According to this view, is the follower’s recitation of al-Fātihah when the imam recites quietly obligatory or recommended? There are two views within Ahmad’s school. The better-known view is that it is recommended; this is also al-Shāfi‘ī’s earlier view.

When the imam recites aloud, is listening obligatory or recommended? Is reciting while hearing the imam’s recitation forbidden or disliked? And is the prayer invalidated if one recites?

There are two views within Ahmad’s school and elsewhere:

The first is that reciting in these circumstances is forbidden, and that anyone who recites invalidates his prayer. This is one of the two positions within Ahmad’s school reported by Abū ‘Abd Allāh ibn Hāmid.

The second is that this does not invalidate the prayer. This is the view of the majority and the well-known position within Ahmad’s school. A comparable question concerns someone who recites while bowing or prostrating: does this invalidate the prayer? There are two positions within Ahmad’s school, for “the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, forbade reciting the Quran while bowing or prostrating.”

Those who hold that the follower should recite whether the imam recites aloud or quietly instruct him to recite only al-Fātihah when the imam recites aloud. As for anything beyond al-Fātihah, the prescribed practice is to listen rather than recite.