Prayer (Salah)

The Friday prayer (Jumu'ah)

From the Quran · 2
From the Sunnah · 1
Where the schools differ

The ruling in short

Allah says: when the call to prayer is made on Friday, hasten to the remembrance of Allah and leave trade (62:9). Jumu'ah is an individual obligation on every sane, adult, resident Muslim man. It consists of two khutbahs and a two-rak'ah prayer which replaces the Dhuhr prayer.

1Who must attend

Men who are Muslim, adult, sane and resident (not travellers).
It is not an obligation on women, children, travellers and the sick, but it is valid if they attend.

2Etiquette of the day

Taking a bath and wearing the best clothes and perfume (for men) before going.
Going early, listening silently to the khutbah and not talking during it.
Two rak'ahs of greeting the mosque before sitting, even if the imam is giving the khutbah.
Praying the Friday prayer in a mosque with a congregation, and leaving trade after the second call.

3The prayer

Two rak'ahs recited aloud after the two khutbahs.
A person who misses it prays Dhuhr as usual (four rak'ahs).

Where the schools differ

The four Sunni schools agree on the main ruling above and differ in these points. No school is preferred here.

The Friday bath. the hadith says it is compulsory (wajib) for every adult. Most scholars (the four schools) hold it is a strongly stressed sunnah, because other hadith show that someone who did wudu only was also accepted. The Zahiris say it is an obligation.
The number needed for the prayer. the Hanafi school says three besides the imam; the Shafi'i and Hanbali schools say forty; the Maliki school requires a settled community (some say twelve men).

The evidence

From the Quran

Al-Jumu'ah 62:9

يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓا۟ إِذَا نُودِىَ لِلصَّلَوٰةِ مِن يَوْمِ ٱلْجُمُعَةِ فَٱسْعَوْا۟ إِلَىٰ ذِكْرِ ٱللَّهِ وَذَرُوا۟ ٱلْبَيْعَ ۚ ذَٰلِكُمْ خَيْرٌۭ لَّكُمْ إِن كُنتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ ﴿٩﴾

O vous qui avez cru! Quand on appelle à la Salât du jour du Vendredi, accourez à l'invocation d'Allah et laissez tout négoce. Cela est bien meilleur pour vous, si vous saviez!

Al-Jumu'ah 62:10

فَإِذَا قُضِيَتِ ٱلصَّلَوٰةُ فَٱنتَشِرُوا۟ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ وَٱبْتَغُوا۟ مِن فَضْلِ ٱللَّهِ وَٱذْكُرُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ كَثِيرًۭا لَّعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ ﴿١٠﴾

Puis quand la Salât est achevée, dispersez-vous sur terre et recherchez [quelque effet] de la grâce d'Allah, et invoquez beaucoup Allah afin que vous réussissiez.

From the Sunnah

Sahih al-Bukhari 879 Authentic collection

The point of the hadith: The Prophet ﷺ stressed taking a bath on Friday for every adult.

Read the Arabic text

حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ يُوسُفَ، قَالَ أَخْبَرَنَا مَالِكٌ، عَنْ صَفْوَانَ بْنِ سُلَيْمٍ، عَنْ عَطَاءِ بْنِ يَسَارٍ، عَنْ أَبِي سَعِيدٍ الْخُدْرِيِّ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ ‏ "‏ غُسْلُ يَوْمِ الْجُمُعَةِ وَاجِبٌ عَلَى كُلِّ مُحْتَلِمٍ ‏"‏‏.‏

Read it on sunnah.com

This is general information, not a fatwa. For your own situation, ask a qualified scholar.

Fiqh questions

The Friday prayer (Jumu'ah)

Is this a fatwa?

No. It is a summary of well-known rulings with their evidence. For your own case, ask a qualified scholar.

What if my school differs from this answer?

Follow the view of the school you follow and the scholar who teaches you. The page lists the differences of the four schools.