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Not Sunnah to Recite Thikr Collectively or to Supplicate Collectively After Prayer

Question

Salam Aleikum!
We pray fard and after immidiately we stand up moving aside praying sunnah. At the end someone say dhikr and we follow what he say "subhanallah" and we say 33 times as it same goes on elhamdulailah, Allah akbar" and imam raise hands making dua, and everyone doing the same and at the end Surah El-Fatiha! They say that is the correct way. How is it supposed to be done?
Some say it is an innovation. Is it ok if i just pray fard with them and i make dhikr alone.
Jazakallah Khaira

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ) is His slave and Messenger.

The Sunnah directive regarding the (prescribed) Thikr after the prayer is that it should be recited directly after the obligatory prayer and not after the post-prayer Sunnah. When a worshiper finishes the obligatory prayer, he should recite the post-prayer Thikr and then perform the Sunnah prayer afterward.

It is not an act of Sunnah to recite such Thikr collectively, or to make collective supplication after reciting the prescribed Thikr, or to conclude the supplication by reciting Al-Faatihah. Observing these practices regularly is considered an act of Bid‘ah (religious innovation) because it involves introducing into the religion what is not originally included in it. It was not reported that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, or the Companions used to recite the prescribed Thikr after the obligatory prayers collectively nor that he, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, used to supplicate after the prayers and the Companions would say Aameen (Amen) and conclude their supplication by reciting Al-Faatihah. None of these practices was reported and had they observed them, it would have been reported to us. Whoever does such practices has introduced into Islam something that is not genuinely a part thereof. The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “Whoever introduces into this matter of ours (i.e., Islam) that which is not part of it, his act is rejected.” [Al-Bukhari and Muslim] Another version reads: “Whoever performs an act that is not in accordance with our way (i.e., Islam), his act is rejected.” [Muslim]

Imam An-Nawawi  may  Allaah  have  mercy  upon  him said: “This Hadeeth is one of the great principles of Islam and an example of the succinct statements of the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. It is an explicit statement on rejecting all religious innovations ... This Hadeeth should be memorized and used in rebutting wrong practices and should be widely used as proof in this regard.” [End of quote]

The act of Sunnah, dear brother, in this regard is that when you pray with them and finish your prayer, you should recite the prescribed Thikr individually after the prayer. You may supplicate individually afterward if you wish. The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, was asked: “When is supplication most likely to be answered?” He said: “In the last part of the night and after the obligatory prayers.” [At-Tirmithi]

After concluding your supplication, stand up and perform the post-prayer Sunnah if you wish. It is better to perform it in your house because the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “The best prayer is the one performed at home except the obligatory one.” [Al-Bukhari and Muslim] By doing so, you would have done the post-prayer acts as prescribed.

Allah Knows best.

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