In the name of Allah,
While going down in the sujood, scholars differ on whether to place hands or knees first. They disagree over which is better. According to the consensus of scholars, either kneeling or placing hands first is acceptable for a person to pray.
In al-Fataawa (22/449), Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah made the following insightful observation:
‘Both forms of praying are permissible based on the consensus of scholars’[I].
As to knees being placed before hands when going down for the sujood, researchers and evidence to support their claim are:
Scholars have divided in this regard, according to Ibn Al Mundhir. ‘Umar Bin Khattaab, Ath Thawree, Ash Shaafi’ee, Ahmad, Ishaaq, Aboo Haneefa, and the people of Koofa (May Allah have mercy on them) are among those who believe that the knees should come before the hands.
According to the majority of scholars, a man should go down on his knees before putting his hands down, and when he gets up, he should raise his hands before his knees, according to Al-Sunan Tirmidhi’s (2/57): This is how it is done according to the majority of scholars: they believe that a man should go down on his knees before putting his hands down, and when he gets up, he should raise his hands before his knees.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah and his student Ibn al-Qayyim were among those who believed that one should first descend with knees first into sujood; Shaykh Abd al-Azeez ibn Baaz and Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-Uthaymeen are two contemporary scholars who hold this opinion.
Ibn Baaz ( May Allah have mercy on him) said,
‘If possible, prostrate while saying Allahu Akbar and resting on your knees before touching it with your hands. If not, you may contact the ground with your hands before bending your knees.[ii]
In the Classical Manual of Hanafi law, it is stated:
When performing the prostration, it is sunnah to position the knees first, then the hands, and finally the face. Furthermore, after rising from prostration, it is sunnah to do the opposite, i.e. the face, hands, and knees! If one is frail, though, he should do all he can[iii].
The Hanbali school:
When he goes down into sujood, he must put his knees first, then his hands, and when he rises, he must lift his hands before his knees – this is what the Prophet has told us[iv].
Ibn Qudamah al-Maqdisi said,
‘The first thing that will touch the ground should be his knees then his palms, then his forehead and nose[v].
Ibn Qayyim and Shaykh Uthaymeen are two scholars who rigorously argue in favor of placing knees first and then palms while going in sujood.
Ibn Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) argues,
‘His (PBUH) knees would then touch the ground, followed by his hands, forehead, and nose. Waa’il Bin Hujr stated, “I have seen Allaah’s Messenger (may Allaah bestow salutations upon him) kneeling, his knees reaching the earth before his hands.” When he stood up, his hands would come before his knees.
Regarding Aboo Hurayra’s prophetic tradition: When prostrating, do not kneel like a camel. May your hands come before your knees’, which is contradictory because a camel kneels with its hands first. It rises from the ground with its legs first[vi]’.
He continues,
Perhaps Aboo Hurayra’s ( R.A) prophetic tradition has been flipped and should be ‘may your knees precede your hands. In the same way, Ibn ‘Umar’s prophetic tradition has been reversed: ‘Bilal calls to prayer during the night, so eat and drink until Ibn Umm Maktoom calls to prayer’. Following that, it was narrated: ‘Ibn Umm Maktoom calls to prayer during the night, so eat and drink until Bilaal calls to prayer.’
Waa’il Bin Hujr’s prophetic tradition is more trustworthy for a variety of reasons:
Firstly, the language of Aboo Hurayra’s hadith has varied from one narrative to the next. Some of our colleagues have reported that the practice of prostrating hands first has been abolished, as per Ibn Al Mundhir.
Waa’il Bin Hujr’s prophetic tradition is consistent with ‘Umar Bin A1 Khattaab, his son, and ‘Abdullaah Bin Mas’ood’s practices. The majority follows Waa’il Bin Hujr’s prophetic tradition.’[vii]
Waa’il Bin Hujr’s narration is more credible than Aboo Hurayra’s, according to Al Khattaabee and others [viii].
As a further reminder, Shaykh Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) reiterates knees should take precedence over hands. He said,
‘This is the natural way of descending into a prostration position, and it is also the way that the Sunnah prescribes.
As for what Nasai and Abu Dawud reported from Abu Hurairah that the Prophet said,
“When one of you prostrates then do not kneel down as the camel kneels down, let him place his hands before his knees.,
The Prophet’s admonition “Do not kneel like the camel kneels” refers to the way a camel kneels, which involves putting down its hands (front legs) before its knees, as anybody who has seen a camel knows. The camel falls head first, with the front half of its body falling ahead of the back half, causing it to thrust its hands forward.
The Prophet (PBUH) barred a person from prostrating on his hands because he would be kneeling (on his hands first) like a camel (on its front legs first when going down).
Except in the context of chastisement, the Qur’an makes no reference of resembling animals.
‘So, his description is the description of a dog‘ [ Quran translation, Soorah Al Araaf verse 176]
And in the Sunnah, “The one who takes back his gift (after giving it) is like the dog that vomits then returns to eat it.”‘ [ix]
We say that if the final line were right (and he was allowed to lay his hands down before his knees), the hadith would be contradictory, because the conclusion of it says that the hands should be put down first, but the beginning indicates that it is forbidden to do so.
“Indeed, the narrator inverted his sentence at the end of the hadith, ‘and let him drop his hands down before his knees,’ since it contradicts the hadith’s beginning, and if it contradicts the hadith’s beginning, we take the origin (original basis of the hadith) rather than the example.
He makes a valuable point here,
‘If someone is incapable, or has knee pain or something similar, there is no harm in putting the hands-down first, followed by the knees[x].
On the other hand,
Malik, al-Auza’i, Ibn Hazm, and Ahmad in one of the opinions maintain that it is preferred to place the hands-down first and then the knees.
“I witnessed the folks putting their hands on the floor before their knees,” al-Auza’i said.
“That is the opinion of the people of hadith,” Ibn Abu Dawud says[xi].
Sheikh Naseeruddin Albany believes that hands should be placed before knees while going down in sujood. He said,
‘It was the view of Imam Malik, and Imam Ahmad that the opposing hadith [which said that he (PBUH) would kneel on the ground before his hands, before prostrating] was unauthentic.
Ibn al-Jawzi wrote in al-Tahqiq (108/2) that Imam al-Awzai said, “I saw people prostrate by putting their knees on the floor before their hands.” And al-Marwazi wrote in his Mard’il (1/147/1): “I saw people prostrate by putting their hands before their knees [when prostrating].”[xii]
The Maliki school says,
When prostrating, it is preferred that the hands come before the knees and that the hands leave the earth after the knees when rising at his order. That is exactly what the inhabitants of Medina did[xiii].
Conclusion:
According to the consensus of scholars, praying in both forms is allowed. It seems that it is better to place the knees before the hands according to the Sunnah and Allah knows best.
Sources:
[i] Majmoo’ Al Fatawa – Ibn Taymiyyah, Collection and Arrangement by Abdur Rahman Bin Muhammad Bin Qasim (May Allah have mercy upon him) assisted by his son Muhammad. Vol 22, page 449
[ii] How to Pray According to the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), By his Emminence, Sheikh Ibn Baaz, Darussalam publication page 13
[iii] Nur Al- Idaah, The Light of Clarification. Hasan Shurunbulali, A Classical Manual of Hanafi law. Page 155
[iv] Ahmed Ibn Hanbal’s treatise on prayer (Salaah), Translated by Sameh Strauch. IIPH Publication, Page 15
[v] Fiqh of Worship, Vol 1 Commentary on ‘Umdat al-Fiqh (The Reliable Source of Fiqh) Muwaffaq-ud-Deen, Abdullah ibn Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Qudamah al-Maqdisi , Commentary and translation by: Dr.Hatem al-Haj, page IIPH Publication, Page 155
[vi] Grade: Hasan (Darussalam) Reference : Sunan an-Nasa’i 1091
[vii] Ibn Qayyim Al-Jawziyya (ZAD AL M AA’D) PROVISIONS OF THE AFTERLIFE, WHICH LIE WITHIN PROPHETIC GUIDANCE, Translation Ismail Abdus Salaam, Dar Al-Kotob Al-llmiyah Publication, 2010, Page 56
[viii] Ibn Qayyim Al-Jawziyya (ZAD AL M AA’D) PROVISIONS OF THE AFTERLIFE, WHICH LIE WITHIN PROPHETIC GUIDANCE, Translation Ismail Abdus Salaam, Dar Al-Kotob Al-llmiyah Publication, 2010, Page 103
[ix] Sahih Muslim 1622
[x] The Prophet’s Prayer Described. Shaykh Allamah Salih Uthaymeen, 2015 Hikmah Publication, Translation by Abu Mu’adh Taqweem Asalam, 178-184
[xi] Translation of Fiqh Us Sunnah Author Sayyid Saabiq, Translated by Muhammad Sa’eed Dabas Jamal M. Zarabozo. American Trust Publications, Page 151
[xii] A Textbook on the Prayer, Description on the Prophet’s Prayer, Imam Muhammad Naseer-Uddin Albani, dar us sunnah Publisher, Birmingham, 2013. Page 115
[xiii] The Risala: A Treatise on Maliki Fiqh ‘Abdullah ibn Abi Zayd al-Qayrawani (310/922 -386/996) Translated by Alhaj Bello Mohammad Daura, MA (London), Page 96