Warning Against a Deviation That Most People Fall Into, Which Is Anticipating the Imam in Saying "Ameen"

The Shaykh : My host has given me permission to offer a word of reminder and advice, for religion is advice.
The student : Please, Shaykh.

The Shaykh : Among the most important matters that it is obligatory for students of knowledge and callers to Islam to truly focus on is reminding people and teaching them. These are matters in which Muslims almost unanimously fall into violating the Shari'ah without realizing it. One of these issues is widespread, and there is hardly a mosque in the world that is free from it. I have traveled to many countries, perhaps dozens, and I have not found a country or a mosque among those I visited where this violation of the Prophetic command was not present in many matters. This is, of course, a very broad topic, but I only wish to mention one or two of them. The first is something you may have noticed: the imam hardly finishes saying "and not those who go astray" before you hear some of the followers anticipating him with "Ameen," and you hear others lagging slightly behind the imam. So we hear two voices: one is discordant and out of place, which is the one that anticipates the imam, and the other follows the imam, and this is what every worshiper must adhere to. This is based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): I do not say the whole world, but in every country I have traveled to, in every mosque I have prayed in, you find this anticipation of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). He stated the general rule: , then he detailed some specifics and said: . And praise be to Allah, to this day, no one says "Allahu Akbar" before the imam; rather, the imam says it before the follower. Likewise, "Ameen" should be said after the imam, as in the previous hadith: . The Wise Lawgiver has cared to this extent about ensuring the follower follows the imam, even though standing in obligatory prayer is obligatory. If a person is able to stand in obligatory prayer but prays sitting, his prayer is invalid. However, if the imam is unable to stand and prays sitting in order to realize the principle and rule, which is: , the Lawgiver tells you: sit down, do not oppose the imam by standing, even though if you stand, you would be fulfilling the word of Allah: . Nevertheless, the Lord of the Worlds, through the tongue of His noble Prophet, says: "And if he prays sitting, then you all sit." Based on this principle of ensuring following and avoiding anticipation, he said: , ; therefore, is on the same basis as . So when does the follower say "Allahu Akbar"? It is after the imam says it. It is not necessary that you finish "Allahu Akbar" exactly when he does, but the essential requirement is that you do not anticipate the imam. The imam says "A," and you say "A" after him. If he has not yet taken a breath and has not said "and not those who go astray," but the crowd behind him shouts "Ameen," this is a mistake that violates the rule: إنما جُعِلَ الإمام لِيُؤتَمَّ به ، فإذا كبَّرَ فكبِّروا ، وإذا قال : وَلَا الضَّالِّينَ آمين ؛ فقولوا حين ذاك : آمين The imam was made to be followed. So when he says the takbir, say the takbir. And when he says: “And not those who go astray, ameen,” then say at that moment: ameen.. This is a widespread violation, unfortunately, in every mosque. So I ask you to be careful and not be like the common people who, sometimes in their speech and even more so in their actions, tell you: "O people, follow the people." No, the correct thing is: "O people, follow the Master of the people," not "follow the people." Did they not have understanding? Follow the Master of the people (peace and blessings be upon him), who says: . Here is a great gain, and a very great one. As soon as you, O worshiper, restrain yourself and keep your mind present with your imam's recitation, and when you see him begin to say "Ameen," you say "Ameen" at that moment, you deserve, by this following, the agreement of the angels who are in the heavens and the angels who witness the prayer in the mosques, some coming down and some going up until the end. This is known in the authentic hadith: "Whoever's 'Ameen' coincides with the 'Ameen' of the angels, his past sins will be forgiven." O our brothers, if one of us lived the life of Noah (peace be upon him), who did not live a thousand years except fifty, but he dwelt among his people for a thousand years except fifty, yet he lived before that, before he was inspired and before he was sent to them, if we lived the life of Noah (peace be upon him) and only gained the forgiveness of Allah, the price would be cheap, the price would be little. Why? Because the forgiveness of Allah admits you into Paradise transitively, safely, without any waiting. So this matter is easy and lenient. If you restrain yourself and do not anticipate your imam with "Ameen" in this case, your "Ameen" will coincide with the "Ameen" of the angels, and Allah will forgive your sins, what Allah willed. So strive against your souls, keep your hearts present, respect your imams, and do not anticipate them in anything. And anticipation in anything, praise be to Allah, does not occur except in this issue. I know some people who perhaps bow before the imam or prostrate before the imam, but these people have no value, first due to their ignorance and second due to their small number, unlike our issue where every worshiper is in violation. Every worshiper, from the oldest to the youngest, from the student of knowledge to the ignorant, all of them anticipate the imam. So be careful, may Allah bless you. This is the first issue.