I ask: If I come and a person is praying, and I join him for two rak'ahs and he completes the prayer, and then a second person comes, is it permissible for him to pray behind you or not?

The questioner : I ask: If I come and a person is praying, and I join him for two rak'ahs and he completes the prayer, and then a second person comes, is it permissible for him to pray behind you or not?

The Shaykh : It is permissible for the third person who came to you after you stood up to make up your prayer after the first one to join you, because the stronger position is that if a person prays alone and then another person comes and prays with him, intending to lead the prayer, that is valid. This is because it is established from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), in the hadith of Ibn Abbas, that he stood up to pray at night, and Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) stood up and stood to the left of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), so he moved him to his right, indeed he moved him to his right, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) continued in his prayer. This indicates the permissibility of changing the intention of the one praying alone to that of an imam. And what is established in voluntary prayer is established in obligatory prayer, because there is no difference between them unless there is evidence indicating a distinction between them.

The questioner : Yes.

The Shaykh : Yes.