Darul Iftaa Mahmudiyyah

Is it permissible to lay on your stomach?

· 5 Safar 1436 AH1 min readFatwa 31307English

Question

Is it permissible to lay on your stomach other than sleeping. For eg when one has a stomach ache or maybe just to read a book.

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.

It is discouraged for one to lay on his/her stomach is due to the following Hadith of the Prophet (SallAllāhu ῾Alayhi Wasallam):

It was narrated that Abu Dharr said:

"The Prophet(ﷺ) passed by me and I was lying on my stomach. He nudged me with his foot and said: 'O Junaidib! This is how the people of Hell lie.'(Sunan Ibn Majah 3724)

The above mentioned hadith clearly mentions that for one to lie on his/her stomach is disliked by Allah Ta’ala, therefore, one should abstain from doing so.

And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best

Arshad Ali

Student Darul Iftaa
Trinidad

Checked and Approved by,
Mufti Ebrahim Desai.

http://www.daruliftaa.net/

References (Arabic / Urdu sources)

عَنْ أَبِي ذَرٍّ، قَالَ مَرَّ بِيَ النَّبِيُّ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ وَأَنَا مُضْطَجِعٌ عَلَى بَطْنِي فَرَكَضَنِي بِرِجْلِهِ وَقَالَ ‏ "‏ يَا جُنَيْدِبُ إِنَّمَا هَذِهِ ضِجْعَةُ أَهْلِ النَّارِ ‏"‏ ‏.‏

Answered by
Arshad Ali
Checked & approved by
Mufti Ebrahim Desai
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Source: Darul Iftaa Mahmudiyyah — https://askimam.org/public/question_detail/31307
Fatawa SA: https://fatawa.co.za/fatwa/askimam-31307

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