The Ruling on Straightening the Rows in Prayer

The Shaykh : And I am giving an example of what many people today neglect in prayer. Straightening the rows in prayer is an obligatory matter, an obligatory matter, as indicated by many hadiths, including the command of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to do so , and what is in the hadith of al-Nu'man ibn Bashir that the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) . What does "his chest protruding" mean?
The student: ...

The Shaykh : It means he was standing forward. So he said: , meaning if you do not straighten them. Those present here who are knowledgeable in Arabic know that the two sentences are emphatic. How many emphatic markers are there? How many emphatic markers? Three: the oath, the lam, and the nun. So the meaning of "By Allah, you will straighten" The difference between the faces: is it a conceptual difference or a physical difference? There are two opinions among the scholars, the explainers of the hadith. Some say: , meaning: that the neck turns so that this one's face is to his left and the other's face is to his right, this one to his right and this one to his left, so that his face is not directly opposite the other's face, but either to the right or to the left.
And some said: that the difference of faces is a conceptual difference, meaning: By Allah, He will create a difference between your viewpoints. And this latter opinion is more correct, as evidenced by His saying in another hadith: . And the heart, as we know, is the controller, the controller of the body. Some imams now, some imams, when the iqamah is called and he steps forward to lead the congregation, may turn around or may not turn around, and may say "Straighten up" or may not say it. And if he says "Straighten up," it is as if he is saying it as a habit or a recorded tape. He may say "Straighten up" and find the row completely slanted, and not say "Move forward" or "Move back." So what is the benefit of this word? Is there any benefit in it now? Never. For this reason, we find some imams, may Allah reward them with good, when they find the row not straight, they stop and face the row with their face, as the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) used to do, and say "Straighten up," "Move forward, so-and-so," "Move back, so-and-so," until the row remains completely straight. But the first type of imams does not do this action and does not say this saying. Why? Because what? He fears the objection of some ignorant people against him. And in reality, he should not do this thing. First: he is an imam, and the imam is followed. Second: it is incumbent upon every imam of the mosques to look at the guidance of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in how he leads people and how he acts, so that he may be guided by his guidance and follow his Sunnah.
Another example, and we are giving examples in the hope that Allah will make them beneficial.