Distinguishing in the issue of following an imam between the imam who follows his own imam without the truth becoming clear to him, and the one who knows the Sunnah and deliberately opposes it.

The Shaykh : Here, we must distinguish between two cases, and with that, I conclude the answer to the previous issue. We should distinguish between an imam who prays according to the school-based knowledge he has received, and another imam to whom the Sunnah has become clear, yet he deliberately and intentionally opposes it. The entire previous discussion pertains to the first type of imams, who are the majority of people today.
As for the other type, those to whom it becomes clear that they are opposing the Sunnah after it has become clear to them, in that case, their opposition has no sanctity. We respect the imam he follows and emulates. However, if it becomes clear to us that the Sunnah has become clear to him, yet he opposes the Sunnah and opposes his own imam when the imam says, "If a hadith is authentic, it is my school," then there is no sanctity for such an imam. This is because he deliberately opposes the Sunnah. He is not, of course, a mujtahid, nor is he following a mujtahid in this, because the mujtahid told him, "If a hadith is authentic, it is my school."
Therefore, I want to remind you of these two points and the difference between them, because I observe that many of our brothers always ask about the second type, meaning the type that deliberately opposes the Sunnah. They ask, "Do we follow them as well?" When a question comes to me outside the scholarly council, I tell the questioner—and this happened today as well with one of our brothers—we prayed in a mosque whose imam was Hanafi. As you have understood from me repeatedly, I do not raise my hands behind such an imam. The person mentioned left with me and said, "So-and-so, if we pray behind an imam to whom the Sunnah has become clear and he opposes it, do we follow him?" I said to him, "Why do you ask about that imam and not about this imam? Why do you leave this imam whom you are praying behind? I see him praying there almost every day. Why don't you ask about him? Has the Sunnah reached him? Have you conveyed the Sunnah to him?" He said, "No." We said, "So why don't you ask about him? Do we follow him? Leave this one and hold onto a rare image, which is the imam to whom the Sunnah becomes clear, yet he opposes it and persists in opposing it."
Therefore, we should first understand the issue correctly from a scholarly perspective, and second, we must apply it correctly in practice. Most of the imams behind whom we pray do not know the Sunnah, do not know the school, and do not know that the imam of the school said, "If a hadith is authentic, it is my school."
The details we live with as Salafis are things from which they have been deprived of living in this scholarly atmosphere. Therefore, do not assume that every imam has been presented with the proof and the evidence has been established against him, and therefore we consider him an opponent. That is not the case. In fact, I say more than that, and with this I conclude the answer: it does not mean that anyone who can contact any of these imams has established the proof against him. Establishing the proof requires knowledge and requires a style of explanation and debate. It is not enough that one of us learns an issue or two and comes to argue with one of those imams; that does not mean the proof has been established against him! Allah knows best whether it was established against him or not.
In summary: the principle must be implemented generally, so there is no school-based following behind the role model. If a person becomes certain through clear explanation that a certain imam knew the Sunnah and then abandoned it, then we do not follow him. I personally do this. For example, a Shafi'i imam who does not raise his hands. Why? He says, "Out of consideration for the Hanafis." This is not said by either the Hanafis or the Shafi'is, but rather it is said by desire. Meanwhile, this Shafi'i imam recites the qunut in the Fajr prayer, and this is the school of Imam al-Shafi'i. So I personally recite the qunut with him in Fajr and raise my hands behind him, while he does not raise them, because he opposes his own school out of consideration for the people. So the issue requires knowledge and requires detail.

The questioner: About the topic.

The Shaykh : It is the same question, right? It is not just the same question?

The questioner : No, it is the same topic.

The Shaykh : The topic, but it is not... the answer, please go ahead.

The questioner : Regarding the hadith: The imam is defined with the definite article. Which imam? The lawful imam specified by the Lawgiver, the Wise, who described them as the most knowledgeable of them in the Book of Allah, the most knowledgeable of them in the Sunnah, and so on. We see today that many imams do not possess these qualities they were commanded to have. They are employees or ignorant, and behind them are people more deserving of leading the prayer. Does this mean the ruling of the issue changes in light of this current situation?

The Shaykh : It does not change, of course. You pray behind him, right?

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : Why are you praying behind him if he is not the imam?

The questioner : I mean.

The Shaykh; If he is not this imam, why are you praying behind him?

The questioner : There is no one else besides him.

The Shaykh : Yes, that is the answer. When you find someone better than him, leave him and go to him. When you find someone better than him, leave him and go to him!