The Shaykh Al-Albani’s explanation of the ruling on placing the hands on the chest after rising from bowing, and the distinction between this and placing them before bowing.
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The Shaykh : So which one is more apparent to you? Start with that one?
The questioner : I will start by returning to the question!
The Shaykh : And what is it?
The questioner : And that is: when you said, O Shaykh: Is doing this a recommended practice? I said to you: No.
The Shaykh : But this is not his action!!
The questioner : His statement is his statement.
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : But does his statement mean that it is not a recommended practice, O Shaykh?
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : How, my Shaykh?
The Shaykh : Because if it were a recommended practice, he would have said: It is a recommended practice. If he were asked about placing the hands before bowing, would he say what he said about placing them after bowing, as far as you know?
The questioner : But this is his understanding of the question.
The Shaykh : You are straying, you are straying, may Allah guide you, answer,Sunan Ibn Majah 3982Sahih (Darussalam).
The questioner : May Allah reward you, if Allah wills. I am not straying, O Shaykh. This is my understanding, O Shaykh. I do not want to argue with you, but...
The Shaykh : I am not speaking to you about religious knowledge until you tell me: I am not an authority. I am speaking with reason. My reason is like your reason, and your reason is like my reason.
The questioner : Is my reason like your reason!!
The Shaykh : There is nothing [wrong with that], meaning I may have more than you in some things, because I know this hadith is authentic and this one is weak, and so on. But that is not our topic. Our topic is logical, rational!
The questioner: Go ahead.
The Shaykh : So I asked you about what you have of knowledge, and let us add to it your humble statement: that I am not an authority. Let us add this. Ah, if Imam Ahmad (may Allah have mercy on him) or others from the people of the Sunnah were asked about placing the hands in the first standing, would he say what you quoted from him regarding the second standing?
The questioner: No.
The Shaykh : So this is my answer.
The questioner : Correct, correct. But O Shaykh, there is a detail in this situation!
The Shaykh: Go ahead!
The questioner : Allow me to give the detail, please!
The Shaykh : Give it to me, my brother. I told you: Give it to me before you say: Allow me.
The questioner : Okay, and here, meaning, does Imam Ahmad, first of all: we said, based on the understanding of the righteous Salaf, does Imam Ahmad have the right to say that a person should place his hands or not place them, without knowing a recommended practice in that, for example, taking it from general texts like the hadith of Wail ibn Hujr? This is my question?!
The Shaykh : Yes, he has that right, because Imam Ahmad is known for his school: that if there are some opinions in an issue, he does not put others in difficulty. He does not put others in difficulty if he does not have a decisive text on the matter. So he says: If you wish, do it, and if you wish, do not do it. And the evidence is: we are now in agreement that if he were asked about the first placement, he would say: It is a recommended practice. In fact, I may say: It is obligatory, because it falls under the generality of his statement (peace and blessings be upon him):Sahih al-Bukhari 6008, and what came from him (peace and blessings be upon him) that he let his hands hang down one day. So from here and there, Imam Ahmad (may Allah have mercy on him) distinguishes with his knowledge of the Sunnah and his estimation of it on one hand, and his estimation of the opinions of others on the other hand. So he is not a fanatic; he is a moderate man by virtue of the Sunnah that he contained in his chest (may Allah have mercy on him). And therefore, we agree now that he distinguishes between if he were asked about what he was not asked about, his answer would be that it is a recommended practice, unless he said: Rather, this is obligatory, as we say.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : But there is no recommended practice at all there. But you, like others now, say: The hadith of Wail. Okay, and I say to you: Is the indication of the hadith of Wail by a specific indication or a general one?
The questioner : It is general.
The Shaykh : Okay, we answered this just now, and it is not far from your memory, I think, is it not so?
The questioner : In which issue?
The Shaykh : We said: If the thing has not been acted upon by the Salaf, then it is not permissible for us to argue with generalities. This is recorded speech. When we mentioned that the method of the innovators in what they innovate is taking generalities, and we argue against them. I clearly remember I said: We and they, those who place their hands in the second standing, and those who do not place them, agree on arguing against the people of innovation by saying: O people, if your understanding of these general texts were correct, the Salaf would have had this correct understanding. And if they had understood that, they would have applied it, because they were more eager to draw near to Allah (Mighty and Majestic) than you. So since they did not do it, that indicates that your understanding is wrong. And I think we cited a verse of poetry:
"And all good is in following those who came before, and all evil is in innovating what those who came after have introduced."
Now I can give you a very simple example to clarify this issue, and to make clear the error of arguing with generalities that the Salaf did not act upon. And at the same time, this will be an answer to a question that may occur in the minds of some people: You have the right—La ilaha illa Allah—you have the right to ask: And how did we know that the Salaf did not place their hands in the second standing?
The questioner : I was going to ask this question?
The Shaykh : Here, so you, O people of the Salaf, I say on this occasion: You deny Sufi unveiling, and you have no knowledge of Salafi unveiling?
The questioner : I will start by returning to the question!
The Shaykh : And what is it?
The questioner : And that is: when you said, O Shaykh: Is doing this a recommended practice? I said to you: No.
The Shaykh : But this is not his action!!
The questioner : His statement is his statement.
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : But does his statement mean that it is not a recommended practice, O Shaykh?
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : How, my Shaykh?
The Shaykh : Because if it were a recommended practice, he would have said: It is a recommended practice. If he were asked about placing the hands before bowing, would he say what he said about placing them after bowing, as far as you know?
The questioner : But this is his understanding of the question.
The Shaykh : You are straying, you are straying, may Allah guide you, answer,
The believer should not be stung from the same hole twice.
لا يُلدغ المؤمن من جُحْرٍ مرَّتينThe questioner : May Allah reward you, if Allah wills. I am not straying, O Shaykh. This is my understanding, O Shaykh. I do not want to argue with you, but...
The Shaykh : I am not speaking to you about religious knowledge until you tell me: I am not an authority. I am speaking with reason. My reason is like your reason, and your reason is like my reason.
The questioner : Is my reason like your reason!!
The Shaykh : There is nothing [wrong with that], meaning I may have more than you in some things, because I know this hadith is authentic and this one is weak, and so on. But that is not our topic. Our topic is logical, rational!
The questioner: Go ahead.
The Shaykh : So I asked you about what you have of knowledge, and let us add to it your humble statement: that I am not an authority. Let us add this. Ah, if Imam Ahmad (may Allah have mercy on him) or others from the people of the Sunnah were asked about placing the hands in the first standing, would he say what you quoted from him regarding the second standing?
The questioner: No.
The Shaykh : So this is my answer.
The questioner : Correct, correct. But O Shaykh, there is a detail in this situation!
The Shaykh: Go ahead!
The questioner : Allow me to give the detail, please!
The Shaykh : Give it to me, my brother. I told you: Give it to me before you say: Allow me.
The questioner : Okay, and here, meaning, does Imam Ahmad, first of all: we said, based on the understanding of the righteous Salaf, does Imam Ahmad have the right to say that a person should place his hands or not place them, without knowing a recommended practice in that, for example, taking it from general texts like the hadith of Wail ibn Hujr? This is my question?!
The Shaykh : Yes, he has that right, because Imam Ahmad is known for his school: that if there are some opinions in an issue, he does not put others in difficulty. He does not put others in difficulty if he does not have a decisive text on the matter. So he says: If you wish, do it, and if you wish, do not do it. And the evidence is: we are now in agreement that if he were asked about the first placement, he would say: It is a recommended practice. In fact, I may say: It is obligatory, because it falls under the generality of his statement (peace and blessings be upon him):
offer your prayers in the way you saw me offering my prayers
صلُّوا كما رأيتموني أصلِّيThe questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : But there is no recommended practice at all there. But you, like others now, say: The hadith of Wail. Okay, and I say to you: Is the indication of the hadith of Wail by a specific indication or a general one?
The questioner : It is general.
The Shaykh : Okay, we answered this just now, and it is not far from your memory, I think, is it not so?
The questioner : In which issue?
The Shaykh : We said: If the thing has not been acted upon by the Salaf, then it is not permissible for us to argue with generalities. This is recorded speech. When we mentioned that the method of the innovators in what they innovate is taking generalities, and we argue against them. I clearly remember I said: We and they, those who place their hands in the second standing, and those who do not place them, agree on arguing against the people of innovation by saying: O people, if your understanding of these general texts were correct, the Salaf would have had this correct understanding. And if they had understood that, they would have applied it, because they were more eager to draw near to Allah (Mighty and Majestic) than you. So since they did not do it, that indicates that your understanding is wrong. And I think we cited a verse of poetry:
"And all good is in following those who came before, and all evil is in innovating what those who came after have introduced."
Now I can give you a very simple example to clarify this issue, and to make clear the error of arguing with generalities that the Salaf did not act upon. And at the same time, this will be an answer to a question that may occur in the minds of some people: You have the right—La ilaha illa Allah—you have the right to ask: And how did we know that the Salaf did not place their hands in the second standing?
The questioner : I was going to ask this question?
The Shaykh : Here, so you, O people of the Salaf, I say on this occasion: You deny Sufi unveiling, and you have no knowledge of Salafi unveiling?
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.