I'TIKAF (RETREAT) DURING RAMADAN
 

    The Prophet set an example for retiring for contemplation during Ramadan as a form of devotion. He used to spend the last ten days of Ramadan in complete retirement in his mosque. `Aisha said : "The Prophet used to retire the last ten days of Ramadan and continued this custom to the end of his life".

    Ibn Omar reported that the Prophet, during the retreat period, had his bed placed in the mosque behind a pillar.

   A person in retreat shall observe complete seclusion.

    A'isha said that "a person in retreat abstains from normal social life. He shall not even visit a sick man or attend a funeral or touch a woman. He goes out only to perform his natural functions".

      A man in retreat may take a bath or have his hair cut and combed.

    A'isha said that she used to comb the Prophet's hair while he was in retreat.
 

    I'tikaf can be performed in any mosque where group prayers are performed. The best-rewarded i'tikaf is that performed in one of three mosques, namely, at the Ka'ba in Mecca, the Prophet's Mosque in Medina and the Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.