The Imaam Turning His Body To Avoid The Mic

Salaah is a very noble and virtuous Ibaadah. It is the time when a servant is subjugating himself in front of his Master and Creator. Such a noble Ibaadah should be carried out with the utmost respect and nobility. All such movements and actions which are deemed as superfluous, such as “swaying”, should be absent from such a noble Ibaadah.

Due to the placement of the mic the Imam is unable to proceed to Ruku or Sajda from Qiyaam (the standing position) or return to Qiyaam from Ruku or Sajda as one would normally do so. Rather, the Imam would have to move/sway to the left or right, as to avoid hitting the mic, which could cause him to move his face away from Qibla. This would be regarded by the Fuqaha as “Iltifaat bi wajhihi”. Iltifaat bi wajhihi done without necessity would be considered Makrooh e Tahrimi. The lack of necessity in this case can be seen from the fact that there are many other mics available which would not hinder the movements of the Imam in Salaah. It should also be noted that in an extreme case where the Imam moves his chest away from Qibla, which is termed as “Tahweelu sadr”, for the duration of one Rukn will cause the Salaah to be nullified.

One should remember that although the Salaah will be valid if “Iltifaat bi wajhihi” and “Tahweelu sadr” does not take place, the Muntadhimeen (people in charge) should change the mic so the mic does not hinder the normal movements of the Imaam in Salaah.