When is the prostration of gratitude and the prostration of recitation prescribed, and is ritual purity obligatory for them?

Question:
He says: Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, what is the form of the prostration of gratitude, and likewise the prostration of recitation, and is wudu' (ablution) required for it?

Answer:
The prostration of gratitude is performed when a blessing is renewed or a calamity is averted, and the prostration of recitation is performed when you recite a verse of prostration, you prostrate. This is a sunnah (recommended practice), not obligatory; the prostration of gratitude and the prostration of recitation are sunnah. As for whether what is required for prayer, such as ritual purity and other things, is required for them, this is a matter of scholarly disagreement, and the correct view is that they do not take the ruling of prayer. So if one is reciting from memory and comes upon a verse of prostration, it is recommended for him to prostrate, as Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Kathir issued a fatwa to that effect. It is recommended for him to prostrate because ritual purity is not a condition for it; it is not a prayer.