Those who disliked looking aside in prayer

Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: I asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) about turning around in prayer, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "It is a kind of theft by which Satan snatches from the servant's prayer."

Ubayd bin Umayr said: Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) would not turn around when he prayed.

Zayd bin Wahb said: Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) saw a man who prayed two rak'ahs after sunset, before the Maghrib prayer, and kept turning around in them. When he had finished the prayer, Sayyiduna Umar struck him with his whip and said: "Do not turn around in prayer." He did not say anything to him about the two rak'ahs.

Sayyiduna Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Allah Almighty remains turned towards the servant's prayer as long as his ablution is not broken and as long as he does not turn around.

Sayyiduna Abu al-Darda' (may Allah be pleased with him) said: O people, beware of turning around in prayer, for there is no prayer for the one who turns around. If you are overcome in voluntary prayer, then do not be overcome in the obligatory prayer.

Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) used to dislike turning around in prayer.

Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: Turning around in prayer is a kind of theft by which Satan snatches from the prayer.

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: When you pray, your Lord is in front of you and you are speaking to Him in intimate conversation, so do not turn around.

Ata said: It has reached me that the Lord says: "O son of Adam, to whom are you turning? I am better for you than the one you turn to."

Mujahid said: The one who turns around in prayer should fear that Allah Almighty may turn his face around, for Allah Almighty is turned towards him while he is occupied with something else!

Abdullah bin Munqidh said: When the servant stands for prayer, Allah Almighty turns towards him, and when the servant turns around, Allah Almighty also turns away from him.

Sa'id bin Jubayr said: Turning around makes the prayer deficient.

Khalid bin Abi Bakr said: Salim and al-Qasim would not turn around in prayer.

Ka'b said: When a man stands in prayer, Allah Almighty turns towards him as long as he does not turn around.

Al-Hasan said: Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said during his illness: "Sit me up, for I have something entrusted to me by the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: 'None of you should turn around in his prayer; and if he must do so for some reason, then let it not be in what Allah has made obligatory upon him.'"

Al-Hakam said: The perfection of prayer is that you do not know who is on your right and who is on your left.

Sayyiduna Imran bin Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) said about the verse of the Qur'an, {Those who are constant in their prayer} [Al-Ma'arij: 23]: It refers to those who do not turn around in prayer.

Asim said: I never saw Abu Wa'il turning around in his prayer.