SIFAT SALAAT AN NĀBI ﷺ* *(The Prophet's Prayer Described From The Beginning To The End As Though You See It) Episode 30 The Rukoo' (Bowing)

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*SIFAT SALAAT AN NĀBI ﷺ*

*(The Prophet's Prayer Described From The Beginning To The End As Though You See It)*

*Episode 30*

*The Rukoo' (Bowing)*

After completing his recitation, he (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi wa Sallam) would

pause for a moment382, then raise his hands383 in the way described

earlier under the "Opening Takbeer", say takbeer384, and make rukoo'.385

He also ordered "the one who prayed badly" likewise, saying to him, Indeed the prayer of one of you is not complete until he makes

an excellent ablution as Allaah has commanded him to ... then he

celebrates Allaah's greatness, praises and glorifies Him, then

recites the Qur'aan as much as is easy for him from what Allaah

has taught him and allowed him, then says takbeer and makes

rukoo' [and places his hands on his knees] until his joints are at

ease and relaxed386

The Rukoo' Described

"He (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi wa Sallam) would place his palms on his

knees"387, and "would order them to do likewise"388, as he ordered "the

one who prayed badly" in the afore-mentioned hadeeth. 

"He would put his hands firmly on his knees [as though he were grasping

them]"389, and "would space his fingers out"390, ordering "the one who

382 Abu Daawood & Haakim, who declared it saheeh & Dhahabi agreed.

383 Bukhaari & Muslim. This raising of the hands is reported as mutawaatir from him (Sallallaahu `Alaihi wa Sallam), as is

the raising of the hands on straightening up after rukoo`. It is the madhhab of the three Imaams Maalik, Shaafi`i and

Ahmad, and of the majority of scholars of hadeeth and fiqh. Imaam Maalik (Rahimahullaah) practised it right up to his

death, as reported by Ibn `Asaakir (15/78/2). Some of the Hanafis chose to do it, among them `Isaam bin Yusuf Abu

`Asamah al-Balkhi (d. 210), a student of Imaam Abu Yusuf (Rahimahullaah), as has been explained in the Introduction.

`Abdullaah bin Ahmad reported from his father in his Masaa'il (p. 60), "It is related from `Uqbah bin `Aamir that he said

about a man raising his hands during prayer, 'He earns ten good deeds for each such movement'." This is supported by

the hadeeth qudsi, "... he who intends a good deed and then does it, Allaah writes it down with Himself as from ten to

seven hundred good deeds", transmitted by Bukhaari & Muslim. See Saheeh at-Targheeb, no. 16. 

384 ibid.

385 ibid.

386 Abu Daawood & Nasaa'i. Haakim declared it saheeh & Dhahabi agreed.

387 Bukhaari & Abu Daawood.

388 Bukhaari & Muslim.

389 Bukhaari & Abu Daawood.

390 Haakim , who declared it saheeh; Dhahabi & Tayaalisi agreed. It is given in Saheeh Abi Daawood (809).

 

...prayed badly" likewise, saying: When you make rukoo', place your

palms on your knees, then space your fingers out, then remain

(like that) until every limb takes its (proper) place.391

"He used to spread himself (i.e., not be in a compact position), and keep

his elbows away from his sides."392

"When he made rukoo', he would spread his back and make it level"393

"such that if water were poured on it, it (the water) would stay there

(i.e., not run off)."394 He also said to "the one who prayed badly", When

you make rukoo', put your palms on your knees, spread your back

(flat) and hold firm in your rukoo'.395

"He would neither let his head droop nor raise it (i.e. higher than his

back)"396, but it would be in between.397

The Obligation of Being at Ease in Rukoo' 

He used to be at ease in his rukoo', and ordered "the one who prayed

badly" to be so, as has been mentioned in the first section on rukoo'. 

He used to say, Complete the rukoo' and sujood, for by Him in

whose Hand is my soul, I surely see you behind my back398 when

you make rukoo' and sujood.399

"He saw a man praying not completing his rukoo' properly, and pecking in

his sujood, so he said, Were this man to die in this state, he would

die on a faith other than that of Muhammad, [pecking in his

prayer as a crow pecks at blood; he who does not make rukoo'

completely and pecks in his sujood is like the hungry person who

eats one or two dates, which are of no use to him at all.400

Abu Hurairah (radi Allaahu 'anhu) said, "My close friend (Sallallaahu...

391 Ibn Khuzaimah & Ibn Hibbaan in their Saheehs.

392 Tirmidhi, who declared it saheeh, & Ibn Khuzaimah.

393 Bukhaari, and Baihaqi with a saheeh isnaad.

394 Tabaraani in Mu`jam al-Kabeer and Mu`jam al-Sagheer, `Abdullaah b. Ahmad in Zawaa'id al-Musnad & Ibn Maajah.

395 Ahmad & Abu Daawood with a saheeh isnaad.

396 Abu Daawood & Bukhaari in Juz' al-Qiraa'ah with a saheeh isnaad.

397 Muslim & Abu `Awaanah.

398 This vision was physically real, and was one of his miracles; it was confined to during prayer: there is no evidence for

it being of a general nature.

399 Bukhaari & Muslim.

400 Abu Ya`laa in his Musnad (340/3491/1), Aajuri in al-Arba`een, Baihaqi, Tabaraani (1/192/1), Diyaa' in al-Muntaqaa

(276/1), Ibn `Asaakir (2/226/2, 414/1, 8/14/1, 76/2) with a hasan isnaad, & Ibn Khuzaimah declared it saheeh (1/82/1).

Ibn Battah has a supporting mursal narration for the first part of the hadeeth, minus the addition, in al-Ibaanah (5/43/1).

 

...'Alaihi wa Sallam) forbade me from pecking in my prayer like a cockerel,

from looking around like a fox, and from squatting like a monkey."401

The Messenger of Allaah (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi wa Sallam) also used to say,

The worst thief among men is the one who steals from his prayer.

They said, "O Messenger of Allaah, how does he steal from his prayer?"

He said, He does not complete its rukoo' and sujood.402

Once, "he was praying, when he glanced out of the corner of his eye at a

man not settling his backbone in rukoo' and sujood. When he finished, he

said, O assembly of Muslims! Verily, the prayer is not valid of the

one who does not settle his spine in rukoo' and sujood."

403

He said in another hadeeth, The prayer of a man does not count

unless he straightens his back in rukoo' and sujood.404

The Adhkaar of Rukoo' 

He would say different types of remembrance of Allaah and supplication,

any one of the following at a time: 

How Perfect is my Lord, the Supreme!, three times.405 But

sometimes, he would repeat it more than that.406 Once, in night prayer,

he repeated it so much that his rukoo' became nearly as long as his

standing before it, in which he had recited three of the Long Soorahs:

Baqarah, Nisaa' and aal- 'Imraan. This prayer was full of supplication &

seeking forgiveness, and the hadeeth has already been mentioned under

"Recitation in Night Prayer."

401 Tayaalisi, Ahmad & Ibn Abi Shaibah; it is a hasan hadeeth, as I have explained in my footnotes on al-Ahkaam (1348) by

`Abdul Haqq Ishbeeli.

402 Ibn Abi Shaibah (1/89/2), Tabaraani & Haakim , who declared it saheeh and Dhahabi agreed.

403 Ibn Abi Shaibah (1/89/1), Ibn Maajah & Ahmad, with a saheeh isnaad.

404 Abu `Awaanah, Abu Daawood & Sahmi (61); Daaraqutni declared it saheeh.

405 Ahmad, Abu Daawood, Ibn Maajah, Daaraqutni, Tahaawi, Bazzaar, & Tabaraani in Mu`jam al-Kabeer, on the authority

of seven Companions. Hence this refutes those who did not accept the specification of the glorifications to three times,

such as Ibn al-Qayyim and others.

406 This can be deduced from the ahaadeeth which make it clear that he (Sallallaahu `Alaihi wa Sallam) used to make his

standing, rukoo` and sujood equal in length, as mentioned after this section.