Prostration of Recitation and Prostration of Gratitude

Read the bilingual lesson for Prostration of Recitation and Prostration of Gratitude and test your understanding with a focused quiz.

Lesson

1. Sujud al-Tilawah: Status and Triggers

سَبَبُ السُّجُودِ التِّلَاوَةِ التَّالِي وَالسَّامِعُ فِي الصَّحِيحِ وَهُوَ وَاجِبٌ • Legal Status: Performing the prostration of recitation (Sujud al-Tilawah) is legally Wajib (obligatory). • Triggers: This obligation is established in two scenarios: ◦ Al-Tali (The Reciter): Upon the individual who recites the prostration verse. ◦ Al-Sami' (The Listener): Upon the individual who hears the prostration verse, whether they listened to it intentionally or heard it unintentionally. • Non-Arabic Recitation: If the translation or meaning of a prostration verse is recited or heard in a language other than Arabic (such as Persian), and the person understands its meaning, performing the prostration remains Wajib.

2. The Fourteen Prostration Verses

وَآيَاتُهَا أَرْبَعَ عَشْرَةَ آيَةً • The Count: According to the authoritative Hanafi position, there are exactly fourteen (14) prostration verses in the entire Quran. • The Locations: These verses are located in the following chapters: ◦ Al-A'raf, Al-Ra'd, Al-Nahl, Al-Isra', Maryam, Al-Hajj (first prostration), Al-Furqan, Al-Naml, Al-Sajdah, Sad, Fussilat, Al-Najm, Al-Inshiqaq, and Al-Alaq. • The Hajj Exception: The second prostration located at the end of Surah al-Hajj is not classified as a prostration of recitation in the Hanafi school. It is treated as an emphasized command to perform the standard prostration of worship inside prayer; thus, the total count remains fourteen.

3. Performance Inside and Outside Prayer

وَتُؤَدَّى بِرُكُوعٍ أَوْ سُجُودٍ فِي الصَّلَاةِ... وَشَرْطُ لِصِحَّتِهَا شَرَائِطُ الصَّلَاةِ • Conditions Outside Prayer: All prerequisites of prayer (ablution, clean place, facing Qiblah, covering private parts) are mandatory for Sujud al-Tilawah outside prayer. ◦ Method: Stand, utter Allahu Akbar without raising hands, perform one prostration, then stand back up while uttering Allahu Akbar. • Performance Inside Prayer: ◦ Immediate Prostration: Perform a separate bowing or prostration immediately upon reciting the verse, then stand back up to resume. ◦ Absorption in Ruku': If the worshipper performs the standard Ruku' of the prayer immediately after (within a gap of 3 verses or less), the Ruku' satisfies the Tilawah obligation, provided they intend it.

4. Repetition in a Single Sitting

وَتَتَكَرَّرُ فِي مَجْلِسٍ وَاحِدٍ بِتَبَدُّلِ الْمَجْلِسِ لَا التِّلَاوَةِ • Core Rule: The repetition of Sujud al-Tilawah revolves strictly around the unity or alteration of the physical location (Majlis): ◦ Single Sitting (Muttahid al-Majlis): If a person repeatedly recites or hears the same prostration verse while remaining in the exact same sitting/location, only one prostration is legally Wajib. ◦ Altered Sitting (Tabaddul al-Majlis): If they change their location and recite the same verse again (e.g., reciting once in the room and then in the courtyard), a new prostration becomes Wajib due to the change of location. • Different Verses: If different prostration verses are recited in the exact same sitting, a separate prostration is Wajib for each distinct verse.

5. The Prostration of Gratitude (Sujud al-Shukr)

سَجْدَةُ الشُّكْرِ مَكْرُوهَةٌ عِنْدَ الإِمَامِ... وَقَالَا هِيَ قُرْبَةٌ يُثَابُ عَلَيْهَا • Concept: Sujud al-Shukr is performed out of gratitude upon receiving a specific blessing (such as birth of a child, wealth) or being saved from an illness or calamity. • Juristic Divergence: ◦ According to Imam Abu Hanifah: Performing Sujud al-Shukr is legally disliked (Makruh) as a regular ritualized practice, as he held that there is no established Sunnah for it as an independent ritual. ◦ According to the Two Companions (Abu Yusuf & Muhammad): It is a highly virtuous and praiseworthy act of closeness (Qurbah) that earns reward. • Method: Its physical performance and validity conditions are identical to those of the prostration of recitation.

Practice questions

Question 1

Upon whom is performing Sujud al-Tilawah legally Wajib when a prostration verse is recited?

  • Only upon the one who recites the verse.
  • Only upon the one who listens to it with intention.
  • Upon both the reciter (Tali) and the listener (Sami'), whether the hearing was intentional or unintentional.
  • Only upon the Imam of the mosque.

Question 2

If a person recites the translation of a prostration verse in Persian and understands its meaning, Sujud al-Tilawah is NOT Wajib upon them.

  • True
  • False

Question 3

How many prostration verses are officially recognized in the entire Quran according to the Hanafi school?

  • Eleven (11) verses.
  • Twelve (12) verses.
  • Fourteen (14) verses.
  • Fifteen (15) verses.

Question 4

The second prostration verse located at the end of Surah al-Hajj is classified as an official prostration of recitation in the Hanafi school.

  • True
  • False

Question 5

If a prostration verse is recited inside prayer, and the worshipper performs the standard bowing (Ruku') of the prayer immediately after (within 3 verses), can the Ruku' satisfy the Tilawah prostration?

  • No, a separate prostration is always mandatory.
  • Yes, performing the Ruku' satisfies the obligation, provided the worshipper intends it.
  • It only satisfies it if they are praying in a ship.
  • It satisfies it only if the prayer is voluntary (Nafal).

Question 6

If a person repeats the same prostration verse multiple times while sitting in the exact same location, only one prostration is legally Wajib.

  • True
  • False

Question 7

What is the ruling regarding the Prostration of Gratitude (Sujud al-Shukr) according to Imam Abu Hanifah?

  • It is Wajib (necessary).
  • It is Sunnah Mu'akkadah.
  • It is legally disliked (Makruh).
  • It is completely forbidden (Haram).

Question 8

Match the location and verse scenarios with the correct number of required prostrations:

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