And this is the practice of some of Mālik’s followers. Others approve of supplication by the imam and those praying behind him after the salām. Some approve of this after all five prayers, while others approve of it after Fajr and ‘Asr, as some followers of al-Shāfi‘ī, Ahmad, and others have mentioned. Yet they have no Sunnah supporting this. At most, they rely on ambiguous wording or analogy, as when some say that the periods after Fajr and ‘Asr are not times for prayer, so supplication is recommended then. It is well known that where the Messenger of Allah’s established, authentic—indeed, mass-transmitted—Sunnah has already provided guidance, there is no need for ambiguous wording or analogy.

As for the statement of ‘Uqbah ibn ‘Āmir:

“The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, commanded me to recite the surahs of refuge at the end of every prayer,”

this refers to after completing the prayer. As for the report of Abū Umāmah:

“It was asked, ‘O Messenger of Allah, which supplication is most readily heard?’ He replied, ‘In the latter part of the night and at the end of the obligatory prayers,’”

this must not be restricted to the period after the salām; rather, it must include the period before the salām.

Even if it is said that it encompasses both before and after the salām, this does not entail that the imam and those praying behind him supplicating together after the salām is a Sunnah, just as it does not entail the same before the salām. Rather, if each person supplicates individually after the salām, this does not conflict with the Sunnah.

Likewise, his words, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, to Mu‘ādh ibn Jabal: