Hanbal: I heard Abu Abd Allah say: The person in I'tikaf shall not sell or buy except for what is indispensable for him, such as food or the like. As for trade and [general] taking and giving, none of that is permissible. Al-Shafi'i said: There is no harm in him selling, buying, sewing, or conversing, provided it does not involve sin. Our evidence is what 'Amr ibn Shu'ayb narrated from his father, from his grandfather, that the Prophet (peace be upon him) forbade selling and buying in the mosque. It was narrated by al-Tirmidhi, who said: It is a Hasan [good] Hadith. 'Imran al-Qasir saw a man selling in the mosque and said: "O man, this is the market of the Afterlife; if you wish to sell, go out to the market of this world." If he is forbidden from selling and buying outside the state of I'tikaf, then it is more strictly forbidden during it. As for crafts, the apparent meaning of al-Khiraqi's statement is that it is not permissible to engage in that which one earns a living through, because it is on the same level as trade through selling and buying. However, it is permissible to perform work for oneself, such as sewing his shirt or the like. Al-Marwazi narrated that he asked Abu Abd Allah about the person in I'tikaf: Do you consider it permissible for him to sew? He replied: It is not appropriate for him to be in I'tikaf if he intends to do that. The Qadi said: Sewing in the mosque is not permissible, regardless of whether he is in need of it or not, and whether it is a little or a lot; because that is a means of livelihood or a distraction from I'tikaf, so it resembles selling and buying in it. The most appropriate view is that what he needs of that is permissible if it is minor, such as if his shirt is torn and he mends it, or something comes undone that needs fastening and he fastens it; because this is a minor matter necessitated by need, so it follows the same ruling as wearing one's shirt and turban or removing them.
Section: It is recommended for the person in I'tikaf to occupy himself with prayer, the recitation of the Quran, and the remembrance of Allah the Almighty,
(1) In: Chapter on what has been narrated regarding the prohibition of selling, buying, and reciting poetry in the mosque, from the Chapters on Prayer. 'Aridat al-Ahwadhi 2/118. It was also recorded by Abu Dawud, in: Chapter on forming circles on Friday before prayer, from the Book of Prayer. Sunan Abi Dawud 1/248. Al-Nasa'i, in: Chapter on the prohibition of selling and buying in the mosque, from the Book of Mosques. Al-Mujtaba 2/37. Ibn Majah, in: Chapter on what is disliked in mosques, from the Book of Mosques. Sunan Ibn Majah 1/247. And Imam Ahmad, in: Al-Musnad 2/179, 212.
