Q333: Offering your place to someone in a line behind you in salaah

Question

If you are a musali and a moulana, mufti, hafiz or qari is a musali and is in the line behind you in farz namaaz in masjid, do you have to offer them your place or is this good to do?

Answer

You don’t have to offer them your place.  In fact, ibn Nujaym Misri has written in al-Ashbaah that giving preference to another in virtues is makrooh.  This is because it shows lack of interest in that virtue.  Standing in the first saff is a virtuous deed and so you should aim to get the thawaab yourself.  However, if someone really big came, e.g. your ustaad or sheikh, and you were struck by their awe and went back, then there would be no harm in there.