Eleven Issues of I'tikaf: Should the Mu'takif Pass Wind in the Mosque or Outside?

Question

(1) If the urge to pass wind is overpowering, should the mu'takif leave the mosque to release it, or do so within the mosque enclosure itself? (2) If one foot is inside the mosque and the other outside, will the i'tikaf be broken or not? (3) May the mu'takif burn the mosque's oil in order to read a book or the Noble Qur'an? (4) May the mu'takif light a lamp in the mosque with a matchstick — may he light a lamp or not? (5) May the mu'takif go home and eat his food there, when there is no one to bring it? (6)

Answer

(1) There is no need to go outside the bounds of the mosque (thus in “Radd al-Muhtar”, vol. 1, p. 687). (2) No. [ar]قوله: الخروج إلخ، المراد بالخروج انفصال قدميه[/ar] “His words ‘going out…’: what is meant by going out is the separation of both his feet” (Tahtawi, p. 475). (3) During the prayer times, for as long as it is customary ('urf)

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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