Asl Sifat Salat al-Nabi - Nasir al-Din al-Albani - (3/1048)

Asl Sifat Salat al-NabiNasir al-Din al-Albani

The Sutrah and Its Obligation
He ﷺ would stand close to his sutrah: the distance between him and the wall was three cubits, and between his place of prostration and the wall there was room for a sheep to pass. He used to say, “Do not pray except toward a sutrah, and do not allow anyone to walk in front of you; if he insists, then fight him, for a companion (a devil) is with him.” He also said, “When one of you prays toward a sutrah, let him draw near to it so that Satan will not cut off his prayer.”

At times he deliberately chose to pray beside the pillar in his mosque. Whenever he prayed in open space [where nothing stood to screen him], he would plant a spear in front of him and pray facing it, with the people lined up behind him. On other occasions he would turn his riding camel sideways and pray toward it—this is unlike praying in camel enclosures, which he forbade. Sometimes he would take his saddle, set it upright, and pray toward its rear, and he said, “When one of you places before him something like the back of a saddle, let him pray and not worry about whoever walks beyond that.” He once prayed facing a tree, and at times he prayed toward the bed while ʿĀʾishah—may Allah be pleased with her—was lying on it beneath her blanket.

He ﷺ never let anything pass between him and his sutrah. Once, while he was praying, a sheep rushed toward him; he drove it off until he pressed his stomach against the wall and it passed behind him. On another occasion he led an obligatory prayer and clasped his hand; when he finished they asked, “Messenger of Allah, has something new occurred in the prayer?” He replied, “No, but Satan tried to pass in front of me, so I throttled him until I felt the coolness of his tongue on my hand. By Allah, had my brother Solomon not already beaten me to it, he would have been tied to one of the pillars of the mosque so that the children of Medina could walk around him. So whoever can keep anything from coming between him and the qiblah, let him do so.”

He ﷺ said, “When one of you prays toward something shielding him from the people and someone tries to pass in front of him, let him push him back at his chest—let him repel him as best he can (in another narration: let him stop him twice). If the person refuses, let him fight him, for he is only a devil.” He also said, “If the one who walks in front of a praying person knew how great a burden he bears, it would be better for him to stand still for forty than to pass in front of him.” ⦗114–129⦘

What Breaks the Prayer
He said, “A man’s prayer is broken if nothing the size of the back of a saddle is in front of him by a woman [who is menstruating], a donkey, or a black dog.” Abū Dharr asked, “Messenger of Allah, what is it about the black dog rather than the red one?” He replied, “The black dog is a devil.” ⦗130–139⦘

السُّتْرَةُ ووجُوبها و" كان ﷺ يقف قريباً من السترة؛ فكان بينه وبين الجدار ثلاثة أذرع، وبين موضع سجوده والجدار ممر شاة ". وكان يقول: " لا تُصلِّ إلا إلى سترة، ولا تدع أحداً يمر بين يديك، فإن أبى؛ فلتقاتله؛ فإن معه القرين ". ويقول: " إذا صلى أحدكم إلى سترة؛ فَلْيَدْنُ منها؛ لا يقطع الشيطان عليه صلاته ". و " كان أحياناً يتحرى الصلاة عند الأُسْطُوَانَةِ التي في مسجده ". و " كان إذا صلى [في فضاء ليس فيه شيء يستتر به] ؛ غرز بين يديه حَرْبَةً، فصلى إليها والناس وراءه ". وأحياناً " كان يَعْرِضُ راحلته، فيصلي إليها ". وهذا خلاف الصلاة في أعطان الإبل؛ فإنه " نهى عنها ". وأحياناً " كان يأخذ الرحل، فَيَعْدِلُه، فيصلي إلى آخرته "، وكان يقول: " إذا وضع أحدكم بين يديه مثل مُؤْخِرَة الرحل؛ فليصلِّ، ولا يبالي من مَرَّ وراء ذلك ". و " صلى - مرة - إلى شجرة ". و" كَان أحياناً يصلي إلى السرير، وعائشة ﵂. مضطجعة عليه [تحت قطيفتها] ". وكان ﷺ لا يدع شيئاً يمر بينه وبين السترة؛ فقد " كان - مرة - يصلي؛ إذ جاءت شاة تسعى بين يديه، فَسَاعَاهَا حتى ألزق بطنه بالحائط، [ومرت من ورائه] ". و" صلى صلاة مكتوبة، فضم يده، فلما صلى؛ قالوا: يا رسول الله! أحدث في الصلاة شيء؟ قال: " لا؛ إلا أن الشيطان أراد أن يمر بين يدي، فَخَنَقْتُه، حتى وجدت بَرْدَ لسانه على يدي. وايم الله! لولا ما سبقني إليه أخي سليمان؛ لارْتُبِطَ إلى سارية من سواري المسجد، حتى يَطِيْفَ به وِلْدَانُ أهل المدينة، [فمن استطاع أن لا يحول بينه وبين القبلة أحد؛ فليفعل] ". وكان ﷺ يقول: " إذا صلى أحدكم إلى شيء يستره من الناس، فأراد أحد أن يجتاز بين يديه؛ فليدفع في نحره، [وليدرأ ما استطاع] (وفي رواية: فليمنعه، مرتين) ، فإن أبى؛ فليقاتله؛ فإنما هو شيطان ". وكان ﷺ يقول: " لو يعلم المارُّ بين يدي المصلي ماذا عليه؛ لكان أن يقف أربعين خيراً له من أن يمر بين يديه ". (ص ١١٤ - ١٢٩) . ما يَقْطَعُ الصَّلاةَ وكان يقول: " يقطع صلاة الرجل إذا لم يكن بين يديه كآخرة الرحل: المرأة [الحائض] ، والحمار، والكلب الأسود ". قال أبو ذر: قلت: يا رسول الله! ما بالُ الأسود من الأحمر؟ فقال: " الكلب الأسود شيطان ". (ص ١٣٠ - ١٣٩) .