Excerpt from “Ghayr Masnoon Nafli Nawafil” by Shaykh Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Amunpuri
There is no authentic narration to establish the legitimacy of Ṣalāt al-Tasbīḥ; all its reports are weak.
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to al-ʿAbbās ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib: "O ʿAbbās, O uncle! Shall I not give you, grant you, bestow upon you, and do something for you through which Allah will forgive all your sins—past and future, old and new, intentional and unintentional, minor and major, hidden and visible?
Perform four rakʿahs, in each rakʿah recite Sūrat al-Fātiḥah and a sūrah.
After completing the recitation in the first rakʿah, while standing, recite fifteen times:
سُبْحَانَ اللهِ، وَالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ، وَلَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا اللهُ، وَاللهُ أَكْبَرُ
"Glory be to Allah, praise be to Allah, there is no god but Allah, and Allah is the Greatest."
Then in each position — bowing (rukūʿ), standing after rukūʿ, both prostrations (sujūd), and the sittings between them, recite these words ten times. This makes 75 tasbīḥāt per rakʿah, and 300 in total for four rakʿahs.
If you can, perform it daily, if not, then weekly, otherwise monthly, or at least once a year, and if even that’s not possible, then once in your lifetime.
[Sunan Abī Dāwūd: 1297, Sunan Ibn Mājah: 1387, al-Muʿjam al-Kabīr by al-Ṭabarānī: 11622, al-Mustadrak by al-Ḥākim: 1/318]
“It is a rejected (munkar) ḥadīth.”
[Masāʾil al-Kawshaj: 3309]
“There is no authentic ḥadīth about Ṣalāt al-Tasbīḥ.”
[Ittiḥāf al-Mahrah by Ibn Ḥajar: 7/484]
“Nothing sound is established regarding it.”
[Sunan al-Tirmidhī, under Ḥadīth 481]
“There is no established ḥadīth about Ṣalāt al-Tasbīḥ.”
[al-Ḍuʿafāʾ al-Kabīr: 1/124]
[Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Khuzaymah, before Ḥadīth 1216]
The narration is mursal from ʿIkrimah. The central narrator is Ḥakam ibn Abān, and it has been transmitted through Mūsā ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz and Ibrāhīm ibn Ḥakam ibn Abān. Mūsā erred and narrated it as connected (mawṣūl), while Ibrāhīm narrated it as mursal, without any chain to Ibn ʿAbbās.
"These narrations were mursal in the books of Ibrāhīm ibn Ḥakam ibn Abān. He would narrate them from his father from ʿIkrimah, without mentioning Ibn ʿAbbās or Abū Hurayrah."
[al-Kāmil by Ibn ʿAdī: 1/393 – Authentic Chain]
"Umm Sulaym رضي الله عنها came to the Prophet ﷺ one morning and said: 'Teach me some words to say in my prayer.' He ﷺ said: “Say: Allahu Akbar ten times, Subḥān Allāh ten times, and al-Ḥamdu lillāh ten times, and then ask whatever you wish, for it will be granted.”
[Sunan al-Tirmidhī: 481, Sunan al-Nasā’ī: 1299 – Ḥasan]
Some scholars have tried to extract from this a shorter version of Ṣalāt al-Tasbīḥ, but none affirm such a specific prayer format.
“Mentioning this ḥadīth in the chapter of Ṣalāt al-Tasbīḥ is questionable. It is well known that the tasbīḥ it describes comes after prayers, not within a specific prayer.”
[Tuḥfat al-Aḥwadhī: 1/350]
❖ Ṣalāt al-Tasbīḥ – A Prayer Without Any Authentic Basis
There is no authentic narration to establish the legitimacy of Ṣalāt al-Tasbīḥ; all its reports are weak.
◈ Report Attributed to Sayyidunā ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنه:
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to al-ʿAbbās ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib: "O ʿAbbās, O uncle! Shall I not give you, grant you, bestow upon you, and do something for you through which Allah will forgive all your sins—past and future, old and new, intentional and unintentional, minor and major, hidden and visible?
Perform four rakʿahs, in each rakʿah recite Sūrat al-Fātiḥah and a sūrah.
After completing the recitation in the first rakʿah, while standing, recite fifteen times:
سُبْحَانَ اللهِ، وَالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ، وَلَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا اللهُ، وَاللهُ أَكْبَرُ
"Glory be to Allah, praise be to Allah, there is no god but Allah, and Allah is the Greatest."
Then in each position — bowing (rukūʿ), standing after rukūʿ, both prostrations (sujūd), and the sittings between them, recite these words ten times. This makes 75 tasbīḥāt per rakʿah, and 300 in total for four rakʿahs.
If you can, perform it daily, if not, then weekly, otherwise monthly, or at least once a year, and if even that’s not possible, then once in your lifetime.
[Sunan Abī Dāwūd: 1297, Sunan Ibn Mājah: 1387, al-Muʿjam al-Kabīr by al-Ṭabarānī: 11622, al-Mustadrak by al-Ḥākim: 1/318]❖ Scholarly Evaluation of This Ḥadīth
◈ Majority of Ḥadīth Scholars have Declared This Narration Weak or Rejected:
1. Imām ʿAlī ibn al-Madīnī رحمه الله said:
“It is a rejected (munkar) ḥadīth.”
[Masāʾil al-Kawshaj: 3309]2. Imām Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal رحمه الله said:
“There is no authentic ḥadīth about Ṣalāt al-Tasbīḥ.”
[Ittiḥāf al-Mahrah by Ibn Ḥajar: 7/484]3. Imām al-Tirmidhī رحمه الله said:
“Nothing sound is established regarding it.”
[Sunan al-Tirmidhī, under Ḥadīth 481]4. Imām al-ʿUqaylī رحمه الله said:
“There is no established ḥadīth about Ṣalāt al-Tasbīḥ.”
[al-Ḍuʿafāʾ al-Kabīr: 1/124]5. Imām Ibn Khuzaymah رحمه الله expressed lack of confidence in this narration.
[Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Khuzaymah, before Ḥadīth 1216]❖ The Chain Is Disconnected (Mursal)
The narration is mursal from ʿIkrimah. The central narrator is Ḥakam ibn Abān, and it has been transmitted through Mūsā ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz and Ibrāhīm ibn Ḥakam ibn Abān. Mūsā erred and narrated it as connected (mawṣūl), while Ibrāhīm narrated it as mursal, without any chain to Ibn ʿAbbās.
◈ ʿAbbās ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAẓīm رحمه الله said:
"These narrations were mursal in the books of Ibrāhīm ibn Ḥakam ibn Abān. He would narrate them from his father from ʿIkrimah, without mentioning Ibn ʿAbbās or Abū Hurayrah."
[al-Kāmil by Ibn ʿAdī: 1/393 – Authentic Chain]◈ Other Major Criticisms:
- Imām al-Bayhaqī: “The mursal version is more accurate.”
[Shuʿab al-Īmān: 2817] - Ḥāfiẓ al-Khalīlī: “Ḥakam ibn Abān uniquely narrated reports from ʿIkrimah, some of which were reported by others in mauqūf form, such as the tasbīḥ prayer.”
[al-Irshād: 1/323] - Imām Abū Bakr ibn al-ʿArabī: “Weak. It has no basis in any authentic or ḥasan narration.”
[ʿĀriḍat al-Aḥwadhī: 2/267] - Ḥāfiẓ Ibn al-Jawzī: “All its chains are unreliable.”
[al-Mawḍūʿāt: 2/145] - Imām al-Nawawī: “Calling this prayer mustaḥabb is questionable. The ḥadīth is weak and not established.”
[al-Majmūʿ: 4/54] - Ḥāfiẓ al-Dhahabī: Declared it munkar.
[Mīzān al-Iʿtidāl: 4/213] - Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah: Called it unproven.
[Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā: 11/579] - Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Ḥajar: “The truth is that all its chains are weak.”
[Talkhīṣ al-Ḥabīr: 2/18]
❖ Clarification from a Separate, Authentic Ḥadīth
◈ Sayyidunā Anas ibn Mālik رضي الله عنه narrated:
"Umm Sulaym رضي الله عنها came to the Prophet ﷺ one morning and said: 'Teach me some words to say in my prayer.' He ﷺ said: “Say: Allahu Akbar ten times, Subḥān Allāh ten times, and al-Ḥamdu lillāh ten times, and then ask whatever you wish, for it will be granted.”
[Sunan al-Tirmidhī: 481, Sunan al-Nasā’ī: 1299 – Ḥasan]- Declared ḥasan gharīb by al-Tirmidhī
- Ṣaḥīḥ according to Ibn Khuzaymah, Ibn Ḥibbān, and al-Ḥākim (on the condition of Muslim); al-Dhahabī concurred
Some scholars have tried to extract from this a shorter version of Ṣalāt al-Tasbīḥ, but none affirm such a specific prayer format.
◈ Imām al-ʿIrāqī said:
“Mentioning this ḥadīth in the chapter of Ṣalāt al-Tasbīḥ is questionable. It is well known that the tasbīḥ it describes comes after prayers, not within a specific prayer.”
[Tuḥfat al-Aḥwadhī: 1/350]
Conclusion:
- The well-known narration of Ṣalāt al-Tasbīḥ is weak in all of its versions.
- There is no reliable ḥadīth to support this prayer as part of the Sunnah.
- Most major hadith scholars, including Imām Aḥmad, al-Tirmidhī, Ibn al-Jawzī, Ibn Taymiyyah, Ibn Ḥajar, and others rejected it.
- Any practice based on this narration cannot be considered a legitimate act of worship in Islam.
