1. Raising the Finger and Making Du‘a
Sayyiduna ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar رضي الله عنهما reported:
"When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ sat in Salah (in Qa‘dah), he would place his hands on his knees, close all the fingers of his right hand, and raise the finger next to the thumb, making du‘a with it. He would place his left hand flat on his left knee."
(Sahih Muslim, Kitab al-Masajid, Bab Sifat al-Juloos fi al-Salah, Hadith: 580)
2. Pointing with the Index Finger
Sayyiduna ‘Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr رضي الله عنه narrated:
"When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ sat for Tashahhud in Salah, he placed his right hand on his right thigh and his left hand on his left thigh, and he would point with his index finger, placing his thumb on his middle finger."
(Sahih Muslim: 975/211, 975/311)
This shows the allowance to place the hands either on the knees or the thighs.
3. Forming a Circle and Pointing
Sayyiduna Wa’il ibn Hujr رضي الله عنه narrated:
"The Messenger of Allah ﷺ sat after the second prostration, folded two fingers, made a circle with the thumb and middle finger, and pointed with the index finger."
(Sunan Abu Dawood: 989 — authenticated by Ibn Hibban: 584, Ibn Khuzaymah: 317, 417)
4. Moving the Finger
Sayyiduna Wa’il ibn Hujr رضي الله عنه said:
"The Messenger of Allah ﷺ raised his finger and moved it."
(Sunan al-Nasa’i, Kitab al-Iftitah, Bab Mawdi‘ al-Yamin min al-Shimal fi al-Salah, Hadith: 1270 — authenticated by Ibn Hibban and Ibn Khuzaymah)
Shaykh al-Albani رحمه الله said:
"The narration that does not mention movement of the finger is Shaadh (anomalous) or Munkar, and cannot be given precedence over Wa’il ibn Hujr’s narration."
He also clarified that:
"Raising the finger only at Lā ilāha illallāh and then lowering it is not established from any authentic narration."
5. Keeping the Gaze on the Finger
Sayyiduna ‘Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr رضي الله عنه reported:
"The gaze of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would not go beyond his finger during Tashahhud."
(Sunan Abu Dawood, Kitab al-Salah, Bab al-Isharah fi al-Tashahhud, Hadith: 990)
6. Prohibition of Pointing with Two Fingers
Sayyiduna Sa‘d رضي الله عنه said:
"The Messenger of Allah ﷺ passed by me while I was pointing with two fingers, and he said: ‘One finger, one finger’ — meaning the index finger."
(Sunan al-Nasa’i, Kitab al-Sahw, Bab al-Nahy ‘an al-Isharah bi Isba‘ayn, Hadith: 1274)
7. The Sunnah Summary
From these narrations, the Sunnah is:
- Place the right hand on the right knee/thigh, left hand on the left knee/thigh.
- Fold the fingers of the right hand, make a circle with the thumb and middle finger, raise the index finger, and move it during du‘a.
- Keep the gaze fixed on the finger.
- Do not point with two fingers.
