Written by: Imran Ayub Lahori✦ Correcting the Rows Before the Commencement of Salah
Narrated from Hazrat Nu'man bin Bashir رضي الله عنه:
كان رسول الله يسوى صـفـوفـنـا إذا قمنا إلى الصلاة فإذا استوينا كبر
[Ṣaḥīḥ: Ṣaḥīḥ Abū Dāwūd: 619, Kitāb al-Ṣalāh: Bāb Taswiyat al-Ṣufūf, Abū Dāwūd: 665]
“When we would stand for prayer, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to straighten our rows. When the rows were aligned, he would pronounce the Takbir al-Tahrima.”
❖ Evidence from the Qur'an and Hadith Regarding Intention (Niyyah)
➊ Allah Almighty says:
وَمَا أُمِرُوا إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ مُخْلِصِينَ لَهُ الدِّينَ
[Al-Bayyinah: 5]
“They were not commanded except to worship Allah, [being] sincere to Him in religion.”
➋ The Prophetic Hadith states:
وإنما الأعمال بالنيات
[Bukhārī: 1, Kitāb Badʾ al-Waḥy; Muslim: 1907; Abū Dāwūd: 2201; Tirmidhī: 1647; Ibn Mājah: 4227]
“Indeed, actions are judged by intentions.”
❖ Scholarly Opinions on the Importance of Intention in Salah
✔ Imam Shawkani رحمه الله: Intention is a condition for the validity of prayer.
[As-Sayl al-Jarrār: 1/209]
✔ Siddiq Hasan Khan رحمه الله: Holds the same view.
[Ar-Rawḍah an-Nadiyyah: 1/238]
✔ Ibn Hazm رحمه الله: Intention is obligatory and necessary in Salah.
[Al-Muḥallā bi-l-Āthār: 2/261]
✔ Ibn Qudamah رحمه الله: Prayer does not take place without intention.
[Al-Mughnī: 2/132]
✔ Hanafi, Hanbali, Maliki Jurists: Consider intention to be among the conditions (sharā’iṭ) of Salah.
✔ Shafi’i Jurists: Regard intention as one of the obligations (farā’iḍ) or pillars (arkān) of Salah.
✔ Wahbah Zuhayli رحمه الله: By unanimous agreement, intention is obligatory in Salah.
[Al-Fiqh al-Islāmī wa Adillatuh: 1/771]
✔ Preponderant Opinion (Rajih): Intention is a condition (sharṭ) for Salah. Its place is the heart only, and verbalizing the intention is an innovation (bid‘ah). For further details, refer to the previous discussion under the chapter “Bāb al-Wuḍū’” regarding the issue of intention.
