that any of the Companions ever recited al-Fatihah during the second pause! Had such a practice been prescribed, the Companions would have been the first to know of it and to act upon it; its complete absence therefore shows that it is an innovation. Moreover, the very purpose of the imam’s audible recitation is that the congregation should listen to it. For that reason they pronounce “amin” to his recitation in the audible prayers but not in the silent ones. If they were themselves occupied with reciting, the imam would be reading to people who are not listening, like someone addressing an audience that pays no attention to his words or delivering a sermon to hearers who are not listening—conduct the Sharia deems beneath it. Hence the hadith: “The likeness of one who speaks while the imam is giving the sermon is that of a donkey laden with books.”* Exactly the same applies to anyone who recites while the imam is reciting.” End of Shaykh al-Islam’s abridged remarks, which attest to his towering mastery of both transmitted and rational disciplines, may Allah have mercy on him. Be aware, furthermore, that many of our scholars cite the previously mentioned verse as proof that it is forbidden to omit one’s own recitation behind the imam even in the silent prayers. Ibn al-Humam says in Fath (1/241): “From the verse two requirements are inferred: listening and silence. Both must be fulfilled. The first relates exclusively to the audible prayers, whereas the second is unrestricted, so silence during the imam’s recitation is obligatory in every case.” Abu al-Hasanat al-Laknawi responded (p. 104): “There is room for objection here. The command to listen to the Quran and keep silent is not an unreasoned devotional command—as is evident—but a ruling whose rationale is unanimously accepted by those who employ analogy, just as silence is required during the Friday sermon, during Quran-recitation outside the prayer, and the like. Upon reflection no effective cause suggests itself—save that the Quran was revealed for pondering and contemplation, which cannot be achieved without attentive listening. It is well known …” * The hadith is weak, as indicated in al-Silsilah al-Daifah, no. 1760.