Is it permissible to pray behind an imam who is an innovator and has fallen into major shirk?

The questioner : Is it permissible to pray behind an innovator, an imam who is a mushrik and prostrates to graves, and this is one of the superstitions... The ma'mum prays, he is a monotheist, he prays behind this imam, and he says that the Messenger is not [the only one to be called upon], and that it is permissible to call upon the awliya (close friends of Allah) at the graves. This imam is well-known; I mean, is it permissible to pray behind these imams in the mosque or not?

The Shaykh : I will tell you.

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : I think this is not working, is it working?

Another questioner : Yes.

The Shaykh : Any man whom you believe to be a disbeliever, it is very obvious that the prayer of a Muslim behind him is not valid. So, the one you say is a mushrik, and you say he calls upon other than Allah, and worships other than Allah, and so on; he is undoubtedly falling into shirk. But can we declare him a disbeliever? Can we expel him from the religion? Perhaps you know that the mere occurrence of a person falling into disbelief and major shirk does not necessitate that he be ruled as an apostate. There is no necessary connection except after establishing the proof. I think this is clear; it is necessary to establish the proof. For example, when the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) delivered a sermon one day, a man from the Companions stood up and said to him: "What Allah willed and what you willed, O Messenger of Allah." He said: ; so at the time he said to him (peace and blessings be upon him): , he did not say, "Go, renew your Islam and renew your contract with your wife," he did not say anything of that sort. Why? Because he did not know that the statement of the one who says, "What Allah willed and what Muhammad willed," is shirk. He did not know before, so he is excused. But he fell into shirk. A person falling into shirk is one thing, and ruling that he is a mushrik is another thing. This is a point that many of our brother scholars do not distinguish between. Therefore, I say: If you have met this imam and established the proof upon him from the Book of Allah and the hadith of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and the sayings of the imams of the Muslims that what you are upon is major shirk, and then he turned away from you and distanced himself; do not pray behind him. Is that clear?

The questioner : Is that clear?