Is it permissible to displace a person from their established seat so another may sit there?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Friday Prayer
Primary text
It is prohibited to have one person displace another from their sitting place for someone else to occupy it. This prohibition applies whether the seat is permanently reserved for someone, designated for a teaching circle (*halaqah*), or a circle of jurists discussing matters, or if it has no such established designation. The evidence for this is the prohibition stated by the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him: "The Messenger of Allah forbade a man from displacing his brother from his seat and sitting in it." This is based on the principle that the mosque is the House of Allah, and all people are equal within it, as indicated by the Divine Statement: {Alike for the resident therein and the visitor} (Quran 2:25). Generally, whoever precedes another to a location has the greatest right to it, evidenced by the Hadith: "Whoever precedes to water not previously preceded by a Muslim, he has the greatest right to it." This principle applies to seats in markets, water sources, and mineral sites.
Supporting text
If a person sends a proxy to reserve a seat and then the proxy vacates it upon the arrival of the person who sent him, this is permissible because the proxy moves by the choice of the sender. A similar ruling applies if the person who stood up was not a proxy but moved voluntarily so another could sit in their place; they are treated the same as a proxy. However, if the person who initially stood up moves to a lesser location, such as one further away from the Imam where hearing the sermon is impaired, it is disliked (*makruh*) because they are negatively affecting themselves concerning religion. An alternative view suggests it is not disliked, drawing analogy from the established practice of positioning the best people closest to the Imam.