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What are the rulings for the Sunnah prayers performed before and after the obligatory prayers, and how is the prayer shortened when the Imam begins the call to prayer, and how is the prayer completed for someone who joins late, clarifying what is recited therein, and what does one who is reciting the Qur’an do when the prayer is established, and what are the sayings and actions recited with the Imam in congregational prayer?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

Shyness from asking about matters of religion is blameworthy modesty. It is better to perform the regular Sunnah prayers (Rawatib) at home rather than in the mosque. It is not permissible to perform them before the time for their associated obligatory prayer begins. The time for the Sunnah prayer performed after an obligatory prayer continues until the time for that obligatory prayer ends. These Sunnah prayers are supererogatory, not obligatory. If you begin the Tahiyyat al-Masjid (prayer upon entering the mosque) and the Khatib (preacher) ascends the minbar, complete the prayer but make it brief. It is Sunnah to perform Tahiyyat al-Masjid even if you enter while the Imam is delivering the sermon. If you miss rak'ahs with the Imam, make them up after he says the taslim. Congregational prayer in the mosque is obligatory for the able-bodied man who hears the call to prayer. It is permissible to hand a Mus'haf (copy of the Qur'an) to someone to place it in its designated spot to avoid stepping over people's necks, and it is permissible to step over necks for this purpose, except after the Khatib has ascended the minbar for the Friday sermon. For further knowledge, please refer to the book Sifat al-Salat (The Manner of Prayer) by Sheikh Al-Albani and some specific fatwas. It is also advisable to connect with students of knowledge to cooperate in gaining a deeper understanding of the religion.

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

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