for doing so is preferable to lagging behind, although the delay is slight. This is thus like the case where the imam rises from the first tashahhud before the follower has completed it, while the follower considers it recommended; or where the imam gives the salutation while the follower still has a little supplication left: should he give the salutation or finish it? Such questions are matters open to scholarly judgment. The stronger view is that following the imam takes precedence over lagging behind to perform a recommended act. Allah knows best.

He—may Allah have mercy on him—was also asked:

Is raising the hands after rising from the sitting following the first two units of prayer recommended? Did the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, or any of the Companions do this?

He answered:

Yes, it is recommended according to the discerning scholars versed in the Sunnah of Allah’s Messenger, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. This is one of the two reports from Ahmad and the position of a group of his followers, followers of al-Shāfiʿī, and others. This practice is established from the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, in the Sahīh and Sunan collections. Al-Bukhārī and the Sunan collections of Abū Dāwūd and al-Nasāʾī contain the following report:

“Nāfiʿ reported that when Ibn ʿUmar began the prayer, he would say ‘Allah is the Greatest’ and raise his hands. When he bowed, he would raise his hands; when he said ‘Allah hears those who praise Him,’ he would raise his hands; and when he rose after the first two units of prayer, he would raise his hands.”

Ibn ʿUmar attributed this