Is it permissible for me to pray the voluntary prayer before the obligatory prayer at home, and then wait until the iqamah is called, and then go and pray, knowing that the mosque is in front of my house?

The questioner : Is it permissible for me to pray the voluntary prayer before the obligatory prayer at home, and then wait until the iqamah is called, and then go and pray? Knowing that the mosque is in front of our house.

The Shaykh : Yes. It is better for a person to pray all voluntary prayers in his home, based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): So he should pray the rawatib in his home, and then once he has prayed them, it is better for him to proceed to the mosque for two reasons. The first reason is the virtue of proceeding, and the second reason is the virtue of the first row, the first one. And because if he does that, meaning he purifies himself in his home and then goes out to the mosque intending nothing but prayer, he will not take a step except that Allah will raise him a degree for it and remove from him a sin for it. So when he enters the mosque and prays and sits waiting for the prayer, he remains in prayer as long as he is waiting for the prayer, and the angels continue to pray for him, saying: O Allah, pray upon him, O Allah, forgive him, O Allah, have mercy on him. So it is better for him, when he finishes the rawatib, to go out to the mosque and pray the greeting of the mosque when he arrives, and sit waiting for the prayer, either by reciting, or by glorifying Allah, or by adding more voluntary prayers, than for him to remain in his home until the iqamah is called.

The questioner : May Allah reward you, O Shaykh. In his final questions, he says.