The separation of bodies is evidence of the separation of souls.

The Shaykh : I wanted to deliver a brief word before the questions regarding a request for permission that came from some of the distinguished ones here just now, when the circle was scattered to the four walls. We felt that the matter required the connection of bodies, for it is a declaration of the connection of souls, if Allah wills. This is the matter whose meaning was revealed to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and he presented it to us in many authentic hadiths that were reported from him (peace and blessings be upon him). It was the custom in some lands in the past, and it remains so, that the most respected and honorable shaykh should not stand before his students; rather, they sit with all humility and modesty, far from him, in a large circle. The larger the circle, the more it indicates that the shaykh’s status with Allah is great. We see this as part of the deviation that has affected Islamic thought in some minds. If these minds were to be viewed favorably and knowledge were attributed to them, that would not be the case regarding the hadiths I mentioned. I will mention to you some of what comes to my mind. It was reported in "Musnad al-Imam Ahmad" (may Allah have mercy on him) that the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), when they were traveling and stopped at a place, would scatter in the valleys and gorges. One day they traveled with the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and stopped as they had done before. He said to them (peace and blessings be upon him): . The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) disapproved of that from them by saying: . The narrator of the hadith, who is one of the well-known Companions (may Allah be pleased with him), said: "Indeed, after that, when we stopped at a place, we would gather together, until if we sat on a carpet, it would have been enough for us." And they were traveling; so what about you in settled areas? What about you in the council of knowledge? The closeness of bodies should be a title for the closeness of hearts. This is what he (peace and blessings be upon him) confirms in another hadith, which the Imam Muslim reported in his "Sahih," that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) entered the mosque one day and saw them scattered in circles, so he said to them: , ; meaning: scattered. So, the separation of bodies is a sign of the separation of hearts, and the evidence for that is what came in "al-Sahihayn": . And this is, in reality, one of the sunnahs that the honorable professor Abu Malik revived. It is rare that the prayer is established in his mosque without him first ordering the people to straighten the rows, and then he narrates the hadith appropriate to our station, which is his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): , and in another narration: , which is the meaning of the first narration. So you see that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) made the difference among Muslims in straightening the rows, and this is a clear physical, material difference... a difference that results in the difference in the hearts of the Muslims.