2. "And when you journey in the earth, there is no blame on you if you shorten the prayer" (4:10).
3. "And when thou art amongst them and leadest them in prayer, let a party of them stand up with thee ........ then when they have prostrated themselves, let them go to your rear, and let another party who have not prayed come forward and pray with thee" (4:102).
4. ''And they who pass the night prostrating themselves before their Lord and standing" (25:64).
5. "Thou wilt see them bowing down, prostrating themselves, seeking grace from Allāh and pleasure" (48:29).
6, "O you who believe! Bow down and prostrate yourselves and serve your Lord" (22:77).
7. "Those who remember Allāh, standing and sitting." (3:190).
Every prayer-service consists of two, three or four units (h. 1), the unit being called a rak'ah (lit., an act of bowing) which consists of qiyām (standing) rukū' (bowing of the head and body). sajdah (prostration) and jalsah or qa'dah (sitting), in the order in which they are mentioned. These are all the worshipful positions which a man can adopt, and they are mentioned in the Holy Qur'ān in different places, not of course in this order (vv. 3-7.) It will be noted that after giving the number of rak'ahs in a particular prayer it is added. "and after it two rak'ahs" (h. 1). This latter is the supererogatory part (nafl), which is said singly and is commonly known as sunnah (the Prophet's practice), as distinguished from the congregational prayer which is called maktūbah (obligatory) (H. vii:4), and is commonly known as fardz. There is perfect agreement in the whole Muslim world as to the number of rak'ahs in the congregational service. In the case of prayers consisting of four fardz rak'ahs, the number of rak'ahs is halved when journeying, while the sunnah may be
Some points of minor importance are added at the end. The first relates to the procedure to be adopted when a mistake is made through forgetfulness (hh. 30, 31); the second to prayer when journeying and to the duration of the journey (hh. 32, 33).
*. Dhikr means literally remembrance, and in relation to prayer it includes all utterances regarding the praise and glorification of God, recitations from the Holy Qur'ān and supplications to God.
(Ah. 11, 90.)
2 'Ā'ishah reported that
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, never omitted saying four rak'ahs before Zuhr and two rak'ahs before Fajr.2
(B. 19:34.)
3 Abū Hurairah reported that
A man entered the
1. Rak'ah (from raka'a, he bent or bowed down), taken as meaning a single act of standing in prayer, is really a unit in the Islamic institution of prayer. It consists really of all the four possible worshipful positions. viz., standing, bowing down, prostration and sitting. Its full description is given in h. 4. A man first stands in prayer, then bows down, then stands upright again. then falls down in prostration. then raises himself up and sits down. then falls down in prostration again and then raises himself up again. This is called one rak'ah, After every two rak'ahs the sitting position is assumed for a longer time. The standing position is called qiyām, the bowing down rukū', the prostration sajdah and the sitting position jalsah when it is a short sitting between the two sajdahs, and qa'dah when it is a longer sitting for reciting tashahhud after two rak'ahs or at the end of prayer. This hadīth contains full details of the number of rak'ahs for the different prayers with the exception of Fajr, which consists of two rak'ahs, but the statement made here that nafl or sunnah rak'ahs were said during journeys is contradicted by Bukhārī (h. 32).
2. From the hadīth that have gone before it appears that he said two rak'ahs before Zuhr. It, is therefore, reasonable to conclude that sometimes he said two rak'ahs sunnah and sometimes four.
"When thou risest for the prayer, then perform the ablution in a right manner, then turn thy face towards the Qiblah, then say Allāhu Akbar, then recite what thou canst afford of the Qur'ān, then bow down until thou art at rest in bowing down (rukū'), then raise thyself up until thou art firm in the standing posture, then fall down in prostration until thou art at rest in prostration, then raise thyself up until thou art at rest in sitting, then fall down in prostration until thou art at rest in prostration, then raise thyself up until thou art at
(B. & M-Msh. 4:10.)
4 Abū Humaid al-Sā'idī said,
I best guard the prayer of the Messenger of Allāh, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him. When he said Allāhu Akbar4 I saw him raise his hands to his shoulders; and When he performed the rukū', he firmly held his two knees with his two hands, and he bent his back (levelling it with his head); then when he raised his head, he stood erect until every bone of the spine returned to its
3. This applies when two rak'ahs have been said.
4. This is called takbīr tahrīmah, the first takbīr with which a person enters the state of prayer.
(B. 10:145.)
5 Sahl ibn Sa'd said,
Order was given to the people that in prayer a
5. In this state the left foot was brought forward to make himself more at ease, as the sitting after the last rak'ah lasted longer. According to B. 10: 145. where a person is unable to take a particular position he may take any other in which he finds himself comfortable.
(B. 10:87.)
6 Ibn 'Abbās said,
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, was commanded that he should perform sajdah on seven members of the body, the forehead7, the two hands, the two knees and the two feet, and that. he should not arrange hair nor garments (while praying).
(B. 10:131)
7 Ibn 'Umar said,
When the Messenger of Allāh, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, sat in tashahhud8, he used to place his left hand on
6. This is the position of the hands in qiyām, whether the hands are placed on the breast or below the navel.
7. Including the tip of the nose (B. 10:135).
8. Tashahhud is the dhikr referred to in h 23. It is so called because it ends with the Kalimah Shahādah.
(M-Msh. 4:15.)
8 Anas reported on the authority of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, (who said):
"When a person is drowsy in his payers, let him go to sleep until he knows what he recites."10
(B. 4:51)
9 Abu Hurairah said,
When the Messenger of Allāh, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, got up for prayer, he used to say Allāhu Akbar when he assumed qiyām;
9. The same is the position of the hands when one sits between the two sajdahs.
10. This direction shows that the Holy Prophet wanted the people to know the significance of what they recited in their prayers. Mere repetition of words without understanding their meaning does not serve the real purpose of prayer. The recitations, which are essential in prayer-service, are so few that a child, as well as an adult, can learn their significance within three months. It may. however, be noted that some of the phrases, which are more frequently repeated in prayer, are understood by Muslims generally, whether they are educated or not. such as Allāhu Akbar, Subhāna Rabbiya-l-'Āzīm, etc. Moreover, the different postures are a great help in creating a prayerful mood.
(B. 10:117.)
11. This hadīth mentions the different adhkār to be uttered in the change from one posture to another. It will be noted that except for what is uttered in rising from rukū', Allāhu Akbar (Allāh is the Greatest) is uttered in all other changes including the one when a person enters the state of prayer.
'O Allāh! Keep faults as distant from me as the east is distant from the west; O Allāh! cleanse me of all faults as a white cloth is cleansed of dirt; O Allāh! wash away my faults
(B. 10:89.)
11 'Ā'ishah said,
The Messenger of Allāh, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, used to say, when he opened the prayer:
"Glory to Thee, O Allāh! and Thine is the praise, and blessed is Thy name and exalted is Thy majesty and there is none to be served besides Thee"
(AD-Msh. 4:11.)
12 Anas reported that
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, and Abu Bakr and 'Umar used to open the prayer with al-hamdu lillāhi Rabbi-l-'ālamīn.13
(B. 10:89.)
12. The dhikr mentioned in this hadīth and the next goes by the name of istiftāh which means the desiring to open, the real opening of prayer being the chapter Fātihah as noted in h. 12.
13. The opening of the Holy Qur'ān is thus also the opening of prayer, Prayer is said to open with al hamdu li-llāhi (the Fātihah), because it is with this prayer that the imām opens the prayer in a loud voice, the dhikr called istiftāh being uttered individually in a voice audible to oneself only.
"There is no prayer for him who does not recite the Opening (chapter) of the Book."14
(B. 10:95.)
14 Abu Mūsā said,
The Messenger of Allāh, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, said:
"When you pray, set right your ranks; then one of you should act as your imām, so when he says the takbīr, say the takbīr, and when he says ghairi-l-maghdzūb-i 'alai-him wa la-dzzāllīn, say āmīna,15 Allāh will accept your prayer.
(M-Msh. 4:12.)
14. The Fātihah is thus an essential part of every rak'ah of every prayer. Abu Hurairah is reported to have said that the Fātihah should be recited in a low voice even when following the imām (M-Msh. 4:12).
15. Āmīna (from the root amn meaning security) occurs always with fatihah over the final letter, and it means O Allāh! Listen to or Answer my prayer or May it be so! (N). It is generally uttered at the end of prayers: when the imām utters a prayer, those who follow say āmīna, The Fātihah being a prayer is generally followed by āmīna and when the imām recites the Fatihah in a loud voice, those who follow should say āmīna in a loud voice. Bukhārī has a chapter (10:111) with the heading "The saying of the imām āmīna in a loud voice", and under this head he says: "Ibn al-Zubair and those behind him said āmīna until there was an echo in the mosque".
(B. 10:109.)
16 Abū Rāfi' said,
I said with Abu Hurairah the 'Ishā' prayer, and he recited Idha-l-samā' u-nshaqqat (ch. 84), and performed sajdah17. I enquired from him, and
16. In the first two rak'ahs of all prayers, some portion of the Holy Qur'ān is added to the Fātihah, but in the third and fourth rak'ahs only the Fātihah is recited. There are many hadīth in which it is related that the Holy Prophet recited such and such a sūrah in the Maghrib, 'Ishā' or Fajr prayer, the recitation in these three prayers being in a loud voice, as against the Zuhr and 'Asr prayers in which the recitation was in a voice audible to oneself.
17. There are several verses in the Holy Qur'ān, fourteen in all, the recital of which is followed by an actual prostration. One such verse occurs in ch. 84. The practice of the Holy Prophet was that he performed a sajdah on the recital of such a verse even when he recited it in prayer-service.
(B. 10:100.)
17 'Ā'ishah said,
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, used to say in his rukū' and in his sajdah:
"Glory to Thee, O Allāh, our Lord! And Thine is the praise; grant me protection, O Allāh!"
(B. 10:121)
18 Hudhaifah reported that
He prayed with the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, and he (the Prophet) used to say in his rukū', 'Glory to my Lord, the Great', and in his sajdah, 'Glory to my Lord, the Most High', and he did not recite any verse speaking of Divine mercy but he paused and asked (for mercy), and he did not
(Tr-Msh. 4:13.)
19 Rifā'ah said,
We were one day praying behind the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, So when he raised his head from rukū' (and) said, 'Allāh listens to him who praises Him," a man behind him said, Our Lord! And Thine is the praise, abundant praise, most excellent, blessed therein. When he finished (the prayer), he said, "Who uttered (the words)?" The man said, I. He said, I saw over thirty angels hastening
18. This shows that the whole prayer should be made a supplication to God, so that even when reciting the Qur'ān in prayer one should make supplications to the Divine Being for His mercy and seek refuge in Him.
The dhikr in rukū' and sajdah, as mentioned in this hadīth, should be repeated thrice at least, as other hadīth show.
(B. 10:126.)
20 Abū Hurairah said, O And when the Messenger of Allāh, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, raised his head saying, "Allāh listens to him who praises Him, our Lord! and Thine is the praise" he used to pray for some people mentioning them by name and said:
"O Allāh! Deliver Walīd ibn al-Walīd and Salamah ibn Hishām, and 'Ayyāsh ibn Abī Rabī'ah and the weak from among the believers; O Allāh! make severe Thy hold on Mudzar and make these to them years (of draught) like the years of Joseph"20
(B. 10:128.)
19. From this it appears that those who prayed were not bound by uttering only prescribed words but were free to give vent to their feelings as best they could. The dhikr mentioned here is now generally adopted, as it was approved by the Holy Prophet.
20. The prayer after rising from rukū' is known as qunūt, the name given to the
(M-Msh. 4:14.)
22 Ibn 'Abbās said,
The Messenger of Allāh, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, used to say between the two sajdahs: "O Allāh! Forgive me and have mercy on me and guide me and grant me security and grant me sustenance."
(AD-Msh. 4:14.)
21. The state of sajdah or prostration is a state of utmost humility. and the humbler a man feels before the Great Maker, the nearer he is to Him. He is told to make most of his petitions in this state. These petitions may be made in any language. Undoubtedly those made in the language which a man generally speaks would give the best expression to his deep feelings and are most fitted to lay open his mind before God.
"Do not say, Peace be on Allāh, for Allāh is the Author of peace; but say, 'All services rendered by words and bodily actions and sacrifice of wealth are due to Allāh. Peace be to Thee, O Prophet! and the mercy of Allāh and His blessings. Peace be to us and the righteous servants of Allāh,'--for when you say this, it reaches every servant ( Of Allāh) in heaven and in earth--'I bear witness that none deserves to be worshipped
(B. 10:150.)
24 Abd Allāh ibn Mas'ūd said,
I was saying prayers, and the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, was present and Abu Bakr and 'Umar were with him. When I assumed the sitting posture, I began with extolling Allāh, then I repeated salā on the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, then I prayed for myself." The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, said, "Ask (and) thou wilt be given,
22. As other hadīth show, this prayer is offered in the sitting position, called qa'dah, which is necessarily adopted after every two rak'ahs and after the final rak'ah. It is known as tashahhud on account of the shahādah (bearing of witness) in the concluding sentence.
23. This, of course, was as taught by the Holy Prophet himself. The extolling of Allāh is as taught in h. 23, the salā on the Holy Prophet as taught in h. 25 and the prayer for oneself as taught in h. 26 and other hadīth.
(Tr-Msh. 4:16.)
25 'Abd al-Rahmān said,
We' said, O Messenger of Allāh! How should we offer you salā? ........ He said, "Say:
'O Allāh! Exalt Muhammad and the true followers of Muhammad as Thou didst exalt Abraham and the true followers of Abraham, for Thou are Praised, Magnified. O Allāh! Bless Muhammad and the true followers of Muhammad as Thou didst bless Abraham and the true followers of Abraham, for Thou are Praised, Magnified."25
(B. & M.-Msh. 4:16.)
24. This is meant to lay stress on the fact that the observance of prayer does not mean the utterance of certain stated formulæ only; it is really an occasion of opening one's mind before the Maker to its fullest extent.
25. The salā on the Holy Prophet, as the words show, is really a prayer for the exaltation and spread of the Holy Prophet's cause; in other words, for the exaltation and spread of truth in the world.
"O Allāh! I seek refuge in Thee from the punishment of the grave,26 and I seek refuge in Thee from the tribulation of al-Masīh al-Dajjāl27 (the Anti-Christ), and I seek
26. The grave really stands for the condition after death till the day of Resurrection.
27. Al-Masīh is the Arabic word for the Messiah or the Christ, and al-Dajjāl (from dajl meaning covering or covering of truth with falsehood) is the Anti-Christ, so called "because he will cover the earth with his adherents," or "because of his lying in arrogating to himself godship." or "because he will traverse most of the regions of earth", or "because he will cover mankind with his infidelity", or "because he will cover the truth with falsehood," or "because he will involve men in confusion or doubt by falsehood or will manifest the contrary of what he conceals," or from dajjāl, signifying gold or gold-wash for gilding, "because treasures will follow him wherever he goes," or from dajjāla, signifying a great company of men journeying together covering the ground by their multitude or carrying goods for traffic. (LL.)
The tribulation of the Anti-Christ is spoken of as the greatest tribulation that has appeared in the world, and it is stated in hadīth that the first and the last ten verses of the chapter entitled Kahf (ch. 18) afford a protection from it: "He who remembers the first ten verses of the chapter entitled the Cave is protected from the tribulation of the Dajjāl" (A.D. 36:14; Tr. 31:59; IM. 36:33; Ah. VI, 446). Now the verses referred to speak of the Christian doctrine, and therefore there is not the least doubt that the tribulation of the Dajjāl means the tribulation of the Christian or materialistic civilization with which we are faced in these days, and the name Anti-Christ given to it is due to the fact that it is opposed to the true teaching of Christ, who never taught the doctrines of Sonship and Atonement.
(B. 10:149.) 27 'Abd Allāh said, The Messenger of Allāh, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, used to utter taslīm on his right hand side, "Peace be on you and the mercy of Allāh", until the white of his right cheek could be seen, and on his left, "Peace be on you and the mercy of Allāh", until the white of his left cheek could be seen.28 (AD-Msh. 4:17.) 28 Ibn 'Abbās reported that 28. The Taslīm is the final act of prayer, and its words are the same as the words of the greetings of Muslims to each other. It may be noted that the prayer of the Muslim begins with the greatness of Allāh (in Allāhu Akbar) and ends with the mercy of Allāh (in rahmatu-llāh). (B. 10:155.) 29 Thaubān said, When the Messenger of Allāh, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, turned back from his prayer, he used to resort to istighfār thrice, and said: "O Allāh! Thou art the Author of peace and from Thee is peace, Blessed art Thou, O Lord of Glory and Honour." (M-Msh. 4:18.) 30 Abd Allāh ibn Buhainah ...... said, The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, led them in the Zuhr (prayer), and he stood up after the first two raka'ahs and did not sit, and the people 29. This hadīth and h. 29 speak of the dhikr uttered individually in a loud voice when the congregational service was over. The practice now generally in vogue--the imām and the congregation raising hands in silent prayer--cannot be traced to the Holy Prophet. (B. 10:146) 31 Abū Sa'īd said, The Messenger of Allāh, peace and blessings of Allāh be on him, said: "When one of you has a doubt about his prayer and he does not know how many rak'ahs he has said, whether three or four, let him dismiss the doubt and 39. The Holy Prophet forgot to sit after the second rak'ah and performed two sajdahs before taslīm. This is called sajdah al sahw, sahw meaning forgetting. Another hadīth shows that the Holy Prophet said two rak'ahs instead of four, and when he was informed of it, he first completed the number and then performed two sajdahs (B. 22:3). According to another hadīth (B. 8:31; 22:2) when five rak'ahs were said instead of four, and the Holy Prophet was informed of this after finishing the prayer, he performed only two sajdahs which were followed by taslīm. In all cases the sajdahs were followed by taslīm. only. In 22: 4, Bukhārī quotes Qatādah that there is no additional tashahhud in cases of forgetfulness. When the imām makes a mistake, any one of those following him may point it out to him simply by saying Subhān Allāh, the implication being that every human being is liable to error.
