Islamic Manual

The sunnahs of prayer and the recommended acts

The sunnah acts of prayer, from raising the hands at the opening Takbir to the wording of the Salam, and the further recommended (mustahabb) etiquette.

On top of the pillars and the wajib acts, prayer has sunnahs: things the Prophet ﷺ regularly did. Skipping a sunnah doesn't break your prayer or need an extra sajdah, but doing them is how the prayer is done in full, the way the Prophet ﷺ prayed.

Sunnahs of prayer

  1. Raising both hands up to your ears for the opening Takbir.
  2. Putting your hands below your belly button, right hand over left.
  3. Saying Thanaa quietly in the first rak'ah, right after the opening Takbir.
  4. Saying Ta'awwudh quietly in the first rak'ah.
  5. Saying Bismillah quietly before Al-Fatiha, every rak'ah.
  6. Saying "Ameen" quietly after Al-Fatiha.
  7. Saying "Allahu Akbar" quietly each time you move: into bowing, into sujood, and so on.
  8. Saying the tasbih in Ruku' three, five or seven times, and holding your knees with your fingers spread.
  9. Saying "Sami' Allahu liman hamidah" as you come up from bowing (the imam says this; followers say "Rabbana lakal hamd" instead; someone praying alone says both).
  10. Saying the tasbih in Sujood three times or more.
  11. Sitting with your left foot flat and your right foot standing up, in the middle sitting and the last sitting.
  12. Reciting Durood after the Tashahhud in the last sitting.
  13. Reciting a dua after the Durood in the last sitting.
  14. Saying the fuller Salam, "Assalamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullah", with the extra words.
  15. Turning your head right, then left, as you say each Salam.

There are also good habits (recommended acts) on top of the sunnahs; they're not sins to skip, but they make your prayer better.

Good habits in prayer

  1. Leave a small gap, about four fingers wide, between your feet while standing.
  2. While standing, look at the spot where you'll put your forehead down; in Ruku, look at your feet; in Sujood, look toward your nose.
  3. In Ruku, spread your fingers on your knees; in Sujood, keep your fingers together; while sitting, rest your hands naturally on your thighs.
  4. In Ruku, keep your head, back and waist level, like a table-top.
  5. Going into sujood, put your knees down first, then your hands, then your nose and forehead. Coming up, do it in reverse.
  6. In Sujood, point your fingers towards the Qibla.
  7. Say the tasbih of Ruku' and Sujood three times, or a higher odd number.
  8. If you need to yawn, keep your mouth closed; try hard not to cough.

Beyond the fard pillars and the wajib acts, the sunnahs of prayer are the Prophet's ﷺ regular practice. Leaving a sunnah does not invalidate the prayer and does not require Sajdah Sahw, but habitually neglecting one is blameworthy.

The sunnahs of prayer

  1. Raising both hands to the earlobes when saying Takbir al-Tahreemah.
  2. Placing both hands below the navel, the right hand resting on the left.
  3. Reciting Thanaa in the first rak'ah after Takbir al-Tahreemah.
  4. Reciting Ta'awwudh in the first rak'ah.
  5. Reciting Bismillah before Al-Fatiha in every rak'ah.
  6. Saying "Ameen" after reciting Al-Fatiha.
  7. Reciting Thanaa, Ta'awwudh, Bismillah and Ameen quietly.
  8. Saying the Takbir for each transition: into Ruku, into Sujood, and so on.
  9. Reciting the tasbih in Ruku, "Subhana Rabbiyal Azeem", three, five or seven times, holding the knees with the fingers spread.
  10. Saying Tasmee' and Tahmeed on rising from Ruku: the Imam says only "Sami' Allahu liman hamidah"; the followers say only "Rabbana lakal hamd"; someone praying alone (Munfarid) says both.
  11. Reciting the tasbih in Sujood, "Subhana Rabbiyal A'la", three times or more.
  12. In the Jalsa and the final Qa'dah, keeping the left foot flat on the ground and the right foot standing.
  13. Reciting Durood after the Tashahhud in the final sitting.
  14. Reciting the prescribed dua after the Durood.
  15. Saying Salaam with the fuller wording, "Assalamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullah".
  16. Turning the head to the right and then the left while saying each Salaam.

The further recommended (mustahabb) acts of prayer include:

Recommended acts in prayer

  1. In Qiyam, leaving a four-finger gap between the feet.
  2. Keeping the eyes on the place of prostration in Qiyam, on the feet in Ruku, and toward the nose in Sujood; turning the head right for the first Salaam and left for the second.
  3. Spreading the fingers on the knees in Ruku, keeping them together with palms flat in Sujood, and resting the hands naturally on the thighs in Qa'dah.
  4. Keeping the head, back and waist level in Ruku.
  5. Going into Sujood in the order: knees, then hands, then nose and forehead, and rising in the reverse order.
  6. In Sujood, placing both hands facing the Qibla with the fingers pointing that way.
  7. Reciting the tasbih of Ruku and Sujood three times, or a higher odd number.
  8. Placing both hands on the thighs in Qa'dah.
  9. Keeping the mouth closed when yawning, and suppressing coughing as much as possible.

Beneath the arkān and the wajibāt sit the sunan of prayer (the Prophet's ﷺ regular, though not invariable, practice). Their omission neither invalidates the prayer nor obliges sajdat as-sahw, but their habitual neglect (as opposed to an occasional lapse) is karāhah.

The sunan of prayer

  1. Raf' al-yadayn to the earlobes at the takbīrat al-taḥrīmah.
  2. Placing the hands below the navel, right over left.
  3. The thanāʾ, recited in the first rakʿah after the taḥrīmah.
  4. The taʿawwudh, in the first rakʿah.
  5. The basmalah before al-Fātiḥah in every rakʿah.
  6. "Āmīn" after al-Fātiḥah.
  7. The thanāʾ, taʿawwudh, basmalah and āmīn all recited sirran.
  8. The takbīrāt of intiqāl (transition) into rukūʿ, sujūd and so on.
  9. The tasbīḥ of rukūʿ, "Subḥāna Rabbiya'l-ʿAẓīm", three, five or seven times, the fingers spread over the knees.
  10. Tasmīʿ and taḥmīd on rising from rukūʿ: the imam says only "Samiʿa'llāhu liman ḥamidah"; the muqtadī says only "Rabbanā laka'l-ḥamd"; a munfarid combines both.
  11. The tasbīḥ of sujūd, "Subḥāna Rabbiya'l-Aʿlā", three times or more.
  12. In the jalsah and the final qaʿdah, the left foot laid flat and the right kept upright.
  13. The durūd after the tashahhud in the final qaʿdah.
  14. The transmitted duʿāʾ after the durūd.
  15. The fuller wording of the salām: "as-Salāmu ʿAlaykum wa Raḥmatullāh".
  16. Turning the head right, then left, with each salām.

Beyond the sunan proper, the mustaḥabbāt (preferred acts) of prayer include:

The mustaḥabbāt of prayer

  1. A four-finger gap between the feet in qiyām.
  2. The gaze fixed on the place of sujūd in qiyām, on the feet in rukūʿ, and toward the nose in sujūd; the head turned right for the first salām, left for the second.
  3. Fingers spread over the knees in rukūʿ; fingers held together, palms flat, in sujūd; the hands resting in their natural position on the thighs in qaʿdah.
  4. Head, back and waist held level in rukūʿ.
  5. Descending into sujūd knees first, then hands, then nose and forehead, and rising in the reverse sequence.
  6. In sujūd, the palms and fingers oriented toward the qiblah.
  7. The tasbīḥāt of rukūʿ and sujūd repeated three times, or a higher odd number.
  8. The hands resting on the thighs in qaʿdah.
  9. Keeping the mouth closed against a yawn, and suppressing a cough so far as possible.

Related