Shoe facing upsite down....

[smartguy]

Assalamu 'Alaykum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu

I was tought that don't leave your shoe or sleepers facing upsite down when I was a kid. I also see others practing it. I never found that in any hadith or any kitab. It is in islam of just made up by people.

I also want to know about folding mussalah while not praying. I was told if you don't fold it then saitan will start praying onit. Any hadith on this?

[Imam]

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem,

Wa'alaykum 'Assalam wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu


Praise be to Allah the Almighty, and Blessings and Mercies of Allah be upon His Most Beloved Prophet and Final Messenger Muhammad (Salla Allahu ta'ala 'alayhi wa Sallam).


Some things are naturally common sense, to do even though it is not stated in the Qur'an al kareem or Hadith. You have to be careful not to go off in a tangent, when asking for proofs from al Qur'an or Hadith, for evey single thing that is common practice, yet may not be written.


The turning over of a shoe, when it is upside down, is because the place for the sole of the shoe is the ground. The ground carries many impurities which normally get attached to the sole of the shoe. Therefore, it is undesirable for our eyes to see something which is so impure. If however the shoe was upright, and the shoes were placed in a normal place amongst other shoes, it would still be undesirable for us to sit at a place or rest in a place where there are shoes. This is perfectly normal, as shoes are worn on the feet, and they normally hold a place in a stand, or on a rack, or outside the room. It is not normal for us to even wear shoes while we pray, and these are the reasons why.


Similarly, when you pray the Qur'an al kareem, you just dont leave it open when the phone rings and start chatting to your friend, but what we normally do, is close it, place it in a high place, and then return back to it. The same can be said about musallahs, when they are used by a single person, they should be returned to their normal place, because everything has a place, and when things are not in their place then the rules of Shar'iyyah begin to break. There may not be anything to prevent us from breaking those rules in terms of hadith, or ayahs, but it is our test, and our duty to maintain everything in its place.


All jewellers keep there jewels in well presented boxes, but if you were to throw your jewel in the dustbin, there doesnt say anything that prevents you from not doing so, therefore you would use your common sense and keep it safe. This is one reason why we have so much dishonour for the Qur'an al kareem, for Salaah, for important personalities, for sacred relics, and in some cases for the Most Beloved Prophet of Allah (Salla Allahu ta'ala 'alayhi wa Sallam), and in some instances dishonour for Allah the Almighty. We all have been given a brain, and we must use it, in order to place objects, or things in their original places.


May Allah the Almighty help us to honour, esteem, and respect everything that has to be respected, and may He prevent us from dishonouring, disrespecting, and demeaning what should be esteemed.




Wallahu A'lamu Biththawaab


M. Waseem Ashrafi