الحمد للہ وحدہ، والصلوٰۃ والسلام علی من لا نبی بعدہ۔
Raising the hands (Raf’ al-Yadain) in prayer is an established Sunnah, supported by numerous mutawatir (widely transmitted) hadiths. However, some books narrate from Hazrat Abdullah bin Mas’ud (RA) that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ raised his hands only the first time and then did not do so again. This narration is found in Jami’ Tirmidhi.
❖ In this article, we will mention this narration with the original text. ❖ Then, the statements and critiques of the Muhaddithin will be quoted along with the original Arabic phrases and references. ❖ Finally, it will become clear that the narration which abandons raising the hands is weak and defective, and the majority of Muhaddithin have declared it false, while there are authentic and established narrations from a large group of the Sahabah (RA) supporting the Sunnah of raising the hands.
✦ Original Narration (Jami’ Tirmidhi)
Arabic text: «191 – باب ما جاء أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم لم يرفع إلا في أول مرة
257 – حَدَّثَنَا هَنَّادٌ، قَالَ: حَدَّثَنَا وَكِيعٌ، عَنْ سُفْيَانَ، عَنْ عَاصِمِ بْنِ كُلَيْبٍ، عَنْ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنِ الأَسْوَدِ، عَنْ عَلْقَمَةَ، قَالَ: قَالَ عَبْدُ اللهِ بْنُ مَسْعُودٍ: أَلاَ أُصَلِّي بِكُمْ صَلاَةَ رَسُولِ اللهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ؟ فَصَلَّى، فَلَمْ يَرْفَعْ يَدَيْهِ إِلاَّ فِي أَوَّلِ مَرَّةٍ.»
Translation: It is narrated from Alqamah that Abdullah bin Mas’ud (RA) said: Shall I not lead you in the prayer of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ? Then he led the prayer and raised his hands only the first time (at Takbir al-Tahrimah).
✦ Statements and Critiques of the Muhaddithin
① Imam Abdullah bin Mubarak (may Allah have mercy on him)
Arabic text: «قال عبد الله بن المبارك: قد ثبت حديث من يرفع، وذكر حديث الزهري عن سالم عن أبيه، ولم يثبت حديث ابن مسعود أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم لم يرفع إلا في أول مرة.»
Translation: Ibn Mubarak (may Allah have mercy on him) said: The hadith of those who raise their hands (the hadith of Ibn Umar) is authentic in my view, and the narration of Ibn Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet ﷺ raised his hands only the first time is not authentic in my view.
② Imam Shafi’i (may Allah have mercy on him) (quoted from Maghlatai Hanafi)
Arabic text: «قال الشافعي: ما قاله لا يثبت عن علي ولا عن ابن مسعود.»
Translation: Imam Shafi’i (may Allah have mercy on him) said: The statement attributed to Hazrat Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) and Hazrat Ibn Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that they raised their hands only the first time is not proven from them.
③ Hafiz Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah (may Allah have mercy on him)
Arabic text: «أحاديث المنع من رفع اليدين عند الركوع والرفع منه كلها باطلة على رسول الله ﷺ لا يصح منها شيء، كحديث ابن مسعود: “فلم يرفع إلا في أول مرة”.»
Translation: All hadiths that prohibit raising hands during bowing and rising from bowing in prayer are false; none of them are authentic from the Prophet ﷺ, such as the narration of Ibn Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him).
④ Imam Abu Hatim al-Razi (may Allah have mercy on him)
Arabic text: «سألت أبي عن حديث… عن ابن مسعود: أن النبي ﷺ قام فكبر فرفع يديه ثم لم يعد؟
قال أبي: هذا خطأ، يقال وهم فيه الثوري… ولم يقل أحد ما رواه الثوري.»
Translation: I asked my father (Abu Hatim) about this narration… He said: This is an error, it is said that Thawri was mistaken in this, because the group that narrated this did not mention the words that Thawri stated.
⑤ Imam Darqutni (may Allah have mercy on him)
Arabic text: «… وَإِسْنَادُهُ صَحِيحٌ، وَفِيهِ لَفْظَةٌ لَيْسَتْ بِمَحْفُوظَةٍ، ذَكَرَهَا أَبُو حُذَيْفَةَ فِي حَدِيثِهِ عَنِ الثَّوْرِيِّ، وَهِيَ قَوْلُهُ: “ثُمَّ لَمْ يَعُدْ”.»
Translation: The chain according to Ibn Idris is authentic, but in Thawri’s narration the words “ثم لم یعد” are not reliable.
⑥ Imam Ibn Hibban (may Allah have mercy on him)
Arabic text (quoted by Ibn Hajar): «قال ابن حبان في الصلاة: هذا أحسن خبر روي لأهل الكوفة في نفي رفع اليدين عند الركوع وعند الرفع منه، وهو في الحقيقة أضعف شيء يُعوَّل عليه، لأن له عللاً تبطله، وهؤلاء الأئمة إنما طعنوا كلهم في طريق عاصم بن كليب.»
Translation: Ibn Hibban said: This is the best report for the Kufis regarding the negation of raising the hands, but in reality it is the weakest because it contains defects that render it invalid. And the Imams have criticized the chain of Asim bin Kulayb.
⑦ Imam Abu Dawood (may Allah have mercy on him) (275 AH)
Arabic text: «… قال عبد الله بن مسعود: ألا أصلي بكم صلاة رسول الله ﷺ؟ قال: فصلى فلم يرفع يديه إلا مرة.
قال أبو داود: هذا حديث مختصر من حديث طويل، وليس هو بصحيح على هذا اللفظ.»
Translation: Ibn Mas’ud (رضي الله عنه) said: Shall I not lead you in the prayer of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ? Then he prayed and raised his hands only once. Imam Abu Dawood said: This is a brief narration from a long hadith and it is not authentic with this wording.
⑧ Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (رحمه الله) and Yahya ibn Adam (رحمه الله)
Arabic text (Ibn Hajar): «وقال أحمد بن حنبل وشيخه يحيى بن آدم: هو ضعيف.»
Translation: Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal and his teacher Yahya ibn Adam said: This hadith is weak.
⑨ Imam Bazzar (292 AH)
Arabic text: «وهذا الحديث رواه عاصم بن كليب… وعاصم في حديثه اضطراب، ولا سيما في حديث الرفع.»
Translation: This hadith was narrated by Asim ibn Kulayb… and there is idtirab (inconsistency) in Asim’s narration, especially in the hadith about raising the hands.
⑩ Muhammad ibn Waddah Al-Qurtubi (280 AH)
Arabic text (quoted by Ibn Abdul Barr): «قال محمد بن وضاح: الأحاديث التي تُروى عن النبي ﷺ في رفع اليدين ثم لا يعود ضعيفة كلها.»
Translation: Muhammad ibn Waddah (رحمه الله) said: The hadiths narrated from the Prophet ﷺ that he raised his hands only once and then did not raise them again, all of these are weak.
⑪ Imam Bukhari (256 AH)
Arabic text: «ولم يثبت عند أهل النظر ممن أدركنا من أهل الحجاز وأهل العراق… عبد الله بن الزبير، وعلي بن عبد الله بن جعفر، ويحيى بن معين، وأحمد بن حنبل، وإسحاق بن راهويه… فلم يثبت عند أحد منهم ترك رفع الأيدي عن النبي ﷺ ولا عن أحد من أصحابه.»
Translation: We found the great scholars of Hijaz and Iraq (Hamidi, Ali bin Madini, Yahya bin Ma’in, Ahmad bin Hanbal, Ishaq bin Rahwayah), and none of them established that abandoning the raising of hands was transmitted from the Prophet ﷺ or any companion.
⑫ Hafiz Qurtubi (656 AH)
Arabic text: «وهو مذهب الكوفيين على حديث عبد الله بن مسعود والبراء… ولا يصح شيء منهما.»
Translation: The Kufis’ belief is based on the hadith of Ibn Mas’ud and Bara’ رضي الله عنه that the Prophet ﷺ only raised his hands the first time… but neither of these narrations is authentic.
⑬ Hafiz Abdul Haq Al-Ashbili (581 AH)
Arabic text: «وقال الترمذي: إلا في أول مرة. وهذا أيضًا لا يصح.»
Translation: Tirmidhi said: He only raised his hands the first time… but this narration is also not authentic.
⑭ Ibn al-Mulaqqin (804 AH)
Arabic text: «وأما الجواب عن الحديث الثالث وهو حديث ابن مسعود: فهو حديث ضعيف أيضًا.»
Translation: As far as the hadith of Ibn Mas’ud رضي الله عنه is concerned, it is also a weak hadith.
⑮ Imam Hakim Nishapuri (405 AH)
Arabic text: «وقال الحاكم أبو عبد الله عن هذا الخبر: مختصر من أصله… وهذه اللفظة (ثم لم يعد) غير محفوظة في الخبر.»
Translation: Hakim said: This narration is an abridgment of the original hadith… and the phrase “ثم لم یعد” (then he did not continue) is not reliable.
⑯ Imam Nawawi (676 AH)
Arabic text: «1080 – وحديث ابن مسعود أنه قال: “أصلي بكم صلاة النبي ﷺ، فصلى فلم يرفع إلا مرة”. اتفقوا على تضعيفه.»
Translation: The narration of Ibn Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet ﷺ raised his hands only once is unanimously considered weak among the hadith scholars.
⑰ Ibn al-Qattan al-Fasi (628 AH)
Arabic text: «… وقد ذكر علته وبينها أبو عبد الله المروزي في كتاب رفع الأيدي. وهذا من تضعيفه.»
Translation: The reason for this narration’s weakness has been clarified by Imam Abu Abdullah al-Marwazi in his book Raf’ al-Aydi, and this serves as evidence for its weakness.
⑱ Imam Ibn Qudamah al-Maqdisi (620 AH)
Arabic text: «… عن عبد الله بن مسعود: فلم يرفع يديه إلا في أول مرة. وعن البراء بن عازب… ثم لا يعود. فأما حديثاهما فضعيفان.»
Translation: Both narrations of Ibn Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) and Bara’ (may Allah be pleased with him) that the hands were raised only the first time are weak.
⑲ Imam al-Baghawi (516 AH)
Arabic text: «قلت: وأحاديث رفع اليدين في المواضع الأربع أصح وأثبت، فاتباعها أولى.»
Translation: I say: The hadiths about raising the hands at four places are more authentic and established, therefore it is better to act upon them.
⑳ Imam Ibn Abd al-Barr al-Qurtubi (463 AH)
Arabic text: «حديث البراء بن عازب… وحديث ابن مسعود… وهذان حديثان معلولان عند أهل العلم بالحديث.»
Translation: Both narrations of Bara’ (may Allah be pleased with him) and Ibn Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) are considered by the scholars of hadith to be ‘ma’lul’ (having a defect or cause for weakness).
㉑ Imam Khattabi (388 AH)
Arabic text: «قلت: والأحاديث الصحيحة التي جاءت بإثبات رفع اليدين عند الركوع وبعد رفع الرأس منه أولى من حديث ابن مسعود، والإثبات أولى من النفي.»
Translation: I say: The hadiths affirming raising the hands at the time of going into and rising from Ruku are stronger than the narration of Ibn Mas’ud رضي الله عنه, because affirmation takes precedence over negation.
㉒ Imam Ibn al-Jawzi (597 AH)
Arabic text: «وأما حديث المعارضة فحديث ابن مسعود الأول، قال فيه عبد الله بن المبارك: لا يثبت هذا الحديث. وقال أبو داود: ليس بصحيح…»
Translation: Regarding the narration of Ibn Mas’ud رضي الله عنه, Ibn Mubarak said: It is not established. Abu Dawood said: It is not authentic.
㉓ Sheikh Akbar Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi (638 AH)
Arabic text: «غاية المفهوم من حديث ابن مسعود والبراء… أنه ﷺ كان يرفع يديه عند الإحرام مرة واحدة لا يزيد عليها.»
Translation: The maximum meaning of the narration of Ibn Mas’ud and Bara’ رضي الله عنه is that the Prophet ﷺ raised his hands once at the time of Takbir al-Tahrimah, (but the negation of raising hands at other places is not established).
㉔ Imam Ibn Abd al-Hadi al-Maqdisi (744 AH)
Arabic text: «وقد روى هذه السنة عن رسول الله ﷺ جماعة من الصحابة… ولم يثبت عن أحد من الصحابة أنه لم يرفع.»
Translation: The Sunnah of raising the hands was narrated from the Prophet ﷺ by a large group of the Companions, and it is not established from any one Companion that he abandoned raising the hands.
㉕ Imam Ibn Sayyid al-Nas al-Ya’mari (734 AH)
Arabic text: «ولم يثبت عن أحد من أصحاب النبي ﷺ أنه لم يرفع يديه.»
Translation: It is not proven from any companion of the Prophet ﷺ that they abandoned raising the hands (Raf’ al-Yadain).
✦ Summary and Conclusion
- The narration of Hazrat Ibn Mas’ud رضي الله عنه regarding abandoning raising the hands is narrated in Jami’ Tirmidhi and Sunan Abi Dawood, etc., but:
Imam Ibn Mubarak, Imam Shafi’i, Imam Ahmad, Imam Bukhari, Imam Nasai, Imam Darqutni, Imam Abu Dawood, Ibn Hibban, Ibn Khuzaymah, Ibn Abdul Barr, Ibn al-Mulaqqin, Nawawi, Ibn Hajar, Ibn Qudamah, and other Imams have declared it weak, unreliable, defective, or rejected.
- Some have called it the strongest argument of the Kufis, but at the same time clarified that in reality it is the weakest.
- Regarding the affirmation of raising the hands:
There are authentic and strong narrations from more than 50 companions.
- Among them are Hazrat Umar رضي الله عنه, Hazrat Ali رضي الله عنه, Hazrat Ibn Umar رضي الله عنه, Hazrat Malik bin Huwayrith رضي الله عنه, Hazrat Anas رضي الله عنه, etc.
- The majority of hadith scholars have clearly stated that:
No narration from the Prophet ﷺ proves abandoning raising the hands.
- The affirming hadiths are more authentic, more numerous, and stronger.
Scans of Important References
