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Which is better for a person who has not prayed 'Asr and finds a congregation praying a delayed Dhuhr and 'Asr (Jam' Ta'khir): should he join them for Dhuhr with the intention of 'Asr, or should he wait for them to finish Dhuhr and then join them for 'Asr?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

"The congregant is not required to have the same intention as the Imam. Thus, it is permissible for someone performing a supererogatory prayer to pray behind someone performing an obligatory prayer, and for someone performing an obligatory prayer to pray behind someone performing a different obligatory prayer. This view has been adopted by groups of scholars, including Ata, Tawus, Al-Shafi'i, and Ahmad ibn Hanbal. Nevertheless, if there is no hardship involved, it is better for the worshiper to wait for a congregation that aligns with their obligatory prayer, in order to avoid disagreement and achieve the perfection of following the Imam."

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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