Jābir said:

“When we were with the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, we would proclaim ‘Allah is the Greatest’ whenever we ascended, and glorify Allah whenever we descended. Prayer was thus structured according to this pattern.”

Reported by Abū Dāwūd and others. This makes clear that proclaiming Allah’s greatness is prescribed in connection with elevation, whether in place or action, as in prayer and the call to prayer, while glorifying Him is prescribed in connection with lowering, whether in place or action, as in prostration and bowing. Hence, the Sunnah is to glorify Allah quietly on the occasions when it is prescribed. It is not prescribed to be voiced aloud and publicly proclaimed to the same extent as declaring Allah’s greatness and His oneness. Clearly, these additional features prescribed for a form of remembrance reflect the greater emphasis placed on its observance.

As for the hadith of Abū Dharr:

“The best words are those Allah has chosen for His angels: ‘Glory be to Allah, and praise be to Him,’”

it would seem—and Allah knows best—that this refers to words uttered on occasions when raising the voice is not prescribed, as in bowing, prostration and the like. It does not necessarily follow that these words are the best in absolute terms. The evidence for this is that reciting the Quran is better than other forms of remembrance, yet the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, prohibited its recitation while bowing and prostrating. He said:

“I have been forbidden to recite the Quran while bowing or prostrating. When bowing, magnify the Lord; when prostrating, strive earnestly in supplication, for then your supplications are likely to be answered.”

Here is a principle we should understand: something that is generally superior need not be superior in every circumstance or for every person. Rather,