Renting a Room for the Eid salaah

Q: Salaah-174: We live in the town of Leicester in England. The Masjid nearest to us is fifty miles away and that too is too small to accommodate all of us. The people there have to rent a house for the Eid salaah because both them and us together do not have the funds to purchase a large enough piece of land for the Eid salaah. Will there be any harm if we rent a room for us to perform the Eid salaah?

NOTE: We rent a room every Eid because although many Muslims have homes of their own, they are not large enough to accommodate everyone Furthermore, we do not have the funds to make any site Waqaf.

Answer: Having a Masjid is not a precondition for performing the Eid and Jumu'ah salaahs. It may be performed in the city or on the outskirts of the city it is also not necessary to make a piece of land Waqaf for the purpose A private home or a rented room may be utilised for the purpose condition that access is not restricted. Until a Masjid is built, you people may perform the salaah in your homes. It is of course best to perform it in a place that is reserved for salaah and in which the five daily salaahs are performed in Jamaa'ah. If the area is too small, some Musallis may perform salaah outside on mats or as possible.

Fatawa Rahimiyyah vol.2