2/157. Chapter:
Sunan Abi Dawud 868 — Ruku Posture
Placing The Hands On The Knees (During Ruku')
Hadith About Ruku Posture and Hand Placement
Sunan Abi Dawud : 868
Sunan Abi DawudHadith Number 868
حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ نُمَيْرٍ، حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو مُعَاوِيَةَ، حَدَّثَنَا الأَعْمَشُ، عَنْ إِبْرَاهِيمَ، عَنْ عَلْقَمَةَ، وَالأَسْوَدِ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، قَالَ إِذَا رَكَعَ أَحَدُكُمْ فَلْيَفْرِشْ ذِرَاعَيْهِ عَلَى فَخِذِهِ وَلْيُطَبِّقْ بَيْنَ كَفَّيْهِ فَكَأَنِّي أَنْظُرُ إِلَى اخْتِلاَفِ أَصَابِعِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم .
‘Abd Allah Narrated from:
When any of you bows, he should spread his arms on his thighs and clap both his palms (Placing them between the knees), as if I am seeing the variation of the fingers of the Messenger of Allah(ﷺ).
Reference : Sunan Abi Dawud 868In-book reference : Book 2, Hadith 478English translation : Book 2, Hadith 867
Summary of Sunan Abi Dawud Hadith 868
This hadith speaks about ruku posture through the statement of Abdullah ibn Mas’ud. He said that when one bows, he should spread his arms on his thighs and bring both palms together between the knees, as though he could see the fingers of the Messenger of Allah (صلى الله عليه وسلم). The hadith is about hand placement in ruku, but it must be read only from the given text. It describes the action Ibn Mas’ud mentioned and the way he remembered it. Another nearby narration gives a different command about placing the hands on the knees, but this explanation does not merge the two rulings. Here, the key teaching is that the Companions paid close attention to the Prophet’s prayer movements and described them in detail.
What we learn from this hadith
- Ibn Mas’ud described a specific hand position in ruku.
- The narration shows close attention to the Prophet’s prayer movements.
- Prayer posture was taught through remembered practice.
- Details of ruku were important enough to be narrated carefully.
