Establishing the Prayer and the Sunnah Regarding Them

It wasnarrated that ‘Imran bin Husain said: “The Messenger of Allah(ﷺ) said the Salam after three Rak’ah for ‘Asr, then he stoodup andwent into the apartment. Khirbaq, a man with big hands, stoodup andcalled out: ‘O Messenger of Allah! Has the prayer beenshortened?’ Hecame out angrily, dragging his lower garment, andasked about it, andwas told (what had happened). So he performed theRak’ah that he hadomitted, then he said the Salam, then heprostrated twice and said theSalam again.”

It wasnarrated from Abu Hurairah that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: “TheSatancomes to any one of you while he is praying and comes betweenhim andhis soul, until he does not know whether he as added somethingoromitted something. If that happens, then he should prostrate twicebefore the Salam, then he should say the Salam.”

It wasnarrated from Abu Hurairah that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: “TheSatancomes between the son of Adam and his soul, and he does not knowhowmany Rak’ah he has prayed. If a person notices that, then let himprostrate twice before he says the Salam.”

It wasnarrated from ‘Alqamah that Ibn Mas’ud prostrated twice fortheprostrations of forgetfulness after the Salam, and he mentionedthatthe Prophet (ﷺ) did that.”

It wasnarrated that Thawban said: “I heard the Messenger of Allah(ﷺ)say: ‘For every mistake there are two prostrations, after sayingthe Salam.’”

It wasnarrated that Abu Hurairah said: “The Prophet (ﷺ) came outtopray and said the Takbir, then he gestured to them to wait. He wentand took a bath, and his head was dripping with water while he ledthem in prayer. When he finished he said: ‘I came out to you in astate of sexual impurity, and I forgot until I had started to pray.’”

It wasnarrated that ‘Aishah said: “The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)said:‘Whoever vomits, has a nosebleed, belches, or emits prostaticfluid, should stop praying; perform ablution, then resume his prayer,and while he is in that state he should not speak.”

It wasnarrated from ‘Aishah that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: “Whenanyoneof you performs prayer and commits Hadath, (passing wind) lethimtake hold of his nose, then leave.”

It wasnarrated that ‘Imran bin Husain said: “I suffered from Nasur*andI asked the Prophet (ﷺ) about prayer. He said: ‘Perform prayerstanding; if you cannot, then sitting; and if you cannot then whilelying on your side.’”

It wasnarrated that Wa’il bin Hujr said: “I saw the Prophet (ﷺ)performing prayer while sitting on his right side when he was sick.”

It wasnarrated that Umm Salamah said: ‘By the One Who took his soul(i.e., the soul of the Prophet (ﷺ)), he did not die until heofferedmost of his prayers sitting down. And the dearest of theactions tohim was the righteous action that the person doesregularly, even ifit were a little.”

It wasnarrated that ‘Aishah said: “The Prophet (ﷺ) used to reciteQur’an sitting down, then when he wanted to bow he would stand upforas long as it takes a person to recite forty Verses.”

It wasnarrated that ‘Aishah said: “I did not see the Messenger ofAllah(ﷺ) offer any of the night prayers in any way other thanstanding,until he became old. Then he started to pray sitting downuntil, whenthere were thirty or forty Verses left of his recitation,he wouldstand up and recite them, and prostrate.”

It wasnarrated that ‘Abdullah bin Shaqiq Al-‘Uqaili said: “I asked‘Aishah about the prayer of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) at night.Shesaid: ‘He used to pray for a long time at night standing up,and for along time at night sitting down. If he prayed standing, hewould bowstanding, and if he prayed sitting, he would bow sitting.’”

It wasnarrated from ‘Abdullah bin ‘Amr that the Prophet (ﷺ) passedbyhim when he was praying sitting down. He said: “The prayer of onewho sits down is equivalent to half of the prayer of one who stands.”

It wasnarrated from Anas bin Malik that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)wentout and saw some people praying while sitting down. He said: “Theprayer of one who sits down is equivalent to half of the prayer ofonewho stands.”

It wasnarrated from ‘Imran bin Husain that he asked the Messenger ofAllah (ﷺ) about a man who prays sitting down. He said, “Whoeverperforms prayer standing up, that is better. Whoever performs prayersitting down will have half the reward of one who prays standing. Andwhoever performs prayer lying down will have half the reward of onewho prays sitting.”

It wasnarrated that ‘Aishah said: “When the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)fell ill with the sickness that would be his last” – (One of thenarrators) Abu Mu’awiyah said: “When he was overcome by sickness”–“Bilal came to tell him that it was time for prayer. He said,‘TellAbu Bakr to lead the people in prayer.” We said: ‘OMessenger ofAllah! Abu Bakr is a tender-hearted man, and when hetakes your placehe will weep and not be able to do it. Why do younot tell ‘Umar tolead the people in prayer?’ He said: ‘TellAbu Bakr to lead the peoplein prayer; you are (like) the femalecompanions of Yusuf.’” She said:“So we sent word to Abu Bakr,and he led the people in prayer. Thenthe Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)began to feel alittle better, so he cameout to the prayer, supportedby two men with his feet making linesalong the ground. When Abu Bakrrealized that he was there, he wantedto step back, but the Prophet(ﷺ) gestured to him to stay where hewas. Then (the two men)brought him to sit beside Abu Bakr, and AbuBakr was following thelead of the Prophet (ﷺ) and the people werefollowing Abu Bakr.”

It wasnarrated that ‘Aishah said: “The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) toldAbu Bakr to lead the people in prayer when he was sick, and Abu Bakrused to lead them in prayer. Then the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) beganto feel a little better, so he came out, and saw Abu Bakr leading thepeople in prayer. When Abu Bakr saw him, he stepped back, but theMessenger of Allah (ﷺ) gestured to him to stay where he was. Thenthe Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) sat beside Abu Bakr. Abu Bakr wasfollowing the prayer of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), and the peoplewere following the prayer of Abu Bakr.”

It wasnarrated that Salim bin ‘Ubaid said: “The Messenger of Allah(ﷺ) fainted when he was sick, then he woke up and said: ‘Has thetime for prayer come?’ They said: ‘Yes.’ He said: ‘Tell Bilalto callthe Adhan, and tell Abu Bakr to lead the people in prayer.’Then hefainted, then he woke up and said: ‘Has the time for prayercome?’They said: ‘Yes.’ He said: ‘Tell Bilal to call theAdhan, and tell AbuBakr to lead the people in prayer.’ Then hefainted, then he woke upand said: ‘Has the time for prayer come?’They said: ‘Yes.’ He said:‘Tell Bilal to call the Adhan, andtell Abu Bakr to lead the people inprayer.’ ‘Aishah said: ‘Myfather is a tender-hearted man, and if hestands in that place hewill weep and will not be able to do it. Ifyou told someone else todo it (that would be better).’ Then hefainted, then woke up andsaid: ‘Tell Bilal to call the Adhan, andtell Abu Bakr to lead thepeople in prayer. You are (like) the femalecompanions of Yusuf.’So Bilal was told to call the Adhan and he didso, and Abu Bakr wastold to lead the people in prayer. And he did sothen the Messengerof Allah (ﷺ) felt a little better, and he said:‘Fine me someoneI can lean on.’ Barirah and another man came, and heleaned onthem. When Abu Bakr saw him, he started to step back, but(theProphet (ﷺ)) gestured him to stay where he was. Then theMessengerof Allah (ﷺ) came and sat beside Abu Bakr, until Abu Bakrfinishedpraying. Then the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) passed away.”

It wasnarrated that Ibn ‘Abbas said: “When the Messenger of Allah(ﷺ)fell ill with what would be his final illness, he was in thehouse of‘Aishah. He said: ‘Call ‘Ali for me.’ ‘Aishah said: ‘OMessenger of Allah, should we call Abu Bakr for you?’ He said:‘Callhim.’ Hafsah said: ‘O Messenger of Allah, should we call‘Umar foryou?’ He said: ‘Call him.’ Ummul-Fadl said: ‘OMessenger of Allah,should we call Al-‘Abbas for you?’ He said:‘Yes.’ When they hadgathered, the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)lifted his head, looked andfell silent. ‘Umar said: ‘Get up andleave the Messenger of Allah(ﷺ).’ Then Bilal came to tell himthat the time for prayer had come,and he said: ‘Tell Abu Bakr tolead the people in prayer.’ ‘Aishahsaid: ‘O Messenger ofAllah, Abu Bakr is a soft and tender-heartedman, and if he does notsee you, he will weep and the people will weepwith him. If you tell‘Umar to lead the people in prayer (that wouldbe better).’ AbuBakr went out and led the people in prayer, then theMessenger ofAllah (ﷺ) felt a little better, so he came out,supported by twomen, with his feet making lines along the ground.When the people sawhim, they said: ‘Subhan-Allah,’ to alert Abu Bakr.He wanted tostep back, but the Prophet (ﷺ) gestured him to staywhere he was.Then the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) came and sat on hisright. Abu Bakrstood up and he was following the lead of the Prophet(ﷺ), and thepeople were following the lead of Abu Bakr. Ibn ‘Abbassaid; ‘Andthe Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) started to recite from whereAbu Bakrhad reached.’”

Hamzahbin Mughirah bin Shu’bah narrated that his father said: “TheMessenger of Allah (ﷺ) lagged behind (on a journey) and we reachedthe people when ‘Abdur Rahman bin ‘Awf had already led them inoneRak’ah of the prayer. When he realized that the Prophet (ﷺ)wasthere, he wanted to step back, but the Prophet (ﷺ) gestured tohimthat he should complete the prayer. He said: ‘You have donewell, dothe same in the future.’”

It wasnarrated that ‘Aishah said: “The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) fellill and come of his Companions came to visit him. The Messenger ofAllah (ﷺ) performed prayer while sitting down, and they prayedbehind him standing up. He gestured them to sit down, and when hefinished he said: ‘The Imam is appointed to be followed. When hebows,then bow; when he stands up again, then stand up, and if heprayssitting down the pray sitting down.’”

It wasnarrated from Anas bin Malik that the Prophet (ﷺ) fell fromhishorse and he suffered some lacerations on his right side. We wenttovisit him and the time for prayer came. He led us in prayer sittingdown, and we prayed behind him sitting down. When he finished theprayer he said: “The Imam is appointed to be followed. When he saysAllahu Akbar, then saw Allahu Akbar; when he bows, then bow; when hesays Sami’ Allahu liman hamidah, then say Rabbana wa lakal-hamd;whenhe prostrates then prostrate; and if he prays sitting down thenpraysitting down.”

It wasnarrated that Abu Hurairah said: “The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)said: ‘The Imam is appointed to be followed. When he says AllahuAkbar, then say Allahu Akbar; when he bows, then bow; when he saysSami’ Allahu liman hamidah, then say Rabbana wa lakal-hamd; when heprostrates then prostrate; if he prays standing, then pray standing,and if he prays sitting down then pray sitting down.”

It wasnarrated that Jabir said: “The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) fellill,and we prayed behind him while he was sitting down, and Abu Bakrwassaying the Takbir so that the people could hear them. He turned tousand saw us standing, so he gestured to us to sit down. When he hadsaid the Salam, he said: ‘You were about to do the action of thePersians and Romans, who remain standing while their kings areseated.Do not do that. Follow the lead of your Imam; if he praysstanding,then pray standing, and if he prays sitting down, then praysittingdown.’”

Sa’dbin Taris said: “I said to my father: ‘O my father! You prayedbehind the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and behind Abu Bakr, ‘Umar and‘Uthman, and behind ‘Ali here in Kufah for about five years. Didtheyrecite Qunut in Fajr?’ He said: ‘O my son! That is aninnovation.’”

It wasnarrated that Umm Salamah said: “The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)wasforbidden to recite Qunut in Fajr.”

It wasnarrated from Anas bin Malik that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)usedto recite Qunut in the Subh prayer, and he used to supplicate initagainst one of the Arab tribes for a month, then he stopped doingso.