464. Sleepy During The Khutbah?

By Asma bint Shameem 

If you get sleepy during Jumu’ah khutbah, there are two things you can do. 

1. Get up from where you’re sitting and move to another place in the masjid.

The Prophet sal Allaahu Alayhi wa sallam said:

“If any one of you become drowsy in the masjid on the day of Jumu’ah, and whilst the imaam is giving the khutbah, let him move from where he is to another spot.” (al -Baihaqi-  saheeh by  al-Albaani)

2. Exchange your place with the one next to you. 

The Prophet Sal Allaahu Alaiyhi wa Sallam said: 

“If one of you dozes during the Friday sermon, he should exchange his position with the person sitting next to him.”(al-Baihaqi - saheeh by al-Albaani)

Ibn Khuzaymah said: 

“The Prophet Sal Allaahu Alaiyhi wa Sallam didn’t intend the entire day in this hadeeth. What he meant was that if you are in the masjid waiting for the Jumu’ah prayer or during the Khutbah. However this action occurs more during the sermon.The wisdom in changing the sitting place is that moving removes sleepiness. There is also a possibility that the wisdom for this action is moving from the place where he suffered inattention due to his dozing to another. If he dozes off while sitting then there is no harm for him in that action. 

The Prophet Sal Allaahu Alaiyhi wa Sallam ordered his companions radhi Allaahu anhum who dozed off while waiting for Fajr in the valley to move.The person waiting for the prayer is in prayer. 

Yawning while praying is from Shaytaan. And maybe the command for moving is the elimination of Shaytaan’s relationship to the person sitting down negligent about Allaah  in the masjid, or the person listening to the Khutbah or the person being involved in anything fruitful.”

[‘Awnun Ma’bud Sharhus Sunnan Abu Dawud]

What happens if i do actually fall asleep accidentally?

Do I need to renew my wudhu? 

Although it’s not right that a person dozes off during Jumu’ah khutbah, it does happen sometimes involuntarily, and we can’t really help it. 

In this situation, you don’t need to do anything. 

This sleep is light and so it does not invalidate wudhu. 

Shaikh Ibn Baaz said:

“Light sleep in which one does not lose consciousness does not invalidate wudhu’. It was narrated that the Prophet Sal Allaahu Alaiyhi wa Sallam used to delay ‘Ishaa prayer on some occasions, until the heads of the companions of the Messenger of Allaah Sal Allaahu Alaiyhi wa Sallam would droop, then they would pray and would not re-do wudhu.”

(Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah, 5/263)

And Allaah knows best.