❖ Permissibility of Speaking Before the Khutbah After the Imam Sits on the Minbar
✍ Written by: Imran Ayyub Lahori
❖ Speaking After the Imam Sits but Before the Khutbah Begins
It is permissible to speak after the Imam has sat on the minbar but before the actual khutbah begins, as evidenced by a narration:
✔ Hazrat ʿUmar (رضي الله عنه) used to sit on the minbar before beginning the khutbah, and during that time, people would continue speaking.
[Nayl al-Awtar: 2/568; Tartīb al-Musnad lil-Shāfiʿī: 409; Al-Majmūʿ: 4/393; Al-Umm: 1/346; Badāʾiʿ al-Ṣanāʾiʿ: 1/264; Al-Mabsūṭ: 2/28; Al-Hidāyah: 1/84; Al-Mughnī: 2/303; Fatḥ al-ʿAllām: 271]
❖ Permissibility for the Khatīb to Speak During the Khutbah
The khatīb (one delivering the khutbah) is allowed to:
✔ Respond to a question from a seeker during the khutbah,
✔ Command someone to perform a necessary action if it was neglected.
This practice is supported by authentic narrations.
[Al-Sayl al-Jarrār: 1/]
❖ Examples from the Sunnah
➊ The Prophet ﷺ said to a man who was stepping over people during the khutbah:
اجلس فقد آذيت
“Sit down! Indeed, you have caused harm.”
[Sahih: Sahih al-Nasa’i: 1326]
➋ To a person who sat down without praying Tahiyyat al-Masjid, the Prophet ﷺ instructed during the khutbah:
فصل ركعتين
“Pray two rakʿahs (of greeting the mosque).”
[Muslim: 875]
