Who Has the Right to Lead the Prayer?

(Extracted from the book Namaz-e-Mustafa ﷺ by Abu Hamza Abdul Khaliq Siddiqi)

◈ Who Has the Right to Lead the Prayer?​

❀ The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
“The one who should lead the people in prayer is the one who has the most knowledge of the Qur’an among them. If they are equal in recitation, then the one who has the most knowledge of the Sunnah should lead. If they are also equal in Sunnah knowledge, then the one who emigrated earlier; and if they are equal in that too, then the one who accepted Islam earlier. No person should lead prayer in someone else’s jurisdiction without permission, nor should one sit on the seat of the household master without his consent.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Book of Mosques, ḥadīth no. 973)

◈ A Child Leading the Prayer:​

If a sensible child fulfills the above conditions, he may be appointed as Imam. Sayyiduna ‘Amr ibn Salamah (RA) said:
“I had the most knowledge of the Qur’an in our tribe, so I was made the Imam although I was only seven years old.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhārī, Book of Maghāzī, ḥadīth no. 4302)

◈ A Blind Person Leading the Prayer:​

If a disabled person meets the aforementioned conditions, he should be made the Imam. The Prophet ﷺ appointed Sayyiduna ‘Abdullah ibn Umm Maktūm (RA) as Imam, although he was blind.
(Sunan Abū Dāwūd, Book of Prayer, ḥadīth no. 595)
(Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Ḥibbān, ḥadīth no. 370 - authenticated by Ibn Ḥibbān and graded “Ḥasan Ṣaḥīḥ” by Shaykh al-Albānī)

◈ A Slave Leading the Prayer:​

A slave can also lead the prayer. Sayyiduna ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar (RA) narrated that when a group of emigrants gathered in Quba’ before the arrival of the Prophet ﷺ in Madinah, Salim, the slave of Abu Ḥudhayfah (RA), led them in prayer.
(Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhārī, Book of Adhān, ḥadīth no. 692)

◈ A Superior Praying Behind a Less Knowledgeable Person:​

It is valid for a more knowledgeable person to pray behind one with lesser knowledge. Sayyiduna Mughirah ibn Shu‘bah (RA) narrated:
“One time the Messenger of Allah ﷺ went out to relieve himself before Fajr. When He returned, the people were praying under the Imāmah of ‘Abd al-Raḥmān ibn ‘Awf (RA). The Prophet ﷺ joined them for one rak‘ah. After Ibn ‘Awf (RA) ended the prayer, the Prophet ﷺ stood and completed his second rak‘ah.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Book of Prayer, ḥadīth no. 274)

◈ Leading the Prayer in Place of an Appointed Imam:​

It is impermissible to lead prayer in the place of an appointed Imam without his permission. The Prophet ﷺ said:
“A person should not lead another in prayer in his domain without his permission.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Book of Mosques, ḥadīth no. 673)

◈ Duties and Responsibilities of an Imam:​

➊ The Imam should consider the weak and needy. The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Whoever leads the people in prayer should make it short, for behind him are the weak, the elderly, and those with needs.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhārī, Book of Adhān, ḥadīth no. 704; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, ḥadīth no. 466)

➋ Shorten the prayer if necessary. The Prophet ﷺ would shorten the prayer due to a child’s crying.
(Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhārī, ḥadīth no. 708; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, ḥadīth no. 470)

➌ Lead the prayer with composure. He ﷺ told a man who did not perform the actions calmly:
“Your prayer has not been counted.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhārī, Book of Adhān, ḥadīth no. 394)

➍ Straighten the rows and organize the congregation before starting the prayer.
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, ḥadīth no. 397; Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhārī, ḥadīth no. 860; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, ḥadīth no. 658)

◈ Men Should Lead Men in Prayer:​

Only men should lead the prayer for men. Sayyiduna Anas ibn Mālik (RA) narrated that one day, his grandmother invited the Prophet ﷺ for food. After eating, he said:
“Stand so I may lead you in prayer.”
Anas (RA) mentioned: “I brought a mat and sprinkled water on it. The Prophet ﷺ stood on it. I and an orphan formed a row behind him, and my grandmother stood behind us.”
He ﷺ led two rak‘ahs and then departed.

◈ A Woman Cannot Lead Men in Prayer:​

A woman cannot lead a congregation of men. Imām Shāfi‘ī (RA) stated:
“If a woman leads men, women, and boys in prayer, it will suffice for the women but not for the men and boys. Allah has made men guardians over women, and women are not allowed to be guardians or leaders over men in prayer under any circumstance.”
(Kitāb al-Umm, Imāmat al-Mar’ah lil-Rijāl: 1/191)

Imām Abū Bakr Muhammad ibn Aḥmad al-Shāshī (RA) stated:
“It is invalid for a woman to lead men in prayer.”
(Ḥilyat al-‘Ulamā’, 2/199)

◈ Can a Woman Lead Women in Congregational Prayer?​

Yes, a woman can lead other women. Umm Waraqah bint ‘Abdullah (RA) was visited by the Prophet ﷺ, who appointed a mu’adhdhin for her and instructed her to lead her household in prayer.
(Sunan Abū Dāwūd, ḥadīth no. 592; Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Khuzaymah, 3/89; Ibn al-Jārūd, ḥadīth no. 333)
Shaykh al-Albānī graded the hadith as ḥasan.

Also, Sayyidah ‘Ā’ishah (RA) used to lead the women of her house in obligatory prayer, standing in the middle of their row.
(Muṣannaf ‘Abd al-Razzāq, ḥadīth no. 5086; Sunan al-Kubrā lil-Bayhaqī, 3/131; Muṣannaf Ibn Abī Shaybah, 2/89)
Ẓafar Aḥmad Thānvī graded the narration as ḥasan ṣaḥīḥ.

◈ Praying Nafil Behind a Fard and Vice Versa:​

It is valid for someone offering an obligatory prayer to follow one offering a nafil prayer and vice versa. Sayyiduna Jābir (RA) narrated:
Mu‘ādh (RA) used to pray ‘Ishā’ with the Prophet ﷺ and then return to lead his people in the same prayer.
(Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhārī, ḥadīth no. 711; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, ḥadīth no. 465)

The Prophet ﷺ also began night prayer, and Ibn ‘Abbās (RA) joined him in it.
(Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhārī, Book of Wuḍū’, ḥadīth no. 138)

Sayyiduna Yazīd ibn Aswad (RA) narrated that after he prayed with the Prophet ﷺ, the Prophet saw two men who hadn’t joined. They said they already prayed in their camp. The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Do not do that. When one of you has prayed at his place and finds the Imam, he should pray with him; it will count as nafilah for him.”
(Sunan Abū Dāwūd, ḥadīth no. 575 – graded ṣaḥīḥ by Albānī)

Shaykh Ibn Bāz (RA) also affirmed this, referencing similar actions of the Prophet ﷺ and the Companions.
(Fatāwā Islāmiyyah, 1/339)

◈ Prompting the Imam During Recitation:​

Sayyiduna Miswar ibn Yazīd Mālikī (RA) said that the Prophet ﷺ once omitted an āyah. After the prayer, a man recited it correctly. The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Why didn’t you remind me?”
(Sunan Abū Dāwūd, ḥadīth no. 907 – graded ḥasan by Albānī)

Sayyiduna Ibn ‘Umar (RA) narrated a similar incident. When asked why he didn’t correct the Prophet ﷺ, he replied he remained silent.
(Sunan Abū Dāwūd, ḥadīth no. 907)

◈ Correcting Mistakes in Prayer:​

Men should say “Subḥān-Allāh”, and women should clap (tasfīq) to indicate an error.
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim – includes clarification: “during prayer”)

➤ Note:
Tasfīq means striking the palm on the palm or back of the hand.
(Mu‘jam Lughat al-Fuqahā’)

◈ Multiple Congregations in One Mosque:​

If a congregation has finished and others arrive later, they may form another congregation. Sayyiduna Abū Sa‘īd al-Khudrī (RA) narrated that a man came after the Prophet ﷺ had prayed. The Prophet ﷺ asked:
“Who will give charity to this man?”
Then someone stood and prayed with him.
(Tirmidhī, Book of Prayer, ḥadīth no. 220; Abū Dāwūd, ḥadīth no. 574)
Imām Tirmidhī said it is “ḥasan ṣaḥīḥ”, and Shaykh al-Albānī graded it ṣaḥīḥ.

Most Companions and Tābi‘īn held that there is no harm in multiple congregations in one mosque.
(Al-Mughnī, 10/3)