However, what appears to be the sunnah is that the feet should be kept together; that is, one should place the feet close against one another. This is based on the hadith in al-Sahih from Aishah: when she could not find the Prophet, may Allah’s blessings and peace be upon him, her hand fell upon the soles of his feet while they were upright and he was prostrating. (1) A single hand would not fall upon both feet unless they were close together. This is also reported in Sahih Ibn Khuzaymah in the aforementioned hadith of Aishah: “The Messenger, may Allah’s blessings and peace be upon him, kept his heels together.” (2) Accordingly, the sunnah concerning the feet is to keep them together, unlike the knees and hands.

The author, may Allah have mercy on him, did not mention here the placement of the hands, but he mentioned it at the beginning of the chapter on the description of the prayer, where he said: “He raises his hands level with his shoulders, as in prostration.” (3)

Accordingly, the hands are to be placed level with the shoulders. If he wishes, he may bring them forward and place them level with the forehead or the upper parts of the ears, for all of this is established in the sunnah.

Question: If the prostration becomes lengthy—for example, when one is praying behind an imam who prolongs the prostration—may he place his forearms on the ground and lean upon it?

We say: He should not lean upon the ground, because the Prophet, may Allah’s blessings and peace be upon him, forbade that.