Chapter: The Ruling on Covering at Least One Shoulder in Prayer

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) related that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “None of you is to perform the prayer in a single garment if nothing of it covers his shoulders.”

Overall meaning
A worshipper should appear before his Lord in the finest state, for Allah says: “O children of Adam, adorn yourselves at every place of worship” (7:31). For that reason the Prophet ﷺ urged a person not to pray while both shoulders are exposed when he possesses something that could cover one or both of them, and he forbade such a posture while the servant stands before Allah in intimate discourse.

Scholarly positions
• The well-known view of Imam Ahmad is that covering at least one shoulder during prayer is obligatory, in addition to the general obligation of covering the private parts, basing this on the outward sense of the present ḥadīth.
• Some of his companions confined this ruling to obligatory prayers; in their view, if someone performs a prescribed prayer without covering either shoulder, his prayer is invalid.
• The majority—including the other three imams—hold that covering the shoulders is recommended, not compulsory. They argue that the prohibition in the ḥadīth is for reprehensibility rather than strict unlawfulness, citing the report in the two Ṣaḥīḥ collections from Jābir: “If the garment is narrow, wrap it around your waist,” and interpreting the prohibition as one of disapproval (makrūh tanzīhī).

Legal conclusions

1. It is prohibited to pray with both shoulders uncovered. Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah noted that covering the shoulders is a requirement of the prayer itself; thus, outside of prayer a person may uncover his shoulders, and it can happen that in prayer one covers what may be shown elsewhere.
2. When a covering is available, it is recommended to cover both shoulders—or at least one—during the prayer.
3. It is recommended for the worshipper to present himself in a dignified and befitting appearance.