at times in their sandals and at times barefoot, as narrated in the Sunan of Abū Dāwūd and Ibn Mājah from ‘Amr ibn Shu‘ayb, from his father, from his grandfather, who said:

“I saw the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, pray both barefoot and in sandals.”

The evidence afforded by praying in sandals is clear. As for praying barefoot, Abū Dāwūd and al-Nasā’ī narrated in their Sunan from ‘Abd Allāh ibn al-Sā’ib, who said:

“I saw the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, praying on the day of the Conquest, having placed his sandals to his left.”

Likewise, the previously mentioned hadith of Abū Sa‘īd in the Sunan of Abū Dāwūd states:

“While the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was leading his Companions in prayer, he took off his sandals and placed them to his left.”

The remainder of the hadith indicates that he was in the mosque, as explained earlier.

The same applies to the hadith of Ibn al-Sā’ib. Muslim, al-Nasā’ī and Ibn Mājah narrated the underlying account from ‘Abd Allāh ibn al-Sā’ib, who said:

“The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, led us in the dawn prayer in Mecca and began reciting Surah al-Mu’minūn. When he reached the mention of Moses and Aaron—or the mention of Moses and Jesus—the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was seized by a cough, so he bowed.”

‘Abd Allāh ibn al-Sā’ib was present on that occasion. This therefore took place in the Sacred Mosque, and he placed his sandals inside the mosque despite knowing that people prayed and circumambulated in that very place. If taking precautions against impurity on the soles of sandals were recommended, the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, would have been foremost in performing this recommended act to protect the mosque.

Furthermore, Abū Dāwūd narrated in his Sunan from Sa‘īd ibn Abī Sa‘īd, from his father, from Abū Hurayra