far away? We say: she may move to her family’s home even if they are far away, because once the original place becomes unavailable, the obligation falls away. The obligation is tied to the very house in which her husband died while she was residing there; once it becomes unavailable and cannot be lived in, we say: she may observe her waiting period wherever she wishes.
This is like someone whose hand has been amputated at the elbow: when he wishes to perform ablution, we do not say to him, “Wash the upper arm in place of the elbow,” because the locus of the obligation is gone. It is also like a bald person with no hair who performs Hajj or Umrah. Shaving or trimming the hair is required in Hajj and Umrah, but we do not say to him, “Shave,” because he has no hair. Nor is he required to pass a razor over his head, as some scholars have said, for this is pointless. This is similar to the view of those who say that a mute person should move his lips and tongue in prayer; this too is pointless. In sum, the sound view in this issue is the position of the school of law.
His statement, “She may go out during the daytime for her needs, but not at night”: relocating from the house is not permissible. But is it permissible for her to go out while continuing to reside in the house, or not?
We say: there are three possible cases: either she goes out due to necessity, due to a need, or for neither necessity nor need.
The first case is where there is neither necessity nor need. This is not permissible—for example, if she says, “I want to go out for recreation,” or “for Umrah.” This is not permissible, because it is neither a need nor a necessity.
The second case is where leaving the house is necessary. This is permissible both by night and by day. For example, if there is rain and she fears that the house may collapse upon her, she may leave out of necessity. But once the rain stops and the house is repaired, she must return. The same applies if a fire breaks out in the house.
The third case is where there is a need, such as going to buy juice or tea, or where she is a teacher and goes out to teach