and at other times he would add:
- “Ahl ath-thanāʾ wa al-majd, lā māniʿa limā aʿṭayta, wa lā muʿṭiya limā manaʿta, wa lā yanfaʿu dhā al-jaddi minka al-jaddu” (You are worthy of all praise and majesty; none can withhold what You give, none can give what You withhold, and no worldly fortune will avail its possessor against You).
At other times the addition would be:
- “Milʾa as-samawāti, wa milʾa al-arḍi, wa milʾa mā shiʾta min shayʾ baʿd, ahl ath-thanāʾ wa al-majd, aḥaqqu mā qāla al-ʿabdu—and we are all Your servants—Allāhumma, lā māniʿa limā aʿṭayta, wa lā muʿṭiya limā manaʿta, wa lā yanfaʿu dhā al-jaddi minka al-jaddu” (A fullness of the heavens, a fullness of the earth, and a fullness of whatever else You will thereafter. You are worthy of praise and majesty. These are the truest words a servant can say—and we are all Your servants—O Allah, none can withhold what You give, none can give what You withhold, and the fortune of the fortunate will not help him against You).
On occasion, during the night prayer, he would say:
-
“Li-rabbī al-ḥamd, li-rabbī al-ḥamd” (To my Lord belongs all praise, to my Lord belongs all praise). He would repeat this until his standing was almost as long as his bowing—which in turn was nearly as long as his first standing—and in that rakʿah he recited Sūrah al-Baqarah.
-
“Rabbana, wa laka al-ḥamd; ḥamdan kathīran ṭayyiban mubārakan fīhi [mubārakan ʿalayhi; kamā yuḥibbu rabbunā wa yarḍā]” (Our Lord, and to You belongs all praise—an abundant, wholesome, and blessed praise, blessed and increasing, as our Lord loves and is pleased with).
A man who was praying behind him ﷺ said these words after the Prophet ﷺ had raised his head from the rakʿah and declared, “Samiʿa Allahu liman ḥamidah.” When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ finished the prayer he asked, “Who just spoke?” The man replied, “It was I, O Messenger of Allah.” He said, “I saw more than thirty angels rushing to see which of them would record it first.” ⦗674–697⦘
Prolonging this standing and the obligation to be tranquil in it
He ﷺ would make this standing nearly as long as his bowing—as mentioned earlier; indeed, at times he would stand so long that an onlooker would say, “He has forgotten,” because of the length of his standing. He instructed that one must be at ease in it, saying to the man who prayed incorrectly, “Then raise your head until you are fully upright [so that every bone returns to its place].” In another narration he said, “When you rise, straighten your spine and lift your head until the bones return to their joints.” He informed him that “no one’s prayer is complete if he does not do that,” and he said, “Allah will not look at the prayer of a servant who does not straighten his back between his bowing and his prostration.” ⦗698–705⦘
Prostration
Pronouncing the takbīr and raising the hands when going down to prostrate
Next, “he ﷺ would pronounce the takbīr and go down into prostration,” and he commanded the man who prayed incorrectly to do the same, saying, “No one’s prayer is complete until … he says, ‘Samiʿa Allahu liman ḥamidah,’ stands upright, then says, ‘Allahu akbar,’ and then prostrates until his joints are at ease.” And “whenever he intended to prostrate he would pronounce the takbīr,”