235 – Abu Hurayrah reported: “Whenever the Messenger of Allah ﷺ rose to begin the prayer he would pronounce the takbīr as he stood up, then pronounce the takbīr when he bowed. As he straightened his spine from bowing he would say, ‘Samʿa Allāhu liman ḥamidah’ (Allah hears those who praise Him); while standing he would then say, ‘Rabbana wa laka al-ḥamd’ (Our Lord, and to You belongs all praise). Next he would pronounce the takbīr as he descended into prostration, pronounce the takbīr as he raised his head, pronounce the takbīr as he prostrated again, and pronounce the takbīr as he rose. He kept to that pattern for the whole prayer, and he would pronounce the takbīr when rising from the two rakʿahs after the sitting.” Agreed upon. (1)

Vocabulary of the ḥadīth
• Samʿa Allāh: that is, Allah has answered the one who praises Him, seeking His reward. The proof for this meaning is the presence of the preposition li in the phrase liman ḥamidah; had the verb retained its literal sense of hearing, it would have read: “Samʿa Allāhu man ḥamidah.”
• ṣulb (spine): the word ṣulb admits four pronunciations, one of which is to pronounce the ṣād with ḍammah and leave the lām vowelless. It signifies the back. Al-Miṣbāḥ says: “al-ṣulb is every back that possesses vertebrae.”
• Rabbana wa laka al-ḥamd: in this wording two meanings converge—supplication and acknowledgment. “Rabbana” means “Our Lord, answer us,” and “wa laka al-ḥamd” means “and to You belongs all praise for Your guidance.”
• yahwī: al-Miṣbāḥ explains: hawā – yahwī (pattern: faʿala – yafʿalu), huwiyyan/hawiyan—“to descend or drop from a higher place to a lower one.”