Makruh to pray behind a blind Imam in the Hanafi madhab?

[Sunni_Student786]

As salaamu alaykum.

I was reading an article on sunnipath wherein I came across the following:

"Imam al-Haskafi (Allah have mercy on him) states in his Durr al-Mukhtar:

'It is Makruh to pray behind a sinner, blind person or a innovator, meaning the one who holds beliefs that are not known from the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him & give him peace)'."

I can understand why it would be disliked to pray behing a sinner or innovator, but not why it would be disliked to pray behind a blind person. What is the basis for the ruling that it is disliked to pray behind a blind person? And what comments have the Ulema made regarding the above statement?

Furthermore, it is a common practice in many Muslim countries to bring a hafiz, who is many times also blind, to lead Tarawih prayers during Ramadhan. Is such a practice also disliked?

Lastly, does this ruling change if the blind person is the most knowledgeable from amongst the particular community of the Muslims that he belongs to and leads in prayer?

I would really like to know the answer to the above insha'allah as the permanent Imam at our Masjid, is a Hanafi, a Hafiz, a specialist in Arabic language, as well as very knowledge about the popular rulings of the various madhabs on many topics, although he has Qardawi-like leniency in some matters. BUT he is also blind, so I would like to know if our prayer behind him is still makruh, even given the fact that he is the most knowledgeable among us?

I hope that I get an answer to this insha'allah.

Jazakallahu Khair.

Wa'salaam.

[Nayab]

:salam:

I actually read the same article and the same question 's been bothering me for quite some time. haha

I would like to get an answer to that as well with a bit of commentary on ahadiths and reasoning behind such a prohibition (if there is any), insha'Allah.

[haqq]

good question.

[Omar HH]

It's makruh to prayh behind someone castrated or the child of zina in our madhab.

Wassalam.

[ursis]

8. It is makruh-e-tanzihi to appoint the following persons as an imam: (a) a slave who is regarded as a slave in Islamic jurisprudence and not the one who is bought at the time of a famine,etc. even if he has been freed, (b) a villager, (c) a blind person who is not conscious of the laws of purity and impurity, (d) a person who cannot see well at night, (e) a waladuz zina, i.e. a person who was born out of an illicit relationship. However, if all these persons are possessors of knowledge and virtue, and people do not mind appointing them as imams, then it will not be makruh.

source: Bahisti Zewar (http://www.alinaam.org.za/bahishti/JAMAAT.htm)

[Sunni_Student786]

source: Bahisti Zewar (http://www.alinaam.org.za/bahishti/JAMAAT.htm)

Jazakallahu Khair ursis.

I would also like for some of our Ulema to perhaps give some more detailed commentary about the dislike as well as how the Ulema came to their conclusion about the order of priority that is given for Imamate. Some things, such as the dislike in praying behind the blind, or a villager, etc. are new to me and I am quite confused about them.

Insha'allah some of our Ulema will chime in to clarify our understandings.

Wa'salaam.

[Abdul Razak]

Assalamu alaikum,

I'm not one of the scholars you requested a response from, but I took the Qudoori class on Sunnipath last term and this issue was addressed. The information below between the asterisks is from my class notes. Insha'Allah, it will suffice as a response until the more knowledgeable Hanafis can answer.

**It is disliked to appoint a slave and a Bedouin, a corrupt person, blind, and a person born out of wedlock. The reason it is disliked to appoint a slave and Bedouin is that they are generally ignorant. If they know more than others, they would be given precedence. It is makruh tahriman to appoint a fasiq (openly corrupt person) to be Imam. But if a fasiq is Imam, it is better to pray behind him than to pray alone. For a blind person, one reason is ignorance, another is they may not perform purification correctly and they may not know the direction of the qiblah. But if the blind Imam is knowledgeable and none of the things mentioned apply to the blind Imam, then it is not disliked. There is a long history of blind ulema including Sheikh Hasan al Hindi who is Imam of a mosque in Damascus (one of sheikh Faraz's teacher). **

So basically, these texts were written in a certain cultural context in which the categories of people named generally had certain characteristics that made their imamate disliked. But if there was a villager, a slave, a person born out of wedlock, etc. who was knowledgable and had none of the qualities that typically made it disliked for them to lead the salat, then it would no longer be disliked.

Wassalam

[Sunni_Student786]

Thank you brother Abdur Razzak for that clarification.

May Allah reward you abundantly in this life and the hereafter.

Wa'salaam.

[jaylen]

interesting..never knew that. Jazak Allah khayr.