The cause of their divergence lies in disputing which course has greater claim and is more deserving of being followed: should the late-comer prostrate together with the imām, or should he defer the prostration to the end of his own prayer? It is as though they were all agreed that following the imām is obligatory, in view of the Messenger’s statement—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—

“The imām has only been appointed so that he may be followed.”

They then disagreed over the prostration’s proper “place” for the follower. Is its place the actual locus of prostration—that is, at the conclusion of the prayer—or is its place the moment when the imām himself prostrates? Whoever preferred synchronizing his act with the imām’s act over observing the formal place of prostration, and regarded that simultaneity as a condition for proper following—meaning that both actions truly coincide—said: “He should prostrate with the imām even though that is not his own place of prostration.”

Whoever gave priority to the place of prostration said: “He delays it until the end of his prayer.” And whoever made both matters obligatory obliged him to prostrate twice, an opinion that is weak.

Section Six
How the Congregant Alerts a Forgetful Imām

The scholars unanimously hold that the Sunnah for one who makes a mistake in his prayer is that he be prompted with tasbīḥ, and this applies to men, on the strength of the authentic report that the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—said:

“Why is it that I see you clapping so much? Whoever encounters something (unexpected) in his prayer should say ‘Subḥān-Allah’; for when he says ‘Subḥān-Allah’ he will be paid attention to. Clapping is only for women.”

They differed, however, with respect to women. Mālik and a group of scholars held that both men and women should say tasbīḥ. Al-Shāfiʿī and another group maintained that men say tasbīḥ whereas women clap.

The reason for their disagreement is how they understood the Prophet’s statement—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—“Clapping is only for women.”

Those who took the phrase at its apparent sense—that clapping is the prescribed ruling for women in cases of forgetfulness—said: “Women clap and do not say tasbīḥ.”

Those who understood the phrase as a censure of clapping replied: “Men and women are equal in saying tasbīḥ.” This, however, is weak, for it abandons the apparent meaning without evidence, save by analogy between women and men; yet women’s rulings in prayer often differ from men’s, which weakens that analogy.

[The Prostration Made on Account of Doubt]

As for the prostration of forgetfulness that is prescribed because of doubt, the jurists differed concerning one who becomes uncertain in his prayer and no longer knows whether he has prayed one, two, three, or four units. They formed three schools of thought:

1. A group said: He builds on certainty, meaning the lesser number, and recourse to weighing probabilities (taḥarrī) does not suffice; he then performs the two prostrations of forgetfulness. This is the view of Mālik, al-Shāfiʿī, and Dāwūd.

2. Abū Ḥanīfah said: If this is the first time it has happened, his prayer is invalid; but if it occurs repeatedly, he estimates on the basis of predominant thought, then performs two prostrations after the salām.