If the one who joins the prayer late catches up with the imam in the final tashahhud, does he join him or wait for the second congregation?
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The questioner : Your Eminence, if a man enters the mosque knowing that there is a congregation behind him and finds the imam in the tashahhud, does he join him based on the hadith of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): or does he wait for the second congregation? And which is better?
The Shaykh : It is better to wait for the second congregation, based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):Muwatta Malik 1:15 So, the one who did not catch up with anything but the tashahhud did not catch up with the congregational prayer, according to the understanding of the hadith: Muwatta Malik 1:15 And is he now certain, or does he strongly suspect, that he will find a congregation?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : He is certain. So, certainty takes precedence. Let him wait and pray in congregation. However, the question remains: does the second congregation receive the reward of the congregational prayer, which is twenty-seven degrees? No, they do not receive that. But the congregation is better than praying alone, based on the hadith of Abu ibn Ka'b:Bulugh al-Maram 2:330.
The questioner : What if they join the first congregation and appoint one person to lead them in prayer?
The Shaykh : The question remains: has this been reported from the Salaf? For this reason, one of the two positions in the madhhab of Imam Ahmad is that this is not valid; that the one who joins late is not valid as an imam or as a ma'mum, and that each of those who joined late makes up his prayer alone. Yes, I have taken note. I think the question was good. Please, go ahead.
So whatever you catch up with, pray
فما أدركتم فصلواThe Shaykh : It is better to wait for the second congregation, based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):
Whoever catches a raka of the prayer has caught the prayer.
من أدرك ركعة من الصلاة فقد أدرك الصلاةWhoever catches a raka of the prayer has caught the prayer.
من أدرك ركعة من الصلاة فقد أدرك الصلاةThe student: ...
The Shaykh : He is certain. So, certainty takes precedence. Let him wait and pray in congregation. However, the question remains: does the second congregation receive the reward of the congregational prayer, which is twenty-seven degrees? No, they do not receive that. But the congregation is better than praying alone, based on the hadith of Abu ibn Ka'b:
A man's prayer offered with another man is purer than his prayer which he offers alone, and his prayer with two men is purer than his prayer with one and if they are more (in number), it is more beloved to Allah
صلاة الرجل مع الرجل أزكى من صلاته وحده وصلاته مع الرجلين أزكى من صلاته مع الرجل وما كان أكثر فهو أحب إلى اللهThe questioner : What if they join the first congregation and appoint one person to lead them in prayer?
The Shaykh : The question remains: has this been reported from the Salaf? For this reason, one of the two positions in the madhhab of Imam Ahmad is that this is not valid; that the one who joins late is not valid as an imam or as a ma'mum, and that each of those who joined late makes up his prayer alone. Yes, I have taken note. I think the question was good. Please, go ahead.