The Ruling on Reciting Surah Muzammil for a Specific Need: Understanding Innovation in Islam

Is Reciting Surah Muzammil a Specific Number of Times Permissible in Islam?

Question: Someone instructed me to recite Surah Muzammil a specific number of times. The menstrual period ended, but the ritual bath (ghusl) was not performed. The Surah was recited from a mobile phone without performing ghusl. What is the ruling on this?

Answer:The first thing to understand is that when someone asks you to perform a religious act in the name of Islam, you should first verify whether it is permissible or not before proceeding.

If someone instructed you to recite Surah Muzammil a specific number of times and you did so, this is an act of innovation (bid’ah). You have engaged in an innovative practice, and innovation is a sinful act. The person who instructed you to do this has led you into an innovation, and you have carried it out, resulting in both of you committing a sin by practicing innovation.

The main issue is not whether someone recited Surah Muzammil during menstruation or after it ended without performing ghusl. A woman can recite the Quran during menstruation, either orally or from a mobile device. However, reciting Surah Muzammil a specific number of times for a need or instructing someone else to do so is an innovation because there is no command in the Quran or Hadith to recite Surah Muzammil in this manner. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said:

“Every newly invented matter is an innovation, and every innovation is misguidance, and every misguidance leads to the Hellfire.” (Sahih al-Jami’: 1353)

 Sheikh Maqbool Ahmed Salafi حفظه الله

 ❪Jeddah Dawah Center – Al-Salamah – Kingdom of Saudi Arabia