Ruling on following the imam if he adds to the prayer
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His Eminence the Shaykh: If the imam stands up for an extra rak'ah, should the ma'mum follow him or sit down?
If the imam stands up for an extra rak'ah, it is obligatory for him to return as soon as he realizes that it is extra, even if he has recited al-Fatihah, or even if he has bowed. It is not permissible to continue with the extra. Some people have understood that if you stand up for the extra rak'ah, you do not return. They thought it was like leaving out the first tashahhud; if you stand up from the first tashahhud while forgetting, you continue and do not return to it. But regarding the addition, if you stand up for it while forgetting, it is obligatory for you to return as soon as you remember. If he is the imam, it is obligatory for the ma'mum to alert him, in accordance with what the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) commanded, saying: (If something happens to you in your prayer, let the men say Subhan Allah) meaning: Say Subhan Allah. If he returns, that is what is required. If he does not return, it is obligatory for the ma'mum to sit down as soon as he is certain that it is extra, then wait and say the taslim with the imam.
Someone might say: How do I wait for him when I believe his prayer is invalid because he added to it?We tell him: Your belief that his prayer is invalid is not correct, because the imam sometimes forgets to recite al-Fatihah in some rak'ahs, and then he comes to this rak'ah to complete his prayer. As long as this possibility is present, we say: Sit for the tashahhud and recite the tashahhud once, twice, or three times until the imam arrives, then pray with him.
If the imam stands up for an extra rak'ah, it is obligatory for him to return as soon as he realizes that it is extra, even if he has recited al-Fatihah, or even if he has bowed. It is not permissible to continue with the extra. Some people have understood that if you stand up for the extra rak'ah, you do not return. They thought it was like leaving out the first tashahhud; if you stand up from the first tashahhud while forgetting, you continue and do not return to it. But regarding the addition, if you stand up for it while forgetting, it is obligatory for you to return as soon as you remember. If he is the imam, it is obligatory for the ma'mum to alert him, in accordance with what the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) commanded, saying: (If something happens to you in your prayer, let the men say Subhan Allah) meaning: Say Subhan Allah. If he returns, that is what is required. If he does not return, it is obligatory for the ma'mum to sit down as soon as he is certain that it is extra, then wait and say the taslim with the imam.
Someone might say: How do I wait for him when I believe his prayer is invalid because he added to it?We tell him: Your belief that his prayer is invalid is not correct, because the imam sometimes forgets to recite al-Fatihah in some rak'ahs, and then he comes to this rak'ah to complete his prayer. As long as this possibility is present, we say: Sit for the tashahhud and recite the tashahhud once, twice, or three times until the imam arrives, then pray with him.