Chapter: The Tashahhud and the Sitting Posture

The posture for the tashahhud is as follows: he lowers his left hip to the ground, sets his right foot upright with the ball of its big toe—not its upper side—pressed to the ground, passes his left foot beneath his right shin, and rests his palms on his thighs. He curls the fingers of his right hand except the one next to the thumb, which he leaves extended, and he may point with it if he wishes. His left palm is laid flat on his left thigh. A woman’s manner of sitting in prayer is exactly the same as a man’s, and all her actions in the prayer match his; she differs from him only in dress. Both sitting positions in the prayer are identical for men and women, and the sitting between the two prostrations is performed in the same way.

The tashahhud is to say:
“All salutations are for Allah; all pure words are for Allah; all blessed expressions are for Allah. Peace be upon you, O Prophet, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings. Peace be upon us and upon the righteous servants of Allah. I bear witness that there is no deity but Allah alone, without partner, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and messenger.”

This is the tashahhud of ʿUmar ibn al-Khattāb, and it is the one we prefer. If someone recites the tashahhud of Ibn Masʿūd, Ibn ʿAbbās, or any other wording authentically traced back to the Prophet ﷺ, there is no objection.

If he forgets the tashahhud altogether until he pronounces the salām, nothing is required of him according to Mālik, though it has been said that he should perform the two prostrations of forgetfulness.

Abū Muṣʿab—alone among Mālik’s companions—said: whoever omits the tashahhud must repeat the prayer. As for the salām, it is a mandatory pillar; whoever deliberately leaves it out invalidates his prayer. If he forgets it and a lengthy period elapses, or he falls into a state that nullifies purity, he must repeat the prayer. And whoever