Islamic Manual

Mistakes, forgetfulness and joining late in the Eid prayer

What to do if a takbir is said wrongly, forgotten or added to, and how to join the Eid prayer after the imam has already started.

The extra takbirs of the Eid prayer have their own rules for mistakes. Here is what to do if something goes wrong.

If a takbir goes wrong

  1. You must say the opening takbir with the words "Allahu Akbar." Saying different words instead may make the prayer invalid.The book's own wording on this point is a little unclear about what happens next; ask your imam or teacher if you are unsure.
  2. If you forget one of the six extra takbirs by mistake, the prayer is fixed by doing sujood as-sahw (the extra prostration for forgetfulness) at the end.
  3. Everyone raises their hands for each of the six takbirs. If the imam forgets to raise his hands, you should still raise yours.
  4. If the imam forgets to say a takbir, do not add it in yourself, just follow what the imam does.
  5. If the imam says more than six extra takbirs by mistake, keep following him up to a total of 13 takbirs, then stop.

If you arrive late

  1. If the imam has already started, quickly make your intention and say the takbirs before joining in, even if the imam is already reciting.
  2. If the imam is already bowing (ruku), say the takbirs and then join him in ruku.
  3. If you arrive during the second rakat, wait until the imam finishes the whole prayer, then stand up and complete your own missed rakat, saying its takbirs in the right places.
  4. If you miss the Eid prayer completely, you cannot pray it by yourself. You can only pray it with a group of other people who also missed it, after the main prayer has finished.

The extra takbirs of the Eid prayer carry their own rules on wording, forgetfulness and following the imam.

Wājibmust do

The takbir al-tahrima ("Allahu Akbar") is obligatory. If anything other than "Allahu Akbar" is said, the prayer is invalid, and the person must perform sujood as-sahw.

Wājibmust do

There are six takbirs in total in the Eid prayer, and the takbir for ruku in the second rakat is also obligatory. If any of these takbirs is forgotten by mistake, sujood as-sahw becomes necessary.

Following the imam through the takbirs

  1. The takbirs are pronounced loudly by the imam.
  2. Both imam and followers raise their hands for each takbir, just as for the takbirat al-tahrima. If the imam does not raise his hands, the followers should still raise theirs.
  3. If the imam forgets a takbir, the followers should not raise their hands or say it themselves; they follow the imam's lead and leave it out along with him.
  4. If the imam adds more takbirs than the standard six, the followers continue following him up to a total of thirteen takbirs; beyond that they should not follow him further.
  5. If the imam is of one school (say, Hanafi) and the followers of another (say, Shafi'i), or the reverse, the followers follow the imam's own order of takbirs and raising of the hands.

If the imam himself forgets a takbir

  1. If he forgets a takbir in the first rakat and has already begun reciting Surah al-Fatiha, he stops, says the missed takbir, and then resumes the recitation.
  2. If he had moved on to another surah, he says the missed takbir once he finishes that recitation.
  3. If he forgets a takbir in the second rakat and only remembers once he is already in ruku, he says it while still in ruku, and does not return to standing to say it.

Joining the Eid prayer after it has started

  1. A latecomer who joins after the imam has already started should make the intention and say the takbirs before joining the prayer, even if the imam has already begun reciting.
  2. One who joins while the imam is in ruku should say the takbirs and then join the ruku. If the imam is about to lift his head from ruku before the takbirs are finished, the latecomer should go directly into ruku and say the takbirs there, without raising the hands.
  3. One who joins during the second rakat waits until the imam finishes the prayer, then stands to complete the missed rakat, saying its takbirs before the recitation in that made-up first rakat, and after the recitation if it corresponds to what would have been the second.
  4. One who finds the imam already in the tashahhud follows the imam's actions, then says the takbirs of the rakat(s) he must make up in their proper places once the imam has finished.
Wājibmust do

A person who misses the Eid prayer entirely cannot make it up alone. If others can be found who also missed it, they may pray it together as a group, once the congregation's own Eid prayer has finished, not before.

Wājibmust do

If a person's Eid prayer turns out to have been invalid for some reason (for example, realising afterwards that there was no wudu) it cannot be made up individually either; it too must be prayed again with a group.

The additional takbirs of the ʿīd ṣalāh carry a distinct set of rules on wording, on the imam's mistakes, and on the muqtadī's obligation to track him precisely.

Wājibmust do

The takbīrat al-taḥrīmah ("Allāhu akbar") is obligatory. If anything other than "Allāhu akbar" is said, the ṣalāh is invalid, and the person must perform sujūd as-sahw.

Wājibmust do

There are six takbirs in total in the ʿīd ṣalāh, and the takbīr for rukūʿ in the second rakat is likewise wājib. Where any of these is omitted by mistake, sujūd as-sahw becomes necessary.

Following the imam through the additional takbirs

  1. The imam pronounces the takbirs aloud.
  2. Imam and muqtadīs alike raise their hands for every takbir, as for the takbīrat al-taḥrīmah; if the imam omits raising his hands, the muqtadīs raise theirs regardless.
  3. Where the imam forgets a takbir, the muqtadīs neither raise their hands nor supply it themselves; they follow the imam and leave it out along with him.This is one of five acts in which the muqtadī always tracks the imam, whether the imam performs the act or forgets it: the first sitting (qaʿdah), the qunūt, sujūd al-tilāwah, sujūd as-sahw, and the takbirs of ʿīd.
  4. Where the imam adds takbirs beyond the standard six, the muqtadīs continue following him (if they can hear his voice, or otherwise the voice of the muqaddim relaying it) up to a total of thirteen takbirs, after which point they do not follow further.This is one of four acts in which the muqtadī never follows the imam, whether deliberate or by mistake: adding a rakat, standing for a fifth rakat, adding takbirs in the funeral prayer, and adding takbirs beyond the limit in the ʿīd ṣalāh.
  5. Where the imam is Ḥanafī and the muqtadīs Shāfiʿī, or the reverse, the muqtadīs follow the imam's own sequence of takbirs and raising of the hands.

If the imam himself forgets a takbir

  1. Forgetting a takbir in the first rakat, having already begun al-Fātiḥah: he stops, says the takbir, then resumes the recitation.
  2. Forgetting it while reciting a further sūrah: he says the takbir once that recitation is finished.
  3. Forgetting a takbir in the second rakat and only recalling it once in rukūʿ: he says it there, in rukūʿ, and does not return to qiyām to say it.

Joining the ʿīd ṣalāh after it has begun

  1. A latecomer joining after the imam has already begun the ṣalāh makes the niyyah and says the takbirs before joining, even where the imam has already started the qirāʾah.
  2. One who joins while the imam is in rukūʿ says the takbirs and then joins the rukūʿ; if the imam is about to raise his head from rukūʿ before the takbirs are finished, the latecomer goes directly into rukūʿ and says the takbirs there, without raising the hands.
  3. One who joins in the second rakat waits until the imam completes the ṣalāh, then rises to complete the rakat he missed, saying its takbirs before the qirāʾah where that rakat stands as his first, and after the qirāʾah where it stands as his second.
  4. One who finds the imam already at the tashahhud follows the imam's actions, then, once the imam finishes, says the takbirs due for the rakat(s) he makes up, in their proper places.
Wājibmust do

One who misses the ʿīd ṣalāh entirely may not perform it alone; he may only pray it with a group of others who likewise missed it, and then only after the congregation's own ʿīd ṣalāh has finished, not before.

Wājibmust do

Where a person's ʿīd ṣalāh proves to have been invalid for some reason (discovering afterwards, for instance, that wuḍūʾ had not been present) it likewise cannot be made up alone, and must be prayed again with a group.

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