prayer in group is it mandatory?

Question

i live in a Westren non-islamic country, where masjids are far away from me and i cannot travel long distance to do my prayers in Jama'aat . according to the verse of Holy Quran "WARKUU MA'RAKEEN" translation "prostrate with prostrators" now there are so many Fiq'a and different Imams, i particularly do not follow any specific one. i only follow Quran and Sunnah. i heard in from one of the youtube channel Islamic conference that praying in JAMA"AAT is FARZ meaning obligatory according to the referred verse of Quran. i would appreciate your interpretation on this Prayers in Jama'aat. is it obligatory and what if i am not praying in Jama'at and i do it at home or at work by myself?

Answer 1

Salam brother, you say that you do not follow any Imam but you seem to be following YouTube. I would really be careful about what I hear online because anybody can post anything. You really need to check what you hear with scholars you know and trust.

That being said, here is my answer to your question and please feel free to check it. From my limited knowledge, the majority of classical Sunni scholars have said the 5 daily prayers are NOT obligatory to be performed in congregation even if you live close to a masjid. Only the Friday (Jummah) prayer is obligatory to be made in a masjid with the congregation. The Shafi school which I follow says its Fard Kiffiyah, meaning as long as someone in your community does it, you don't have to.

Any you also have to remember these scholars said these opinions in a place and time when praying in the masjid was much easier than today for most of us (especially those living in the West).

Now of course it is better and more rewarding to pray in the masjid, and if you can't make it to the masjid, it is more rewarding to pray in a group if you can make one at home with your family or in the office with any Muslim co-workers. But if you can't make it in a group then please pray by yourself (be it at the home or in the office). What is most important is that the Salah is established and Allah is remembered.

And Allah Knows best.

Answer 2

The only salat that you must do in the mosque is Salaat al Jumou'a (unless you're traveling or live at a great distance from the closest mosque)

Salat al Jamaa'a is when you're praying with at least one other prayer, and it's appreciated each time you can achieve it, but is not mandatory. But then again, you're not forced to be in a mosque to do a Jamaa'a : there's no harm to do it at home or at work.

Hope it helped !