2/124. Chapter:
Sunan Abi Dawud 741 — Raising Hands in Prayer
The Beginning Of The Prayer
Raising Hands in Prayer: Ibn Umar’s Report and Abu Dawud’s Note
Sunan Abi Dawud : 741
Sunan Abi DawudHadith Number 741
حَدَّثَنَا نَصْرُ بْنُ عَلِيٍّ، أَخْبَرَنَا عَبْدُ الأَعْلَى، حَدَّثَنَا عُبَيْدُ اللَّهِ، عَنْ نَافِعٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ، أَنَّهُ كَانَ إِذَا دَخَلَ فِي الصَّلاَةِ كَبَّرَ وَرَفَعَ يَدَيْهِ وَإِذَا رَكَعَ وَإِذَا قَالَ سَمِعَ اللَّهُ لِمَنْ حَمِدَهُ وَإِذَا قَامَ مِنَ الرَّكْعَتَيْنِ رَفَعَ يَدَيْهِ وَيَرْفَعُ ذَلِكَ إِلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم . قَالَ أَبُو دَاوُدَ الصَّحِيحُ قَوْلُ ابْنِ عُمَرَ وَلَيْسَ بِمَرْفُوعٍ . قَالَ أَبُو دَاوُدَ رَوَى بَقِيَّةُ أَوَّلَهُ عَنْ عُبَيْدِ اللَّهِ وَأَسْنَدَهُ وَرَوَاهُ الثَّقَفِيُّ عَنْ عُبَيْدِ اللَّهِ أَوْقَفَهُ عَلَى ابْنِ عُمَرَ وَقَالَ فِيهِ وَإِذَا قَامَ مِنَ الرَّكْعَتَيْنِ يَرْفَعُهُمَا إِلَى ثَدْيَيْهِ وَهَذَا هُوَ الصَّحِيحُ . قال أَبُو دَاوُدَ وَرَوَاهُ اللَّيْثُ بْنُ سَعْدٍ وَمَالِكٌ وَأَيُّوبُ وَابْنُ جُرَيْجٍ مَوْقُوفًا وَأَسْنَدَهُ حَمَّادُ بْنُ سَلَمَةَ وَحْدَهُ عَنْ أَيُّوبَ وَلَمْ يَذْكُرْ أَيُّوبُ وَمَالِكٌ الرَّفْعَ إِذَا قَامَ مِنَ السَّجْدَتَيْنِ وَذَكَرَهُ اللَّيْثُ فِي حَدِيثِهِ قَالَ ابْنُ جُرَيْجٍ فِيهِ قُلْتُ لِنَافِعٍ أَكَانَ ابْنُ عُمَرَ يَجْعَلُ الأُولَى أَرْفَعَهُنَّ قَالَ لاَ سَوَاءً . قُلْتُ أَشِرْ لِي . فَأَشَارَ إِلَى الثَّدْيَيْنِ أَوْ أَسْفَلَ مِنْ ذَلِكَ .
Ibn 'Umar Narrated from:
When he began prayer, he uttered the takbir( Allah is most great) and raised his hands; and when he bowed( he raised his hands); and when he said: “Allah listens to him who praises Him,” (he raised his hands); and when he stood up at the end of two rak’ahs, he raised his hands. He (Ibn ‘Umar) traced that back to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ).Abu Dawud said: What is correct is that the tradition reported by Ibn ‘Umar does not go back to the Prophet (may peace be upon him). Abu Dawud said: The narrator Baqiyyah reported the first part of this tradition from ‘Ubaid Allah and traced it back to the Prophet (ﷺ); and the narrator al-Thaqafi reported it from ‘Ubaid Allah as a statement of Ibn ‘Umar himself(not from the Prophet). In this version he said: When he stood at the end of two rak’ahs he raised them up to his breasts. And this is the correct version.Abu Dawud said: This tradition has been transmitted as a statement of Ibn ‘Umar (and not of the Prophet) by al-Laith b. Sa’d, Malik, Ayyub, and Ibn Juraij; and this has been narrated as a statement of the Prophet (ﷺ) by Hammad b. Salamah alone on the authority of Ayyub. Ayyub and Malik did not mention his raising of hands when he stood after two prostrations, but al-Laith mentioned it in his version.Ibn Juraij said in this version: I asked Nafi’: Did Ibn ‘Umar raise (his hands) higher for the first time? He said: No, I said: Point out to me. He then pointed to the breasts or lower than that.
[1] He means here that it was Marfū' in that version.[2] Meaning, after two Rak'ahs as mentioned in the previous narration, which is the topic of his discussion here, and the narration of Ḥammad from Ayyūb is recorded by Aḥmad (2:100) and others.Reference : Sunan Abi Dawud 741In-book reference : Book 2, Hadith 351English translation : Book 2, Hadith 740
Summary of Sunan Abi Dawud Hadith 741
This hadith is about raising hands in prayer, often searched as raf al yadayn hadith. Nafi reports from Ibn Umar that he raised his hands when starting prayer, when bowing, when rising from bowing, and when standing after two rakahs. The report also says Ibn Umar traced it back to the Messenger of Allah صلى الله عليه وسلم. But Abu Dawud adds an important note. He says the correct version is that this wording is the statement of Ibn Umar, not a direct raised report from the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. The hadith also mentions reports from several narrators and explains that the hand level was near the chest or lower. So the main lesson here is not only about prayer movement, but also about careful hadith wording and correct attribution.
What we learn from this hadith
- Raising the hands is mentioned at key points in prayer in this narration.
- Abu Dawud carefully points out whether a report is traced to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم or stopped at Ibn Umar.
- The hadith shows the care scholars gave to small wording differences in prayer reports.
