its validity, and that if the people disperse before the closing salutation, leaving him with only women, slaves, and men who do not constitute the requisite number, the prayer is invalid. The second is that the prayer is valid if they do not disperse until he has completed one rak‘ah, by analogy with someone who catches one rak‘ah with the imam, then completes one further rak‘ah, and whose prayer counts as Friday prayer. The third is that if he begins the prayer with a congregation, his Friday prayer is valid even if they disperse before he completes one rak‘ah. The first view is more evident, and Allah, glorified and exalted, knows best.
The apparent meaning of al-Mudawwanah is that completing the prayer is permitted if, after it has begun, the people disperse, leaving a number with whom Friday prayer could not validly be established. I believe this view is based on what is reported in explanation of the saying of Allah, Almighty and Majestic:
“When they see trade or amusement, they disperse towards it and leave you standing” [al-Jumu‘ah: 11].
It is reported that only twelve men remained with the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, on that occasion. And Allah, glorified and exalted, knows best.
Section
Every condition for the obligation of the five daily prayers—puberty, sanity, freedom from menstrual and postnatal bleeding, the arrival of the prayer’s prescribed time, and being Muslim, according to the view that disbelievers are not bound by the prescribed duties of Islam—is also a condition for the obligation of Friday prayer. We have already explained the conditions specific to the obligation of Friday prayer. Likewise, every condition for the validity of prayers other than Friday prayer—such as intention, entering the prayer with the opening takbīr, facing the direction of prayer, and the like—is also a condition for the validity of Friday prayer. These are its obligatory elements, without which it is not valid. Everything that is a sunnah or a meritorious practice in other prayers is likewise a sunnah or a meritorious practice in Friday prayer.
Friday prayer also has sunnahs and meritorious practices peculiar to it, unlike the other prayers. These include bathing, applying perfume, listening attentively, setting out early, refraining from stepping over people, and other practices mentioned in the principal reference works. Success comes only through Allah, who has no partner.