and with a nūn; the meaning is the same.
• faqār: spelled with an fāʾ before the qāf, the qāf bearing a light fatḥah. It is the plural of faqīrah and denotes the straight vertebrae of the spine, extending from the base of the neck to the tail-bone. Other plurals are fiqar and faqār. Thaʿlab said: “The human spine contains seventeen vertebrae.”
• rukbatayhi: the dual of rukbah; its plural is rukab, just as ghurfah becomes ghuraf. The rukbah is the joint that connects the lower end of the thigh to the upper end of the shin.
• muftarish dhirāʿayhi: iftirāsh of the forearms means laying them flat upon the ground.
• ḥanā: written with an undotted ḥāʾ and a nūn; it conveys the same meaning as the other wording, “without raising his head or lowering it.” Shaykh al-Islām remarked: “In Arabic usage, rukūʿ (bowing) is not deemed such unless the person becomes still in his bent posture; mere inclination is not called rukūʿ.”
• maqʿadatuhu: the maqʿadah is the lowest part of one’s body—the sitting area.
What is learned from the ḥadith
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The takbīrat al-iḥrām—uttering “Allāhu akbar”—is obligatory; without it the prayer does not commence.
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It is recommended to raise the hands level with the shoulders while pronouncing the opening takbīr.
In Sharḥ al-Iqnaʿ it is stated: “The lifting of the hands should begin simultaneously with the start of the takbīr, and the recommendation lapses once the entire phrase has been completed, for the sunnah’s time has passed.”
Al-Ḥāfiẓ said: “Fifty Companions—including the ten promised Paradise—narrated raising the hands at the outset of the prayer, and it is a sunnah according to the four imams.” -
It is recommended to place the palms firmly on the knees during rukūʿ and to spread the fingers. The reports commanding this have reached the level of tawātur (multiple, mutually confirming chains).
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It is recommended that the worshipper keep his back level during rukūʿ so that it aligns with his head; he should neither raise the head nor drop it.
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Then he raises his head—and his hands until they are parallel with his shoulders—and the imam and the individual worshipper say: