What is the ruling on working for hire to push the carts of Tawaf and Sa'i in the Grand Mosque? Is agreeing upon a wage considered a sale within the mosque? Is it permissible for elderly women to be pushed in them?

The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, forbade buying and selling in the mosque. Scholars differed whether this prohibition implies tahreem (prohibition leading to invalidity) or karaha (dislike/disapprobation). The majority view is that the contract is valid, though disliked. The Hanbalis, however, held that the contract is forbidden and void. The ruling on renting (ijarah) is the same as that for selling, meaning it is also prohibited in the mosque.

However, the karaha (dislike) is lifted due to necessity, especially if it is related to an act of worship. The pressing need for many sick and elderly people to rent carts for Sa'i and Tawaf, and the difficulty of exiting the mosque to rent them, strengthens the permissibility (rukhsa) of renting them inside the mosque, whenever the benefit is for the performance of worship. But if it is possible to rent them outside the mosque without harm or excessive difficulty, then that is preferable.

As for dealing with women, buying, renting, and providing services to them are permissible with certain conditions: ensuring there is no fitna (temptation), refraining from speaking in a soft or alluring manner, and avoiding physical contact.