One might object: the hadith is general: “Sit down, for you have caused harm.” (1) For outwardly it appears that there was a gap, since people do not ordinarily step over others’ necks except to reach a gap.

However, the jurists—may Allah have mercy on them—excluded this case. They said: if there is a gap, then those people themselves are to blame, because they have been instructed to complete the rows from the front, one after another. If there is a gap, they have gone against this instruction; thus, the shortcoming is theirs, not that of the one stepping over them.

But the view I hold is that one should not step over people, even to reach a gap, because the underlying reason—causing harm—is present. Their failure to move forward into it may have a reason: for example, the gap may initially have been too narrow, then widened as people shifted about. In that case, there would have been no negligence on their part. Therefore, it is preferable to uphold the general meaning: one should not step over people to reach a gap. But if he does so gently and asks permission from those whom he steps over in order to reach that gap, then I hope there is nothing wrong with it.

IT IS PROHIBITED TO MAKE ANOTHER PERSON GET UP IN ORDER TO SIT IN HIS PLACE …

His statement, “It is prohibited to make another person get up in order to sit in his place”: that is, it is prohibited for someone to make another person rise from the place in which he was sitting, and then sit in his place.

His statement, “in order to sit in his place,” is a qualification based on what usually occurs, since a person will generally make another get up in order to sit in his place. Nevertheless, even if he makes another person get up without intending to sit in his place—such as by saying, “Get up from here,” and then not sitting there—it is still prohibited.