and in the Gregorian calendar it runs from 21 September to 21 December. The season is called kharīf because fruit is gathered in it; here, however, the intended meaning is the whole year, for the Arabs often name the whole by one of its parts.

What may be learned from the ḥadith:
1 – The worshiper stands before Allah, conversing with Him; to cut off that conversation and disturb the connection by walking between the worshiper and his qiblah is a grave sin upon the passer-by.
2 – It is forbidden to pass in front of someone who is praying when he has no barrier, or to pass between him and that barrier when he has one.
3 – The predominant Hanbalī view, attributed to Aḥmad, is that the worshiper is recommended to repel anyone who tries to cross in front of him; another report makes this obligatory, based on the plain wording of the texts. As for the passer-by, the well-known position is that passing is prohibited, and Ibn Ḥazm cited consensus on his sin.
4 – One must avoid crossing in front of a worshiper out of fear of this severe warning.
5 – It is preferable for the worshiper not to pray in thoroughfares or in places people necessarily use, so that he does not expose his prayer to deficiency or annulment, nor burden passers-by with sin or the hardship of waiting.
6 – Another narration explains “forty” as “forty years.” The number is not intended as an exact limit; many uṣūl scholars hold that the figure is merely for emphasis, like Allah’s words: “Ask forgiveness for them or do not ask forgiveness for them; even if you ask forgiveness for them seventy times, Allah will never forgive them” (Qur’an 9:80).
7 – This ruling applies everywhere except Mecca, concerning which there is a difference of opinion that will be discussed, if Allah wills.
8 – The apparent sense of the report is that the warning concerns only one who walks past, not someone who stands, sits, or lies in front of the worshiper; this is the majority view. Ibn al-Qayyim said: “The prayer is not invalidated by someone standing or sitting in front of him,” and this was recorded by al-Majd.