A mu'takif going out for the funeral prayer

Question

A mu'takif is observing i'tikaf in a mosque. It so happens that a funeral bier (janaza) is brought, and the people of the neighbourhood, seeking blessing (tabarruk), want the respected mu'takif to lead the prayer; none of them knows how to lead it properly. From the standpoint of the Shari'a, may the mu'takif lead the funeral prayer or not?

Answer

Going out of the mosque for the funeral prayer invalidates the i'tikaf (it becomes fasid): [ar]وَلَوْ خَرَجَ لِجَنَازَةٍ يَفْسُدُ اعْتِكَافُهُ، وَكَذَا لِصَلَاتِهَا وَلَوْ تَعَيَّنَتْ عَلَيْهِ[/ar] “If he goes out for a funeral, his i'tikaf is invalidated; likewise for the prayer over it, even if it has become individually incumbent upon him” (al-Hindiyya, vol. 1, p. 211).

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

Preview. The full text opens with JavaScript enabled.