The seventh and final question asks: When the mu'adhdhin has finished the iqamah for the prayer, is it permissible for the imam to remain standing and supplicate with whatever he wishes before ordering the straightening of the rows and commencing the prayer? And which of the two is more preferable and better for him?
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The questioner : The seventh and final question asks: When the mu'adhdhin has finished the iqamah for the prayer, is it permissible for the imam to remain standing and supplicate with whatever he wishes before ordering the straightening of the rows and commencing the prayer? And which of the two is more preferable and better for him?
The Shaykh : I am not aware of any prescribed (mashru') supplication for the imam or anyone else after the completion of the iqamah for the prayer. Rather, what is prescribed for the imam is to strive to straighten the rows and establish them in the prescribed manner, by standing close together and completing the first row, then the next. On this occasion, I would like to clarify that many imams—may Allah guide us and them—
The questioner : Amen.
The Shaykh : have been negligent in this matter. You will find many of them looking to the right and left, saying "Straighten up, straighten up" as a passing phrase, as if it has no meaning. He says this even if the row is already straight, and he says it without attempting to correct the crooked row when he sees them to be crooked.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : He is content with just saying it, and this is a form of negligence and a lack of striving to follow the Sunnah in this regard. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to strive to straighten the rows until it was as if he were straightening arrows.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : (peace and blessings be upon him). In fact, he once saw a man whose chest was protruding one day, and he became angry and said:Mishkat al-Masabih 1085 The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to wipe the chests and shoulders of his Companions to straighten their rows. He used to say the takbir when he saw that they had straightened. We see many imams neglecting all these things that are established from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). They say the takbir without seeing that the row has straightened or aligned as it should. My advice to them is to strive to attend to these matters and others related to the prayer, so that they may be imams, leaders, guides, and advisors.
The Shaykh : I am not aware of any prescribed (mashru') supplication for the imam or anyone else after the completion of the iqamah for the prayer. Rather, what is prescribed for the imam is to strive to straighten the rows and establish them in the prescribed manner, by standing close together and completing the first row, then the next. On this occasion, I would like to clarify that many imams—may Allah guide us and them—
The questioner : Amen.
The Shaykh : have been negligent in this matter. You will find many of them looking to the right and left, saying "Straighten up, straighten up" as a passing phrase, as if it has no meaning. He says this even if the row is already straight, and he says it without attempting to correct the crooked row when he sees them to be crooked.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : He is content with just saying it, and this is a form of negligence and a lack of striving to follow the Sunnah in this regard. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to strive to straighten the rows until it was as if he were straightening arrows.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : (peace and blessings be upon him). In fact, he once saw a man whose chest was protruding one day, and he became angry and said: