وأولى الناس بالتقدم في جماعة، أقرؤهم للقرآن، فإن كانوا في القراءة سواء فأقدمهم هجرة، فإن كانوا في الهجرة سواء فأسنهم، فإن كانوا في السن سواء فأصبحهم وجها، وصاحب المسجد أولى بمسجده، ومن صلى بقوم وفيهم من هو أعلم منه لم يزل أمرهم إلى سفال إلى يوم القيامة.
The most rightful of the people in advancing forward (i.e. to lead the prayer) in the jama`a are: the most recite-ful of them of the Quran, so if they are equal in recitation then the senior-most of them in hijra, so if they are equal in hijra then the oldest of them, so if they are equal in age then the most comely of them in face. The owner of the mosque has the most right to his mosque. Whoever prays with a group (i.e. leads them in prayer) and in them there is someone who is more learned than him, their affair does not cease to be towards abasement to the Day of Resurrection.