawaaf, or who think that tawaaf is superior to listening attentively to the khutbah. But this is not correct, and we think that they should be prevented until the Friday prayer is over. With regard to the Eid khutbah, there is nothing wrong with doing tawaaf during this khutbah, because it is sunnah, and the worshippers are not obliged to stay until it ends.  

End quote from Majallat al-Haras al-Watani, issue no. 272, dated 1/1/2005. 

And Allaah knows best.