Answer
Wa `alaykum as-Salamu wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
In this fatwa:
Can You Hold a Second Jama`ah in the Same Mosque?
- Controversial among Islamic jurists
- Disliked by Hanafi, Maliki, and Shafi`i scholars
- Feared to cause division and abuse
- Permitted by Imam Ahmad and early Companions
- Hadith supports permissibility after first prayer
- Consensus allows it in mosques without regular Imams
Answering your question, Al-Azhar House of Fatwa, states:
Differing Juristic Views on Second Jama`ah
This issue is controversial among jurists. The Hanafi, Maliki, and Shafi`i scholars maintain that it is makruh (disliked) to hold a second jama`ah in the mosque that has a regular Imam.
Reasons for Disapproval of Second Jama`ah
The reason behind this is that it might cause dissension and hatred among people, besides some evil people may take advantage of this to delay the first jama`ah so that they could pray with an Imam who agrees with their own sect or innovated way of religion.
Majority View: Restriction in Mosques with Regular Imams
To prevent such dissension and evil schemes, the afore-mentioned jurists hold that it is not permitted to hold a second jama`ah in the same mosque where there is a regular Imam.
Minority Opinion: Second Jama`ah is Permissible After First Ends
However, Imam Ahmad, Ishaq, Ibn Al-Mundhir and โ according to At-Tirmidhi โ some Companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and their successors maintain that there is nothing wrong in people holding a second jama`ah if the regular scheduled jama`ah has already been over for the same Prayer.
Hadith Supporting the Second Jama`ah Practice
They base their argument on the hadith reported by Imam Ahmad in his Musnad and Abu Dawud in his Sunan and At-Tirmidhi on the authority of Abu Sa`id Al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) who entered a mosque after the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) had prayed, then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, โWho would like to give this man a charity by praying with him?โ Then a man (Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him) came up and prayed with him.
Reviewing these views, we conclude that the second opinion is the most correct.
Exception: Mosques Without Regular Imams
As for the mosque which does not have a regular Imam, it is held by consensus that it is not disliked to have a second jama`ah.
More comprehensive answers are included in the fatwas below:
- Is Praying in Congregation Obligatory?
- What Is the Minimal Number Required for Congregational Prayer?
- How to Catch Friday and Congregational Prayer
- Is Congregational Prayer Valid if a Woman Walks Ahead?
- Can You Pray at Home Instead of the Mosque?
Allah Almighty knows best.
Editorโs note: This fatwa is from Ask the Scholarโs archive and was originally published at an earlier date.