Likewise, many who invoke the practice of the people of Medina as evidence—Mālik’s followers and others—say: “This is abrogated.” They may, however, argue that the people of Medina’s knowledge to the contrary is evidence of its abrogation. Such claims are common.

Their argument concerning the hadith of Dhū al-Yadayn is among the most forcefully developed arguments they have presented. They claimed that speaking during prayer was prohibited only later, in the year of the Battle of the Trench or thereabouts. They also say that qunūt (supplication during prayer) was abrogated, as were his supplications for particular individuals or for people not individually specified. They maintain that these constitute the human speech concerning which the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

“No human speech is permissible in this prayer of ours.”

They even go to extremes in declaring acts of this kind to invalidate prayer, such as alerting someone by reciting the Quran or by other means.

It is also established in the two Sahīh collections, on the authority of Abū Hurayrah, that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, recited qunūt after bowing in the dawn prayer for a month. After saying, “Allah hears whoever praises Him,” he would say in his qunūt:

“O Allah, deliver al-Walīd ibn al-Walīd. O Allah, deliver Salamah ibn Hishām. O Allah, deliver ‘Ayyāsh ibn Abī Rabī‘ah. O Allah, deliver the oppressed believers. O Allah, tighten Your grip upon Mudar. O Allah, afflict them with years of famine like those in Joseph’s time.”

Abū Hurayrah said: “Later, I saw that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, had stopped supplicating for them, so I said, ‘I see that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, has stopped supplicating for them.’” He said: “Then it was said, ‘Have you not seen that they have arrived?’”

This hadith contains several points of jurisprudence, for Abū Hurayrah did not pray behind