Reward of Raising the Hands (Rafʿ al-Yadayn) in Prayer: Explanation from Authentic Ḥadīths
Compiled by: Muḥammad Nadīm Ẓahīr Baloch
❀ The Virtue and Reward of Rafʿ al-Yadayn
① ʿUqbah bin ʿĀmir رضي الله عنه narrates that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
«يُكتَبُ في كلِّ إشارةٍ يُشيرُ الرجلُ [بيده] في صلاتِه عشرُ حسناتٍ؛ كلُّ إصبعٍ حسنةٌ»
"For every gesture (raising the hands) a man makes in his prayer, ten good deeds are recorded — one for each finger."
References: al-Fawāʾid lil-Bayḥaqī (Q2/39), Musnad al-Firdaws (4/344), al-Muʿjam al-Kabīr (7/297), Majmaʿ al-Zawāʾid (2/103), al-Silsilah al-Ṣaḥīḥah (no. 3286).
② In another narration:
"Whenever a person raises his hands in prayer, ten good deeds are written for him — one reward for each finger."
References: al-Ṭabarānī al-Kabīr (17/297), al-Silsilah al-Ṣaḥīḥah (3286).
③ ʿAbdullāh bin ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما said:
"Raising the hands in prayer is its beauty. One Rafʿ al-Yadayn brings ten good deeds — one for each finger."
Reference: al-Ṭaḥāwī (1/152).
❀ Authentic Aḥādīth on the Practice of Rafʿ al-Yadayn
① ʿAbdullāh bin ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما said:
"I saw the Messenger of Allah ﷺ when he stood for prayer, he raised his hands to the level of his shoulders, and he did so when he bowed, and when he raised his head from bowing saying ‘Samiʿa Allāhu liman ḥamidah’, but he did not do so in sujūd."
References: al-Bukhārī (736), Muslim (390).
② Nafiʿ reports:
"When Ibn ʿUmar began prayer, he raised his hands with Takbīr; when he bowed, he raised his hands; when he said ‘Samiʿa Allāhu liman ḥamidah’, he raised his hands; and when he stood from two rakʿahs, he raised his hands. Ibn ʿUmar attributed this to the Prophet ﷺ."
Reference: al-Bukhārī (739).
③ Abū Qilābah narrates:
"Mālik bin Ḥuwayrith رضي الله عنه used to raise his hands at the start of prayer, before rukūʿ, and after rising from rukūʿ, and said: ‘The Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to do the same.’"
References: al-Bukhārī (737), Ibn Khuzaymah (585), Ibn Ḥibbān (1873), al-Bayhaqī (2550).
④ Wāʾil bin Ḥujr رضي الله عنه said:
"I observed the prayer of the Prophet ﷺ: he raised his hands until they were level with his ears when saying takbīr, when bowing, and when rising from rukūʿ."
Reference: Abū Dāwūd (726) — ḥadīth ṣaḥīḥ.
❀ Where to Raise the Hands?
- Level with shoulders (ḥadhwa mankibayh) — as narrated by Ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما (Abū Dāwūd 721, ṣaḥīḥ).
- Level with ears (ḥiyāl udhunayh) — as narrated by Wāʾil bin Ḥujr رضي الله عنه (Abū Dāwūd 728, ṣaḥīḥ).
Both methods are correct and established from the Prophet ﷺ.
❀ Weak Narration
Narration: The Prophet ﷺ raised his hands so that his thumbs nearly aligned with his earlobes.
Reference: al-Nasāʾī (880).
Ruling: Imām al-Albānī رحمه الله declared it ḍaʿīf (weak) because of the weak narrator Fiṭr bin Khalīfah al-Ḥannāṭ.
❀ Conclusion
✿ Rafʿ al-Yadayn is an established Sunnah from the Prophet ﷺ, performed:
- At Takbīr al-Taḥrīmah (start of prayer),
- At rukūʿ,
- On rising from rukūʿ,
- On standing for the third rakʿah.
✿ It is a beautification of prayer and carries immense reward, with authentic reports indicating ten good deeds for each act of raising the hands.
✿ Hands may be raised either to the shoulders or to the earlobes, both are proven from authentic Sunnah.
