If a person comes to the Eid prayer ground and finds the imam delivering the sermon, having already performed the prayer
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The questioner : If a person comes to the Eid prayer ground and finds the imam in the middle of the sermon, having already performed the prayer, should he pray the two rak'ahs of Eid, or should he sit to listen to the sermon on the grounds that the prayer has been missed? Please rule on this for us, may Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : The answer is that if a person comes on the day of Eid and the imam is delivering the sermon, the prayer has ended, as is well known. However, he should not sit until he prays two rak'ahs as a greeting to the mosque. The scholars, and I mean the Hanbali jurists (may Allah have mercy on them), stated explicitly that the Eid prayer ground is a mosque, and its ruling is the same as that of mosques. This is indicated by the fact that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered menstruating women to stay away from it, which shows that its ruling is the same as that of mosques. Consequently, if a person enters it, he should not sit until he prays two rak'ahs as a greeting to the mosque.
As for making up the Eid prayer if it is missed, the scholars have differed on this. Some said that it is made up in its specific form, while others said that it is not made up. Those who say it is not made up argue that it is a prayer legislated for the purpose of congregation, so it is not made up if missed, just like the Friday prayer. However, for the Friday prayer, a person must pray the Dhuhr prayer in its place because it is an obligatory prayer of a specific time. As for the Eid prayer, it has no substitute. Therefore, if it is missed with the imam, it is not prescribed to make it up. This is the choice of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him), and in my view, it is closer to the truth than the opinion of making it up, and Allah knows best.
The Shaykh : The answer is that if a person comes on the day of Eid and the imam is delivering the sermon, the prayer has ended, as is well known. However, he should not sit until he prays two rak'ahs as a greeting to the mosque. The scholars, and I mean the Hanbali jurists (may Allah have mercy on them), stated explicitly that the Eid prayer ground is a mosque, and its ruling is the same as that of mosques. This is indicated by the fact that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered menstruating women to stay away from it, which shows that its ruling is the same as that of mosques. Consequently, if a person enters it, he should not sit until he prays two rak'ahs as a greeting to the mosque.
As for making up the Eid prayer if it is missed, the scholars have differed on this. Some said that it is made up in its specific form, while others said that it is not made up. Those who say it is not made up argue that it is a prayer legislated for the purpose of congregation, so it is not made up if missed, just like the Friday prayer. However, for the Friday prayer, a person must pray the Dhuhr prayer in its place because it is an obligatory prayer of a specific time. As for the Eid prayer, it has no substitute. Therefore, if it is missed with the imam, it is not prescribed to make it up. This is the choice of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him), and in my view, it is closer to the truth than the opinion of making it up, and Allah knows best.