What is the ruling on the imam being elevated above the ma'mum in prayer?
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The questioner : What is the ruling on the imam being elevated above the ma'mum?
The Shaykh : Yes, there is no harm in the imam being elevated above the ma'mum. Some scholars qualified this by saying it is not permissible if the elevation is from the arm, but the correct view is that there is no qualification as long as the ma'mum can follow. Moreover, the elevation of the imam above the ma'mum, as described by the jurists, cannot actually be realized in our time. The imam will have someone with him, will he not? The imam will have someone with him in his place. The jurists who disliked the imam being elevated wanted him to be alone in a place above, with the people below him. This does not exist in our present time. That is, nowadays you do not find an elevated imam without a group with him. In that case, there is no dislike.
The questioner : And the reverse.
The Shaykh : And the reverse is fine. The elevation of the ma'mum is fine. The elevation of the imam is fine. Yes.
The Shaykh : Yes, there is no harm in the imam being elevated above the ma'mum. Some scholars qualified this by saying it is not permissible if the elevation is from the arm, but the correct view is that there is no qualification as long as the ma'mum can follow. Moreover, the elevation of the imam above the ma'mum, as described by the jurists, cannot actually be realized in our time. The imam will have someone with him, will he not? The imam will have someone with him in his place. The jurists who disliked the imam being elevated wanted him to be alone in a place above, with the people below him. This does not exist in our present time. That is, nowadays you do not find an elevated imam without a group with him. In that case, there is no dislike.
The questioner : And the reverse.
The Shaykh : And the reverse is fine. The elevation of the ma'mum is fine. The elevation of the imam is fine. Yes.