It is stated that Imam Ahmad (may Allah be pleased with him) was asked about placing the right hand over the left hand after rising from bowing, and he answered: “If he wishes, he lets his hands hang down after rising from bowing, and if he wishes, he places them [on his knees].”
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The questioner : Regarding raising the hands, it is stated: Imam Ahmad (may Allah be pleased with him) was asked about placing the right hand over the left hand after rising from bowing? He answered: “If he wishes, he lets his hands hang down after rising from bowing, and if he wishes, he places them [on his knees].” We ask you to clarify for us regarding the Sunnah of letting the hands hang down: is it raising them or placing them? May Allah guide you.
The Shaykh : We say that the apparent Sunnah is that the one praying places his right hand over his left hand after rising from bowing. This is what Sahl ibn Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated, saying:Sahih al-Bukhari 740 His statement: is general for all states of prayer, except where evidence indicates a specific manner.
We say: Placing the right hand over the left hand before bowing is a matter in which there is no doubt. As for during bowing, they have another placement, where the one praying places them on his knees. In standing after bowing is the point of the question, so let us wait. In prostration, it is not possible to place the right hand over the left hand because their place is on the ground. In sitting between the two prostrations, and in the first and second tashahhud, the place for placing them is the thighs; a person places them on his thighs. What remains for us is their placement after rising from bowing?
There is no specific Sunnah regarding this, but the generality of Sahl's statement: includes this position in the prayer. Accordingly, the apparent Sunnah is that a person places his right hand over his left hand after rising from bowing.
As for Imam Ahmad's choice, it is possible that he looked into hadiths indicating the permissibility of letting the hands hang down, but we are not aware of them. This is because it is apparent that Imam Ahmad does not offer a choice between two things unless the Sunnah has come regarding both, and his offering a choice between them is not due to his lack of knowledge of that. Because the position of a scholar who is unaware of something is to suspend judgment, not to issue a ruling. And Allah knows best.
The Shaykh : We say that the apparent Sunnah is that the one praying places his right hand over his left hand after rising from bowing. This is what Sahl ibn Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated, saying:
The people were ordered to place the right hand on the left forearm in the prayer.
كان الناس يؤمرون أن يضع الرجل يده اليمنى على ذراعه اليسرى في الصلاةin the prayer
في الصلاةWe say: Placing the right hand over the left hand before bowing is a matter in which there is no doubt. As for during bowing, they have another placement, where the one praying places them on his knees. In standing after bowing is the point of the question, so let us wait. In prostration, it is not possible to place the right hand over the left hand because their place is on the ground. In sitting between the two prostrations, and in the first and second tashahhud, the place for placing them is the thighs; a person places them on his thighs. What remains for us is their placement after rising from bowing?
There is no specific Sunnah regarding this, but the generality of Sahl's statement:
in the prayer
في الصلاةAs for Imam Ahmad's choice, it is possible that he looked into hadiths indicating the permissibility of letting the hands hang down, but we are not aware of them. This is because it is apparent that Imam Ahmad does not offer a choice between two things unless the Sunnah has come regarding both, and his offering a choice between them is not due to his lack of knowledge of that. Because the position of a scholar who is unaware of something is to suspend judgment, not to issue a ruling. And Allah knows best.