Performing Salaah in front of the Imaam in Masjid al-Haram

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Nasihah (Advice): Multiplied Rewards for Salaah in Masjid al-Haram

Rasulullah sallahu alaihi wa sallam said, “One Salaah in my Masjid (Masjid An Nabawi) is better than one thousand Salaah in any other Masjid except Al-Masjid AI-Haram (In Makkah), and one Salaah in Al-Masjid Al-Haram is better than one hundred thousand Salaah elsewhere.” [Sunan Ibn Majah]

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Question and Answer:

I would like to know if the Salah of those males is valid in the Haram in Makkah Mukarramah if they are praying in front of the Imam. This happens because the Imam does not pray on the Mataaf, so the men end up praying in front of him.

A. In principle, if a Muqtadi (follower) stands in front of the Imaam during Salaah, his Salaah will be rendered invalid. For the Salaah to be valid, the follower must stand behind the Imaam.

However, when performing Salaah in the Haram, this ruling is only applicable if the Muqtadi (follower) is facing the same direction of the Ka’bah as the Imaam.

However, if the Muqtadi (follower) is facing one side of the Ka’bah, while the Imaam is facing another side, this ruling does not apply, and the Salaah will remain valid even though the Muqtadi (follower) is closer to the Ka’bah than then Imaam.

In other words, the classification of being ‘in front’ of the Imaam applies only when both the follower and the Imaam are facing the same direction/wall of the Ka’bah in the precincts of the Haram in Makkah Mukarramah and anywhere else. [Tahtawi 418]

And Allah Ta’ala Knows Best

Mufti Muhammed Hamza Farooqui

Mufti Taahir Hansa

(The answer hereby given is specifically based on the question asked and should be read together with the question asked. Islamic rulings on this Q&A newsletter are answered in accordance to the Hanafi Fiqh unless otherwise stated.)

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