Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) says: The prayer had been established, a man came running, when he reached the mosque, he was out of breath. When he stood in the row, he said: "Alhamdulillahi hamdan katheeran tayyiban mubaarakan feehi" (All praise is due to Allah, abundant, pure, and blessed praise). When the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) completed the prayer, he asked: Who among you was the one speaking? The people remained silent. He (peace and blessings be upon him) asked again: Who was the one speaking? He has said a good thing, there was nothing wrong in it. That man said: O Messenger of Allah! I had come walking quickly, when I stood in the row, I said these words. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: I saw twelve angels rushing towards it, as to who would take these words (first) upwards. Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: When any of you comes to prayer, he should come walking as usual, whatever part of the prayer he catches, he should perform, and whatever he misses, he should complete it (afterwards).

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Walk towards the mosque; this is the practice and Sunnah of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him).

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr bin al-As (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Whoever goes towards the mosque where congregation is held, each of his steps erases one sin and one step is recorded as a good deed, both while going (to the mosque) and while returning.

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: None of you should hasten from his food for the sake of prayer. Nafi’ says: When Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) would hear the iqamah while he was eating his dinner, he would not hasten (from his food).

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: Whoever performs ablution and performs it well, then goes (towards the mosque), but finds that the people have already performed the prayer, Allah Almighty will grant him a reward equal to that of those who were present at the prayer, and this will not diminish anything from their rewards.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: When the iqamah for prayer is called, do not come running for the prayer, but come in a state of calmness and dignity. Then, whatever you catch (with the imam), perform it, and whatever you miss, complete it later. For when any of you intends to pray, he is already considered to be in prayer.

Under this chapter, the following sub-chapters and hadiths have been mentioned.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: The imam is a guarantor and the muezzin is trustworthy. O Allah! Guide the imams (i.e., grant them the ability to fulfill their responsibility) and forgive the shortcomings of the muezzins.

Abu Ali Hamdani says: I set out on a journey, and with us was Sayyiduna Uqbah bin Amir (may Allah be pleased with him). We said to him, "May Allah have mercy on you, you are among the Companions of the Messenger, so please lead us in prayer." But he said: "No, because I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: Whoever leads the people in prayer, observes the correct time, and performs the prayer completely, then he will receive the reward as will the followers. And whoever falls short in any of these matters, then its sin will be upon that imam, not upon the followers."

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah, may Allah be pleased with him, narrates that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: They will lead you in prayer; if they perform the prayer correctly, you will receive the reward and so will they, and if they make a mistake, you will still receive the reward but the sin will be upon them.