Chapter 310 – Disapproval of quarrelling in the mosque, raising one’s voice there, announcing a lost item, and engaging in buying, selling, leasing, and similar transactions

1705 – Abū Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that he heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say, “Whoever hears a man announcing a lost item(1) in the mosque, let him say, ‘May Allah not return it to you, for the mosques were not built for that purpose.’” Narrated by Muslim.

1706 – He also related that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “If you see someone buying or selling in the mosque, say, ‘May Allah not grant your trade any profit.’ And if you see someone announcing a lost item, say, ‘May Allah not return it to you.’” Narrated by al-Tirmidhī, who said: this is a sound hadith.

1707 – Buraydah, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that a man once proclaimed in the mosque, “Who will direct me to the red camel?” The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “May you never find it; mosques were only built for the purposes for which they were built.” Narrated by Muslim.

1708 – ʿAmr ibn Shuʿayb, on the authority of his father, on the authority of his grandfather, may Allah be pleased with them, related that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ forbade buying and selling in the mosque, announcing lost property there, or reciting poetry in it. Narrated by Abū Dāwūd and al-Tirmidhī, who said: this is a sound hadith.

1709 – Al-Sāʾib ibn Yazīd, the Companion, may Allah be pleased with him, said: “I was in the mosque when a man threw small stones at me(2). I looked and it was ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, may Allah be pleased with him. He said, ‘Go and bring me those two men.’ I brought them, and he asked, ‘Where are you from?’ They replied, ‘From Ṭāʾif.’ He said, ‘Had you been from the people of this city, I would have punished you; you raise your voices in the Mosque of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ!’” Narrated by al-Bukhārī.

(1) i.e., proclaiming that one has lost something and asking others to help find it.
(2) A common practice for silently attracting someone’s attention without speaking in the mosque.