Is congregational prayer obligatory or a recommended practice, and if a man prays in congregation with his colleagues at work, does that absolve them of the sin?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner:
The author of this letter asks: What is the ruling on a man praying in congregation? Is it obligatory or a recommended practice? And if a man prays in congregation with his colleagues at work, does that absolve them of the sin if they sinned by leaving the congregation, or must they go to the mosque? May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh:
Congregational prayer is obligatory for men as an individual obligation; based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)Sahih Ibn Hibban 10:352
The statement of Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him): "I have seen us, and none of us would lag behind it—meaning congregational prayer—except a known hypocrite, and a man would be brought in, supported between two men, until he was placed in the row." And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said in the hadith:Sunan Ibn Majah 797Sahih (Darussalam) He described them as hypocrites for lagging behind the 'Isha' prayer and the Fajr prayer. And he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) intended to burn down the houses of those who lagged behind congregational prayer in their homes; he intended to burn their houses with fire. This is a severe punishment indicating that they committed a forbidden act and left an obligatory one. As for your prayer at work, if the mosque is near you and you hear the adhan, it is obligatory for you to pray in the mosque, based on his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): Sahih Ibn Hibban 10:352 A blind man came to him to excuse himself, asking him to allow him to pray in his home due to the hardship between him and the mosque, as he was blind. So he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sunan an-Nasa'i 850Sahih (Darussalam) All of these are clear proofs of the obligation of congregational prayer, and that it is obligatory in the mosque for whoever hears the call. Yes.
The presenter:
May Allah reward you with good, and may Allah reward you.
The questioner:
Her question, Shaykh Salih, is: If they pray at work, is the sin absolved from them or not?
The Shaykh:
If they hear the adhan and the mosque is near them, is the sin not absolved from them?
The presenter:
We seek help from Allah.
The Shaykh:
Because it is obligatory for them to respond and go to the mosque. Yes.
The presenter:
It is known, Shaykh Salih, that the mu'adhdhin is now heard from great distances due to loudspeakers that reach several kilometers.
The Shaykh:
The intended meaning of hearing the adhan that obligates attendance is the unamplified voice. As for via a loudspeaker, it is heard from far away, so the distant person is not obligated to attend even if he hears the loudspeaker, for without this loudspeaker he would not have heard it. But in any case,
The presenter:
Yes, yes.
The Shaykh:
however much hardship he endures and he attends, he is on a great reward. Yes.
The presenter:
We seek help from Allah, we seek help from Allah. May Allah reward you with good and do you good.
The author of this letter asks: What is the ruling on a man praying in congregation? Is it obligatory or a recommended practice? And if a man prays in congregation with his colleagues at work, does that absolve them of the sin if they sinned by leaving the congregation, or must they go to the mosque? May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh:
Congregational prayer is obligatory for men as an individual obligation; based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)
(peace and blessings be upon him): "Whoever hears the call and does not respond, he has no prayer except one with an excuse."
صلى الله عليه وسلم من سمع النداء فلم يجب فلا صلاة له إلا من عذر.The statement of Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him): "I have seen us, and none of us would lag behind it—meaning congregational prayer—except a known hypocrite, and a man would be brought in, supported between two men, until he was placed in the row." And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said in the hadith:
The most burdensome prayers for the hypocrites are the 'Isha' prayer and the Fajr prayer. If only they knew what (reward) there is in them, they would
الصحيح أثقل الصلوات على المنافقين صلاة العشاء وصلاة الفجر، ولو يعلمون ما فيهما لأتوا"even if they had to crawl,"
ولو حبوا،"I intended to order the prayer to be established, then order a man to lead the people, then I would go to men who do not attend the prayer, and burn their houses with fire,"
لقد هممت أن آمر بالصلاة فتقام، ثم آمر رجلا يؤم الناس، ثم أخالف إلى رجال، ثم أخالف إلى رجال لا يشهدون الصلاة، فأحرق عليهم بيوتهم بالنار،"Whoever hears the call and does not respond, he has no prayer except"
من سمع النداء فلم يجب فلا صلاة له إلا"one with an excuse,"
من عذر،Can you hear the call to prayer?' He said: 'Yes.' He said: 'Then respond to it
أتسمع النداء؟ قال نعم، قال فأجبThe presenter:
May Allah reward you with good, and may Allah reward you.
The questioner:
Her question, Shaykh Salih, is: If they pray at work, is the sin absolved from them or not?
The Shaykh:
If they hear the adhan and the mosque is near them, is the sin not absolved from them?
The presenter:
We seek help from Allah.
The Shaykh:
Because it is obligatory for them to respond and go to the mosque. Yes.
The presenter:
It is known, Shaykh Salih, that the mu'adhdhin is now heard from great distances due to loudspeakers that reach several kilometers.
The Shaykh:
The intended meaning of hearing the adhan that obligates attendance is the unamplified voice. As for via a loudspeaker, it is heard from far away, so the distant person is not obligated to attend even if he hears the loudspeaker, for without this loudspeaker he would not have heard it. But in any case,
The presenter:
Yes, yes.
The Shaykh:
however much hardship he endures and he attends, he is on a great reward. Yes.
The presenter:
We seek help from Allah, we seek help from Allah. May Allah reward you with good and do you good.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، هل صلاة الجماعة فرض أم سنة، وإذا صلى الرجل جماعة مع زملائه في العمل هل يسقط ذلك عندهم؟ صالح الفوزان — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.