Rafʿ al-Yadayn (

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

: رَفْعُ الْيَدَيْن; ) is a

Sunnah is the body of traditions and practices of the Islamic prophet Muhammad that constitute a model for Muslims to follow. The sunnah is what all the Muslims of Muhammad's time supposedly saw, followed, and passed on to the next generations. Diff ...

Prophet Muhammad In Islam, Muhammad () is venerated as the Seal of the Prophets who transmitted the Quran, eternal word of God () from the Angels in Islam, angel Gabriel () to humans and jinn. Muslims believe that the Quran, the central religious text of Isl ...

of raising the hands during the Rukū of

Salah ''Salah'' (, also spelled ''salat'') is the practice of formal worship in Islam, consisting of a series of ritual prayers performed at prescribed times daily. These prayers, which consist of units known as ''rak'ah'', include a specific s ...

(Islamic prayer). This practice is widely found in the Hadiths and followed differently among Islamic schools of thought.

Etymology

The term ''Raf' al-Yadayn'' literally means 'raising of the hands' in Arabic. It is derived from the root word رَفَعَ (''rafa'a''), meaning 'to raise', and يَدَيْن (''yadayn''), meaning 'hands'.

Jurisprudential views

Islamic jurisprudence, or

fiqh ''Fiqh'' (; ) is the term for Islamic jurisprudence.Fiqh
Encyclopædia Britannica ''Fiqh'' is of ...

, includes different interpretations of Raf' al-Yadayn based on Hadith evidence and scholarly opinions. The practice varies across the four major Sunni schools of thought:

Hanafi school

The

Hanafis The Hanafi school or Hanafism is the oldest and largest Madhhab, school of Islamic jurisprudence out of the four schools within Sunni Islam. It developed from the teachings of the Faqīh, jurist and theologian Abu Hanifa (), who systemised the ...

generally limit Raf' al-Yadayn to the Takbeer al-Tahreema (opening Takbeer) and do not perform it during other transitions in Salah. This view is based on their understanding of Hadiths narrated by companions like Abdullah ibn Mas'ud, where it is said that the Prophet (peace be upon him) abandoned the practice of raising hands except at the beginning of the prayer (e.g., Sunan Abu Dawood, Hadith 748).

Shafi'i school

The

Shafi'is The Shafi'i school or Shafi'i Madhhab () or Shafi'i is one of the four major schools of fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence), belonging to the Ahl al-Hadith tradition within Sunni Islam. It was founded by the Muslim scholar, jurist, and traditionist ...

uphold the practice of Raf' al-Yadayn is considered Sunnah, including: * The opening Takbeer * Before bowing (Ruku') *After rising from Ruku'

Maliki school

The

Malikis The Maliki school or Malikism is one of the four major schools of Islamic jurisprudence within Sunni Islam. It was founded by Malik ibn Anas () in the 8th century. In contrast to the Ahl al-Hadith and Ahl al-Ra'y schools of thought, the Mali ...

are divided in following the practice of Raf' al-Yadayn. Some consider the additional instances non-obligatory and not emphasized in practice while some argued that it is a Sunnah and one must practice it in

Malik ibn Anas Malik ibn Anas (; –795) also known as Imam Malik was an Arab Islamic scholar and traditionalist who is the eponym of the Maliki school, one of the four schools of Islamic jurisprudence in Sunni Islam.Schacht, J., "Mālik b. Anas", in: ''E ...

, in his hadith collection ''

Muwatta Imam Malik ''Al-Muwaṭṭaʾ'' (, 'the approved') or ''Muwatta Imam Malik'' () of Malik ibn Anas, Imam Malik (711–795) written in the 8th-century, is one of the earliest collections of hadith texts comprising the subjects of Sharia, Islamic law, compile ...

'', narrated that "the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, used to raise his hands to the level of his shoulders when he began the prayer and when he raised his head from the ruku he raised them in the same way." Raf' al-Yadayn also appears in

Muhammad al-Bukhari Abū ʿAbd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Ismāʿīl ibn Ibrāhīm al-Juʿfī al-Bukhārī (; 21 July 810 – 1 September 870) was a 9th-century Persian Muslim '' muhaddith'' who is widely regarded as the most important ''hadith'' scholar in the histor ...

's ''

Sahih al-Bukhari () is the first hadith collection of the Six Books of Sunni Islam. Compiled by Islamic scholar al-Bukhari () in the format, the work is valued by Sunni Muslims, alongside , as the most authentic after the Qur'an. Al-Bukhari organized the bo ...

'': "Narrated Salim bin `Abdullah: My father said, 'Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) used to raise both his hands up to the level of his shoulders when opening the prayer; and on saying the Takbir for bowing. And on raising his head from bowing he used to do the same and then say "Sami`a l-lahu liman hamidah, Rabbana wa laka l-hamd." And he did not do that (i.e. raising his hands) in prostrations'". The chain of this hadith contains Nafi Mawla Ibn Umar

Abd Allah ibn Umar ibn al-Khattab ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (; ), commonly known as Ibn Umar, was a companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a son of the second Caliph Umar. He was a prominent authority in ''hadith'' and law. He remained neutral during the ...

and Ibn Shihab az-Zuhri.

Hanbali school

The

Hanbalis The Hanbali school or Hanbalism is one of the four major schools of Islamic jurisprudence, belonging to the Ahl al-Hadith tradition within Sunni Islam. It is named after and based on the teachings of the 9th-century scholar, jurist and tradi ...

, like the Shafi'is, emphasize performing Raf' al-Yadayn at all prescribed points. They rely on Hadiths such as the one narrated by Abdullah ibn Umar, recorded in ''

'' (Hadith 739).

Practice in Salah

Muhammad is reported to have performed ''Raf' al-Yadayn'' at various stages of Salah, including: *Before Takbeer al-Tahreema (opening Takbeer): Before and after Ruku' (bowing): * When standing up after the second Rak'ah in Salah:

References

{{Reflist Salah Arabic words and phrases