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21 - 10 - 2025
Realizing the Last Rak'ah with the Imam in Dhuhr
I entered the mosque to perform the Dhuhr prayer and caught the last rak'ah with the imam. Naturally, I sat for the final tashahhud. After the imam's tasleem, I stood up to make up the three missed rak'ahs. The first rak'ah was without sitting for the tashahhud (according to the Hanafi method of counting), then the second rak'ah included sitting for the tashahhud, and the last rak'ah also included sitting for the final tashahhud. This means I had three tashahhuds in the prayer. Is this scenario correct?
Answer
I say, and with Allah's success: You should have sat after the first rak'ah because the rule regarding sitting is to complete what you prayed with the imam. So it would be the second rak'ah, followed by a tashahhud, and then a final tashahhud at the end of the prayer. The rule regarding reading is to make up for it, so you start counting anew, reading in the first two rak'ahs the Opening (Al-Fatiha) and a Surah. And Allah knows best.
