The ruling on some of the congregation lagging behind the imam and the imam bowing before they have finished al-Fatihah after the first tashahhud
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Your Eminence! Some of the congregation lag behind the imam. Is the imam sinful if he bows before they have finished al-Fatihah after the first tashahhud? That is, if there is a person and the imam bows before the follower has finished al-Fatihah because he was late in joining the imam.
I say, may Allah bless you: The imam must adhere to the Sunnah in his leading of the prayer. If he adheres to the Sunnah, then whoever makes a mistake bears it himself. However, he should not deviate from the Sunnah in order to please people, as some imams do, who lighten the prayer in a way that contradicts the Sunnah to satisfy people or some of them. Then it becomes pleasing to their own souls, that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said: (When one of you leads the people, he should lighten the prayer) and what is meant by lightening here is what was in the manner of the Prophet’s (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) prayer,Therefore, Anas ibn Malik said: [I have never prayed behind an imam whose prayer was lighter or more complete than the prayer of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family)] and he should take the followers into consideration,For example: if it is after the first tashahhud, the recitation is silent. He should recite al-Fatihah verse by verse, just as he did when reciting aloud. Some imams are certain that after the first tashahhud, he recites al-Fatihah faster than he did when reciting aloud. What I see is that he should recite it in a measured manner, verse by verse,First: that this is the Sunnah,And the second: so that those behind him are able to recite al-Fatihah.
So this person who lags behind should look at whether he is lagging behind for an excuse, such as a man for whom standing is difficult,So here we say: if he stands, he recites al-Fatihah and completes it, even if it is just one rak'ah. In fact, even if he bows and rises, he completes al-Fatihah, then bows, then rises, and follows the imam. But if he lags behind the imam out of laziness, then he is sinful because of his laziness.
I say, may Allah bless you: The imam must adhere to the Sunnah in his leading of the prayer. If he adheres to the Sunnah, then whoever makes a mistake bears it himself. However, he should not deviate from the Sunnah in order to please people, as some imams do, who lighten the prayer in a way that contradicts the Sunnah to satisfy people or some of them. Then it becomes pleasing to their own souls, that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said: (When one of you leads the people, he should lighten the prayer) and what is meant by lightening here is what was in the manner of the Prophet’s (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) prayer,Therefore, Anas ibn Malik said: [I have never prayed behind an imam whose prayer was lighter or more complete than the prayer of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family)] and he should take the followers into consideration,For example: if it is after the first tashahhud, the recitation is silent. He should recite al-Fatihah verse by verse, just as he did when reciting aloud. Some imams are certain that after the first tashahhud, he recites al-Fatihah faster than he did when reciting aloud. What I see is that he should recite it in a measured manner, verse by verse,First: that this is the Sunnah,And the second: so that those behind him are able to recite al-Fatihah.
So this person who lags behind should look at whether he is lagging behind for an excuse, such as a man for whom standing is difficult,So here we say: if he stands, he recites al-Fatihah and completes it, even if it is just one rak'ah. In fact, even if he bows and rises, he completes al-Fatihah, then bows, then rises, and follows the imam. But if he lags behind the imam out of laziness, then he is sinful because of his laziness.