Discussion of the hadith: (And if he prays sitting, then you should pray sitting), and the issue of standing for the one who arrives.

The Shaykh : .
The point of this hadith is that it is the custom of nations for some to take from others, and for some to imitate others. The weak only take from the strong, and the weak only imitate the strong, as is our reality today in full. Despite our religion and our Islam, because of our distance from our Islam, we have become a weak nation that imitates the strong in material matters. If only they were strong in religion, in creed, and in character! We have come to imitate them because we look at them with reverence, respect, and magnification. This is the custom of nations: the weak with the strong, and the lowly with the great.
Therefore, among the objectives and principles that Islam came with is the prohibition for Muslims to imitate the disbelievers. This is because imitation is a cause for the loss of the nation's identity and for its blurring into the identity of another nation. Thus, the hadiths from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) have come one after another in various and diverse expressions, all leading to one reality: namely, preserve your Muslim identity and do not imitate the disbelievers in any of their traditions or customs... Delving into some detail on this, as it is one of those principles I alluded to earlier; I had spoken with some detail about it in my book "The Covering of the Muslim Woman in the Book and the Sunnah."
I intended, or resolved, to speak on one of the details that have become widespread today in the gatherings of Muslims. Based on the word of the brother mentioned earlier, that when the shaykh enters the gathering, the people sitting may remain sitting or they may stand. We say: if the shaykh enters a gathering, no one has the right to stand for him. Because this shaykh, however high and elevated he may be, will not be anything of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). We have known from the authentic Sunnah that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is the master of mankind, and that his Companions (peace and blessings be upon him) are the best of mankind after the prophets and messengers. Therefore, they are the people who know best what the greatest of people and the master of people, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), deserves in terms of reverence, honor, and magnification. How could it be otherwise? They heard him (peace and blessings be upon him) say to them repeatedly and often: . This is a hadith narrated by the Imam of Imams, Muhammad ibn Isma'il al-Bukhari, in his book "Al-Adab al-Mufrad" through many routes and from a group of the Companions. And among what he also narrated is: .
Therefore, these Companions who were trained in the etiquette of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and who graduated from his school, and who accompanied him for as many years as Allah (Mighty and Majestic) willed, each according to his capacity; it was not possible for them not to magnify the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) with the magnification he deserves. It was not possible for them except to magnify the Messenger (peace be upon him) with the magnification he deserves. Was it the case that when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) entered a gathering like this—and without comparison, as they say—did any of them stand for him?
If we return to the authentic Sunnah, we find the answer clearly in the negative. This is also from what the Imam of Imams narrated in the previously mentioned book, "Al-Adab al-Mufrad": from Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: "No one was more beloved to them than the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and they did not stand for him, because of what they knew of his dislike of that."
Therefore, the Companions of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) did not stand for their master; rather, the master of all people. Do you think this was negligence on their part and indifference to magnifying the Messenger (peace be upon him) and honoring him with the honor that is fitting and permissible by the Shari'ah? Or was it their response to their Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), who made them understand that this standing is from the custom of the non-Arabs, and they were prohibited—as we indicated at the beginning of this speech—in many hadiths from imitating the non-Arabs, meaning the disbelievers?
There is no doubt that their not standing for the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) was out of their respect for him and their magnification of him. Because Allah (Mighty and Majestic) says: . Following the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) with true following requires that a person turn away from his desires and his emotions regarding the command of his Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his Sunnah. Therefore, the Companions of the Messenger (peace be upon him) did not stand for him. Why? The answer is in the hadith itself: "Because of what they knew of his dislike of that."
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) disliked it when his Companions stood for him. Do you know why? Some people, from those who are accustomed to opposing this Sunnah, from those who stand for others and for whom others stand, interpret this hadith with an interpretation other than its meaning. And yet, their interpretation returns to them and does not benefit them. They say: "Because of what they knew of his dislike of that"; meaning: the Messenger (peace be upon him) was humble. He was, without doubt, the most humble of people. So, out of his humility, he did not like the Companions to stand for him. We do not accept this cause. We accept that the Messenger (peace be upon him) was, without doubt, the most humble of people. But we do not accept, ever, that this is the cause. We will mention what the cause is. But we say to those who interpret it with this interpretation: What is the matter with you that you do not humble yourselves with the humility of the Messenger (peace be upon him)? Are you not more deserving of humility than the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him)? When the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said to the people: —and this is a statement that leads to another statement, as they say—. Do you know what the meaning is? It means: Pray for me so that Allah will increase me in honor, glory, elevation, and rank. This may contradict humility. But we say that when he commands the people to pray for him, he is commanding them by the command of Allah for him to command them to pray for him. Because that is the least that the Messenger (peace be upon him) deserves, because he was a guidance for the people, as He (the Exalted) said in the Qur'an: .
If the Messenger (peace be upon him) did not humble himself in this manner, there is no harm in that for him, but the harm is entirely upon you; for it is feared that you will fall into fitnah (trial, discord or temptation). It is feared that if you begin to act in this way toward people, they will stand up for you, and Satan will enter. Satan flows through the son of Adam as blood flows. Satan will enter you in a specific way, changing your morals, habits, and dispositions. It will become such that if one of you enters a gathering and no one stands up, it is as if he has disbelieved in Allah and His Messenger! What has this person done? The least that can be said, as you heard from our story just now, is that he has the option to stand and the option not to stand. So, he did not stand. Why did the world turn upside down for him? Because they understood that standing is a sign of respect, and leaving it off is a sign of insult and lack of honor. Did the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) do this with the Messenger (peace be upon him)? Did they not honor him? Did they insult him by not standing? Never, by no means! But when the correct understanding of this hadith—that the Messenger (peace be upon him) disliked it, "for they knew of his dislike of it"—was distorted, the matter was distorted for them. They said: "There is no harm in standing as a sign of honor." Why did the Companions of the Messenger not stand for the Messenger? Out of humility on his part, they say! We say: Imitate the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and follow his example. Be humble as he was humble. Do not ask your companions to stand for you. Rather, spread among them that you dislike this standing. What will be the result and the outcome? It will be as it was between the Messenger (peace be upon him) and the Companions. The Messenger would enter a gathering and no one would stand. Was it an insult to him? Never. Why? It was an honor to him (peace be upon him), because he disliked it from them. If we, who claim to belong to knowledge and to the status of shaykhs, had followed the path of the Messenger (peace be upon him) in everything, including disliking what he (peace be upon him) disliked, especially these social etiquettes that corrupt hearts and morals, we would be in a society not like this society. We would be in a society free from the traditions of the non-Arab disbelievers.
As for the correct answer to the previously mentioned statement of Anas ibn Malik: "for they knew of his dislike of it," it is a shari'ah-based dislike. The Messenger dislikes this standing; why? Because it is the custom of the non-Arab disbelievers. And you heard just now the hadith of Jabir, where they stood behind the Messenger (peace be upon him) while he was standing. For whom? And why? To implement the text of the Noble Qur'an: .
So, they did not stand for Muhammad (peace be upon him), who was sitting in his prayer out of necessity, but they stood for Allah, Lord of the worlds. That is, their intention was to magnify Allah (Mighty and Majestic) and nothing else. What did the Messenger (peace be upon him) do with them? He did not wait until he finished his prayer, but he hastened to enjoin good and forbid evil. He gestured to them with his hand during the prayer to sit down. After the prayer, he explained it to them with his tongue and his eloquence; he said: .
There is a great difference, as it appears to anyone who hears this hadith, between the kings of Persia, where Kisra sits on his grand, decorated throne, surrounded by his court and ministers standing, while he sits in magnification, and they stand in magnification of him. Where is this phenomenon compared to the Messenger (peace be upon him) sitting in prayer, and not outside of prayer, and out of necessity, not by choice, and the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) also standing in prayer, and not in a gathering, also out of necessity, obeying the Lord of the worlds, standing for Allah in submission? Where is this phenomenon compared to that? The difference between them is vast. Yet he (peace and blessings be upon him) said to them: "You are a few 'Lukhur' (a dialectal term implying a specific group or manner) who will do what the non-Arab disbelievers do with their kings; they stand on the heads of their kings." O Messenger of Allah, they stand in magnification of their king, almost as worship, but they understand that there are matters forbidden in themselves, and other matters forbidden for other reasons, because they lead to something forbidden. Among these is the adoption by Muslims of the customs of foreigners and the customs of the non-Arab disbelievers.
Among these customs is this standing, which the masses of Muslims today have been afflicted with. And you all know the reason, which is moving away from the Sunnah and not following the guidance of the righteous Salaf (the earliest generations). This is a long discussion, and I also want to continue in it so that we may clear the space for our honorable guest to deliver whatever Allah (Mighty and Majestic) wills for him to deliver to you of benefits.