between prayer offered alone and prayer in congregation; this additional merit amounts to twenty-five degrees. The hadith mentioning twenty-seven counts his prayer alone, his prayer in congregation, and the difference in merit between them, making a total of twenty-seven.

Any devotee who imagines that praying alone—whether in seclusion or otherwise—is better is mistaken and astray. Even further astray is someone who recognizes congregational prayer only when led by the infallible imam, thus depriving the mosques of all the congregational worship commanded by Allah and His Messenger, while filling them with innovations and deviations forbidden by Allah and His Messenger. He thereby resembles someone who forbids worshipping the Most Merciful and commands worshipping idols.

For Allah, glorified is He, has prescribed prayer and other acts of worship in mosques. As He, Most High, says:

“Who is more unjust than one who prevents Allah’s name from being mentioned in His mosques and strives to bring about their ruin?”

And He, Most High, says:

“Do not have relations with them while you are observing a devotional retreat in the mosques.”

And He, Most High, says:

“Say, ‘My Lord has commanded justice. Direct your faces toward Him at every place of prayer.’”

And He, Most High, says:

“It is not for the polytheists to maintain Allah’s mosques,”

through to His words:

“Only those who believe in Allah and the Last Day, establish prayer, give zakāh, and fear none but Allah maintain Allah’s mosques. It is they who may be among the rightly guided.”

And He, Most High, says:

“In houses which Allah has permitted to be raised and His name to be remembered, He is glorified morning and evening by men whom neither commerce nor sale distracts from the remembrance of Allah”—to the end of the verse.

And He, Most High, says:

“The mosques belong to Allah, so do not invoke anyone alongside Allah.”