Daraqutni

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Rifa’ah bin Rafi’ (may Allah be pleased with him): Sayyiduna Rifa’ah (may Allah be pleased with him) and Sayyiduna Malik bin Rafi’ (may Allah be pleased with him) are both brothers and participated in the Battle of Badr. Sayyiduna Rafi’ (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: Once we were sitting with the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) (the narrator is unsure, perhaps the words are:) Once the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was present, and we were around him, when a man came there. He faced the Qiblah and performed prayer. When he completed the prayer, he came and greeted the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and also greeted those present. The Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: “It is obligatory upon you, go back and perform the prayer, for indeed you have not performed the prayer.” The man then began to pray again, and we observed his prayer attentively, but we could not understand what mistake he was making. When he completed the prayer, he came and greeted the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and those present. The Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: “It is obligatory upon you, go and perform the prayer again, for indeed you have not performed the prayer.” The narrator named Hammam says: I do not know, as mentioned in the hadith, whether the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) instructed him twice or three times, then the man said: “What deficiency have I made? I could not understand which part of my prayer you have declared incorrect?” So the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “No person’s prayer is complete until he performs ablution properly as Allah Almighty has commanded him, a man should first wash his face, then wash both arms up to the elbows, then wipe his head, then wash both feet up to the ankles, mention the greatness of Allah Almighty, praise Him, then recite Surah al-Fatihah, then recite whatever is easy for him (some portion of the Qur’an), then say takbeer and go into ruku’, and place both hands on his knees, until his joints become calm and relaxed, then he should say ‘Sami’ Allahu liman hamidah’ and stand up straight, until his back becomes straight and every bone returns to its place, then he should say takbeer and go into prostration, and firmly place his forehead.” The narrator named Hammam sometimes narrated these words: “Place his forehead on the ground, until his joints become calm and relaxed, then say takbeer and sit on his buttocks, and keep his back straight.” After that, he described the method of prayer in all four rak’ahs in the same way, until he completed it, and (the Noble Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him) said: “No person’s prayer is complete until he does so.”