Placing the knees before the hands when going into sajdah

Q. When going into sajdah, what should one place on the ground first, the hands or the knees?

A. There are two different Ahaadith regarding this. According to the first one, which is reported by Hadhrat Waa'il bin Hujr (Radiyallahu anhu), Rasulullah (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi Wasallam) used to place his knees first, and then he would place his hands. According to the other Hadith, reported by Hadhrat Abu Hurairah (Radiyallahu anhu), Rasulullah (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi Wasallam) forbade bending down to go into sajdah like a camel bending to sit down. He then ordered that the hands should be placed down before the knees when going into sajdah.

The first Hadith was described as Hassan (good) by Imam Tirmizi (Rahimahullah), and the second was described as Gharib (strange). Imam Tirmizi (Rahimahullah) pointed out that the act of kneeling before placing the hands is adopted by the majority of scholars. This opinion is also that of Imam Abu Hanifah (Rahimahullah), Imam Shafi'i (Rahimahullah), and Imam Ahmad bin Hambal (Rahimahullah).

It is also worth noting that Hadhrat Umar (Radiyallahu anhu) used to kneel before placing his hands. The students of Hadhrat Abdullah bin Mas'ud (Radiyallahu anhuma) followed the same principle. Qaazi Abu At-Tib reported this practice from the majority of Fuqaha. Ibn Al-Munzir (Radiyallahu anhu) reported the practice of kneeling before placing the hands from Hadhrat Umar (Radiyallahu anhu), Ibrahim Nakh'i (Rahimahullah), Muslim bin Yasar (Rahimahullah), Sufyaan Sauri (Rahimahullah), Imam Ahmad (Rahimahullah), and Hadhrat I'shaaq (Rahimahullah). Allaamah Al-Khattabi (Rahimahullah) stated that the Hadith reported by Hadhrat Waa'il bin Hujr (Radiyallahu anhu), where he mentioned that Rasulullah (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi Wasallam) used to kneel before placing his hands, is stronger than the Hadith of Hadhrat Abu Hurairah (Radiyallahu anhu).

According to Ibn al-Qayyim (Rahimahullah), the matn (text) of the Hadith of Hadhrat Abu Hurairah (Radiyallahu anhu) was distorted by some narrators. Instead of reporting "placing the knees before the hands", it was reported as "placing the hands before the knees". According to Allaamah 'Ali Al-Qaari (Rahimahullah), some narrators made an error in reporting the last part of the matn of this Hadith. Instead of saying "walaa-yadwa", it was reported as "walyadwa". In the second case, it means "placing the hands before the knees". On the other hand, if we say "walaa-yadwa", it means "not placing the hands before the knees".

The version of "walaa-yadwa" (not placing the hands before the knees) seems more accurate, as this statement would forbid sitting like a camel. When a camel sits, it places its front legs (hands) first. If a person were to place their hands before their knees, he would resemble a camel, and this is the manner of sitting that Rasulullah (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi Wasallam) forbade.

Now, the practice of placing the knees before the hands, as reported by Hadhrat Aswad (Radiyallahu anhu) from Hadhrat Umar (Radiyallahu anhu) in Musannaf Ibn Abu Shaibah, shows that Hadhrat Umar (Radiyallahu anhu) continued this practice even after the wafaat of Rasulullah (Sallallaahu ‘Alaihi Wasallam). It is implausible that an esteemed Sahabi like Hadhrat Umar (Radiyallahu anhu), who observed Rasulullah (Sallallaahu ‘Alaihi Wasallam) placing his hands before his knees until the final moments of his life, would adopt the opposite practice after the Prophet's (Sallallaahu ‘Alaihi Wasallam) departure. For Hadhrat Umar (Radiyallahu anhu) to place his knees before his hands, he must have witnessed Rasulullah (Sallallaahu ‘Alaihi Wasallam) doing so.

This is why Allaamah ‘Ali Al-Qaari (Rahimahullah) believes that the practice of placing the hands before the knees was abrogated by the Hadith of Hadhrat Sa’d bin Waqqaas (Radiyallahu anhu), reported in Sahih Ibn Khuzaimah, where it is stated: “We used to place the hands before the knees. Then we were ordered to place the knees before the hands.” Some consider this Hadith weak, but it is sufficient to strengthen the possibility of abrogation, especially since, according to Musannaf Ibn Abu Shaibah, Hadhrat Nafi (Radiyallahu anhu) reported from Hadhrat Abdullah bin Umar (Radiyallahu anhuma) the act of placing the knees before the hands. Similarly, according to Musannaf Ibn Abu Shaibah, as reported by Hadhrat Abu Hurairah (Radiyallahu anhu), Rasulullah (Sallallaahu ‘Alaihi Wasallam) said:

“When someone among you performs the sajdah, let him start with his knees before his hands. And he should not sit like a camel does.”

Some regard this Hadith as weak. However, the fact that the practice of the majority of scholars aligns with this makes the Hadith authentic according to the principles established by the Muhadditheen (Rahimahumullah). Therefore, we conclude that it is absolutely correct to prioritise the practice of placing the knees before the hands when going into sajdah, as demonstrated in the Hadith of Hadhrat Waa’il bin Hujr (Radiyallahu anhu).

[English version of "Poser les genoux avant les mains en allant dans le sajdah" – Al Haadi – Vol. 2 No. 8]