Ṣalāh is the second pillar of Islam and the first deed we are asked about on the Day of Judgement. The Prophet ﷺ said, “Pray as you have seen me pray” (Bukhārī 631) — so its form is taken directly from his practice. Below is the prayer as agreed by the majority, with the schools’ differences noted.
Conditions before you pray (shurūṭ)
FarḍValidity depends on these; fulfil what you are able to.
- • The prayer time has entered (each prayer at its own time).
- • Ritual purity — wudūʾ, or ghusl if needed.
- • Purity of your body, clothing, and the place of prayer.
- • Covering the ʿawra (the parts that must be covered).
- • Facing the qibla.
- • Intention (niyya) to perform this specific prayer.
The pillars of prayer (arkān)
FarḍOmitting a pillar — knowingly or forgetfully — invalidates that rakʿah until it is corrected. The Ḥanafīs classify a few of these as wājib rather than rukn (e.g. reciting al-Fātiḥa, the final sitting), which changes only how an omission is remedied.
Agreed by all schools
- ✓Standing, if able
- ✓The opening takbīr (Allāhu akbar)
- ✓Reciting al-Fātiḥa
- ✓Bowing (rukūʿ)
- ✓Rising to stand upright after rukūʿ
- ✓Prostrating (sujūd) on the seven bones
- ✓Sitting up between the two prostrations
- ✓Stillness (ṭumaʾnīna) in each posture
- ✓The final sitting and tashahhud
- ✓The two taslīms to close
- ✓Keeping this order
Also obligatory in Hanafi
This school’s list of pillars matches the agreed core above.
Praying two rakʿahs — step by step
This is one rakʿah repeated; a 3- or 4-rakʿah prayer continues the same way with a middle sitting.
- 1
🧭Face the qibla, intend the prayer, raise your hands and say “Allāhu akbar”.
- 2
🤲Place the right hand over the left and say the opening supplication (e.g. “Subḥānakal-lāhumma…”).
- 3
📖Seek refuge, say Bismillāh, and recite al-Fātiḥa; then say “Āmīn”.
- 4
📗Recite a portion of the Qurʾān (in the first two rakʿahs).
- 5
🙇Say “Allāhu akbar” and bow (rukūʿ), back straight, hands on the knees: “Subḥāna Rabbiyal-ʿAẓīm” ×3.
- 6
🧍Rise saying “Samiʿa-llāhu liman ḥamidah”, then standing: “Rabbanā wa laka-l-ḥamd”.
- 7
🧎Say “Allāhu akbar” and prostrate on the seven bones — forehead & nose, both palms, both knees, toes: “Subḥāna Rabbiyal-Aʿlā” ×3.
- 8
💺Sit up saying “Allāhu akbar”: “Rabbi-ghfir lī”. Then prostrate a second time the same way.
- 9
🔁Stand for the second rakʿah and repeat. After it, sit for the tashahhud.
- 10
☝️In the sitting, recite the Tashahhud (below), pointing with the index finger; in the final sitting add the ṣalāt ʿalā an-Nabī.
- 11
👉Close with the taslīm — turn the face right: “As-salāmu ʿalaykum wa raḥmatullāh”, then to the left the same.
The Tashahhud
Recited in each sitting. This is the wording of Ibn Masʿūd (رضي الله عنه); the schools use slightly different but all-authentic wordings.
Tashahhud
التَّحِيَّاتُ لِلَّهِ وَالصَّلَوَاتُ وَالطَّيِّبَاتُ، السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكَ أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ، السَّلَامُ عَلَيْنَا وَعَلَىٰ عِبَادِ اللَّهِ الصَّالِحِينَ، أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ
At-taḥiyyātu lillāhi wa-ṣ-ṣalawātu wa-ṭ-ṭayyibāt. As-salāmu ʿalayka ayyuhā n-nabiyyu wa raḥmatullāhi wa barakātuh. As-salāmu ʿalaynā wa ʿalā ʿibādillāhi ṣ-ṣāliḥīn. Ashhadu an lā ilāha illā llāh, wa ashhadu anna Muḥammadan ʿabduhu wa rasūluh.
All greetings, prayers and good things are for Allah. Peace be upon you, O Prophet, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings. Peace be upon us and upon the righteous servants of Allah. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, and I bear witness that Muḥammad is His servant and Messenger.
Ṣalāt ʿalā an-Nabī (in the final sitting)
اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلَىٰ مُحَمَّدٍ وَعَلَىٰ آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ كَمَا صَلَّيْتَ عَلَىٰ إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَعَلَىٰ آلِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ إِنَّكَ حَمِيدٌ مَجِيدٌ، اللَّهُمَّ بَارِكْ عَلَىٰ مُحَمَّدٍ وَعَلَىٰ آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ كَمَا بَارَكْتَ عَلَىٰ إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَعَلَىٰ آلِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ إِنَّكَ حَمِيدٌ مَجِيدٌ
Allāhumma ṣalli ʿalā Muḥammad wa ʿalā āli Muḥammad kamā ṣallayta ʿalā Ibrāhīm wa ʿalā āli Ibrāhīm, innaka Ḥamīdun Majīd. Allāhumma bārik ʿalā Muḥammad wa ʿalā āli Muḥammad kamā bārakta ʿalā Ibrāhīm wa ʿalā āli Ibrāhīm, innaka Ḥamīdun Majīd.
O Allah, send blessings upon Muḥammad and the family of Muḥammad as You blessed Ibrāhīm and the family of Ibrāhīm; You are Praiseworthy, Glorious. O Allah, bestow favour upon Muḥammad and the family of Muḥammad as You favoured Ibrāhīm and the family of Ibrāhīm; You are Praiseworthy, Glorious.
Compare the schools
Tap a school to see its ruling first everywhere on this page.
Ṣalāh
Where are the hands placed while standing (qiyām)?
Hanafi: Right hand over left, placed below the navel.
Other schools
Maliki: The well-known view is to let the hands hang at the sides (sadl) in the obligatory prayers; placing them (qabḍ) is also reported and permitted.
Shāfiʿī: Right over left, placed below the chest and above the navel.
Hanbali: Right over left, placed below the navel (some reports: at/above it).
Aḥādīth on placement (e.g. Bukhārī 740; Muslim 401) vary; sadl vs. qabḍ. al-Mawsūʿa al-Fiqhiyya.
Ṣalāh
Is "Āmīn" said aloud after al-Fātiḥa?
Hanafi: Said quietly (sirran) by the imam and the congregation.
Other schools
Maliki: Said quietly; in the well-known view the imam does not raise the voice with it in the audible prayers.
Shāfiʿī: Said aloud (jahran) in the audible prayers by the imam and those behind him.
Hanbali: Said aloud in the audible prayers.
Ḥadīth "when the imam says āmīn, say āmīn" (Bukhārī 780). al-Mawsūʿa al-Fiqhiyya.
Ṣalāh
Is there qunūt in Fajr?
Hanafi: No regular qunūt in Fajr; qunūt belongs to Witr. Qunūt al-nāzila (for calamity) is made when needed.
Other schools
Maliki: Recommended (mustaḥabb) in Fajr, said silently, before the rukūʿ of the second rakʿah.
Shāfiʿī: A confirmed sunnah in Fajr, said after rising from rukūʿ in the second rakʿah.
Hanbali: No regular qunūt in Fajr; qunūt is in Witr, with qunūt al-nāzila when needed.
Aḥādīth on the Prophet’s qunūt (e.g. Muslim 677 on nāzila; Anas reports differ). al-Mawsūʿa al-Fiqhiyya.
Common mistakes
- ⚠ Not reciting al-Fātiḥa (required in every rakʿah in the majority view).
- ⚠ Rushing — “the worst thief is the one who steals from his prayer”; give each posture its stillness (ṭumaʾnīna).
- ⚠ Moving before the imam — follow, do not race him.
- ⚠ Praying before the time enters, or not verifying the qibla.
- ⚠ Unnecessary movement and fidgeting that breaks the prayer’s focus.
Evidence
“Pray as you have seen me pray.”
Bukhārī 631 ṣaḥīḥ
“There is no prayer for one who does not recite the Opening of the Book (al-Fātiḥa).”
Bukhārī 756 / Muslim 394 ṣaḥīḥ
The Prophet ﷺ taught the man who prayed badly to complete the rukūʿ, the rising, the sujūd and the sitting — with stillness in each.
Bukhārī 757 / 6251 ṣaḥīḥ
Classical references
Hanafi: al-Hidāya · Radd al-Muḥtār · Nūr al-Īḍāḥ
Maliki: al-Risāla (Ibn Abī Zayd) · Mukhtaṣar Khalīl
Shāfiʿī: Minhāj al-Ṭālibīn · al-Umm
Hanbali: al-Mughnī · Zād al-Mustaqniʿ
Learn more
How many rakʿahs? Fajr 2, Dhuhr 4, ʿAṣr 4, Maghrib 3, ʿIshāʾ 4. In Fajr, Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ the imam recites al-Fātiḥa and the sūra aloud in the first two rakʿahs; Dhuhr and ʿAṣr are silent. In the third and fourth rakʿahs only al-Fātiḥa is read. Joining late (the masbūq): whatever you catch with the imam is the start of your prayer; make up what you missed after he gives salām. You catch a rakʿah if you reach the rukūʿ with the imam. The tashahhud wordings differ by school — the Ḥanafīs use Ibn Masʿūd’s wording (above), the Mālikīs that of ʿUmar, and the Shāfiʿīs that of Ibn ʿAbbās (“at-taḥiyyātu-l-mubārakāt…”). All are authentic; pray with the one your school teaches.
Content is being reviewed for authenticity by a qualified scholar. Follow your local scholars for personal rulings.