بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
والصلاة والسلام على أشرف الأنبياء والمرسلين
وعلى آله وأصحابه أجمعين
Saying Amen
Silently
The Ta’min,
or saying ‘Ameen’ after the recitation of Surat-al-Fatiha in the Salat for both
the Imam and the Ma’mum is from the Sunna of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. Heretical sects such as the Shi’a and the
Ibadiya (Kharijites) do not practice this Sunna. The Prophet ﷺ said:
مَا حَسَدَتْكُمُ الْيَهُودُ عَلَى
شَىْءٍ مَا حَسَدَتْكُمْ عَلَى السَّلاَمِ وَالتَّأْمِينِ
“The Jews are
not jealous of you of anything more than they are jealous of you of the Salam
and (saying) Amin.” (Sunan Ibn Maja #856)
Based on
this blessed Hadith, those people who do not verbalize the Amin in the Salat
are likened to Jews.
However,
there is a controversy over whether Amin should be recited aloud or silently in
the Salat. The Hanafi school of law famously enjoins the latter position – that
it should be recited silently.
The proof
for it being Sunna to recite the Amin silently is the Hadith narrated by Wa’il
b. HujrRA:
حَدَّثَنَا شُعْبَةُ ، قَالَ
: أَخْبَرَنِي سَلَمَةُ بْنُ كُهَيْلٍ ، قَالَ : سَمِعْتُ حُجْرًا أَبَا الْعَنْبَسِ
، قَالَ : سَمِعْتُ عَلْقَمَةَ بْنَ وَائِلٍ يُحَدِّثُ ، عَنْ وَائِلٍ ، وَقَدْ سَمِعْتُهُ
مِنْ وَائِلٍ ، أَنَّهُ صَلَّى مَعَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ
، فَلَمَّا قَرَأَ : غَيْرِ الْمَغْضُوبِ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلا الضَّالِّينَ سورة الفاتحة
آية 7 ، قَالَ : آمِينَ ، خَفَضَ بِهَا صَوْتَهُ ، وَوَضَعَ يَدَهُ الْيُمْنَى عَلَى
يَدِهِ الْيُسْرَى ، وَسَلَّمَ عَنْ يَمِينِهِ ، وَعَنْ يَسَارِهِ
Wa’ilRA
was praying with Allah’s Apostle ﷺ so when
he recited: “Not those upon whom is Your fury nor those who are astray” (Sura
1:7) he said: “Amin” subduing his voice with it. And he placed his right
hand upon his left hand, and gave Salam to his right and to his left. (Musnad
Abi Daud al-Tayalisi)
Dr. Abdullah
bin Abdul Muhsin al-Turki (b. 1940), General Secretary of the Muslim World
League, in his checking of the Musnad of Imam Abu Daud al-Tayalisi, declared
this Hadith authentic:
Those who contend that 'Amin' should be said loudly quote the Hadith which says:
ReplyDeleteوَإِذَا قَالَ وَلاَ الضَّالِّينَ . فَقُولُوا آمِينَ
When [the Imam] says "walad-dalin" say "amin"
However, the same Hadith goes on to say:
وَإِذَا قَالَ سَمِعَ اللَّهُ لِمَنْ حَمِدَهُ . فَقُولُوا اللَّهُمَّ رَبَّنَا لَكَ الْحَمْدُ
And when [the Imam] says "sami Allahu liman hamidah" say "Allahumma Rabbana lakal-hamd"
Since they don't say "Allahumma Rabbana lakal-hamd" loudly, it would be consistent to say "amin" silently too, since the Hadith makes no differentiation between the two supplications in that regard