(Extracted from the book Ṣaff Bandi ke Aḥkām wa Masā’il by Shaykh Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Amunpuri)
Sayyiduna Mālik bin Huwayrith رضي الله عنه narrated:
“We came to seek permission from the Prophet ﷺ to return (to our tribe). He ﷺ said:
Arabic:
«إذا حضرت الصلاة؛ فأذنا وأقيما ، ثم ليؤمكما أكبركما»
Translation:
“When the time of prayer arrives, give the adhān and iqāmah, then let the elder among you lead the prayer.”
ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما narrated:
“I came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ in the last part of the night and prayed behind him. He ﷺ took my hand, pulled me, and made me stand beside him.”
Imām al-Ḥākim declared this ḥadīth “ṣaḥīḥ according to the conditions of al-Bukhārī and Muslim,” and al-Dhahabī agreed.
ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما narrated:
“I spent a night at the house of my aunt Maymūnah رضي الله عنها. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ prayed ʿIshā’, then came home, prayed four rakʿāt, and slept. Then he stood (for night prayer), so I stood on his left side. He made me stand on his right side. He then prayed five rakʿāt, then two rakʿāt, then slept until I heard his snoring. Then he left for the Fajr prayer.”
Imām al-Bukhārī wrote under this ḥadīth:
Arabic:
يقوم عن يمين الإمام بحذاء ، سواء إذا كانا اثنين .
Translation:
“When two men pray in congregation, the follower stands at the right side of the imam, exactly in line with him.”
Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Ḥajar (d. 852 AH) wrote:
Arabic (summarized):
The phrase “exactly in line” means neither ahead nor behind. Although some scholars preferred the follower to stand slightly back, these narrations clearly show equality in standing.
“I stood behind ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما in one of the prayers, and no one else was with us. Ibn ʿUmar pulled me and made me stand beside him.”
ʿĀ’ishah رضي الله عنها narrated:
Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه was leading the prayer. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ came through the rows. Abu Bakr moved back, but the Prophet ﷺ signalled him to remain. Then:
Arabic:
جلس رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم حذاء أبي بكر إلى جنبه، فكان أبو بكر يصلي بصلاة رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، والناس يصلون بصلاة أبي بكر .
Translation:
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ sat beside Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه, in line with him. Abu Bakr was following the prayer of the Prophet ﷺ, and the people were following the prayer of Abu Bakr.”
It is established that when two men pray together, the follower stands:
✔ On the right side of the imam
✔ Exactly in line with him
✔ With no gap between them
✔ Without standing ahead or behind
Although Abu Ḥanīfah and Qāḍī Abu Yusuf agreed with the Sunnah position (standing exactly in line), other Ḥanafī jurists (like Muhammad ibn al-Ḥasan) held that:
The follower’s toes should be aligned with the imam’s heels.
This is stated in:
– al-Mabsūṭ (al-Sarakhsī 1/43)
– Badā’iʿ al-Ṣanā’iʿ (al-Kāsānī 1/159)
– al-Hidāyah (1/126)
But the author argues:
The correct view is that of Abu Ḥanīfah and Abu Yusuf, because it matches the practice of the Salaf and the authentic aḥadīth.
Arabic:
لا يتأخر عن الإمام، لأن التأخر خلاف السنة .
Translation:
“The follower should not stand behind the imam, because standing back is contrary to the Sunnah.”
He wrote that according to the ẓāhir al-riwāyah, the follower stands equal to the imam—
not ahead, not behind, and with no gap.
“The Sunnah method is that the follower stands on the imam’s right side, exactly in line with him — not ahead, not behind. The opinion that he should stand slightly behind contradicts authentic ḥadīth.”
He states that although Imam Abu Ḥanīfah and Abu Yusuf’s view is stronger in evidence, the fatwa is on Imam Muhammad’s position — standing slightly behind — because it is “safer” and prevents accidental forward movement.
Great courage is needed to see that evidence supports your own Imam’s position, yet to abandon it and issue fatwa on a view without any proof and against the Sunnah, calling it “safer”!
If a follower of the Sunnah says:
“After the command of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, no one’s opinion is acceptable,”
he is criticized — but why?
◈ The Congregational Row Consists of at Least Two Persons
✿ Imam for Two Men: The Elder Leads
Sayyiduna Mālik bin Huwayrith رضي الله عنه narrated:
“We came to seek permission from the Prophet ﷺ to return (to our tribe). He ﷺ said:
Arabic:
«إذا حضرت الصلاة؛ فأذنا وأقيما ، ثم ليؤمكما أكبركما»
Translation:
“When the time of prayer arrives, give the adhān and iqāmah, then let the elder among you lead the prayer.”
Reference: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 658; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 293
◈ When Two Men Pray Together, They Stand Side-by-Side
✿ Ibn ʿAbbās Standing Beside the Prophet ﷺ
ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما narrated:
“I came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ in the last part of the night and prayed behind him. He ﷺ took my hand, pulled me, and made me stand beside him.”
Reference: Musnad Aḥmad: 3/330 — Isnād Ṣaḥīḥ
Imām al-Ḥākim declared this ḥadīth “ṣaḥīḥ according to the conditions of al-Bukhārī and Muslim,” and al-Dhahabī agreed.
Reference: al-Ḥākim: 3/534
✿ Another Incident of Ibn ʿAbbās with the Prophet ﷺ
ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما narrated:
“I spent a night at the house of my aunt Maymūnah رضي الله عنها. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ prayed ʿIshā’, then came home, prayed four rakʿāt, and slept. Then he stood (for night prayer), so I stood on his left side. He made me stand on his right side. He then prayed five rakʿāt, then two rakʿāt, then slept until I heard his snoring. Then he left for the Fajr prayer.”
Reference: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 697; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 763
◈ The Ruling Derived by Imām al-Bukhārī
Imām al-Bukhārī wrote under this ḥadīth:
Arabic:
يقوم عن يمين الإمام بحذاء ، سواء إذا كانا اثنين .
Translation:
“When two men pray in congregation, the follower stands at the right side of the imam, exactly in line with him.”
◈ Explanation by Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Ḥajar رحمه الله
Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Ḥajar (d. 852 AH) wrote:
Arabic (summarized):
The phrase “exactly in line” means neither ahead nor behind. Although some scholars preferred the follower to stand slightly back, these narrations clearly show equality in standing.
Reference: Fatḥ al-Bārī: 2/190
◈ Practice of the Salaf
✿ Nafiʿ, the Mawlā of Ibn ʿUmar, narrated:
“I stood behind ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما in one of the prayers, and no one else was with us. Ibn ʿUmar pulled me and made me stand beside him.”
Reference: al-Muwaṭṭa’ of Imām Mālik: 1/134 — Isnād Ṣaḥīḥ
✿ The Case of Abu Bakr and the Prophet ﷺ
ʿĀ’ishah رضي الله عنها narrated:
Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه was leading the prayer. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ came through the rows. Abu Bakr moved back, but the Prophet ﷺ signalled him to remain. Then:
Arabic:
جلس رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم حذاء أبي بكر إلى جنبه، فكان أبو بكر يصلي بصلاة رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، والناس يصلون بصلاة أبي بكر .
Translation:
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ sat beside Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه, in line with him. Abu Bakr was following the prayer of the Prophet ﷺ, and the people were following the prayer of Abu Bakr.”
Reference: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 683; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 418
◈ Conclusion of the Scholars of Ahl al-Ḥadīth
It is established that when two men pray together, the follower stands:
✔ On the right side of the imam
✔ Exactly in line with him
✔ With no gap between them
✔ Without standing ahead or behind
◈ Opinions Among the Ḥanafī Jurists
Although Abu Ḥanīfah and Qāḍī Abu Yusuf agreed with the Sunnah position (standing exactly in line), other Ḥanafī jurists (like Muhammad ibn al-Ḥasan) held that:
The follower’s toes should be aligned with the imam’s heels.
This is stated in:
– al-Mabsūṭ (al-Sarakhsī 1/43)
– Badā’iʿ al-Ṣanā’iʿ (al-Kāsānī 1/159)
– al-Hidāyah (1/126)
But the author argues:
The correct view is that of Abu Ḥanīfah and Abu Yusuf, because it matches the practice of the Salaf and the authentic aḥadīth.
◈ Statements of Leading Ḥanafī Scholars
✿ ʿAllāmah ʿAynī (d. 855 AH):
Arabic:
لا يتأخر عن الإمام، لأن التأخر خلاف السنة .
Translation:
“The follower should not stand behind the imam, because standing back is contrary to the Sunnah.”
Reference: al-Bināyah Sharḥ al-Hidāyah: 2/340
✿ ʿAllāmah Ṭaḥṭāwī (d. 1231 AH):
He wrote that according to the ẓāhir al-riwāyah, the follower stands equal to the imam—
not ahead, not behind, and with no gap.
Reference: Ḥāshiyat al-Ṭaḥṭāwī: 305
✿ Al-Albānī رحمه الله wrote:
“The Sunnah method is that the follower stands on the imam’s right side, exactly in line with him — not ahead, not behind. The opinion that he should stand slightly behind contradicts authentic ḥadīth.”
Reference: Silsilat al-Aḥādīth al-Ḍaʿīfah: 6/175, no. 2590 & 1/270
✿ Mufti Taqi Usmani wrote:
He states that although Imam Abu Ḥanīfah and Abu Yusuf’s view is stronger in evidence, the fatwa is on Imam Muhammad’s position — standing slightly behind — because it is “safer” and prevents accidental forward movement.
Reference: Dars-e-Tirmidhī: 1/489–490
◈ Final Remark by the Author
Great courage is needed to see that evidence supports your own Imam’s position, yet to abandon it and issue fatwa on a view without any proof and against the Sunnah, calling it “safer”!
If a follower of the Sunnah says:
“After the command of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, no one’s opinion is acceptable,”
he is criticized — but why?
