Praying Behind Whom You Do Not Follow

Here is a blog post by IslamicSalvation, which can be found here:

باب الصلاة خلف من لا يقتدى به

Chapter on the prayer behind one whom you do not follow (trust his faith)

محمد، عن أحمد، عن عبدالله بن محمد الحجال، عن ثعلبة، عن زرارة قال: سألت أبا جعفر (عليه السلام) عن الصلاة خلف المخالفين فقال ما هم عندي إلا بمنزلة الجدر (صحيح)

Muhammad (bin Yahya) from Ahmad (bin Muhammad) from Abdallah bin Muhammad al-Hajjal from Tha’laba (bin Maymun) from Zurara (bin A’yan) who said : I asked Aba Ja’far (a.s) about the prayer behind the opponents, so He (a.s) said : they do not have with me (in my estimation) any status except as (that given to) walls. (Sahih) 

NOTE : In other words they do not have any role in leading your prayer, just as a wall which is in front of you when you pray.

علي بن أبراهيم، عن أبيه، عن ابن أبي عمير، عن حماد بن عثمان، عن الحلبي عن أبي عبدالله (عليه السلام) قال: إذا صليت خلف إمام لا تقتدي به فاقرأ خلفه سمعت قرائته أو لم تسمع (حسن)

Ali bin Ibrahim from his father (Ibrahim bin Hashim) from Ibn Abi Umayr from Hammad bin Uthman from al-Halabiy from Abi Abdillah (a.s) who said : If you pray behind an imam you do not follow then recite behind him (al-Fatiha and the other Surah – for yourself) whether you hear him reciting it (in those prayers in which the voice is to be raised – Subh, Maghrib and Isha) or not (in those prayers in which the voice is not to be raised – Dhuhr and Asr) (Hasan due to Ibrahim bin Hashim)

محمد بن يحيى، عن أحمد بن محمد، عن الحسن بن علي بن فضال، عن ابن بكير، عن زرارة قال: قلت لابي عبدالله (عليه السلام): أكون مع الامام فأفرغ من القرأة قبل أن يفرغ قال: ابق آية ومجد الله واثن عليه فإذا فرغ فاقرء الآية واركع (موثق)

                 

Muhammad bin Yahya from Ahmad bin Muhammad from Hasan bin Ali bin Faddal from Ibn Bukayr from Zurara (bin A’yan) who said : I said to Abi Abdillah (a.s) : I am (praying behind) an imam, and I complete my recitation (of al-Fatiha and the other Surah) before he (the imam) completes reciting (al-Fatiha and the other Surah), He (a.s) said : leave (for yourself - unrecited) an Ayah (a verse from the recitation of the other Surah) and (meanwhile as the imam is finishing up his recitation you) glorify Allah (s.w.t) and magnify Him, so when he completes reciting (al-Fatiha and the other Surah) recite that Ayah and go into Rukuu. (Muwathaq due to Ibn Fadhal and Ibn Bukayr)

NOTE : The imam referred to here is clearly one who is of the opponents, and since you recite for yourself behind him - it happens that in those prayers in which the imam is to raise his voice (such as Subh, Maghrib and Isha) you are reciting parallel to him, and you may complete before he does, so the Imam (as) says - leave the last Ayah of the other Surah unrecited until the imam finishes his recitation, then you recite it and complete your recitation (meanwhile while you wait for the imam to complete his recitation you are to glorify and magnify Allah (s.w.t))

(Note that in the above comment,  Imam with a capital ‘I’ refers to the infallible Imam (a.s), and imam with a small ‘i’ to the leader of the congregational prayer and this will be the usage throughout).

علي بن إبراهيم، عن أبيه، عن حماد، عن حريز، عن زرارة قال: قلت لابي جعفر (عليه السلام): إن اناسا رووا عن أمير المؤمنين صلوات الله عليه أنه صلى أربع ركعات بعد الجمعة لم يفصل بينهن بتسليم؟ فقال: يازرارة إن أمير المؤمنين (عليه السلام) صلى خلف فاسق فلما سلم وانصرف قام أمير المؤمنين صلوات الله عليه فصلى أربع ركعات لم يفصل بينهن بتسليم فقال له رجل جنبه: ياأبا الحسن صليت أربع ركعات لم تفصل بينهن؟ فقال: إنها أربع ركعات مشبهات وسكت.

فوالله ما عقل ما قال له (حسن)

Ali bin Ibrahim from his father (Ibrahim bin Hashim) from Hammad (bin Isa) from Hariz (bin Abdillah) from Zurara (bin A'yan) who said : I said to Abi Ja'far (a.s) : the people narrate about the commander of the faithful - Ali (a.s) - that he prayed four Rakaat (units) of prayer after friday congregational prayer without partitioning between them with the Taslim (as one does in between two different - two Rakaat Mustahhab/recommended prayers), so He (a.s) said : O Zurara, indeed the commander of the faithful had prayed (the friday congregational prayers) behind a Fasiq (corrupted individual), so when he (the corrupted individual) completed that (leading the prayer) and left, the commander of the faithful stood up and prayed four Rakaat of prayers without partitioning between them with the Taslim (i.e He (a.s) prayed a complete Dhuhr), so a man who was by his side (in the row) asked him : O Abal Hassan! you have prayed four Rakaat of prayer without partitioning between them? so He (a.s) said : They are four Rakaat of ambiguous (calling into doubt the imam’s nature) Rakaat and remained silent; so (Abi Ja'far (a.s) says) : I swear by Allah (s.w.t), he the man (who had asked the question) did not understand what was said to him (by Ali (a.s)). (Hasan due to Ibrahim bin Hashim)

NOTE : The commander of the faithful had to do this because of Taqiyyah (dissimulation), and sometimes he would pray two units after the Friday congregational prayer without breaking in between making it four of Dhuhr, and what more proof of the need of the Adalah of the imam of prayers after this.