This excerpt is taken from the book Nūr al-ʿAynayn fī Ithbāt Rafʿ al-Yadayn ʿinda al-Rukūʿ wa Baʿdahu fī al-Ṣalāh by the Muḥaddith of the era, Ḥāfiẓ Zubayr ʿAlī Zaʾī رحمه الله.
عن وائل بن حجر أنه رأى النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم رفع يديه حين دخل فى الصلوة كبر، وصف همام حيال أذنيه ثم التحف بثوبه ثم وضع يده اليمنى على اليسرى فلما أراد أن يركع أخرج يديه من الثوب ثم رفعهما ثم كبر فركع فلما قال سمع الله لمن حمده رفع يديه فلما سجد سجد بين كفيه
Translation:
Sayyidunā Wāʾil bin Ḥujr رضي الله عنه narrated that he saw the Prophet ﷺ: when he entered the prayer, he pronounced the takbīr and raised his hands. Hammām (the narrator) described that they were raised up to the ears. Then he wrapped himself in his garment and placed his right hand over his left hand. When he intended to go into rukūʿ, he brought his hands out from the garment and raised them, then pronounced the takbīr and performed rukūʿ. When he said “Samiʿa Allāhu liman ḥamidah” (upon rising from rukūʿ), he raised his hands. Then when he prostrated, he prostrated between his two palms.
◈ Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Khuzaymah (1/346, ḥadīth 697)
◈ Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Ḥibbān (3/167–168, ḥadīth 1857)
◈ Ṣaḥīḥ Abī ʿAwānah (2/97)
Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Kathīr al-Dimashqī mentioned the arrival of Sayyidunā Wāʾil bin Ḥujr رضي الله عنه among the delegations that came to the Prophet ﷺ in 9 AH.
Al-ʿAynī al-Ḥanafī said that Wāʾil bin Ḥujr رضي الله عنه accepted Islam in Madīnah in 9 AH.
After that, he returned again in winter the following year (10 AH).
In that year as well, he observed Rafʿ al-Yadayn.
(It should be remembered that the Prophet ﷺ passed away in 11 AH.)
① That Wāʾil was an Arab Bedouin (aʿrābī) and was unaware of Islamic law.
② That he saw the Prophet ﷺ praying only once.
In light of the evidence mentioned above, both of these objections are false and baseless. These objections are a clear and undeniable proof of the ignorance of those who make them.
The status of the Companions رضي الله عنهم is extremely lofty and does not require any defense.
✿ Further material on this subject may also be consulted.
Ḥadīth of Wāʾil bin Ḥujr رضي الله عنه
The Narration
Arabic Text:عن وائل بن حجر أنه رأى النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم رفع يديه حين دخل فى الصلوة كبر، وصف همام حيال أذنيه ثم التحف بثوبه ثم وضع يده اليمنى على اليسرى فلما أراد أن يركع أخرج يديه من الثوب ثم رفعهما ثم كبر فركع فلما قال سمع الله لمن حمده رفع يديه فلما سجد سجد بين كفيه
Translation:
Sayyidunā Wāʾil bin Ḥujr رضي الله عنه narrated that he saw the Prophet ﷺ: when he entered the prayer, he pronounced the takbīr and raised his hands. Hammām (the narrator) described that they were raised up to the ears. Then he wrapped himself in his garment and placed his right hand over his left hand. When he intended to go into rukūʿ, he brought his hands out from the garment and raised them, then pronounced the takbīr and performed rukūʿ. When he said “Samiʿa Allāhu liman ḥamidah” (upon rising from rukūʿ), he raised his hands. Then when he prostrated, he prostrated between his two palms.
Reference: Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim with Sharḥ al-Nawawī 4/114, ḥadīth 401
Other Sources of This Ḥadīth
With the meaning of raising the hands before and after rukūʿ, this ḥadīth of Wāʾil bin Ḥujr رضي الله عنه is also found with multiple chains in the following books:◈ Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Khuzaymah (1/346, ḥadīth 697)
◈ Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Ḥibbān (3/167–168, ḥadīth 1857)
◈ Ṣaḥīḥ Abī ʿAwānah (2/97)
Biographical Note on Sayyidunā Wāʾil bin Ḥujr رضي الله عنه
Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Ḥibbān states that he was a great king of Yemen and belonged to a lineage of kings. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ had already given glad tidings of his arrival three days before he came.
Reference: Kitāb al-Thiqāt by Ibn Ḥibbān 3/424–425; Kitāb Mashāhīr ʿUlamāʾ al-Amṣār by Ibn Ḥibbān p. 44, no. 276
Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Kathīr al-Dimashqī mentioned the arrival of Sayyidunā Wāʾil bin Ḥujr رضي الله عنه among the delegations that came to the Prophet ﷺ in 9 AH.
Reference: al-Bidāyah wa al-Nihāyah 5/71
Al-ʿAynī al-Ḥanafī said that Wāʾil bin Ḥujr رضي الله عنه accepted Islam in Madīnah in 9 AH.
Reference: ʿUmdat al-Qārī 5/274 under ḥadīth 735
After that, he returned again in winter the following year (10 AH).
Reference: Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Ḥibbān 3/169, ḥadīth 1857
In that year as well, he observed Rafʿ al-Yadayn.
Reference: Sunan Abī Dāwūd: 727 – its chain is authentic
(It should be remembered that the Prophet ﷺ passed away in 11 AH.)
Invalid Objections Regarding This Ḥadīth
Some people have raised two objections against this ḥadīth of Sayyidunā Wāʾil bin Ḥujr رضي الله عنه:① That Wāʾil was an Arab Bedouin (aʿrābī) and was unaware of Islamic law.
② That he saw the Prophet ﷺ praying only once.
In light of the evidence mentioned above, both of these objections are false and baseless. These objections are a clear and undeniable proof of the ignorance of those who make them.
The status of the Companions رضي الله عنهم is extremely lofty and does not require any defense.
✿ Further material on this subject may also be consulted.
