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English translation
377. 'Aishah narrated that Allāh's Messenger ﷺ said: "The Ṣalāt of a woman who has reached the age of menstruation is not accepted without a Khimār" (Ṣaḥīḥ)
[He said:] There is something on this topic from 'Abdullāh bin 'Amr.
[And his saying: "Al-Ĥā'id" means a woman who has reached the age of menstruation.]
Abū 'Eisā said: The Hadīth of 'Aishah is a Hasan Hadīth. It is acted upon according to the people of knowledge (they say) that when a woman performs Ṣalāt and some of her hair is uncovered then her Ṣalāt is not acceptable. This is the view of Ash-Shāfi'i who said: "The Ṣalāt of a woman is not acceptable if anything of her body remains uncovered." And Ash-Shāfi'i said: "And it has been said that if the tops of her feet are uncovered then her Ṣalāt is acceptable."
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Commentary
According to the majority of the A'immah, covering the Awrah (front and privates) is a condition for the prayer. The entire body of a woman is Awrah. In the view of most A'immah her hands and face are not to be covered; because any part which must be covered is not allowed to be exposed to anyone else other than the husband, but it is hard in working circumstances,
which does not mean to expose them, they must be certainly covered from strangers.
There is disagreement about the foot, Imām Shāfi'i and Abū Hanīfah do not regard it part of Awrah, one statement of Imām Mālik is the same. Some people declare it obligatory to cover the heel, on the basis of a Hadīth of Sunan Abū Dāwūd; but in the view of the majority of the experts of Hadīth that narration is unauthentic. Covering the head is unanimously agreed, so covering the head is compulsory; the truth is that covering the entire body, except the hands and face, is compulsory; and also according to one quotation, in the view of the four A'immah the whole of body of a free woman is compulsory to be covered except the face and hands. [Al-Mughnī: 2/326-327 including footnotes].
The matter of men covering their heads in prayer has also become clear in this Hadīth, that the obligation of covering the head is upon women only, not the men. However, the usual habit of men to remain bare headed is also against the habit of the Prophet ﷺ, Companions and the successors. None disagreed regarding the legality of the prayer without a head covering; but to remain bare headed permanently, is it in accordance with the Islamic custom?
