Chapter: The Obligation of Stillness (ṭumaʾnīnah) in Bowing and Prostration

Abū Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ entered the mosque. A man then came in and prayed, after which he approached the Prophet ﷺ and greeted him with salām. The Prophet said, “Go back and pray again, for you have not prayed.”

The man returned and performed the prayer exactly as he had done before, then came and greeted the Prophet once more. The Prophet repeated: “Go back and pray, for you have not prayed”—three times in all.

The man finally said, “By the One who sent you with the truth, I do not know any way better than this, so teach me.”

The Prophet replied, “When you stand for prayer, pronounce the opening takbīr, then recite whatever is easy for you of the Quran. Next, bow until you are at ease in bowing; then rise until you stand upright; then prostrate until you are at ease in prostration; then raise your head until you are at ease while sitting. Do all of that in every unit of your prayer.”

Overall meaning

This noble hadith—known to the scholars as “the hadith of the man who prayed poorly”—is their principal evidence for determining what is obligatory in prayer and what is not. It came from the Prophet ﷺ in a context of exhaustive teaching and clarification of the acts of prayer that must be performed; whatever is omitted here is deemed non-obligatory, as will be explained later, Allah willing.

In brief: The Prophet ﷺ entered the mosque, and a Companion named Khallād ibn Rāfiʿ entered thereafter and performed a prayer whose words and motions were incomplete. When he had finished, he approached the Prophet ﷺ and greeted him. The Prophet returned the greeting⦗1⦘ and said, “Go back and pray, for you have not prayed.” The man repeated his prayer exactly as before, then came back to the Prophet ﷺ, who said again, “Go back and pray, for you have not prayed”—three times. The man then swore, saying, “By the One who sent you with the truth, I do not know anything better than what I have just done, so teach me.”

When he had become eager to learn and his soul was ready to receive instruction after those repeated corrections, the Prophet ﷺ said in substance: When you rise for prayer, pronounce the opening takbīr; then recite whatever portion of the Quran is easy for you after reciting Sūrat al-Fātiḥah⦗2⦘; then bow until you are at ease in bowing; then rise from bowing until you are fully upright; then prostrate until you are at ease in prostration; then raise your head until you are at ease while seated. Do this throughout your entire prayer.