Allah (may He be glorified and exalted) is immensely merciful and very generous. By His mercy to His slaves, He grants them immense reward for little effort. This hadith highlights one aspect of this mercy, as the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) explains that when the imam says Amin – which means: O Allah, answer – after reciting al-Fatihah in a prayer in which recitation is done out loud, the one who is praying behind the imam should follow him in saying Amin when he hears him say it. For if a person’s saying Amin coincides with that of the angels, in timing – or in manner, humility and sincerity – his previous sins will be forgiven. What is meant by the angels is the recording angels or, it was said, the angels who come in succession by night and day. And it was said that it refers to all the angels, based on the general meaning of the phrase, because the plural form preceded by the definite article includes all of them, in the sense that it is said by the recording angels who are present, then those who are above them, until it reaches those on high and the inhabitants of the heavens. The apparent meaning of the hadith is that the one who is praying behind the imam should say Amin after the imam says it. It was also said that the one who is praying behind the imam should say Amin at the same time as the imam, not before him and not after him. With regard to the words, “When the imam says Amin, then say Amin,” what is meant is when the imam is about to say Amin. This hadith highlights the virtue of saying Amin after reciting al-Fatihah for the imam, the one who is praying behind an imam, and the one who is praying on his own..