because this entails a transition from one imam to another, and a transition from following an imam to leading the prayer without an excuse. Moreover, one cannot move from a lower position to a higher one, since being an imam is a higher position than being a follower.

They also said: This was not known in the time of the Salaf. The Companions, when they had missed part of the prayer, would not agree that one of them should step forward to lead them in prayer. Had this been something good, they would have preceded us in doing it.

However, those who hold it to be permissible do not say that latecomers are required to agree that one of them should be the imam. Rather, they say that if it is done, it is permissible. There is a difference between saying that something is permissible and saying that it is recommended and legislated. Thus, we do not say that it is legislated, nor do we encourage people, when they enter after having missed part of the prayer, for one of them to say, “I am your imam.” Yet if they do so, we do not say that their prayer is invalid. This view is more correct: it is permissible, but it should not be done, because it was not known among the Salaf. Whatever was not known among the Salaf, it is better to leave, for we know that they preceded us in all goodness; had it been good, they would have preceded us in doing it.

Supplement: A summary of the aforementioned types of transitions is as follows:

The first: transitioning from praying alone to following an imam. There are two reports from Imam Ahmad regarding its validity, and the madhhab holds that it is invalid (1).

The second: transitioning from praying alone to leading the prayer. There are differing views regarding its validity. One view is that it is valid in a voluntary prayer but not in an obligatory prayer (2).