The Conditions of the Imam
Question:
What are the conditions of the imam who should lead the prayer?
Answer:
It was narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, “The person who is best versed in the recitation of the Book of Allah, should lead the prayer; but if all those present are equally versed in it, then the one who has most knowledge of the Sunnah…” (Muslim)
The one who most deserves to lead the prayer is the one who has most knowledge of the rulings on prayer and has memorized most of the Qur’an.
If a Prayer is to be offered in the house of a person, the person himself deserves to be the leader of prayer. However, if he allows another person to act as Imam, there is no harm.
Similarly, the appointed Imam of the mosque has a greater right to act as leader of prayer in the mosque unless he himself allows another person to lead the Prayer on that particular occasion.
To know more about the conditions of the one who can lead the prayer, you can watch this short video with Dr. Muhammad Salah.
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Source: Huda Youtube Channel.