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Shaykh al-Islām Ahmad ibn Taymiyyah—may Allah have mercy on him—said (1):
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People have disagreed over which is better: more frequent bowing and prostration, or prolonged standing in prayer.
Three views have been reported from Ahmad on this matter. The first is that more frequent bowing and prostration is better; this is the view adopted by a group of his followers. The second is that the two are equally meritorious. The third is that prolonged standing is better; this is also reported from al-Shāfi‘ī.
We say: This question has two forms. The first is to prolong the standing while keeping the bowing and prostration brief. The question then is:
(1) The original reads: “This is among the things he wrote in the citadel.”
وَقَالَ شَيْخُ الْإِسْلَامِ أَحْمَد ابْنُ تَيْمِيَّة - رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ -
(١)
:
فَصْلٌ:
تَنَازَعَ النَّاسُ:
أَيُّمَا أَفْضَلُ كَثْرَةُ الرُّكُوعِ وَالسُّجُودِ؟ أَوْ طُولُ الْقِيَامِ؟
وَقَدْ ذُكِرَ عَنْ أَحْمَد فِي ذَلِكَ ثَلَاثُ رِوَايَاتٍ:
إحْدَاهُنَّ: أَنَّ كَثْرَةَ الرُّكُوعِ وَالسُّجُودِ أَفْضَلُ وَهِيَ الَّتِي اخْتَارَهَا طَائِفَةٌ مِنْ أَصْحَابِهِ. وَالثَّانِيَةُ أَنَّهُمَا سَوَاءٌ.
وَالثَّالِثَةُ:
أَنَّ طُولَ الْقِيَامِ أَفْضَلُ وَهَذَا يُحْكَى عَنْ الشَّافِعِيِّ.
فَنَقُولُ:
هَذِهِ الْمَسْأَلَةُ لَهَا صُورَتَانِ: إحْدَاهُمَا: أَنْ يُطِيلَ الْقِيَامَ مَعَ تَخْفِيفِ الرُّكُوعِ وَالسُّجُودِ.
فَيُقَالُ:
(١) بالأصل: " هذا مما كتبه بالقلعة "