16.1 CHAPTER: DESCRIPTION OF THE PRAYER
He then raises his head whilst saying the takbir and sits upon his legs with the left foot lying prone and the right foot placed upright. He then says, “Rabi ighfirli.” He prostrates again in a similar manner to the previous one.
“He then raises his head”: From his prostration whilst saying, “Allahu akbar.”
“And sits upon his legs”: Between the two prostrations. The Prophet(pbuh) said: “Then sit until you are calmly sitting.”(An extract from the hadith of the ill-performed prayer as reported by al-Bukhari (1/192, (8/68), Muslim (2/10-11) which was narrated by Abu Hurairah.) A person is deemed to have omitted a pillar (rukn) of the prayer if he does not sit between the two prostrations.
“With the left foot lying prone and the right foot placed upright”: The outside of the left foot is placed upon the ground and he should sit upon the sole of the left foot. The toes of the right foot should press against the floor whilst the right ankle is upright.
“Rabi ighfirli”: (Reported by Ahmad (5/398), Abu Dawud (874), al-Nasai (2/231) and Ibn Majah (897) as narrated by Hudhayfah.) I.e. “O Lord forgive me” is read during the sitting. He can also read, “Allahumma ighfirli warhamni wa afini wa ihdini warzuqm which means, “O Allah, forgive me, have mercy on me, protect me, guide me and
provide for me.”This was read by the Prophet(pbuh).(Reported by al-Tirmidhi (284), Abu Dawud (850) and Ibn Majah (898) as narrated by Ibn Abbas.)
“He prostrates again in a similar manner to the previous one”: He repeats the prostration once more.
Following that, he rises back to the standing position whilst saying the takbir using the balls of his feet and supported by his knees if convenient. He prays the second rakat (unit) as he did the first but excludes the takbiratul ihram , the opening supplication ( istiftah ), the ta’uthu and no new intention is required.
“Following that, he rises back to the standing position”: For the second rakat. He says the takbir as he does so.
“Using the balls of his feet and supported by his knees if convenient”: This describes how one should rise again to the standing position. The balls of the feet are used to push oneself up, whilst using the knees as support. This is if it is convenient for him. If this brings forth difficulty e.g. for the frail, elderly and disabled, they can just use their hands as support to rise up. This is indeed permissible.
“He prays the second rakat (unit) as he did the first”: Similar to the first rakat.
“But excludes the takbiratul ihram’-. As it is performed only in the first rakat.
“The opening supplication (istiftah)”‘. This (i.e. “Subhanaka allahuma wa bihamdika”) is also read only in the first rakat.
“The opening supplication (istiftah)”‘. This (i.e. “Subhanaka allahuma wa bihamdika”) is also read only in the first rakat.
“The ta’uthu”-. I.e. to seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan.This is also read only in the first rakat.
“And no new intention is required”: The second rakat does not require a new intention of its own. The one intended in the beginning of the prayer shall suffice.
Then he sits and places his hands on his thighs. He curls up the little and ring fingers of the right hand while making a ring with his middle finger and thumb. He points with his index finger during the tashahud. The left palm is left resting on the left thigh. He then says, “ Attahiyatu lillahi wa salawatu wa tayyibat. Assalamu ‘alayka ayyuha annabiyyu wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu. Assalamu ‘alayna wa ‘ala ‘ibadillahi salihin. Ashadu an la ilaha illallah wa ashadu anna muhammadan ‘abduhu warasuluhu.”This is the first tashahud.
“Then”: After concluding the second rakat, he sits down resting upon his left leg while keeping his right foot upright like the sitting between the two prostrations.
“And places his hands on his thighs”: While sitting.
“He curls up the little and ring fingers of the right hand while making a ring with his middle finger and thumb. He points with his index finger during the tashahud. The left palm is left resting on the left thigh”: A ring shape is made by putting the tip of the thumb and middle finger together. He points with his index finger but does not shake it. This was the way the Prophet(pbuh) did it.(Reported by A bu Dawud (989), al-Nasai (3/37) from the narration of Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr who said, “Verily the Prophet used to point with his index finger when he made du’a and he never shook his finger.”)
The pointing of the index finger indicates the oneness of Allah (tawhid). As for the left hand, it just rests on the left thigh with the palm facing down. The fingers are not spread out but placed together. Then begins the first tashahud:
“Attahiyatu lillahi”: I.e. that all glorification uttered in the bowing and prostration is to Allah(swt).
“ Wa salawatu”: I.e. that all prayers, obligatory and optional, are for Allah. None can have a share o f it, as in the ayahs: {Say, “Indeed, my prayer, my rites of sacrifice, my living and my dying are for Allah, Lord of the worlds.”}(Al- an’am 162) And {So pray to your Lord and sacrifice [to Him alone].}(Al-Kawthar: 2) It is said that “salawat” refers to all acts of worship and that they are all dedicated to Allah; a clear indication of the oneness of Allah and the negation of associating partners with Him.
“ Wa tayyibat”: This means “goodness” of all speech and actions. The Prophet(pbuh) said, “Verily Allah is good and He accepts nothing but goodness.”(Reported by Muslim (3/85), Ahmad (2/328) and al-Tirmidhl (2989) from the narration of Abu Hurairah. ) Allah says: {To Him ascends good speech.}(Fatir: 10)Allah encompasses good speech and actions. He encompasses charity as well.
“Assalamu ‘alayka ayyuha annabiyyu wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu”: Meaning,
“Peace be upon you, O Prophet, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.” This is a supplication for the safety of the Prophet(pbuh) from all harm. The word “assalam” could also mean, “The name of Allah upon you,” for “al-Salam” is one of Allah’s names. The second person narrative is used though the Prophet has passed away.This is to accentuate his presence in our thought process. Furthermore, this was how it was taught to us by the Prophet(pbuh).
“Assalamu ‘alayna wa ‘ala ‘ibadillahi salihin After sending salutations to the Prophet(pbuh) he sends salutations to all pious servants of Allah from among the angels and mankind. He sends salutations to those who prayed alongside him and all the pious servants in the heavens and the earth. This is because all Muslims are brethren.
“Ashadu an la ilaha illallah wa ashadu anna muhammadan ‘abduhu wa rasuluhu
This is the testification of faith i.e. “I testify that there is no deity worthy of being worshipped besides Allah, and that Muhammad is His slave and messenger.” He(swt) possesses nothing from His uluhiyyah, rububiyyah, or rights of worship, rather he is a slave of Allah.
“This is the first tashahud”: There is another tashahud that comes later which is
slightly different. More will be discussed at the appropriate time.
Then he says, “Allahumma sali ‘ala Muhammadin wa ‘ala ali Muhammadin, kama salayta ‘ala ali Ibrahim. Innaka hamidun majid. Wa barik ‘ala Muhammadin w a ‘ala ali Muhammadin kama barakta ‘ala ali Ibrahim. Innaka hamidun majid.”
This is included with what is read in the first tashahud as mentioned earlier.
“Allahumma salli ‘ala Muhammadin”‘. Which means, “O Allah! Bestow your favour upon Muhammad.” Favours of Allah are praises for His slaves mentioned in the high heavens. At this juncture, we implore Allah to praise His Prophet(pbuh) in the high heavens. This is one of his rights binding upon us.
“Wa ‘ala ali Muhammadin… Innaka hamidun majid”: This means, “And upon the family of Muhammad… Verily You are praiseworthy and most glorious. ” This supplication is also for those who are dear to the Prophet(pbuh) from among the Muslims and those who follow him. All these people are included in the “family of Muhammad.”
“Kama salayta ‘ala ali Ibrahim”‘. This means, “As you bestowed favours upon the family of Ibrahim .’’This is a direct reference to the ayah in the Quran: {May the mercy of Allah and His blessings be upon you, people of the house. Indeed, He is Praiseworthy and Honourable.}(Hud: 73) Here the one praying seeks for the family of Muhammad all that which Allah bestowed upon the family of Ibrahim.
“Wa barik”: This means to send down blessings, which refers to prosperity, perpetual goodness and a constant level of deep faith. We seek these for the Prophet(pbuh) and his family also.
“Kama barakta ‘ala ali Ibrahim. Innaka hamidun majid”: Just as Allah mentions
in the ayah above.
He seeks refuge in Allah (which is optional) from the torments of Jahannam, the torments of the grave, the trials of life and death and the trials of al-Masih al-Dajjal.
“He seeks refuge in Allah”: By reciting the supplication, seeking only Allah’s help.
“From the torments of Jahannam”: This is another name for the Hellfire and it has many names: Jahannam, al-Nar, Saqr, al-Hawiyah, al-Jahim and al-Sa’ir. (See al-Jami’ al-Ahkam al-Qur’an by al-Q urtubi (10/21).)
“The torments of the grave”: A consensus regarding the occurrence of torment in the grave can be drawn from the multitude of ahadith mentioning it and the collective agreement of Ahlus Sunnah wal Jama ah regarding it. None refutes this except the innovators such as the M u’tazilah, who are guided by only their intellect. Ahlus Sunnah wal Jama’ah, on the contrary, do not interpret affairs of the unseen world with their intellect. The torment of the grave is from the unseen about which only Allah knows. Allah and His Messenger confirm the events of the unseen world and the torment of the grave is one such event. Whoever refutes its occurrence is a transgressing innovator.
The grave is either a garden from the gardens of Paradise or a pit from the pits of Hellfire. The life in the grave is known as al-Barzakh. It is named as such because it is a middle ground between the life of this world and the hereafter, a station between the two worlds.
“Trials o f life”: As long as man lives in this world, he shall face trials. So he should seek help to be steadfast in his din and seek refuge from becoming deviated like the numerous people who deviated after knowing the truth. So you should ask Allah that He make you steadfast upon the truth.
“And death”: What is referred to here is the trials that one faces as death approaches. Indeed, a person may be pre-destined to have a wretched end where he dies in disbelief and so becomes an inhabitant of the Hellfire. Shaytan appears to him during the throes o f death and offers him the religions of disbelief hoping that man will succumb to his whispers and fall into his deception. That man then dies as a disbeliever. Allah says: {And say, “My Lord, I seek refuge in You from the incitements of the devils, and I seek refuge in You, my Lord, lest they be present with me.”}(Al-Mu’minun: 97-98)
Trials of death can also be interpreted as torment o f the grave. What is apparent, and Allah knows best, is that it is a combination of the trials faced when death approaches and whatever torments that come afterwards in the grave.The Prophet said, “Verily this Ummah will face trials in the grave.”(Reported by M uslim (8/161), Ahmad (3/346) from the narration of Abu Sa’id al-Khudri.) This trial begins with the appearance of the two angels who ask the grave dweller, “Who is your creator? What is your religion? Who is your prophet?” If he replies, “Allah is my creator, my religion is Islam and my prophet is Muhammad(pbuh)”, he is victorious and has succeeded. His grave turns into a garden from the gardens of Paradise. However, if he stammers and is not able to reply and says, “I don’t know. I heard people say something and I repeated it.’’The grave con
stricts him and a door of hell is opened, exposing him to some of its torments. May Allah protect us from it.(This is an excerpt from a lengthy hadith narrated by al-Bara Ibn A zib detailing the trials of the grave and the questioning by the two angels. Reported by Ahmad (4/287-288), Abu Dawud (3212,4753), Ibn Majah (1548) and al-Nasa’i (4/78).)
“And the trials of al-Masih al-Dajjal”: He shall appear before the end of time. He will be amongst the Jews and will have Jewish followers. He will bring about such catastrophic trials that none will be spared from it except the people of true faith. A great number of people will follow him, may Allah protect us from it. His trials are so severe that he shall possess Paradise and Hell. He will command the skies and it will rain. He will ordain the earth and it shall grow vegetation, and he will command it and its deep hidden treasures shall come forth. Allah shall empower him with such abilities as a trial for men. The Dajjal will even claim he is Allah!(Reported by Muslim (8/196-198), Ahmad (4/181), Abu Dawud (4321) and al-Tirmidhi (2240) from the narration of al-Nawas ibn Sam’an.)
There has not come a prophet except that he had warned his nation regarding
the Dajjal(Reported by al-Bukhari (2/117), (4/1639), (8/49) and Muslim (8/192) from the narration of Abdullah ibn Amr.) and our Prophet Muhammad(pbuh) warned the most about him. Then the Messiah, Isa ibn Maryam shall descend and kill Dajjal at a place called Bablot in Palestine. Only then will the Muslims be free from the Dajjal’s evil.
“Masih”: Dajjal is called this because he will sweep the lands extremely quickly or it could refer to him being blind in one eye.
“Al-Dajjal”: This means “liar”.
This is a great supplication (dua’) that all Muslims should learn the meaning of and ponder upon. They should make this supplication with all of their hearts.
The majority of scholars hold the view that reading it is recommended(See Shark Sahih al-Muslim by Imam al-Nawawi.) only and there is no sin if one leaves off reading it. Hence it is optional. However some scholars consider it mandatory(Ibid.) as it was a command from the Prophet(pbuh) who said, “Seek refuge in Allah from four [things].”(Reported by al-Bukhari (2/124) and M uslim (2/93-94) from the narration of Abu Hurairah.)
He makes supplications that are authentic and then makes salam to his right saying, “ Assalamualaykum wa rahmatullah” and does likewise to his left. If he is performing a prayer consisting of a third or fourth rakat, he should get up immediately after the first tashahud. He prays the other rakat like the second rakah; by reading “ al-Hamd ” only. Following that, he sits in tawarruq for the final tashahud. The females do likewise except that they should sit compacted and lower their legs on the right side.
“He makes supplications that are authentic”: That are found in the Qur’an and Sunnah. Examples would be, “Allahumma inni a’udhu bika minal ma’thatn wal maghram,”(Reported by al-Bukhari (1/211), (3/154) and Muslim (2/93) from the hadith of ‘Aishah.)“Rabbana atina fiddunya hasanah wafil akhirati hasanatan waqina ‘adhaban nar,”(Al-Baqarah: 201) and, “Rabbana innaka jami’un nasi liyawmin la raybafihi. Innallaha la yukhliful mi’ad.”(Ali ‘Imran: 9)
He can supplicate other such authentic supplications from the Quran and Sunnah or those which concur with it. The Prophet(pbuh) said, “Then let him choose to supplicate that which is interesting to him .”(Reported by al-Bukhari (1/212) and Muslim (2/14) from the narration of Abdullah ibn Masud.) He should supplicate for the well-being of his faith and his worldly affairs. He should supplicate for himself and for all Muslims, be they alive or dead, and should do it profusely. Verily supplication while performing an act of worship is better than when done at other times.
“And then makes salam to his right”: Saying, “Assalamu’alaykum wa rahmatullah”.
“And does likewise to his left too”: As the Prophet(pbuh) said, “The tahrim (commencement) is the takbir and the tahlil (conclusion) is the taslim.”(Reported by Ahmad (1/123), Abu Dawud (61, 618), al-Tirmidhi (3) from the narration of Ali ibn Abi Talib.) So the prayer is concluded by saying the salam. He makes salam to himself and to all those who are present for the prayer.
“If he is performing a prayer consisting of a third or fourth rakat, he should get up immediately”: Saying “Allahu akbar” as he gets up.
“After the first tashahud”. I.e. after completing the first tashahud.
“He prays the other rakat like the second rak’ah’, by reading “al-Hamd’ only”: He should start his third and fourth rakat with only Surah al-Fatihah and no recitation from the Quran following it. He should not read another surah along with it. This is the authentic way and that which is well-known to the scholars.(See al-Mughni (2/281).)
“Following that, he sits in tawarruq for the final tashahud”: Distinguishing the first tashahud from the second.To sit in tawarruq, one should place the left side of his rear end on the ground and raise the right side. The left foot goes under the rested side of the rear end. The top of the foot faces the ground, the inner side faces upwards, and it is bent towards the right side. The right foot is folded in a way that the foot is upright. (Al-Dar al-Naqi (1/213).)
“The females do likewise”: The female does and says everything that the males do, except for the minor differences that follow.
“Except that they should sit compacted”: She does not lean her body like the men do but she compacts herself.
“And lower their legs on the right side”: She does not sit on her rear end but sits on her legs with both feet to the right. The right foot is not kept upright but is let to rest on her left foot.
By Shaykh Salih ibn Fawzan al-Fawzan
Comments
John Doe
23/3/2019Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.
John Doe
23/3/2019Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.
John Doe
23/3/2019Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.