The description of bowing

It is narrated from Muhammad bin Amr bin Ata that he was sitting among a group of the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). We mentioned the prayer of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and Abu Humayd al-Sa'idi (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Of all of you, I remember the prayer of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) best. I saw that when he said the takbir he would bring both his hands level with his shoulders, and when he bowed he would place both his hands on his knees, then he would bend his back. Then he mentioned the full hadith.

It is narrated from Muhammad bin Amr al-Amiri that he said: I was in a gathering of the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and they were discussing among themselves his prayer (peace and blessings be upon him). Abu Humayd (may Allah be pleased with him) said, and then he mentioned the full hadith, and in it there is also: When he (peace and blessings be upon him) bowed, he would place his hands firmly on his knees and keep space between his fingers, then he would bend his back, neither bending it too far nor exposing his cheeks, that is, not raising (his head) too high.

Abbas bin Sahl narrated that Abu Humayd, Abu Usayd, Sahl bin Sa'd and Muhammad bin Maslamah (may Allah be pleased with them) were gathered (in one place), and they mentioned the prayer of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Abu Humayd (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "I know the prayer of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) better than any of you." Then he mentioned the full hadith, and then said that he (peace and blessings be upon him) bowed and placed his hands on his knees as though he were gripping them, made his arms taut like a bowstring, and kept them away from his sides.

It is narrated from the Mother of the Believers, Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her), that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to begin the prayer with the takbir. Then the full hadith was mentioned, and in it there is also: When he (peace and blessings be upon him) bowed, he would hold his head neither too high nor too low, but level. Then the full hadith was mentioned.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him); the narrator said: I think he attributed it to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and Abu Mu'awiyah was in doubt about this: "Ablution is the key to prayer; what makes it forbidden (to do other things) is the takbir (tahrimah), and what makes it permissible is the taslim; in every two rak'ahs there is a taslim; there is no prayer, obligatory or voluntary, without the recitation of Surah al-Fatihah and some other surah along with it; when one of you bows, let him not make a hump like a donkey (that is, in bowing he should not stretch out his back and lower his head below his back), but let him keep his back straight; and when he prostrates, let him also keep his back straight, for a person prostrates on seven bones: on his forehead, on his two hands, on his two knees and on the front parts (toes) of his feet; and when he sits, let him keep his right foot upright and spread his left foot."