Kitab Al-Salat: The Prayer of The Prophet (Peace be upon him) in The Light of Sahih Ahadith - Part 2

Wudu (Ablution)

1) Declare the intention (niyyah) for Wudu (in your heart):

Narrated from 'Umar bin Al-Khattab:

I heard Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) saying, "The reward of deeds depends upon the intentions and every person will get the reward according to what he has intended."

Sahih al-Bukhari (1) , (6689)

Note: You must have the intention of purifying yourself and removing impurity. The intention should not be spoken out loud for its place is in the heart. This applies to all acts of worship.

For more detail read:

• Ruling on uttering the intention (niyyah) in acts of worship
• Speaking the intention for Hajj and ‘Umrah out loud ?

2) Saying ' Bismillah ' (in the name of Allah):

Narrated from Abu Hurayrah:

Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: There is no wudoo for him who does not mention Allah's name upon it.

Sunan Abu Dawud (101) , and also Jami' at-Tirmidhi (25)
Classed as 'Sahih' by Al-Albaani in Sahih wa Da'eef Sunan Abu Dawud (101)

Regarding the phrase that is prescribed for mentioning Allah's name is to say "Bismillah", and same is the case for eating.

For more detail read:

• Ruling on saying Bismillaah in wudoo’
• Ruling on mentioning Allah (saying “Bismillah”) when eating… And adding to it

3) Washing both hands three times and rubbing between the fingers:

Wash hands three times up to and including the wrist.

Narrated from Humran:
I saw 'Uthman bin 'Affan asking (for a tumbler of water) to perform ablution (and when it was brought) he poured water from it over his hands and washed them thrice ...
Sahih al-Bukhari (164) , Sunan Abi Dawud (111)

Rub (by passing wet fingers) between fingers.

Narrated from 'Asim bin Laqit bin Sabrah that his father said:
"I said: 'O Messenger of Allah! Tell me about ablution.' He (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: 'Perform ablution properly, and go between the fingers, and sniff water up into your nostrils extensively except when fasting'"

Bulugh al-Maram (39) , Jami` at-Tirmidhi (38) ,  (788)
Classed as 'Sahih' by Al-Albaani in Sahih wa Da'eef Sunan Tirmidhi (38) , (788)

4) Rinse your mouth and nose three times (Mazmaza wa Istinshaq):

Then rinse mouth three times with right hand, swirling the water around inside mouth, and rinse nose three times with the same hand, then blowing the water out from mouth and using the left hand to remove the water from nose.

Narrated from 'Amr bin Yahya (on the authority of his father):
'Abdullah bin Zaid poured water on his hands from a utensil containing water and washed them and then with single handful of water he rinsed his mouth and cleaned his nose by putting water in it and then blowing it out. He repeated it thrice.
Sahih al-Bukhari (191) , Sunan Abi Dawud (111)

It is preferable to rinse both mouth and nose with single handful as we can find in many sahih ahadith: Sahih al-Bukhari (191) , Sunan Ibn Majah (403) ,  Bulugh al-Maram (54) , Sunan Ibn Majah (404) , Sunan al-Darimi (724)

It is also permissible to separate the two:

Narrated from Abda bin Abi Lubaba:
"I heard Shaqeeq bin Salma said: ' I saw 'Ali and Uthman (may Allah be pleased with them) washing the parts of ablution thrice, then they said this is how Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) performed ablution' and he (Shaqeeq) said: ' They rinsed mouth and nose separately'"
Tareekh Ibn Abi Khaithma (4419) , Musnad ibn al-J'ad (3406)
Classed as 'Hasan' by Abdul Malik bin Abdullah bin Dehaish in al-Ahadith al-Mukhtara (347) (1/ 473)

Take water in mouth and nose with same (right) hand and then remove water from nose using left hand:

Narrated from 'Ali (may Allah be pleased with him):
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) rinsed the mouth and snuffed up water with the same hand by which he took water.
Sunan Abi Dawud (111)
Classed as 'Sahih' by Al-Albaani in Sahih wa Da'eef Sunan Abu Dawud (111)


Narrated from 'Abd Khair:
We were sitting looking towards 'Ali - as he made wudoo - and he entered into his mouth a handful of water with his right hand and washed his mouth and nose, then expelled it from his nose with his left hand - he did that three times, then said: Whoever would like to see the way of purification of Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) - then this is his purification.
Sunan al-Darimi (728), Classed as 'Sahih' by Al-Albaani in Mishkat al-Masabih (411)

5) Washing face three times:

Wash face thrice, from the hairline to the jawbone and chin, and from ear to ear.

And run wet fingers through the beard during ablution.

Narrated from Humran:
I saw `Uthman bin `Affan asking (for a tumbler of water) to perform ablution (and when it was brought) he poured water from it over his hands and washed them thrice and then put his right hand in the water container and rinsed his mouth and washed his nose by putting water in it and then blowing it out. Then he washed his face thrice...
Sahih al-Bukhari (164)

Narrated ‘Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him):
While performing Wudu, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) would run (his fingers) through his beard.
Sunan Ibn Majah (433) , Sunan Abi Dawud (145) Classed as 'Sahih' by Al-Albaani in Sahih wa Da'eef Sunan Ibn Majah (433) , Sunan Abu Dawud (145)

6) Washing arms up to the elbows three times:

Wash arms up to the elbows thrice. The arm extends from the fingertips, including the nails, to the lower part of the upper arm.
Sahih al-Bukhari (164) , Sahih Muslim (226) , Sahih Muslim (246)

It is essential to remove anything stuck to the hands before washing them, such as dough, mud, paint, etc, that could prevent the water from reaching the skin.

7) Wiping head and ears one time:

Then wipe the head and ears once with fresh water, not the water left over after washing arms.

Wipe head by passing wet hands over head from its front to its back and vice versa, beginning from the front and taking them to the back of head up to the nape of the neck and then bring them to the front again from where one started.
Sahih al-Bukhari (185) , Sahih Muslim (235)

Narrated from Ibn 'Abbas that:
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) wiped his ears, putting his forefingers in his ears and wiping the back of them with his thumbs, so he wiped them inside and out.
Sunan Ibn Majah (439) , Sunan Abi Dawud (123)
Classed as 'Hasan Sahih' by Al-Albaani in Sahih wa Da'eef Sunan Ibn Majah (439)


Note: there is no proof of wiping the back side of the neck during wudu; rather, it is an innovation. It has been covered previously in detail:
Wiping the Back of the Neck During Ablution (Wudu) ?

8) Washing feet three times up to the ankles:

Narrated from Humran, (the freed slave of 'Uthman):
'Uthmaan ibn 'Affaan (may Allah be pleased with him) called for water to do wudu'. He washed his hands three times, then he rinsed his mouth and nose, then he washed his face three times, then he washed his right arm up to the elbow three times, then he washed his left arm likewise. Then he wiped his head, then washed his right foot up to the ankle three times, then washed his left foot likewise. Then he said, “I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) doing wudu’ as I have done it, then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, ‘Whoever does wudu’ as I have done it, then prays two rak’ahs in which he focuses completely on his prayer, his previous sins will be forgiven.'"
Sahih Muslim (226) , Sahih al-Bukhari (159)

Feet must be washed thoroughly, there should not be any space left dry. And it is not enough to just pass wet hands over feet.
Sahih al-Bukhari (163) , Sahih Muslim (241)

For more detail read:

• Is it obligatory to wash the feet ?

Run little finger between the toes while washing feet.

Narrated from Mustawarid bin Shaddad:
"I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) performing ablution, and he ran his little finger between his toes."
Sunan Ibn Majah (446)
Classed as 'Sahih' by Al-Albaani in Sahih wa Da'eef Sunan Ibn Majah (446)

9) Washing parts of body twice or once but no more than thrice during wudu:

It is permissible to wash body parts twice or once. 

Sahih al-Bukhari (157) , Sahih al-Bukhari (158)

It is also permissible to wash some parts thrice and others twice or once.

Sahih al-Bukhari (185) , Sahih al-Bukhari (186)

But it is not permissible to wash body parts more than three times.

Sunan an-Nasa'i (140)

Classed as 'Hasan Sahih' by Al-Albaani in Sahih wa Da'eef Sunan an-Nasa'i (140)

10) What to say after wudu' ?

When one has completed wudu' It is mustahabb to say:
“Ashhadu an laa ilaaha ill-Allaah wahdahu laa shareeka lah, wa ashhadu anna Muhammadan ‘abduhu wa rasooluhu (I bear witness that there is no one to worship except Allah alone with no partner or associate, and I bear witness that Muhammad is the servant of Allah and His Messenger)”

Narrated from 'Uqba bin 'Amir:
If anyone amongst you performs the ablution, and then completes the ablution well and then says:
I testify that there is no one to worship except Allah alone and that Muhammad is the servant of Allah and His Messenger, the eight gates of Paradise would be opened for him and he may enter by whichever of them he wishes.
Sahih Muslim (234a) , (234b)

Note: There is no proof about raising the finger when saying the shahaadah after wudu'. For more detail read: Ruling on raising the finger when saying the shahaadah following wudoo’

                                                      ------------------------------

It is permissible to wipe over the wound covered with a dressing or bandage and wash the remaining part around it. It is proven from Abdullah Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) with Sahih isnaad.

Al-Sunan al-Kubra (1079)
For more details read: How should a person who has a wound do wudoo’ ?

There is no difference between men and women in the way wudu’ should be done. 

CONTINUE READING »

Kitab Al-Salat: The Prayer of The Prophet (Peace be upon him) in The Light of Sahih Ahadith - Part 1

Adhan (Call to prayer)

Repeating after the muezzin:

It was narrated that ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: 

"If the muezzin says ‘Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar’
and one of you says, ‘Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar’; 

then he says ‘Ashhadu an la ilaha illAllah’
and you say ‘Ashhadu an la ilaha illAllah’;

then he says, ‘Ash-hadu anna Muhammadan Rasool Allah’ 

and you say, ‘Ash-hadu anna Muhammadan Rasool Allah’; 

then he says, ‘Hayya ‘ala’l-salah’
and you say ‘La hawla wa la quwwata illa Billah’; 

then he says, ‘Hayya ‘ala’l-falah’
and you say ‘La hawla wa la quwwata illa Billah’; 

then he says, ‘Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar’
and you say, ‘Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar’; 

then he says ‘La ilaha illAllah’
and you say, ‘La ilaha illAllah’ 

from the heart, you will enter Paradise."

Sahih Muslim (385)


Du'aa after adhan:

It was narrated from Jabir ibn ‘Abd-Allah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
"Whoever says when he hears the call to prayer:
‘Allahumma Rabba hadhihi’l-da’wat il-tammah wa’l-salat il-qaimah, aati Muhammadan il waseelata wa’l-fadeelah, wab’athhu maqaman mahmoodan illadhi wa’adtah’
‘(O Allah, Lord of this perfect call and the prayer to be offered, grant Muhammad the privilege (of intercession) and also the eminence, and resurrect him to the praised position that You have promised),’
My intercession for him will be permitted on the Day of Resurrection."
Sahih al-Bukhari (614)


Du’aa between adhan and iqamah:

It was narrated that Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
"Du'aa (supplication) made between the adhan and the iqamah is not rejected."
Sunan Abi Dawud (521)
Classed as 'Sahih' by Al-Albaani in Sahih wa Da'eef Abi Dawud (521)

For more detail read this article:

• Du’aas Between Adhan and Iqamah

Is there any du'aa during Iqamah or Saying 'Aqaamaha Allahu wa adaamaha' ?

There is a da'eef hadith:
Narrated from Abu Umaamah (may Allah be pleased with him) or from some of the companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him):
Bilaal began to recite the iqamah, and when he said Qad qaamat il-salaah (Prayer is about to begin), the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: Aqaamaha Allahu wa adaamaha (May Allah make is continually established).
Sunan Abi Dawud (528)
But the hadith is da’eef (weak).
Sahih wa Da'eef Abi Dawud (528)

The scholars differed as to whether it is mustahab to respond to the muezzin when he recites the iqamah before prayer. Read:

• The Sunnah to Say what the Muezzin Says when Listening to the Iqamah

CONTINUE READING »

Is it obligatory to wash the feet or just wiping them during wudu is enough ?

Praise be to Allah.

What must be done in wudu’ is washing the feet; it is not sufficient to wipe them.

The evidence that it is obligatory to wash the feet is the report narrated by al-Bukhari (163) and Muslim (241) from ‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Amr (may Allaah be pleased with him) who said: The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) stayed behind us on a journey and then caught up with us, and we were late in praying ‘Asr. We started doing wudoo’ and wiping out feet, and he called out at the top of his voice: “Woe to the heels from the fire” two or three times.

Muslim (242) narrated from Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) saw a man who had not washed his heels and he said, “Woe to the heels from the Fire.”

Ibn Khuzaymah said: If wiping were sufficient to discharge the obligation, there would have been no warning of the Fire in this case.

Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar said:

There are mutawaatir reports from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) which describe his wudoo’ and state that he washed his feet. He is the one who explained the commands of Allaah. There is no report from anyone among the Sahaabah which differs from that, except from ‘Ali, Ibn ‘Abbaas and Anas, but it was narrated that they retracted that. ‘Abd al-Rahmaan ibn Abi Layla said: The companions of the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) are unanimously agreed that the feet should be washed. Narrated by Sa’eed ibn Mansoor. End quote.

Fath al-Baari, 1/320

With regard to the verse of Quran, it says:

        يَاأَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِذَا قُمْتُمْ إِلَى الصَّلَاةِ فَاغْسِلُوا وُجُوهَكُمْ 
 ۚوَأَيْدِيَكُمْ إِلَى الْمَرَافِقِ وَامْسَحُوا بِرُءُوسِكُمْ وَأَرْجُلَكُمْ إِلَى الْكَعْبَيْنِ

“O you who believe! When you rise to [perform] prayer, wash your faces and your forearms to the elbows and wipe over your heads and wash your feet to the ankles.”

[al-Maa’idah 5:6] 

This does not indicate that it is permissible to wipe the feet. The reason for this is that there are two readings of this verse.

1 – Wa arjulakum (and your feet), with a fathah (zabar) on the laam وَأَرْجُلَكُمْ . In this case the word “feet” is mentioned in conjunction with the word wajh (face), and the face is to be washed, so the feet are to be washed too. So it is as if the verse is basically saying: “Wash your faces, your arms up to the elbows and your feet up to the ankles, and wipe your heads,” but mention of washing the feet is put after mention of wiping the head so as to indicate that this is the order in which the parts of the body are washed in wudoo’: washing the face, then the arms, then wiping the head, then washing the feet. 

See al-Majmoo’, 1/471

2 – Wa arjulikum, with a kasrah (zair) on the laam. In this case it is mentioned in conjunction with the word ra’s (head), and the head is to be wiped, so the feet are to be wiped too.

But the Sunnah shows that one may wipe over the feet only when wearing leather slippers or socks, subject to the conditions that are well known in the Sunnah.

See al-Majmoo’, 1/450; al-Ikhtiyaaraat, p. 13

Thus it is clear that in neither reading does the verse indicate that the feet may be wiped. Rather it indicates that it is obligatory to wash the feet, or to wipe over the socks if one is wearing socks.

Some of the scholars, based on the second reading, are of the view that the reason why wiping is mentioned with regard to the feet although they are to be washed is to indicate that one should be economical in using water when washing the feet, because people are usually lavish with water when washing them. So the verse enjoins wiping in the sense of washing them without being extravagant in the use of water.

Ibn Qudaamah said in al-Mughni, 1/186:

It may be that what is meant by wiping is washing lightly. Abu ‘Ali al-Faarisi said: The Arabs call a light washing mash (wiping) and say tamassahtu li’l-salaah (literally “I wiped myself for prayer”) meaning I did wudoo’. End quote.

Ibn Taymiyah said:

Mentioning wiping with regard to the feet is an indication that one should not use too much water on the feet, because people are usually extravagant in using water for that. End quote.

Manhaaj al-Sunnah, 4/174

And Allah knows best.

CONTINUE READING »

Wiping the Back of the Neck During Ablution (Wudu) ?

Praise be to Allah.

Our Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:

"The worst matters are those that are newly-invented, and every innovation (Bid'ah) is a going astray."

Sahih Muslim (867) , Sunan Ibn Majah (45)

Regarding wiping the back of neck during wudu, there is no proof of that from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).

There is a hadith of abu dawud that says "He (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) wiped his head until he reached the back of his head (which is the beginning of the back of the head),"
Sunan Abi Dawud (132)
This hadith is classed as Da’eef by al-Albani in Sahih wa Da’eef Abi Dawud No.132

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah said:
"There is no sahih report from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) which says that he wiped his neck during wudu."


There is also another famous hadith which is often quoted in this respect, also quoted by Shaikh Ilyas Faisal in his book "sifatus salaah" he quotes that hadith and says:

"  Hazrat Abdullah Ibn Umar (radhiallahu anhu) narrates that Rasulullah (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) said: "Whoever performs wudhu and makes masah over his nape, he will be saved from wearing a necklace (of fire) around his neck on the the day of judgement ". " The famous commentator of Sahih al-Bukhari, Allamah Ibn Hajar Asqalaani (R.A), writes in his book Talkheesul Habeer (vol. 1: p.92) that this narration is Sahih. Allamah Shawkani (R.A.) has also affirmed this in Naylul Awtaar (vol. 1, p.204).  "

However this is completely false statement about both Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani and Ash-Shawkani (may Allah have mercy on them).

• Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) in his book Al-Talkhees Al-Habeer page-286 No. 97:

First quoted hadith "It is narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: Whoever wipes over the nape of his neck is saved from the neck-chain."

Then he commented on it as follows: (page-287)

Abu Muhammad al-Juwayni says:
" The scholars of hadith do not look favorably upon its chain of transmission There has been disagreement as to whether the practice is a Sunnah or a nicety (something done as good manners or a voluntary (nafil) recommendation) . "
However, the Imam (al-Juwayni al-Shafi'i) counters this by saying – as we summarize – that the students (of al-Shafi`i) had no need to disagree about the ruling when the hadith that indicates it is weak.
Al-Qadi Abu al-Tayyib says: "There is nothing established in the Sunnah to support it."
Al-Qadi Husayn says: "There is nothing in the Sunnah to support this practice."
Al-Fawrani says: "There is no narration to support it."
Al-Ghazali quotes this hadith in al-Wasit and then Ibn al-Salah comments on it saying: "This hadith is unknown from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). It is rather the statement of one of the Pious Predecessors."
Al-Nawawi says in (al-Majmu`) Sharh al-Muhadhdhab: "This hadith is fabricated. These are not the Prophet’s words."
In another place, he writes, "There is nothing authentic related about this from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). It is not Sunnah. Rather, it is an innovation. Al-Shafi`i did not mention it, nor did the majority of the students. It was only mentioned by Ibn al-Qas and a small minority. Ibn al-Ruf`ah raised the objection that al-Baghawi, who is a leading hadith scholar, considered it to be a preferable act. However, there is no basis for declaring it a preferable act except a report from the Prophet or a Companion, since there is no place for analogical reasoning in this matter."
Perhaps, al-Baghawi relied in this matter on what Ahmad and Abu Dawud narrated from Talhah ibn Musrrif from his father that his grandfather saw the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) wipe over his head until he reached the occiput and the nape of the neck. However, this has a weak chain of transmission, as we have already discussed.
As for the person from the Pious Predecessors that Ibn al-Salah mentions, perhaps he is referring to what Abu `Ubayd relates in Kitab al-Tahur from `Abd al-Rahman ibn Mahdi from al-Mas`udi from al-Qasim ibn `Abd al-Rahman from Musa ibn Talhah who said:
"Whoever wipes the nape of his neck along with his head is protected from the neck-chain on the Day of Resurrection."
It is possible to say that though it is a chain of transmission that stops at a Companion, it has the strength of a hadith that goes back to the Prophet, since it is not something that can be said on the basis of personal opinion. This would make it mursal.

• After that Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) in his book Al-Talkhees Al-Habeer page-288 No. 98 Quoted the hadith: 

"Abdullah Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "Whoever performs wudu and wipes over his nape, he will be saved from wearing a necklace (of fire) around his neck on the the day of judgement "

Then he quoted the narrator of said hadith that he said 'this hadith is sahih' after that he wrote his personal opinion as follows:
I say: there is a ‘desert’ (i.e. a significant gap) between ibn Faris and Fulaih (2 narrators of that hadith), and this should be paid attention to. End quote.
Indicating that the hadith is da'eef.


Now regarding Ash-Shawkani (may Allah have mercy on him), he also said exactly the same he quoted Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him). He also quoted Al-Nawawi who said: "wiping neck is innovation (Bid'ah) and the hadith about that is fabricated."
and many others as quoted earlier.
See Nayl al-Awtar page-206 No. 198 and page-207 No. 199


For more detail on this topic read this article:

• It is not prescribed to wipe the neck during wudoo

And watch this video:

And Allah knows the best.

CONTINUE READING »

Sunnah of Raising and Moving Index Finger in Tashahhud

Praise be to Allah.

First of all we should know that even if someone is not moving index finger according to sunnah and ahadeeth that are going to be described, because of not knowing it, there's no need to correct him because his prayer is still valid.

But we should follow sunnah while offering salah because our Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:

"Offer your prayers in the way you saw me offering my prayers."
Sahih al-Bukhari (631) , (6008)


With regard to the evidence concerning this issue, following are the ahadeeth:

(a) "Abdullah ibn. Zubair narrated on the authority of his father that when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) sat for tashahhud, he placed his right hand on his right thigh and his left hand on his left thigh, and pointed with his forefinger, and placed his thumb on his (milddle) finger, and covered his knee with the palm of his left hand."
Sahih Muslim (579 b)

(b) "It was narrated from Ibn ‘Umar that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to sit during prayer, putting his hands on his knees and raising his right finger which was next to his thumb, supplicating with it, and with his left hand (spread out) on his knee."
Sunan Ibn Majah (913)
Sahih Muslim (580 a)

(c) Wa'il bin Hujr described the prayer of  the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): "Then he sat and lay his left foot on the ground, and placed his left hand on his left thigh and knee. He put his right elbow on his right thigh, then he made a circle with two fingers of his (right) hand, then he raised his finger and I saw him moving it, supplicating with it."
Sunan an-Nasa'i (1268)
Classed as 'Sahih' by Al-Albaani in Sahih wa Da'eef Sunan an-Nasa'i (889) ,
Irwaa al-Ghaleel (2/ 69), (2/ 86) , Silsilah as-Sahiha (5/ 310) , (7/ 551) and  Sahih Abi Dawud (3/ 316) other in Sunan al-Darimi (1397)

(d) "It was narrated from 'Amir bin Abdullah bin Az-Zubair, from his father, that: When the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) sat to say the tashahhud, he placed his left hand on his left thigh and pointed with his forefinger, and his gaze did not go beyond he finger with which he was pointing."
Sunan an-Nasa'i (1275)

(e) Ahmad narrated that Naafi’ said: "When ‘Abd-Allah ibn ‘Umar sat during the prayer, he would put his hands on his thighs and point with his finger whilst looking at it. Then he said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, “It is harder on the Shaytaan than iron,” meaning the index finger."
Musnad Ahmad (6000)
Note: This hadeeth was classed as hasan by al-Albaani in Sifat Salaat al-Nabi (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), page. 159 & Mishkat al-Masabih (917)

Also Read this Post:
Weakness of Ahadeeth Regarding the Effect of Moving the Forefinger, During Tashahhud, on Shaytaan


Conclusion:
We should raise and point index finger of right hand straight toward qiblah.
We should curl remaining fingers of right hand and place the thumb on middle finger.
We should move index finger and movement should be like shaking/ vibrating but not up and down.
We should point finger during tashahhud from start, till the end of tashahhud.
We should look at pointed finger during tashahhud.


Note: 
There's a hadeeth narrated from Abdullah bin Az-Zubair: "He used to point with his finger when making du’aa’ but he did not move it."
Sunan an-Nasa'i (1270)
Sunan Abi Dawud (989)
This addition – “but he did not move it” – was classed as Shaz (Isolated) by al-Albaani in Sahih wa Da'eef Sunan an-Nasa'i (1270) ,  Sahih wa Da'eef Sunan Abi Dawud (989) and Tamaam al-Minnah, p. 218.

Similarly in another hadeeth narrated from Numayr al-Khuzaa’i, bending the finger slightly when pointing was mentioned.
Sunan Abi Dawud (991)
But this is also a Da'eef (Weak) hadeeth.
classed by al-Albaani in Sahih wa Da'eef Sunan Abi Dawud (991) ,  Sahih wa Da'eef Sunan an-Nasa'i (1274) and Tamaam al-Minnah p. 222.


For more detail on this subject read/ watch these articles and videos:

• Moving the finger during Tashahhud
• Moving the forefinger during the Tashahhud

Here's explanation about this subject by Abu Ishaq Al Heweny student of  Shaikh Nasir ud-Din al-Albani (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).

This is another beneficial video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WygXAAIRziQ

And Allah knows the best.

CONTINUE READING »

Weakness of Ahadeeth Regarding the Effect of Moving the Forefinger, During Tashahhud, on Shaytaan

Praise be to Allah.

Before talking about weak ahadeeth following are some sound ahadeeth which describe about the effect of Pointing the index finger in tashahhud on shaytaan:

(1) Ahmad narrated that Naafi' said: "When ‘Abd-Allah ibn ‘Umar sat during the prayer, he would put his hands on his thighs and point with his finger whilst looking at it. Then he said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, “It is harder on the Shaytaan than iron,” meaning the index finger."
Musnad Ahmad (6000)
This hadeeth was classed as hasan by Al-Albaani in Mishkat al-Masabih (917) and included in his book Sifat Salaat al-Nabi (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), page. 159

also commented on it in al-Silsilah al-Da'eefah (5801) and explained that the hadith is hasan.

(2) There's also a sahih hadith about pointing finger in:
 Musnad Abi Ya'la al-Maushili (5767) and Musnad al-Humaidi (1/ 530)
"It makes shaytaan run away"
Humaidi raised his finger and said: "No-one will forget when he does this". Humaidi said that Muslim bin Abi Maryam said, "A man related to me that in a church in Syria, he saw images of Prophets during prayer depicted like this", and Humaidi raised his finger.

Al-Albaani in his book Sifat Salat an-Nabi (3/ 838) said:
This is very strange and useful remark, and its sanad up to the person is sahih.
End Quote.

There are also Da'eef (weak) ahadeeth regarding the effect on shaytaan (devil) of Moving the forefinger during tashahhud:

(1) Narrated by Ibn Hibban in "Thiqaat" from Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to put his right hand on his right thigh, and his left hand on his left knee, pointing with his finger without moving it, and said:" It makes shaytaan flees" He also said that the Messenger of  (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was doing it.
Thiqaat Ibn Hibban (10863)

It is a da'eef hadith Sheikh Al-Albaani (may Allah have mercy on him) commented on it in his book al-Silsilah al-Da'eefah (5572)  (12/ 136) as follows:

He (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) pointing with the forefinger when supplicating, and He didn't move it.

This Hadith is odd and untrue (By adding denial of moving the forefinger). Narrated by Abu Dawood and others on authority of Ziad bin Saad on authority of Mohammed ibn Ajlan on authority of Amer bin Abd Allah on authority of Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr brought to The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).

I said: this reference is hasan (good) If there weren't two defects in the Sanad (chain):

The first: That Ziyad bin Saad – albeit being reliable person - four trustworthy people disagree with him; all of them told it on authority of ibn Ajlan; without Saying: "and He didn't move it".
Narrated by Muslim and others.
What they said has been found in "weak Abu Dawood " (175)

The other: that three trustworthy disagreed with ibn Ajlan in this addition, and they are:
Uthman bin Hakeem, Makharma bin Bakir, and Amr ibn Dinar; they told it on authority of Amir bin Abdullah without this addition.

There is no doubt: that every one of these three is more confident and has a powerful
memory in the eyes of specialists than ibn Ajlan, So when his speech is contrary to the word of one of them; we considered it odd and untrue, so how about if all of them disagreed with him. So how about if he agrees with the story of four about him. We had mentioned their names previously.

Therefore; Ibn al-Qayyim said:
"There is a problem in the fact that this addition is correct"

Specialists in this art have no doubt that classification the Hadith as odd and untrue is done by less suspicions.

It is clear that when Imam Al-Nawawi considered it true in, did not pay attention to this
violation."al-Majmu' " (454/3).
Also did who considered it strong in the comment to "Sharh Al Suanah " (178/3)

And which confirms that is absence of such an addition in sayings of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) talking about pointing in Tashahhud, they are many, Some in Sahih Muslim, as we will mention later, and see "Majma al-Zawa'id" (140-139 /2).

From those many sayings: What was narrated by Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with him): That the Prophet, peace be upon him, when he used to sit in his prayers (in tashahhud) he used to put his hand on his knees and raised his right forefinger, but he used to stretch out his left hand on his knee.

Narrated by Muslim and others, and it is present in "Saheeh Abi Dawood" (907) quoting
from Malik on authority of Muslim ibn Abi Maryam on authority of Ali bin Abdul Rahman on authority of Ibn Umar.
A group of people followed it, quoting from Hamidi in his Musnad (648/287) on authority of ibn Abi Maryam, and in "Muslim" and others there some people followed this: Ubaidullah bin Umar on authority of Nafi' on authority of Ibn Umar, and the context belongs to him, and the addition between brackets belongs to Ibn Abi Maryam.
It was narrated by Katheer bin Zaid, but he disagreed in the reference and added denial of moving in the content.

Narrated by Ibn Hibban in "Thiqaat" in the biography of Ibn Abi Maryam - followers of
followers - from Abu Amir Ala'qdi: that Katheer bin Zaid on authority of Muslim ibn Abi Maryam on authority of Nafi' on authority of Ibn Umar:
He used to put his right hand on his right thigh, and his left hand on his left knee, pointingwith his finger without moving it, and said:" It makes the devil flees"He says also that the Messenger of Allah peace be upon him was doing it.

And I said: There is controversy about Katheer bin Zaid, and his words can hardly be
considered as good (hasan) that in the case of exclusivity, but In the case of conflict we do not pay attention to him.

So Al-Hafiz said in "Taqreeb":"He is honest, but he has bad memory".

I think that his bad memory had influenced the reference and the content of Hadith.

A-- The reference: because his disagreed with "Malik"- he has a very strong memory concerning Shaykh (Teacher) of Ibn Abi Maryam , he said he was Nafi'. But Malik says that the teacher was Ali bin Abdulrahman, but is teacher of Ubaidullah bin Umar, as mentioned before, it seems like he has a confusion between two teachers (Sheikhan)".

B-- The content : he add "he didn't move it", and it is odd and untrue, because Katheer bin Zaid is the only person who told it, contrary to what Nafi' and Ali bin Abdulrahman said in "Muslim" and the others as mentioned before.

Whish confirms that is that Katheer didn't continue doing it, Abu Ahmed Zubairi said: Katheer bin zaid on authority of Nafi' he said: Ibn Umar... ( mentioned it), and he pointed his finger, and looked towards it. Then he said: Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
" It's harsher to shaytaan than iron. He meant the index finger "

Narrated by Ahmad (119/2), and Al-Bazar (563/ 272 /1), and said:
"The only one who mentioned it is Kather bin Zaid on authority of Nafi', there is nothing but this had been reported".

And Abu Ahmed Zubairi, can be trusted, so it appears that Katheer was – due to his bad
memory - sometimes mentions this addition, and other times he doesn't mention it. So this is the right thing - Allah willing-; because of what we have said previously.

And because moving is proven to be true from what Wa'il bin Hujr said:
"I saw him (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) moving it, supplicating with it".
And it is narrated in "Saheeh Abi Dawood" (717)
Then I saw in the "Musnad al-Ruyani"(1439/ 423/ 2) saying contrary to what narrated by Ibn Hibban.
"Moving the finger in prayer causes panic to the devil"
But who narrated this on authority of Katheer (Muhammad bin Umar), is Al-Waqidi he is a liar.

Muhammad bin Umar Al-Waqidi on authority of Katheer bin Zaid narrates this hadith:

(2) "Moving the finger in prayer causes panic to the devil"

In another place:

(3) "Moving of person's finger while sitting in prayer suppresses the devil"

Musnad al-Ruyani (1439) and Sunan al-Bayhaqi (2788)

Both of these ahadeeth are Da'eef as mentioned above about Al-Waqidi [See Taqreeb al-Tahzeeb (6175)], Al-Albaani also classed them Da'eef in:
Da'eef al-Jami' (2401) and al-Silsilah al-Da'eefah (5801)  (12/ 662)



And Allah knows the best.

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