(Part No. 11; Page No. 215)

  The essential pillars of Salah

(Part No. 11; Page No. 216)

 

(Part No. 11; Page No. 217)

  A Ma'mum's recitation of Al-Fatihah behind the Imam [6]

Q: Is the recitation of Al-Fatihah behind the Imam (the one who leads congregational Prayer) in the Jahri Salah (prayer recited out loud) obligatory for the Ma'mum (a person being led by an Imam in Prayer), taking into account that the Imam gives the Ma'mum no chance to recite Al-Fatihah as he recites some Ayahs of the Qur'an immediately after those praying behind him say, "Amen"? A: Yes, the Ma'mum has to recite Al-Fatihah even while the Imam is reciting some Ayahs of the Qur'an after reciting Al-Fatihah, as the Ma'mum is ordered to do so according to the Prophetic Hadith in which the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: The prayer of whoever does not recite Surah Al-Fatihah is invalid. [1] (Agreed upon by Al-Bukhari and Muslim). Also, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Perhaps you recite behind your Imam?” We (the Companions) said, “Yes, it is so, O Messenger of Allah.” He said, “Do not do that except with the Opening of the Book (i.e. Al-Fatihah); for there is no Salah (prayer) for the one who does not recite it (in it).” [2]

(Part No. 11; Page No. 218)

 Thus, the Ma'mum has to recite Al-Fatihah at the pauses made by the Imam in case the Imam makes pauses between his recitation. If the Imam does not make pauses, the Ma'mum has to recite it even during the Imam's recitation, acting upon the Prophetic Hadiths on this topic which are regarded as specification of Allah's (Exalted be He) Saying: So, when the Qur’ân is recited, listen to it, and be silent that you may receive mercy. [7] And, the Prophet's (peace be upon him) saying: When the Imam recites (Qur'an), listen carefully. [3] Some scholars say that the recitation of Al-Fatihah is not incumbent on the Ma'mum in such a case, taking as evidence the Prophetic Hadith in which Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) said: “Whoever is praying behind the Imam, then the imam’s recitation is a recitation for him as well.” [4] The first opinion is the right one as the Hadith mentioned above is weak. If it was a sound Hadith, it would be applied to Qur'anic surahs other than Al-Fatihah so as to bring the religious texts mentioned above to agreement. If the Ma'mum forgets to recite Al-Fatihah, does not recite it out of ignorance of its juristic ruling or out of imitation of those regarding it as not obligatory for the Ma'mum, the Salah is valid. Similarly, whoever joins the Salah while the Imam is in a state of Ruku`, has to bow behind him and the Salah is valid and the recitation of Al-Fatihah is not incumbent on him in such a case, as it was related in the Sahih Book of Hadith by Al-Bukhari (may Allah be merciful to him) that Abu Bakrah Al-Thaqafy joined the prayer with the Prophet (peace be upon him) in the mosque while he (peace be upon him) was bowing in the prayer

(Part No. 11; Page No. 219)

 and he bowed before joining the row of prayers, then he joined it and completed the prayer. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said to him: May Allah increase your eagerness (caring to join Salah). But do not repeat it again (bowing in that way). [5] The Prophet (peace be upon him) did not order him to make up for the Rak`ah. This shows that the recitation of Al-Fatihah is not incumbent on the Ma'mum who joins the Salah while the Imam is in Ruku`. The same applies to the Ma'mum who forgets to recite it or does not recite it out of ignorance of its juristic ruling as they both have a legal excuse. May Allah grant us success.