Hadith Two

Narrated by ʿAbd Allāh ibn Buḥaynah—one of the Prophet’s Companions—that the Prophet ﷺ led them in the ẓuhr (noon) prayer. After the first two rakʿahs he rose without sitting (1), and the people rose with him. When he had completed the prayer and the congregation were waiting for his salām (closing salutation of peace), he pronounced the takbīr while seated, prostrated twice before giving the salām, and then gave the salām.

Overall meaning

The Prophet ﷺ led his Companions in the noon prayer. Having performed the first two rakʿahs, he stood up without sitting for the first tashahhud (the sitting testimony of faith), and the worshippers followed him. When he had prayed the remaining two rakʿahs, sat for the final tashahhud, and finished it, the people awaited his salām. Still seated, he said the takbīr, made two prostrations with them—just like the regular prostrations within the prayer—and then gave the salām.

Points derived from the ḥadīth

1. The prostrations of forgetfulness are obligatory for anyone who, out of forgetfulness, omits the first tashahhud.
2. The first tashahhud is not an essential pillar of the prayer; had it been, the defect could not have been remedied by the prostrations of forgetfulness. Its obligatory status is established by other proofs.
3. Two prostrations suffice for multiple lapses, for the Prophet ﷺ here omitted both the sitting and the tashahhud together.
4. The importance of following the imam: the Prophet ﷺ approved the congregation’s following him and foregoing the sitting despite their awareness of the omission. Al-Nasāʾī, Ibn Khuzaymah, and al-Ḥākim add: “They glorified Allah, yet he continued until he had completed his prayer.”
5. Whatever lapse befalls the imam extends to the followers. They deliberately left the tashahhud, and deliberate omission of an obligation would normally invalidate the prayer—except in a case like this, where they are required to follow the imam.
6. In such a situation the prostrations of forgetfulness are performed before the salām.
7. The salām immediately follows the two prostrations of forgetfulness; nothing—neither another tashahhud nor a supplication—intervenes between them and the salām.