al-Huwayrith and his companion: ‘When the time for prayer arrives, give the call to prayer and announce its commencement, let the older of you lead you both, and pray as you have seen me pray.’” Thus, he commanded them to pray as they had seen him pray.

This necessarily means that the imam must lead the people in prayer as the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—used to lead them. Nothing counters this or restricts its application, for an imam is subject to obligations that do not apply to one praying behind him or alone.

It is authentically reported in the two Sahīh collections from Sahl ibn Sa'd that he said: “I saw the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—stand on the pulpit and pronounce the takbīr, and the people behind him pronounced the takbīr with him while he was on the pulpit. He then moved backward and descended until he prostrated at the foot of the pulpit. He then returned to it and continued until he had completed the remainder of his prayer. He then turned to the people and said, ‘O people, I did this only so that you might follow my lead and learn how I pray.’”

In the Sunan of Abū Dāwūd and al-Nasā'ī, Sālim al-Barrād reported: “We came to Uqba ibn Amr al-Ansārī, Abū Mas'ūd, and said to him, ‘Tell us about the prayer of the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace.’ He stood before us in the mosque and pronounced the takbīr. When he bowed, he placed his hands on his knees, with his fingers extending below his knees, and held his elbows away from his sides until every part of him had come to rest. He then said, ‘Allah hears whoever praises Him.’ He rose and stood until every part of him had come to rest. He then pronounced the takbīr, prostrated, and placed his palm on the ground. He held his elbows away from his sides until every part of him had come to rest. He then raised his head and sat until every part of him had come to rest, after which he did the same once again. He then performed four units like this one, thereby completing his prayer. He then said, ‘This is how we saw the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—pray.’”