8 Authentic Hadith Proofs for Raising Hands in Eid Takbirat

❖ 8 Authentic Evidences for Raising Hands in Eid Takbirat
Source: Fatāwā ʿIlmiyyah, Volume 1, Kitāb al-Ṣalāh, Page 455

❀ Question​

Is it correct to perform Rafʿ al-Yadayn (raising the hands) during the Takbirāt of the Eid prayers?

❖ Answer​

Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, ammā baʿd!

✔ ḥadīth Regarding Rafʿ al-Yadayn​

Narrated from Sayyidunā ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما:


"ويَرفعُها في كلّ تكبيرةٍ يُكبِّرُها قبلَ الرُّكوعِ حتّى تَنقضي صلاتُه"
“He ﷺ would raise his hands in every Takbīr that he would say before Rukūʿ, until his prayer was completed.”
(Sunan Abī Dāwūd: 722)

✔ Authenticity of the Narration​

◈ Baqiyyah ibn al-Walīd explicitly mentioned hearing the narration (ṣarīḥ al-samāʿ) and is a reliable (ṣaḥīḥ al-ḥadīth) narrator.
◈ Az-Zubayrī (real name: Muḥammad ibn al-Walīd ibn ʿĀmir) is unanimously considered thiqah (trustworthy).
◈ Ibn Akhī al-Zuhrī also corroborated this narration.
(References: Musnad Aḥmad 2/133–134; Ṣaḥḥaḥahu Ibn al-Jārūd 178)


Ibn Akhī al-Zuhrī is also a ṣaḥīḥ al-ḥadīth narrator and Imām al-Zuhrī explicitly affirmed hearing from him.


Shaykh al-Albānī رحمه الله also graded this ḥadīth as ṣaḥīḥ, though he later interpreted it differently.

✔ Meaning of the Ḥadīth and Its Deduction​

This authentic narration clearly indicates:


◈ Rafʿ al-Yadayn is to be performed with every Takbīr before Rukūʿ.
◈ This ruling includes the Takbīrāt of Eid, whether they are connected to Rukūʿ or are part of the specific Takbīrāt of the Eid prayer.

❖ Position of the Early Scholars (Salaf al-Ṣāliḥīn)​

Among the pious predecessors:


◈ Imām al-Bayhaqī رحمه الله
◈ Imām Ibn al-Mundhir رحمه الله
Both deduced from this narration that Rafʿ al-Yadayn should be done during the Takbīrāt of Eid.


Note: No refutation from the Salaf is reported against the deduction made by Imām al-Bayhaqī and Imām Ibn al-Mundhir.

✔ Opinions of the Imams of Ijtihād​

The following major Imams also upheld the practice of Rafʿ al-Yadayn in Eid Takbirāt:


◈ Imām al-Awzāʿī رحمه الله
◈ Imām al-Shāfiʿī رحمه الله
◈ Imām Aḥmad رحمه الله


(References: al-Awsaṭ by Ibn al-Mundhir 4/282, al-Sunan al-Kubrā by al-Bayhaqī 3/1293, al-Majmūʿ by Nawawī 5/15–16, al-Umm 1/237, Masāʾil Abī Dāwūd pp. 59–60 with the footnotes of al-Awsaṭ)

❖ Report from Imām Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad al-Firyābī رحمه الله​

Imām al-Firyābī narrated with an authentic chain from Imām al-Awzāʿī رحمه الله:


"ارفع يديك مع كلهن"
"Raise your hands with all the Takbīrs."
(Reference: Aḥkām al-ʿĪdayn, p. 182; verified as authentic by the editor)

❖ Fatwā of Imām Mālik رحمه الله​

Imām al-Firyābī narrated:


"Thannā Ṣafwān: Thannā al-Walīd [i.e., Ibn Muslim al-Shāfiʿī] said: I asked Mālik ibn Anas about it, and he said: 'Raise your hands with each Takbīr, although I have not heard anything specific regarding this.'"


(Reference: Aḥkām al-ʿĪdayn pp. 182–183, Ḥadīth 137; authenticated by the editor)

✔ Possible Meanings of Imām Mālik’s Statement “I haven’t heard anything”​

◈ He may have meant that he had not heard anything contrary to this practice.
◈ He may not have come across an explicit narration on this specific matter.
◈ Or possibly, he had not heard anything at all on the subject.


Wallāhu Aʿlam

❖ Clear and Explicit Evidence​

The ṣaḥīḥ marfūʿ ḥadīth mentioned at the beginning is an explicit and conclusive proof on this matter.

Summary​

◈ Rafʿ al-Yadayn in the Takbīrāt of Eid is the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ and the practice of the Salaf al-Ṣāliḥīn.
◈ There is no authentic narration that proves the Prophet ﷺ did not raise his hands during the Takbīrāt of the Eid prayer.


(Excerpted from Shahādat, November 2001)


هٰذَا مَا عِندِي، وَاللّٰهُ أَعْلَمُ بِالصَّوَابِ