The recommendation to complete the prayer for one who prayed behind the imam in a voluntary prayer
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If a person goes to a mosque for the congregational prayer and the second call has been made, and he has already prayed the obligatory prayer and catches two units with them, is he required to complete the prayer or is it sufficient for him to pray two units and conclude the prayer?
If there is no obstacle preventing completion, it is better to complete the prayer, based on the generality of the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): (Whatever you catch up with, pray, and whatever you miss, complete).
However, if one fears missing the purpose for which he came, such as one who came to pray over a funeral and caught up with the imam for two rak'ahs, he should say the taslim with the imam. This is because it is permissible to pray two rak'ahs as a voluntary prayer, and he only attended to pray over the funeral. Praying over the funeral is better for him than completing the prayer, because praying over the funeral is, first of all, a collective obligation. Thus, he would be participating with the other worshippers in this obligation, and the obligatory is better than the voluntary. Therefore, he says the taslim with the imam in order to catch up with the funeral prayer.
If a person goes to a mosque for the congregational prayer and the second call has been made, and he has already prayed the obligatory prayer and catches two units with them, is he required to complete the prayer or is it sufficient for him to pray two units and conclude the prayer?
If there is no obstacle preventing completion, it is better to complete the prayer, based on the generality of the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): (Whatever you catch up with, pray, and whatever you miss, complete).
However, if one fears missing the purpose for which he came, such as one who came to pray over a funeral and caught up with the imam for two rak'ahs, he should say the taslim with the imam. This is because it is permissible to pray two rak'ahs as a voluntary prayer, and he only attended to pray over the funeral. Praying over the funeral is better for him than completing the prayer, because praying over the funeral is, first of all, a collective obligation. Thus, he would be participating with the other worshippers in this obligation, and the obligatory is better than the voluntary. Therefore, he says the taslim with the imam in order to catch up with the funeral prayer.
