Praying in the second row before the first row is completed
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
And teacher, what is the ruling on one who prays in the second row while the first row is not full, for example, if he joined late or something like that?
Answer:
There is no harm; his prayer is valid, but he has left what is best. Leaving what is best is completing the first row; otherwise, his prayer is valid. And when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) saw Abu Bakrah make the takbir behind the row, then bow, then creep forward and enter the row, he did not order him to repeat the prayer. Yes.
And teacher, what is the ruling on one who prays in the second row while the first row is not full, for example, if he joined late or something like that?
Answer:
There is no harm; his prayer is valid, but he has left what is best. Leaving what is best is completing the first row; otherwise, his prayer is valid. And when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) saw Abu Bakrah make the takbir behind the row, then bow, then creep forward and enter the row, he did not order him to repeat the prayer. Yes.
Source
شرح بلوغ المرام من أدلة الأحكام [ صالح الفوزان ]، بداية من باب الوضوء — islamhouse.com (52:41)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.