excerpt from “Ṣaff Bandi ke Aḥkām wa Masā’il” by Shaykh Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Ameenpuri:
The follower should stand to the right side of the Imām.
ثم جئت حتى قمت عن يسار رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، فأخذ بيدي، فأدارني حتى أقامني عن يمينه، ثم جاء جبار بن صخر فتوضأ، ثم جاء فقام عن يسار رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، فأخذ رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم بيدينا جميعًا، فدفعنا حتى أقامنا خلفه
“I came and stood to the left of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ while he was in prayer. He took me by the hand and turned me around until I was on his right side. Then Jabbār bin Ṣakhr came, performed ablution, and stood to the left of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. The Prophet ﷺ took both our hands and moved us behind him.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 3010]
The Imām should stand in front, and all followers should form a row behind him.
صليت أنا ويتيم في بيتنا خلف النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم، وأم سليم خلفنا
“I and a young boy offered prayer behind the Prophet ﷺ in our house, and my mother, Umm Sulaym رضي الله عنها, stood behind us.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 727 | Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 658]
قام، فصففنا خلفه، ثم سلّم فسلّمنا حين سلّم
“The Prophet ﷺ stood up and we formed a row behind him. When he ended the prayer with salām, we also concluded with salām.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 840 | Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 33]
Ḥāfiẓ Nawawī رحمه الله (d. 676 AH) said:
“There is consensus (ijmāʿ) that if there are three people, two of them should stand behind the Imām. As for when there is only one follower, then he stands to the right side of the Imām — this is the unanimous opinion of all scholars. Several scholars have narrated consensus on this matter.”
[Sharḥ Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 5/16]
“They both visited ʿAbdullāh bin Masʿūd رضي الله عنه. He asked, ‘Have those behind you already prayed?’ They replied, ‘Yes.’ So he stood between them, placing one on his right and the other on his left.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 534]
ثم قام فصلى بيني وبينه، ثم قال: هكذا رأيت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم فعل
“Then ʿAbdullāh bin Masʿūd stood between me and ʿAlqamah and led us in prayer. He then said: ‘This is how I saw the Messenger of Allah ﷺ do it.’**
[Sunan Abī Dāwūd: 613 | Sunan al-Nasā’ī: 800 | Chain: Ḥasan]
This practice has been abrogated (mansūkh). The abrogating aḥādīth have been mentioned previously. It appears that ʿAbdullāh bin Masʿūd رضي الله عنه was unaware of the abrogation.
Hence, the consensus of the Ummah has been established based on the later (nasikh) narrations.
Positioning of the Follower (Muqtadī) in Congregational Prayer
❖ When There is Only One Follower:
The follower should stand to the right side of the Imām.
❀ Ḥadīth of Sayyidunā Jābir رضي الله عنه:
ثم جئت حتى قمت عن يسار رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، فأخذ بيدي، فأدارني حتى أقامني عن يمينه، ثم جاء جبار بن صخر فتوضأ، ثم جاء فقام عن يسار رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، فأخذ رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم بيدينا جميعًا، فدفعنا حتى أقامنا خلفه
“I came and stood to the left of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ while he was in prayer. He took me by the hand and turned me around until I was on his right side. Then Jabbār bin Ṣakhr came, performed ablution, and stood to the left of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. The Prophet ﷺ took both our hands and moved us behind him.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 3010]❖ When There Are Two or More Followers:
The Imām should stand in front, and all followers should form a row behind him.
❀ Sayyidunā Anas bin Mālik رضي الله عنه reported:
صليت أنا ويتيم في بيتنا خلف النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم، وأم سليم خلفنا
“I and a young boy offered prayer behind the Prophet ﷺ in our house, and my mother, Umm Sulaym رضي الله عنها, stood behind us.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 727 | Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 658]❀ Sayyidunā ʿItbān bin Mālik رضي الله عنه said:
قام، فصففنا خلفه، ثم سلّم فسلّمنا حين سلّم
“The Prophet ﷺ stood up and we formed a row behind him. When he ended the prayer with salām, we also concluded with salām.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 840 | Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 33]
Consensus of Scholars:
Ḥāfiẓ Nawawī رحمه الله (d. 676 AH) said:
“There is consensus (ijmāʿ) that if there are three people, two of them should stand behind the Imām. As for when there is only one follower, then he stands to the right side of the Imām — this is the unanimous opinion of all scholars. Several scholars have narrated consensus on this matter.”
[Sharḥ Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 5/16]
Clarification Regarding an Early Practice
❀ Ḥadīth of ʿAlqamah and Aswad رحمهما الله:
“They both visited ʿAbdullāh bin Masʿūd رضي الله عنه. He asked, ‘Have those behind you already prayed?’ They replied, ‘Yes.’ So he stood between them, placing one on his right and the other on his left.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 534]❀ Aswad رحمه الله said:
ثم قام فصلى بيني وبينه، ثم قال: هكذا رأيت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم فعل
“Then ʿAbdullāh bin Masʿūd stood between me and ʿAlqamah and led us in prayer. He then said: ‘This is how I saw the Messenger of Allah ﷺ do it.’**
[Sunan Abī Dāwūd: 613 | Sunan al-Nasā’ī: 800 | Chain: Ḥasan]
Ruling on This Narration:
This practice has been abrogated (mansūkh). The abrogating aḥādīth have been mentioned previously. It appears that ʿAbdullāh bin Masʿūd رضي الله عنه was unaware of the abrogation.
Hence, the consensus of the Ummah has been established based on the later (nasikh) narrations.
