How is the prayer for the lunar and solar eclipses performed?
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The questioner : I ask for a brief explanation of the prayer for the lunar and solar eclipses that is suitable for the general public and people?
The Shaykh : Yes, the lunar eclipse is for the moon and the solar eclipse is for the sun, and it may be said that the lunar eclipse refers to both, and it may be said that the solar eclipse refers to both, and the matter in this is broad.
As for the manner of the prayer for the solar eclipse, it is called for; when an eclipse occurs, it is called: "The prayer is gathered," twice or three times or five times or seven times until it is likely in his opinion that the call has reached the people, and there is no takbir or tashahhud in the call for it, but only it is said: "The prayer is gathered," only, and it is not added: "Pray, may Allah have mercy on you," because restricting oneself to what has come is better than adding to it.
As for the manner of the prayer: he says takbir and begins and recites al-Fatihah and a very long surah as much as he can, until it came in some narrations that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) recited in it approximately the length of Surat al-Baqarah, then he bows in a very long, very long, very long bowing, glorifying Allah and magnifying Him, saying: "Glory be to my Lord the Most Great, Glory be to the One of Sovereignty, Glory be to the One of Dominion, Glory be to the One of Majesty," and he increases in the magnification of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) due to the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family):Sahih Muslim 479a.
"Glory be to You, O Allah, our Lord, and with Your praise, O Allah, forgive me, the Purifier, the Holy, Lord of the angels and the Spirit," the important thing is that he comes with everything that has come regarding the magnification of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), then he raises his head saying: "Allah hears the one who praises Him, our Lord and to You is the praise," then he recites al-Fatihah and a very long, very long, very long surah but less than the first, then he bows in a very long, very long bowing, increasing in the magnification of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) except that it is less than the first bowing, then he raises his head saying: "Allah hears the one who praises Him, our Lord and to You is the praise," and he stands in a very long, very long, very long standing equal to his bowing, and he is glorifying Allah and praising Allah and extolling Him, and if he repeats that, there is no harm, then he prostrates in a very long, very long, very long prostration equal to the bowing, increasing in it the tasbih: "Glory be to my Lord the Most High," and of supplication, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said:. Then he raises from the first prostration and sits between the two prostrations in a very long, very long, very long sitting equal to the prostration, supplicating in it with what he loves: "O Lord, forgive me and have mercy on me and heal me and strengthen me and guide me and ease my affairs and expand my chest," and whatever he wishes of supplication, then he prostrates the second prostration in a very long, very long, very long prostration like the first.
Then he stands and recites al-Fatihah and a very long, very long surah but less than the first, then he bows in a very long, very long bowing but less than the first, then he raises and recites al-Fatihah and a very long, very long surah but less than the first, then he bows the second bowing and lengthens the bowing but it is less than the first, then he raises and says: "Allah hears the one who praises Him, our Lord and to You is the praise," and he lengthens the standing equal to the bowing, then he prostrates and lengthens the prostration but it is less than the first, then he sits between the two prostrations and lengthens the sitting but it is less than the first, then he comes with the second prostration and lengthens the prostration but it is less than the prostration in the first rak'ah, then he stands and testifies and says taslim, this is the description of the prayer for the solar eclipse that came from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) when the sun was eclipsed.
Then after that, he preaches a sermon that admonishes, admonishing the people in it and explaining to them the wisdom of the eclipse, and warning them of the punishment of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) did when he preached to the people after the prayer a sermon that admonishes, moving the hearts and softening them. Indeed, the sun was eclipsed in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) on the day his son Ibrahim died, so the people said: "The sun was eclipsed for the death of Ibrahim," meaning the son of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), because they in the pre-Islamic age of ignorance believed that it does not eclipse except for the death of a great one or the life of a great one, but the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) explained to them that this is a defective belief. It was eclipsed on the twenty-ninth day of the month of Shawwal in the tenth year of the Hijrah, so said the verified astronomers when it rose on the morning of that day the length of a spear, so it was eclipsed a total eclipse until it became as if it were a piece of copper, so the people were greatly frightened, until the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) came out in haste and fear, dragging his cloak, may Allah's prayers and peace be upon him, until he caught up with him and established the prayer.
And in his standing, Paradise and Hell were shown to him, and he saw what is in them, so when Paradise was shown to him, a cluster of grapes was presented to him, and he advanced to take from it, then it occurred to him not to do so, (peace and blessings be upon him), and Hell was shown to him until he delayed, (peace and blessings be upon him), fearing that he would be affected by its heat, and it was a witnessed, great day in which the people were greatly frightened.
And by this, a person realizes the matter of the eclipse and that it is obligatory for people to pay attention to it, and that it is from the Sunnah that they be frightened with the fear of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), for this reason the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) ordered when the eclipse occurs that the people rush to prayer, dhikr, charity, and freeing slaves, all this out of fear of the descent of a punishment from which Allah has warned His servants with this eclipse. We ask Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) to show us His signs in a way that we admonish ourselves and take a lesson from them, indeed He is capable of all things.
The Shaykh : Yes, the lunar eclipse is for the moon and the solar eclipse is for the sun, and it may be said that the lunar eclipse refers to both, and it may be said that the solar eclipse refers to both, and the matter in this is broad.
As for the manner of the prayer for the solar eclipse, it is called for; when an eclipse occurs, it is called: "The prayer is gathered," twice or three times or five times or seven times until it is likely in his opinion that the call has reached the people, and there is no takbir or tashahhud in the call for it, but only it is said: "The prayer is gathered," only, and it is not added: "Pray, may Allah have mercy on you," because restricting oneself to what has come is better than adding to it.
As for the manner of the prayer: he says takbir and begins and recites al-Fatihah and a very long surah as much as he can, until it came in some narrations that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) recited in it approximately the length of Surat al-Baqarah, then he bows in a very long, very long, very long bowing, glorifying Allah and magnifying Him, saying: "Glory be to my Lord the Most Great, Glory be to the One of Sovereignty, Glory be to the One of Dominion, Glory be to the One of Majesty," and he increases in the magnification of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) due to the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family):
So far as Ruk'u is concerned, extol in it the Great and Glorious Lord
أما الركوع فعظموا فيه الرب"Glory be to You, O Allah, our Lord, and with Your praise, O Allah, forgive me, the Purifier, the Holy, Lord of the angels and the Spirit," the important thing is that he comes with everything that has come regarding the magnification of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), then he raises his head saying: "Allah hears the one who praises Him, our Lord and to You is the praise," then he recites al-Fatihah and a very long, very long, very long surah but less than the first, then he bows in a very long, very long bowing, increasing in the magnification of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) except that it is less than the first bowing, then he raises his head saying: "Allah hears the one who praises Him, our Lord and to You is the praise," and he stands in a very long, very long, very long standing equal to his bowing, and he is glorifying Allah and praising Allah and extolling Him, and if he repeats that, there is no harm, then he prostrates in a very long, very long, very long prostration equal to the bowing, increasing in it the tasbih: "Glory be to my Lord the Most High," and of supplication, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said:
And as for the prostration, increase in it the supplication, for it is likely that it will be answered for you
وأما السجود فأكثروا فيه من الدعاء فقمن أن يستجاب لكمThen he stands and recites al-Fatihah and a very long, very long surah but less than the first, then he bows in a very long, very long bowing but less than the first, then he raises and recites al-Fatihah and a very long, very long surah but less than the first, then he bows the second bowing and lengthens the bowing but it is less than the first, then he raises and says: "Allah hears the one who praises Him, our Lord and to You is the praise," and he lengthens the standing equal to the bowing, then he prostrates and lengthens the prostration but it is less than the first, then he sits between the two prostrations and lengthens the sitting but it is less than the first, then he comes with the second prostration and lengthens the prostration but it is less than the prostration in the first rak'ah, then he stands and testifies and says taslim, this is the description of the prayer for the solar eclipse that came from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) when the sun was eclipsed.
Then after that, he preaches a sermon that admonishes, admonishing the people in it and explaining to them the wisdom of the eclipse, and warning them of the punishment of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) did when he preached to the people after the prayer a sermon that admonishes, moving the hearts and softening them. Indeed, the sun was eclipsed in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) on the day his son Ibrahim died, so the people said: "The sun was eclipsed for the death of Ibrahim," meaning the son of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), because they in the pre-Islamic age of ignorance believed that it does not eclipse except for the death of a great one or the life of a great one, but the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) explained to them that this is a defective belief. It was eclipsed on the twenty-ninth day of the month of Shawwal in the tenth year of the Hijrah, so said the verified astronomers when it rose on the morning of that day the length of a spear, so it was eclipsed a total eclipse until it became as if it were a piece of copper, so the people were greatly frightened, until the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) came out in haste and fear, dragging his cloak, may Allah's prayers and peace be upon him, until he caught up with him and established the prayer.
And in his standing, Paradise and Hell were shown to him, and he saw what is in them, so when Paradise was shown to him, a cluster of grapes was presented to him, and he advanced to take from it, then it occurred to him not to do so, (peace and blessings be upon him), and Hell was shown to him until he delayed, (peace and blessings be upon him), fearing that he would be affected by its heat, and it was a witnessed, great day in which the people were greatly frightened.
And by this, a person realizes the matter of the eclipse and that it is obligatory for people to pay attention to it, and that it is from the Sunnah that they be frightened with the fear of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), for this reason the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) ordered when the eclipse occurs that the people rush to prayer, dhikr, charity, and freeing slaves, all this out of fear of the descent of a punishment from which Allah has warned His servants with this eclipse. We ask Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) to show us His signs in a way that we admonish ourselves and take a lesson from them, indeed He is capable of all things.