standing, and they prayed with him the remaining rakʿah. When he sat for the tashahhud, they rose and completed their prayer before the imam pronounced the taslim; then they sat for the tashahhud and pronounced the taslim with him.

Thus, in the second rakʿah, the imam’s standing was longer than his standing in the first rakʿah. However, this is how the sunnah has been transmitted, in consideration of the second group.

It Is Recommended to Wait for Someone Entering, So Long as This Does Not Cause Hardship to a Congregant

His statement, “It is recommended to wait for someone entering, so long as this does not cause hardship to a congregant,” means that it is recommended for the imam to wait for someone who enters to join him in the prayer, provided that this does not cause hardship to any congregant. If it does cause hardship to those praying with him, then it is disliked for him to do so, if not actually prohibited.

Waiting includes three matters:

1. Waiting before commencing the prayer.
2. Waiting while in bowing, especially in the final rakʿah.
3. Waiting in a posture in which one cannot catch the rakʿah, such as prostration.

As for the first—waiting for someone entering before beginning the prayer—this is not from the sunnah. Rather, the sunnah is to offer promptly those prayers which are prescribed to be offered early. As for the prayer whose delay is prescribed—namely, the ʿIsha prayer—then those entering are to be taken into consideration, because during the ʿIsha prayer, if the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—saw that they had assembled, he would hasten it; and if he saw that they were slow to arrive, he would delay it (1). This is because this prayer is not prescribed to be offered early. Thus, the Messenger—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—would prefer to delay the ʿIsha prayer; but when they had assembled, he did not wish to delay it so as not to—