The imam raised his head from prostration and said the takbir, but the ma'mum did not hear his takbir, so they remained in prostration until he said the taslim. How should the ma'mum proceed with the rest of their prayer?
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The questioner : A short time ago, we prayed Fajr in congregation in the mosque. In the second rak'ah, during the second prostration, the worshippers were in prostration, and we believed the imam was also in prostration. We did not hear the takbir for rising from his prostration, so we remained in prostration. However, he was standing and recited the final tashahhud, then said the taslim. We did not hear anything but his taslim while we were still in prostration.
The Shaykh : ... .
The questioner : All the worshippers, all of them without exception, the mosque is on the street... the cars... this is a reality.
Another questioner: The last rak'ah, in the last prostration.
The questioner : Of course, after the imam said the taslim, everyone exerted themselves according to their understanding of the religion. Some said the taslim with the imam and then performed the tashahhud, while others left off the final tashahhud.
The Shaykh : ... This one prayed with the imam.
The questioner : ... He said the taslim and left off the final tashahhud.
The Shaykh : Yes.
Another questioner: He rose from prostration and said the taslim?
The questioner : He rose from his prostration and said the taslim with the imam without reciting the final tashahhud, of course, out of ignorance...
The Shaykh : I strongly doubt this incident because it is an abnormal matter. The incident reminds me of an event that occurred during the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). I think it was supposed to happen to some of the worshippers, just as it happened to one of the worshippers behind the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). One day, he (peace and blessings be upon him) led them in the 'Asr prayer and prostrated in a prostration in the middle of the prayer, prolonging it. His prayer (peace and blessings be upon him), as we all know, was entirely long in standing, bowing, and prostration, etc. But in that prayer, one prostration was prolonged more than usual. However, this prolongation, as it happened to you, should have drawn the attention of the worshippers, if they were, meaning, with their prayer not... So he was lax in himself, thinking, "What is this imam doing? Why is he prolonging the prostration so much?" That Companion questioned it, saying that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) does prolong the prostration, but this prolongation is more than usual. So what did he do? He raised his head from prostration and looked this way toward the Messenger, fearing that the Messenger might have died from the length of the prostration. And there he saw a strange sight: he saw the Messenger in prostration, and on his back was al-Hasan or al-Husayn. After the prayer, yes, our friend, when he saw the sight, his heart was relieved that the Messenger was alive, especially when he imagined the prostration of the Messenger as the prostration of the strong and the heroes, not slouching, leaning on his hands, with his back straight like this. So he is alive, and especially, what about his grandson al-Hasan or al-Husayn on his back? He was not concerned... until his prostration. I imagine that one of you must have had this level of attention, questioning, "What is our imam doing? He prolonged this prostration." You say no one noticed. As a benefit, completing the benefit: after the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) finished this entire prayer and said the taslim, they said to him, "O Messenger of Allah, you prostrated in the middle of your prayer a prostration that you prolonged." They were all attentive, not just one person. One person dared to do so because he raised his head from prostration before the imam raised his head, which involves some deviation from the principle. But this person seems to be one of those with unbridled emotions; he could not control his nerves because he was not reassured about his Prophet. He raised his head, and when he was reassured, he returned to his prostration. As for the others, they were patient. When the Messenger said the taslim, they said to him, "O Messenger of Allah, you prostrated a prostration in the middle of your prayer that you prolonged." And that is it, as if they were saying, "What was the reason, O Messenger of Allah?" Our friend who raised his head and returned to his prostration no longer needed to ask because he knew the reason; he saw it with his own eyes. As for the majority, "You prolonged it, so for what purpose?" He (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Mishkat al-Masabih 3378 Look at the expression of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) meaning he took me as a mount, meaning a camel he rode I did not like to disturb his comfort and his intention and take him down from prostration. No, I remained in prostration until what? Until he was full and satisfied with the bowing and he descended. So I am surprised that not one of you in the mosque did what that Companion did, raising his head to see what his story was, whether our imam had died, may Allah forbid, and...
The questioner : ... .
The Shaykh : They all were patient with that prostration, and we are not accustomed to prostrating for a long time. But those people were accustomed to it with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). We see problems in the evening, "My brother... it was long for us," "My brother, it was not long for you, it was for the Messenger of Allah." And among us are those with an excuse, the old man, and the one with urinary incontinence. My brother, all of this has its ruling. So even though those people were accustomed to long prostrations, this friend raised his head to see what the matter was because it was an unusual, abnormal prostration. As for you, may Allah protect you, the entire tashahhud and the salutation upon the Messenger, and you were in prostration, in prostration, why... In any case, I am surprised by the incident based on what happened. I will say: the imam said the taslim. It was not befitting for the congregation that they should say the taslim. They should have performed the obligatory act: sit for the tashahhud, recite the tashahhud, send blessings upon the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and supplicate with the four seekings of refuge: "O Allah, I seek refuge in You from the punishment of the Hellfire, from the punishment of the grave, from the trial of life and death, and from the evil of the trial of the Dajjal." Then each one says the taslim for himself. Whoever did this has hit the mark, and whoever did not has erred, but his prayer is valid because he did not neglect a pillar; rather, he neglected an obligatory act. But if this situation recurs—and I have not read about it or heard of it until this moment—if this situation recurs, one should not say the taslim with the imam as long as he has not performed his obligatory act. Here a practical question arises, and we have been asked about it often: some imams of the mosques recite quickly, so one of us has not yet finished the completion of the salutation upon the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) when the imam says the two taslims. So the question is: do we say the taslim with him, following him, or do we complete the tashahhud? The answer is: we complete the tashahhud with what is obligatory, not with what is recommended. It is obligatory to seek refuge from the four, and it is recommended to supplicate as he (peace and blessings be upon him) said at the end of the four seekings of refuge. The hadith says: to the end of it. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sahih Ibn Hibban 10:238 So, if the imam says the taslim and the followers have not yet sought refuge from the four, they complete it and say the taslim. They do not add voluntary supplications, because here they are delayed behind the imam more than necessary. The necessary thing is if they are delayed only in performing the obligatory act, and the addition to the seeking of refuge from the four is not obligatory. This is what is obligatory. So, we fell into this situation from the perspective of that situation: the imam said the taslim in the tashahhud before we completed the salutation upon the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and before we sought refuge in Allah from the four. So we complete both of these and then say the taslim.
The Shaykh : ... .
The questioner : All the worshippers, all of them without exception, the mosque is on the street... the cars... this is a reality.
Another questioner: The last rak'ah, in the last prostration.
The questioner : Of course, after the imam said the taslim, everyone exerted themselves according to their understanding of the religion. Some said the taslim with the imam and then performed the tashahhud, while others left off the final tashahhud.
The Shaykh : ... This one prayed with the imam.
The questioner : ... He said the taslim and left off the final tashahhud.
The Shaykh : Yes.
Another questioner: He rose from prostration and said the taslim?
The questioner : He rose from his prostration and said the taslim with the imam without reciting the final tashahhud, of course, out of ignorance...
The Shaykh : I strongly doubt this incident because it is an abnormal matter. The incident reminds me of an event that occurred during the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). I think it was supposed to happen to some of the worshippers, just as it happened to one of the worshippers behind the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). One day, he (peace and blessings be upon him) led them in the 'Asr prayer and prostrated in a prostration in the middle of the prayer, prolonging it. His prayer (peace and blessings be upon him), as we all know, was entirely long in standing, bowing, and prostration, etc. But in that prayer, one prostration was prolonged more than usual. However, this prolongation, as it happened to you, should have drawn the attention of the worshippers, if they were, meaning, with their prayer not... So he was lax in himself, thinking, "What is this imam doing? Why is he prolonging the prostration so much?" That Companion questioned it, saying that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) does prolong the prostration, but this prolongation is more than usual. So what did he do? He raised his head from prostration and looked this way toward the Messenger, fearing that the Messenger might have died from the length of the prostration. And there he saw a strange sight: he saw the Messenger in prostration, and on his back was al-Hasan or al-Husayn. After the prayer, yes, our friend, when he saw the sight, his heart was relieved that the Messenger was alive, especially when he imagined the prostration of the Messenger as the prostration of the strong and the heroes, not slouching, leaning on his hands, with his back straight like this. So he is alive, and especially, what about his grandson al-Hasan or al-Husayn on his back? He was not concerned... until his prostration. I imagine that one of you must have had this level of attention, questioning, "What is our imam doing? He prolonged this prostration." You say no one noticed. As a benefit, completing the benefit: after the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) finished this entire prayer and said the taslim, they said to him, "O Messenger of Allah, you prostrated in the middle of your prayer a prostration that you prolonged." They were all attentive, not just one person. One person dared to do so because he raised his head from prostration before the imam raised his head, which involves some deviation from the principle. But this person seems to be one of those with unbridled emotions; he could not control his nerves because he was not reassured about his Prophet. He raised his head, and when he was reassured, he returned to his prostration. As for the others, they were patient. When the Messenger said the taslim, they said to him, "O Messenger of Allah, you prostrated a prostration in the middle of your prayer that you prolonged." And that is it, as if they were saying, "What was the reason, O Messenger of Allah?" Our friend who raised his head and returned to his prostration no longer needed to ask because he knew the reason; he saw it with his own eyes. As for the majority, "You prolonged it, so for what purpose?" He (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
my womb was a vessel to this son of mine
إن ابني هذا كان قد ارتحلنيHe had taken me as a mount
كان قد ارتحلنيso I disliked to hasten him
فكرهت أن أعجلهThe questioner : ... .
The Shaykh : They all were patient with that prostration, and we are not accustomed to prostrating for a long time. But those people were accustomed to it with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). We see problems in the evening, "My brother... it was long for us," "My brother, it was not long for you, it was for the Messenger of Allah." And among us are those with an excuse, the old man, and the one with urinary incontinence. My brother, all of this has its ruling. So even though those people were accustomed to long prostrations, this friend raised his head to see what the matter was because it was an unusual, abnormal prostration. As for you, may Allah protect you, the entire tashahhud and the salutation upon the Messenger, and you were in prostration, in prostration, why... In any case, I am surprised by the incident based on what happened. I will say: the imam said the taslim. It was not befitting for the congregation that they should say the taslim. They should have performed the obligatory act: sit for the tashahhud, recite the tashahhud, send blessings upon the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and supplicate with the four seekings of refuge: "O Allah, I seek refuge in You from the punishment of the Hellfire, from the punishment of the grave, from the trial of life and death, and from the evil of the trial of the Dajjal." Then each one says the taslim for himself. Whoever did this has hit the mark, and whoever did not has erred, but his prayer is valid because he did not neglect a pillar; rather, he neglected an obligatory act. But if this situation recurs—and I have not read about it or heard of it until this moment—if this situation recurs, one should not say the taslim with the imam as long as he has not performed his obligatory act. Here a practical question arises, and we have been asked about it often: some imams of the mosques recite quickly, so one of us has not yet finished the completion of the salutation upon the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) when the imam says the two taslims. So the question is: do we say the taslim with him, following him, or do we complete the tashahhud? The answer is: we complete the tashahhud with what is obligatory, not with what is recommended. It is obligatory to seek refuge from the four, and it is recommended to supplicate as he (peace and blessings be upon him) said at the end of the four seekings of refuge. The hadith says: