the prayer of any one of you until he perfects ablution as Allah has commanded, then exalts Allah, praises and glorifies Him, recites whatever portion of the Qur’an Allah has taught him and allowed him to recite, then pronounces the takbīr and bows, [placing his hands on his knees] until his joints become tranquil and relaxed…—the ḥadith. (p. 601–625)

Description of bowing
At first the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would press his palms together and place them between his knees, [interlacing his fingers]. He later abandoned this and forbade it.

He ﷺ used to rest his palms on his knees, and he ordered the Companions to do the same; he gave the same instruction to the man who prayed badly, as mentioned earlier. He would firmly grip his knees with both hands [as though grasping them], spread his fingers apart, and told the man who prayed badly: “When you bow, place your palms on your knees, spread your fingers, and remain there until every limb settles into place.” Sometimes he lowered his fingers even further—[down onto his shins]. He would also distance and draw his elbows away from his sides.

Whenever he bowed, he would level and straighten his back “so that, were water poured upon it, it would remain in place.” He said to the man who prayed badly: “When you bow, place your palms on your knees, straighten your back, and establish your bowing properly.” He would neither droop his head nor lift it high; rather, he kept it between those two positions. (p. 626–639)

The obligation of tranquility in bowing
He ﷺ was calm and still in his bowing, and he instructed the man who prayed badly to do likewise, saying: “The prayer of none of the people is complete until he performs ablution…,” and in it: “Then he pronounces the takbīr and says: ‘Allāhu akbar,’ then he bows until his joints are at rest.”

He used to say: “Perfect your bowing and prostration, for by the One in whose hand is my soul, I can see you from behind my back when you bow and when you prostrate.”

He once saw a man who did not perfect his bowing and who pecked in his prostration. He said: “If this man were to die in this state, he would die upon a way other than that of Muhammad ﷺ; he pecks in his prayer just as a crow pecks at blood. The likeness of the one who fails to perfect his bowing and pecks in his prostration is that of a hungry person who eats one or two dates—such food does not benefit him in the least.”

Abu Hurayrah (Allah be pleased with him) said: “My close friend ﷺ forbade me from pecking in my prayer like a rooster, from turning my head like a fox, and from squatting on my haunches like a monkey.”

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ also said: “The worst thief among people is the one who steals from