On the matter of the congregation following the imam with Qur'ans during recitation and the precautions that arise from it.

The Shaykh : And there remains for us an issue we discussed before this session, which also relates to recitation. Some people, and they are few this year, praise be to Allah, take Qur'ans and follow the imam's recitation. They used to be many, but praise be to Allah, they are now few, and their practice will cease, if Allah wills, soon. These who follow the imam, there is no doubt they intend good, but not everyone who intends a thing achieves it. And the poet said: "Not everything a person hopes for does he attain". Well, I say they intend to follow the imam so that it is more present in their hearts, but in this matter they miss things from the Sunnah and fall into things that are prohibited. What do they miss from the Sunnah? First, they miss looking at the place of prostration, because they will look at what? At their Qur'ans. Second, they miss placing the right hand over the left on the chest, because they will be holding the Qur'an with their hands. Third, they miss complete listening and following in reality, because if they follow the imam with their hearts, it is more humble than if they follow him with their eyes. A person among them may be stopped by a verse, and perhaps his vision is weak, not very weak, and the letters in the Qur'an are small, so you find him saying like this, then he compares, he compares many times to verify the correctness of the word. The imam recites a verse or two, and this person looks at this letter: is it as the imam recited, or did he not recite it? This undoubtedly causes humility to be lost and necessitates much movement without need. And what movement? Opening the Qur'an, closing it, turning the pages, and the movement of the eye from letter to letter, from word to word, from line to line, and from the top of the page to the bottom. Fourth, some scholars say that if the imam recites from the Qur'an, his prayer is invalid. Why? They say because this necessitates much movement of the eye. Is it a little or a lot? A lot. How much does your eye move when you are following a page? A very great deal. And even if this opinion is not correct and not agreed upon, as long as it has been said, it necessitates that a person be cautious to avoid this thing. Yes, if the imam is weak in memorization and asks one of the ma'mums to stand behind him and follow him in recitation in order to correct his mistake, this is permissible due to the need for it, on the condition that the phone is not brought to the imam. If the imam holds it and corrects him, there is no harm. But as for speaking to correct him, and here, does the imam hear him? This is a mistake?

The questioner : Learn the recitation, O Shaykh.

The Shaykh : No, they raise their hands. Well, now we return to our previous lesson from last night to remember it. What was the topic of last night's lesson?

The questioner : Upon whom is it obligatory?

The Shaykh : Upon whom is it obligatory?

The questioner : Upon whom, meaning, to whom do you give it?

The Shaykh : No, that was in the Fajr lesson. Yes, rest.

The questioner : We discussed Surat Qaf.

The Shaykh : The previous lesson, you pointed with the left hand. Sit down.

The questioner : The interpretation of Surat Qaf.

The Shaykh : But it was a discussion on the things that break the fast. You forgot it.