Joining the imam in any situation

One should join the imam in any situation he is in

If one enters the mosque and the imam is prostrating, should he join him in prostration or wait until he gets up?

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful,

All the Praise is to Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala. Peace and Blessings be upon Prophet Muhammad His Messenger.

The evidence in the sahih ahādith of Abu Hurayrah, Abu Qatadah, and Mu’adz stipulates if one enters the mosque and finds in midst of praying, he should join him regardless of any situation he is in, whether he is standing, bowing, prostrating or between prostrations.

Abu Hurayrah (Radiallahu’anhu) who reported that the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said:

“If you come to prayer and we are prostrating, then prostrate, but do not regard it as anything. Whoever catches up with a rak’ah has caught up with the prayer.”

[Narrated by Abu Dawud, 893; classified as hasan by al-Albani in Sahih Abi Dawud]

Abu Qatadah (Radiallahu’anhu) reported: The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said:

“When you come to prayer you must be dignified. Whatever you catch up with, performed it, and whatever you miss, complete it.”

[Narrated by al-Bukhari, 635]

[Fath al-Bari, 1/118]

Mu’adz ibn Jabal who reported, the Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said:

“When one of you comes to the prayer and the imam is in any position, let him follow what the imam is doing.”

[Narrated by al-Tirmidzi, 591; classified as sahih by al-Albani in Sahih al-Tirmidzi]

Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar (rahimahullah) said: “This is the reference as evidence that it is mustahab to join the imam in whatever position he is found.”

This is the Sunnah of the way to the one who enters the mosque and finds the imam praying, based on the evidence in the texts.

Ibn Hazam (rahimahullah) narrated that there was scholarly consensus on this point. He said; if a person comes and the imam has already done some of the prayer, a little or a lot, and there is nothing left but the salaam, he should join him and do the same as he finds him doing, unless he has decided to catch up with the congregation in another mosque.

[Maratib al-Ijma’ (p. 25)]

Ibn Qudamah (rahimahullah) said: It is mustahab for the one who catches up with the imam in any position to follow him in that, even if it will not count as anything for him. The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said:

“When you come to prayer you must be dignified. Whatever you catch up with, prays, and whatever you miss, complete it.”

[Narrated by al-Bukhari, 635]

Then Ibn Qudamah said: This is what is to be done according to the scholars, who said: If a man comes and the imam is prostrating, let him prostrate, but that rak’ah will not count for him. Some of them said: perhaps by the time he raises his head, he will have been forgiven.

[Al-Mughni (2/184)]

There are some people who, if they enter the mosque and find that the imam is prostrating or is between the two prostrations, they do not join him until he stands up for the second rak’ah or until they know that he is reciting the tashahhud, then they sit with him. Such a person has deprived himself of the benefit of prostration, as well as going against what is indicated by the evidence quoted above.

It is stated in the Tuhfat al-Ahwadzi: Let him follow what the imam is performing, i.e., let him join the imam whether he is standing, bowing or whatever. He should not wait for the imam to stand up as the common folk do.

[Tuhfat al-Ahwadzi (2/199); Ahkam Hudur al-Masjid, p. 138-139 by Shaykh ‘Abdallah ibn Salih al-Fawzan]

The imam is reciting the final tashahhud

The scholars of the Standing Committee for Issuing Fatwas were asked about a man who enters the mosque when the imam is in the final rak’ah. Should he join them or wait until he have completed?

The scholars replied: What is prescribed in such situation is that you to join them. Whatever you catch up with, pray with them, and whatever you miss, make it up. If you join them after they stand up from bowing in the last rak’ah, then join them and make up the entire prayer after the imam says the Salam.

This is in accordance to the hadith of Abu Qatadah (Radiallahu’anhu) who said: The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said:

“When you come to prayer you must be dignified. Whatever you catch up with, prays, and whatever you miss, complete it.”

[Narrated by al-Bukhari, 635]

[Standing Committee for Issuing Fatwas :‘Abd al-‘Aziz ibn ‘Abdallah ibn Baaz, ‘Abd al-Razzaq ‘Afifi, ‘Abdallah ibn Qa’ ud, ‘Abdallah ibn Ghadyaan].

The scholars of the Standing Committee were also asked: What is most appropriate if a man enters the mosque and the imam is reciting the final tashahhud; should he join him in the tashahhud or is it better to wait for some other people to come so that they can pray together?

They replied: It is better for him to join the imam, because of the general meaning of the hadith: “Whatever you catch up with, pray, and whatever you miss, make it up.”

[Standing Committee for Issuing Fatwas ‘Abd al-‘Aziz ibn ‘Abdallah ibn Baaz, ‘Abd al-Razzaq ‘Afifi, ‘Abdallah ibn Qa’ ud]

[Fatawa al-Lajnah al-Da’imah, 7/312-323]

Allah Almighty Knows Best.

[Adapted from the Fatwa No: 46811 Islam Q&A]

The principle of following the imam in Solah

The principle is the Imam must be followed by the ma’mum

We notice some people delaying in following the imam in the solah, and some others anticipating him in sujud or ruku’ sometimes. Kindly enlighten us the ruling on anticipating the imam or delaying following him, so that Allah may benefit us thereby.

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful;
All the Praise is to Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala. Peace and Blessings be upon Prophet Muhammad His Messenger.

The principle is the Imam must be followed by the ma’mum

As indicated by the hadith of Abu Hurayrah (radiallahu`anhu), who reported the Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said:

“The Imam is selected to be followed; do not differ with him. When he makes the takbir, make the takbir, when he goes into ruku‘, make ruku‘. When he says “Sami `Allahu li man hamidah” (Allah hears he who praises Him), say “Rabbana lakal Hamd” (O our Lord! To You belongs the Praise). When he goes into sajdah, make sajdah. If he prays sitting, then all should be sitting.”
[Sahih Al-Bukhari, No. 68]

Shaykh Muhammad ibn ‘Uthaymeen (rahimahullah) said: As a person prays behind an imam, four scenarios may apply: Anticipation: doing a movement before the imam; Delay; Doing an action simultaneously with the imam; and Following.

1. Anticipation

This refers to the person doing one of the essential parts of the solat before the imam, such as prostrating or rising before the imam, or bowing or rising from bowing before him. This is haram, and the evidence for that are the words of the Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam): “Do not bow until he bows, do not prostrate until he prostrates.” The basic principle is that the words “do not” indicate that the action is haram, and if someone were to say that it is a major sin, that would not be farfetched, as reported by Abu Hurayrah the Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said: “Does the one who raises his head before the imam not fear that Allah may turn his head into the head of a donkey, or make his form like that of a donkey?” [Muslim] This is a warning, and a warning is one of the signs that a sin is a major sin.

Ruling on the prayer of one who anticipates the imam:

If a person anticipates the imam knowingly, aware of the ruling and of what he is doing, and then his prayer is invalid. But if he is ignorant or forgot, then his solat is valid, unless that excuse ceased to exist before the imam did that action, in which case he has to go back and repeat what he did before the imam, after the imam. If he does not do that, knowing the ruling and aware of what he is doing, then his prayer is invalid, otherwise it is not.

2. Delay

There are two kinds of delay in following the imam:

(i) Delay for a reason
(ii) Delay without any excuse

The first kind is where there is a reason or excuse.

He has to make up what he delayed, then he should follow the imam, and there will be no blame on him, even if it is one or two essential parts of the prayer. So if a person is distracted or loses focus, or did not hear the imam until the imam has done one or two essential parts of the prayer before him, then he should do the things that he delayed in and then follow the imam, unless the imam reaches the point where he is [in the rak’ah], in which case he should not make up the missing parts and he should stay with the imam. Then one rak’ah will be valid for him which is formed from two rak’ahs of the imam, the rak’ah in which he delayed and the rak’ah which the imam reached the same point as him. An example of that is:

A man was praying with the imam and the imam bowed, rose, prostrated, sat up, prostrated a second time and stood up, but the person praying behind him did not hear the loudspeaker except in the second rak’ah, because the electricity cut out for example. Let us assume that this was during Jumu’ah prayer, so he heard the imam reciting al-Fatihah, then the electricity cut out, and the imam completed the first rak’ah, but the person remained standing thinking that the imam had not yet bowed in the first rak’ah, then he heard him reciting,“Has there come to you the narration of the overwhelming (i.e. the Day of Resurrection)?” [Al-Ghashiyah, 88:1]

We advice that you should stay with the imam, so the second rak’ah for the imam will be the rest of the first rak’ah for you. When the imam says the taslim, you should make up the second rak’ah. The scholars said: so the person praying behind the imam will have one rak’ah that is formed from the two rak’ahs of his imam, because followed the imam in part of the first and part of the second.

If he realizes that he has lagged behind before the imam reaches the same point [in the second rak’ah], he should make it up and follow the imam. For example: A man is standing with the imam, and the imam bows but he does not hear that he is bowing. When the imam says “Sami’a Allahu liman hamidah” [Allah hears those who praise Him – said when rising from bowing], when the person praying behind him hears that, we say to him: Bow and rise, and follow your imam and you will have caught up with the rak’ah, because the delay here was for a reason.

Delaying an essential part of the prayer means lagging behind in following the imam, but catching up with him in the next essential part of the prayer. For example, the imam bows when you still have a verse or two left of the surah you are reciting, so you remain standing to complete what you still have to recite, but then you bow and catch up with the imam in ruku’. In this case the rak’ah is valid, but your action goes against the Sunnah, because what is prescribed is to start bowing when the imam reaches the bowing posture and not to lag behind, because the Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said: “When he bows, then bow.”

Lagging behind in an essential part of the solat means that the imam is one step ahead of you in it, i.e., he bows and rises before you bow. The fuqaha’ (may Allah have mercy on them) said: if you lag behind in ruku’ then your prayer is invalid, just as if you did ruku’ before the imam. If you lag behind in sujud (prostration) then according to what the fuqaha’ say your prayer is valid, because it is lagging behind in an essential part of the prayer other than ruku’.

But the correct view is that if a person lags behind the imam in any essential part of the solat without valid excuse, then his solat is invalid, whether that is in ruku’ or any other part of the solat. Based on this, if the imam rises from the first sujud and this person who is behind him is making long dua’ in sujud and continues to make it until the imam sujud for the second time, then his solat is invalid, because he has lagged behind in an essential part of the solat. If the imam is one step ahead of him, how can he then be following him? The view of majority scholars that if someone misses two consecutive obligatory acts of solat without a valid excuse, it renders the solat void and he is sinful.

3. Doing an action simultaneously with the imam.

This refers either to word or actions, and falls into two categories: The second type is delaying without excuse.

The first category is to say words simultaneously. This does not matter, except in the case of the takbiratul-ihram (saying “Allahu Akbar” to start the prayer) and the Salam (at the end of the prayer)

With regard to the first takbir, if you say takbir before the imam has completed his takbiratul-ihram, you have not entered prayer in the first place, because it is essential to say the takbiratul-ihram after the imam has finished saying it completely.

In relation to the salam, the scholars said that it is makruh to say the first and second salam at the same time as your imam, but if you say the first salam after he has said the first salam and the second salam after he has said the second salam, there is nothing wrong with this, but it is better not to say the salam until the imam has said both.

With regard to all other words of the prayer, it does not matter if you say them simultaneously with the imam, or before him, or after him. If we assume that you hear the imam reciting the tashahhud, and you have already recited it, this does not matter, because anticipating the imam in the words of prayer, apart from the first takbir and the Salam, does not affect the prayer. Similarly it does not matter if you recite al-Fatihah before him and say “Wa laddaalleen” (nor of those who went astray) [al-Fatihah 1:7 ], whilst he is still reciting “Iyyaaka na’budu wa iyyaka nasta’een”(You (Alone) we worship, and You (Alone) we ask for help (for each and everything)) [al-Fatihah 1:7 ], in Zuhur prayer, for example, because it is prescribed in Zuhur and ‘Asar prayer for the imam to let the people hear the verse he is reciting sometimes, as the Messenger of Allah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam ) used to do.

The second category is to do the actions of prayer simultaneously with the imam, and this is makruh.

For example, when the imam says “Allaahu Akbar” for ruku’, and starts to bend forward, and you start to bow simultaneously with the imam, this is makruh, because the Messenger (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said, “When he bows, then bow, and do not bow until he bows.” And in sujud when he says takbir for sujud, if you prostrate and reach the floor at the same time as him, this is makruh, because the Messenger (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) disallowed that and said, “Do not prostrate until he prostrates.”

4. Following

Following the imam is the Sunnah; it means that a person shall start to do the actions of solat immediately after the imam commences them, but without doing them at the same time as the imam.

In principle the Imam must be followed as indicated by the hadith of Abu Hurayrah (radiallahu`anhu), who reported the Prophet s.a.w said:

The Imam is selected to be followed; do not differ with him. When he makes the takbir, make the takbir, when he goes into ruku‘, make ruku‘. When he says “Sami Allahu li man hamidah” (Allah hears he who praises Him), say “Rabbana lakal Hamd” (O our Lord! To You belongs the Praise). When he goes into sajdah, make sajdah. If he prays sitting, then all should be sitting.

[Sahih Al-Bukhari, No. 68]

When he ruku', you should ruku', even if you have not completed the recitation that is mustahab [recommended, encouraged], and even if you have a verse still to go, because that would mean that you are lagging behind, so you do not complete it. In sujud, when the imam rises from his sujud, you follow the imam, and your following him is better than your remaining in sujud making dua’ to Allah, because your solat is attached to the imam, and you are now enjoined to follow your imam.

[Adapted from al-Sharh al-Mumti’, 4/275]

The person who is praying behind an imam should not move to the next posture of the solat until the imam has reached it, so he should not start to go down for prostration, until the imam has placed his forehead on the ground.

Al-Bara’ ibn ‘Azib (radiallahu’anhu) reported, who said: "When the Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said, ‘Sami’a Allaahu liman hamidah’, none of us would then bend our backs [to begin sujud] until the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) went down into prostration, then we would go down into prostration after him"

[Narrated by al-Bukhari, 690; Muslim, 474]

And Allah Almighty Knows Best

[Excerpted with modification from Fatwa No: 33790 Islam Q&A]

The right person to lead the Solah

Who has the most right to lead the prayers?

Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid


In my community there are a few who regarded that they are the "most noble and learned", always assume the imam position in prayer and never request that another brother to lead. In fact, one of them even said "there is no one here more qualified than myself." I am not sure the reason what make them feel they are the most qualified. Perhaps they are the oldest among the Jama’ah, living longer in the community or they are of a particular nationality or dress. There are some brothers who have  memorized much of the Qur'an but they never want to become imam because they do not want to be associated with the arrogant ones.

Is it permissible or even preferred for who are learned denied becoming the imam because of perhaps humility? Are these two situations (the assuming of becoming imam and the denying of it) two extremes that Allah may be displeased with? If so, what should the people in the Jama’ah do in this situation?


In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful,
All the praise and thanks is due to Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala. Peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

The most right to lead the others in prayer is: the one who has most knowledge of the Book of Allah and of the Fiqh of Solah.

Many sahih ahaadith have been narrated which explain to the Muslims who is most qualified and has the most right to lead the prayers. One of these ahaadith is that which was narrated from Abu Sa’id al-Khudri (radiallahu`anhu), who said that the Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said:

“If there are three people, let one of them lead the others in prayer, and the one who has the most right to lead them is the one who knows more Qur’an.”

[Narrated by Muslim, no. 1077]

The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said:

“The people should be led in prayer by the one who has most knowledge of the Qur’an and has been reciting it for longer. If they are equal in their knowledge and reading of the Qur’an, then they should be led by the one who made hijrah first. If they are equal with regard to hijrah, then they should be led by the one who is older…”

[Narrated by Muslim, 1079]

It is indicated by these ahaadith, the one who has the most right to lead the others in prayer is: the one who has most knowledge of the Book of Allah and of the Fiqh of Solah.

Those who knew more of the Book of Allah were appointed to lead the prayers at the time of the Sahabah, because they had learned the correct way of reciting the ayat and they had learned the knowledge contained therein and the deeds prescribed by the Qur’an. So they combined knowledge and action [they acted upon what they had learned], and did not stop at merely memorizing as is the case nowadays. How many people learn all or part of the Qur’an, take care to recite it properly and with a beautiful voice, but they do not know anything about the Fiqh of Solah.

If they are equal with regard to knowledge of the Qur’an, then the one who knows more about the Sunnah should lead the prayer. If they are equal with regard to knowledge of the Sunnah, then the one who made hijrah first should lead the prayer. If they are equal with regard to hijrah, or if this does not apply, then the one who is older should lead the prayer.

In the hadith of Malik ibn al-Huwayrith (Radiallahu’anhu), who said:

We came to the Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam), and we were young people, close in age. We stayed with him for twenty days, and the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) was kind to us. When he (s.a.w) thought that we were missing our families, he (s.a.w) asked us about those whom we had left behind, and we told him. He (s.a.w) said,

“Go back to your families and stay with them. Teach them and instruct them” – and he said some things I remembered and some that I forgot. “And pray as you have seen me praying. When the time for prayer comes, let one of you call the Adzan and let the oldest among you lead the prayer.”

[Narrated by al-Bukhari, no. 6705]

If they are equal with regard to recitation of the Qur’an, knowledge and hijrah, the Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) commanded that the eldest of them should be appointed to lead the prayer. If they are equal in age, then the one who is most righteous (has most taqwa) should be appointed, because Allah says:

“Verily, the most honorable of you with Allah is that (believer) who has al-Taqwa (is one of the pious)…”
[Al-Hujurat, 49:13]

If they are equal in all regards, then they should have an election, if there is a dispute.

Having a PhD or having lived the longest in the land of the kuffar does not qualify a person to lead the prayers. The one who has memorized more Qur’an and has more knowledge of the Fiqh of Solah is the one who should be appointed. It is not right for Muslims to dispute over the leadership of the prayers on the basis of their personal whims and desires. They should appoint the person who is described by shari’ah as being qualified to lead the prayers. We ask Allah to reform the Muslims.

Allah Almighty Knows Best

[Excerpted with modification from Fatwa No: 1875 Islam Q&A ]

Who is the most entitled to lead the solāt ?

The one who most deserves to lead the solāt is the one who has most knowledge of the rulings on solāt and has memorized the most al-Qurān.

Ibn Salih

Could you tell me who has most right to lead solāt and could you back it up with the Qurān and hadiths as well?

In the Name of Allāh, Most Gracious, Most Merciful;

All praise and thanks are due to Allāh, May Allāh blessings and peace be upon His Messenger.

The one who most deserves to lead the solāt is the one who has most knowledge of the rulings on solāt and has memorized the most al-Qurān.

It was narrated that Abu Mas’ūd al-Ansari (radiallāhu`anhu) said: The Messenger of Allāh (sallallāhu 'alaihi wa sallam) said:

“The people should be led in solāt by the one, who has most knowledge of the Book of Allāh; if they are equal in knowledge of the Qurān, then by the one who has most knowledge of the Sunnah.”

[Narrated by Muslim, 1530]

What is meant by “the one who has most knowledge of the Qurān” is not the one who can recite it most beautifully, but rather the one who has memorized more of the Book of Allāh.

This is indicated by the hadith of ‘Amr Ibn Salamah (radiallāhu`anhu) who said:

“I used to memorize those words –the meaning the Qurān – and it was as if it took root in my heart. When Makkah was conquered, then every tribe hastened to embrace Islam, and my father urged our tribe to hasten to embrace Islam. When my father returned (from the Prophet) to his tribe, he said, ‘By Allah, I have come to you from the true Prophet, (sallallāhu 'alaihi wa sallam)!’ The Prophet (sallallāhu 'alaihi wa sallam) afterwards said to them, ‘Offer such-and-such a solāt at such-and-such a time, and when the time for the solāt becomes due, then one of you should pronounce the Azan (for the solāt), and let the one amongst you who knows most Qurān lead the solāt.’ So they looked for such a person and found none who knew more Qurān than I, because of what I used to learn from the people. So they made me their imam (to lead the solāt) and at that time I was a boy of six or seven years.”

[Narrated by Al-Bukhāri, 4051]

It is essential for the imam to know the rulings on solāt, because he may do something, such as breaking his wudhu’, or missing out a rak’ah, and not know what to do about it, in which case he would make a mistake and cause the solāt of others to be imperfect or invalid altogether.

Based on the hadith quoted above, some of the scholars said that the one who has more knowledge of Fiqh should lead the Solāt.

Al-Nawawi said: Malik, Al-Shafi’e and their companions said that the one who has more knowledge of Fiqh should take precedence over the one who knows more Qurān, because what he needs of recitation is known but what he needs of Fiqh may not be clear. There may arise during the solāt some matter where only a person who has complete knowledge of Fiqh will be able to know the right thing to do. They said that this is the reason why the Prophet (sallallāhu 'alaihi wa sallam), told Abu Bakar As-Siddiq (radiallāhu`anhu), to lead the solāt rather than anyone else, and even though he (sallallāhu 'alaihi wa sallam), had stated that others had more knowledge of Qurān than him. But some refuted this point by quoting the hadith that said that the Sahabah who had most knowledge of Qurān were also those who had most knowledge of Fiqh. But there is another hadith according to which the Prophet (sallallāhu 'alaihi wa sallam), said: “If they are equal in knowledge of Qurān, then the one who has most knowledge of the Sunnah),” which indicates that those who have most knowledge of Qurān should be given precedence in all cases.

[Sharh Muslim, 5/177]

Even though Al-Nawawi differed with his imam Al-Shāfi’e with regard to the interpretation of the hadith, their words illustrate the basic principle that there was no one among the Sahabah who had a good knowledge of the Qurān but was ignorant of the rulings of shari’ah, as is the case among many people nowadays.

Ibn Qudāmah said: If one of them has more knowledge of the rulings on solāt, and the other has more knowledge of matters other than solāt, then the one who has more knowledge about solāt should be given precedence.

[Al-Mughni, 2/19]

The Standing Committee of Scholars said: If this is understood, then it is not permissible for one who is ignorant to lead the solāt unless he is leading others like him, if there is no one who is better qualified to lead the solāt.

[Fatawa Islamiyyah, 1/264]

And Allāh Almighty knows best.

[Excerpted with modification from Fatwa No: 20219 Islam Q&A]

If the Imam forgets to Sujud in the Solah.

The Imam forgot to do a Sujud then he repeated the Rak’ah, but some of ma’mum didn’t follow it.

During ‘Isha’ prayer the imam led us in prayer, but he was not the official imam. In the last rak’ah he did not do the second prostration, and he said the salaam without anyone noticing it or reminding him. A few minutes later, one of the worshippers came and told him about that, so he got up straight away and said, “We will repeat the last rak’ah in order to do the prostration that was forgotten.”

Is this correct? What is the ruling on those who did not do the second prostration with them?

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

All the Praise is to Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala. Peace and Blessings be upon Prophet Muhammad His Messenger.

Firstly: Reminding the Imam during Solah

If the Imam forgets something during the Solah, then the Prophet s.a.w commanded the members of the congregation to remind him. He said: “I am only human like you, and I forget as you forget, so if I forget then remind me.”

[Narrated by Al-Bukhari, 401]

So the Prophet s.a.w commanded them, the Sahaabah to remind him.

On one occasion when he became hesitant in his recitation, he s.a.w said to Ubayy Ibn Ka`ab, “What stopped you?” i.e., what stopped you from correcting me? This indicates that correcting the imam is something that is essential.

Thus the congregation in the mosque should have said tasbeeh (“Subhaan Allaah”) so that the imam would notice and would do the second prostration.

Secondly: If one forgets pillars or essential parts of the Solah.

Both the first and second prostrations are pillars or essential parts of the prayer( Rukun of Solah), without which the prayer is not valid. Whoever deliberately omits one or both of them has sinned, and his prayer is invalid. Whoever forgets one or both of them has to do what he forgot when he remembers it, whether he is leading a congregation, following an imam or praying on his own. Whoever does not do that, his prayer is invalid.

Shaikh Ibn Salih Al-‘Uthaymeen r.h said:

The pillars or essential parts (of the prayer) are obligatory and more important than the wajib (obligatory parts of prayer), but they differ from then in that the pillars are not waived if one forgets them whereas the wajib are waived in that case and may be made up for by doing the Prostration Of Forgetfulness (Sujud Al-Sahwi), unlike the pillars. Hence whoever forgets a pillar, his prayer is not valid without it.

[Al-Sharh al-Mumti’, 3/315]

And Ibn Salih Al-‘Uthaymeen also said:

The evidence that the pillars cannot be made up for by the prostration of forgetfulness is the fact that when the Prophet s.a.w said the salam after praying two rak'ahs of Zuhur or ‘Asr, he completed it and did what he had omitted, and did the prostration of forgetfulness. This indicates that the pillars of prayer cannot be waived by doing the prostration of forgetfulness, and they must be done.

[Al-Sharh al-Mumti’, 3/323]

With regard to what your imam did by repeating the final rak’ah in full after being reminded, this is in accordance with one of the two scholarly opinions on this matter, which is that the one who omits a pillar or essential part of the final rak’ah and does not realize it until after saying the tasleem should do the rak’ah in full. This is the view of Imam Ahmad r.h.

[See al-Mughni, 1/658].

This view was favoured by Shaikh Ibn Baaz r.h, who was asked about an imam who forgets the final prostration in ‘Asr prayer. He stood up and offered a complete rak’ah, then he said the tashahhud and the tasleem, then he did the prostration of forgetfulness. He said: This is what is prescribed in Islam. If the imam forgot a prostration and said the tasleem, then he remembered it or it was pointed out to him, he should stand up and do a full rak’ah, then say the Salam, and then do the prostration of forgetfulness after saying the salaam. This is better. The same ruling applies to one who is praying alone. But if he does the prostration of forgetfulness before the salaam, there is nothing wrong with that, but doing it after the salaam is preferable.

[Majmoo’ Fataawa Ibn Baaz, 11/277]

The second view concerning this matter is that one or the imam does not have to do the rak'ah in full; rather he should do the pillar that he forgot and whatever comes after it [i.e sujud sahwi]. This is the view of Imam al-Shafi’e r.h.

[See al-Majmoo’, 4/33].

This view was favoured by Shaikh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen r.h

[See Sharh al-Mumti’, 3/374]

The point is that the prayer of the imam, and the prayer of those who completed the prayer with him, would only be valid.

But for those who did not complete the prayer and did not do the prostration that was omitted, their prayer is not valid, and they have to repeat it.

And Allah knows best.
___________________________
Based on Fatwa No: 47627 Islam Q&A

Correcting the Imam in Solah

Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid

I wander if, during Salah, the Imam mistakes or forgets what comes next in the middle of surah, can the ones behind him correct or help him out?

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

All the Praise is to Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala. Peace and Blessings be upon Prophet Muhammad His Messenger.

The case of correcting the imam is divided into two categories:

That which is obligatory, which is correcting the imam concerning something which would invalidate the Solat if done deliberately.

If he makes a grammatical mistake which changes the meaning of Al-Fatihah, then he must be corrected, because this type of mistake which changes the meaning of Al-Fatihah invalidates the prayer. Similarly, if he omits a verse of Al-Fatihah, he must be corrected, because that invalidates the prayer.

The kind of correction which is mustahabb (recommended) is when the imam makes a mistake which does not invalidate the solat altogether, but it does undermine the perfection of the prayer.

If the imam forgets to recite another surah after Al-Fatihah, alerting him to this fact is Sunnah.

The evidence for that are the words of the Prophet s.a.w:

“I am a human being like you, I forget as you forget. If I forget, then remind me.”

[Narrated by Al-Bukhari, Al-Salah, 401]

So he s.a.w commanded them to remind him. On one occasion when he became hesitant in his recitation, he said to Ubayy Ibn Ka`ab, “What stopped you?” i.e., what stopped you from correcting me? This indicates that correcting the imam is something that is essential.

[See Al-Sharh Al-Mumti’ by Ibn ‘Uthaymeen, part 3, p. 346-347]

Who is Most Entitled to Lead the Solat?

The one who most deserves to lead the solat is the one who has most knowledge of the rulings on prayer and has memorized the most Qur’an.


In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
All the praise and thanks is due to Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala. Peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

The one who most deserves to lead the solat is the one who has most knowledge of the rulings on prayer and has memorized the most Qur’an.

It was narrated that Abu Mas’ud al-Ansari said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:

“The people should be led in prayer by the one who has most knowledge of the Book of Allah; if they are equal in knowledge of the Qur’an, then by the one who has most knowledge of the Sunnah.”

[Narrated by Imam Muslim, 1530]

What is meant by “the one who has most knowledge of the Qur’an” is not the one who can recite it most beautifully, but rather the one who has memorized more of the Book of Allah. This is indicated by the hadith of ‘Amr Ibn Salamah who said:

“I used to memorize those words – meaning the Qur’an – and it was as if it took root in my heart. When Makkah was conquered, then every tribe hastened to embrace Islam, and my father urged our tribe to hasten to embrace Islam. When my father returned (from the Prophet) to his tribe, he said, ‘By Allah, I have come to you from the true Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him!’ The Prophet,( peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), afterwards said to them, ‘Offer such-and-such a prayer at such-and-such a time, and when the time for the prayer becomes due, then one of you should pronounce the Azan (for the prayer), and let the one amongst you who knows most Qur’an lead the prayer.’ So they looked for such a person and found none who knew more Qur'an than I, because of what I used to learn from the people. So they made me their imam (to lead the prayer) and at that time I was a boy of six or seven years.”

[Narrated by Al-Bukhari, 4051]

It is essential for the imam to know the rulings on prayer, because he may do something, such as not breaking his wudhu’, or missing out a rak’ah, and not know what to do about it, in which case he would make a mistake and cause the prayer of others to be imperfect or invalid altogether.

Based on the hadith quoted above, some of the scholars said that the one who has more knowledge of Fiqh should lead the prayers.

Al-Nawawi said:

Malik, Al-Shafi’e and their companions said that the one who has more knowledge of Fiqh should take precedence over the one who knows more Qur’an, because what he needs of recitation is known but what he needs of Fiqh may not be clear. There may arise during the prayer some matter where only a person who has complete knowledge of Fiqh will be able to know the right thing to do. They said that this is the reason why the Prophet,( peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), told Abu Bakar, may Allah be pleased with him, to lead the prayer rather than anyone else, and even though he, (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), had stated that others had more knowledge of Qur’an than him. But some refuted this point by quoting the hadith that said that the Sahabah who had most knowledge of Qur’an were also those who had most knowledge of Fiqh. But there is another hadith according to which the Prophet, (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), said: “If they are equal in knowledge of Qur’an, then the one who has most knowledge of the Sunnah),” which indicates that those who have most knowledge of Qur’an should be given precedence in all cases.

[Sharh Muslim, 5/177]

Even though Al-Nawawi differed with his imam Al-Shafi’e with regard to the interpretation of the hadith, their words illustrate the basic principle that there was no one among the Sahabah who had a good knowledge of the Qur’an but was ignorant of the rulings of shari’ah, as is the case among many people nowadays.

Ibn Qudamah said:

If one of them has more knowledge of the rulings on prayer, and the other has more knowledge of matters other than prayer, then the one who has more knowledge about prayer should be given precedence.

[Al-Mughni, 2/19]

If this is understood, then it is not permissible for one who is ignorant to lead the prayer unless he is leading others like him,and should there bes no one who is better qualified to lead the solat.

And Allah knows best.

[Via Islam QA]