The ruling on people praying in congregation in the mosque before the prayer is established with the imam
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
His Eminence the Shaykh: In some mosques, the imam is late—usually it is a quarter of an hour after the adhan until the iqamah—so some hurried people come and pray in congregation by themselves in the same mosque. What is the ruling on their prayer?
It is not permissible for these people to pray in the mosque before their imam. If they do so, they are sinful.And some of the scholars say: Their prayer is not valid, and the opinion that it is forbidden is clear and strong. Because if we opened the door, every two people would come and pray, and the imam would be left with only the mu'adhdhin. This is forbidden and not permissible. However, I hesitate regarding the claim that their prayer is invalid. But if they repeat it, that is better.
But they might say: We are travelers, and if we sit waiting for the imam, it hinders us from traveling.We say: Praise be to Allah! Since you are travelers and you see that you are excused from missing the congregation, go and pray in the open field.
It is not permissible for these people to pray in the mosque before their imam. If they do so, they are sinful.And some of the scholars say: Their prayer is not valid, and the opinion that it is forbidden is clear and strong. Because if we opened the door, every two people would come and pray, and the imam would be left with only the mu'adhdhin. This is forbidden and not permissible. However, I hesitate regarding the claim that their prayer is invalid. But if they repeat it, that is better.
But they might say: We are travelers, and if we sit waiting for the imam, it hinders us from traveling.We say: Praise be to Allah! Since you are travelers and you see that you are excused from missing the congregation, go and pray in the open field.