The tashahhud in ṣalāh

KNOW THAT IF the ṣalāh has only two rak‘ahs, like the Ṣubḥ or supererogatory (nāfil), then there is only one tashahhud. If it has three or four rak‘ahs, then there are two tashahhuds: the first and the last.

A person who arrives late for ṣalāh may conceivably perform three tashahhuds. It is also conceivable that he may perform four tashahhuds in Maghrib. If he joins the Imam after rukū‘ in the second rak‘ah, he follows him in the first and second tashahhud but he has completed only one rak‘ah of the ṣalāh. When the Imam pronounces the salām, he should rise to complete the rak‘ahs that remain. He prays one rak‘ah and says tashahhud after it, for it is his second. Then he prays the third and says tashahhud after it. If he offers a nāfil ṣalāh and performs more than four rak‘ahs, even if he makes the intention to pray one hundred rak‘ahs, the preferred view is that he should restrict himself to two tashahhuds. He should perform all that he intended to perform except for two rak‘ahs, then say tashahhud, then perform the final two rak‘ahs and say tashahhud again and salām. A group of our colleagues say that it is not permissible to say more than two tashahhuds and it is not permissible that there be more than two rak‘ahs between the first and the second rak‘ah. It is permissible that there be only one rak‘ah. If a person prays more than two rak‘ahs or there are more than two rak‘ahs between them, his ṣalāh is invalid. Others say that it is permissible to say tashahhud in every rak‘ah. The correct view is that it is permissible after every two rak‘ahs, not every one. And Allah knows best.

The last tashahhud is wājib according to ash-Shāfi‘ī, Aḥmad and the majority of the ‘ulamā’. It is Sunnah according to Abū Ḥanīfah and Mālik. The first tashahhud is Sunnah according to ash-Shāfi‘ī, Mālik, Abū Ḥanīfah and many other ‘ulamā’. According to Aḥmad it is wājib. So, according to ash-Shāfi‘ī, if a person leaves it out his ṣalāh will be valid but he must prostrate for forgetfulness, whether he left it out intentionally or unintentionally. And Allah knows best.

As for the wording of the tashahhud, there are three tashahhuds that have been reported from the Messenger of Allah .

And Allah knows best.

These are the different forms of the tashahhud. There are three hadiths which have been established to be from the Messenger of Allah : those of Ibn Mas‘ūd, Ibn ‘Abbās and Abū Mūsā . That is the pronouncement of al-Bayhaqī. Others say that all three are authentic but the most rigorously authentic is the hadith of Ibn Mas‘ūd .

It is permissible to make tashahhud with any of the above-mentioned forms of tashahhud that one wishes. This was stated by ash-Shāfi‘ī and other ‘ulamā’. The best, according to ash-Shāfi‘ī, is the hadith of Ibn ‘Abbās because of the addition of the word al-mubārakāt. Ash-Shāfi‘ī and other ‘ulamā’ say that the words of the narrators differ because the matter is one of scope and choice. And Allah knows best.

The preferred view is that one should recite [one of] the first three tashahhuds completely. Would it suffice to leave out some of it? The position in detail is as follows. The words blessings, goodness and pious deeds are Sunnah and not a condition of tashahhud. If one leaves out all of it and says: Greetings are for Allah, peace be upon you, O Prophet to the end, that will suffice. There is no difference of opinion about this. As for the rest of the wording, such as ‘Peace be upon you, O Prophet. . .’, to the end, this is wājib and one is not permitted to omit anything of it except for the phrase ‘and Allah’s mercy and blessings. . .’ There are three views, according to our [Shāfi‘ī] colleagues. The first and most correct one is that it is not permitted to omit anything from it. This is what is necessitated by the evidence that is agreed upon. The second view is that it is permitted to omit, and the third view is that it is permitted to omit ‘His blessing’ but not ‘Allah’s mercy’.

As for the wording ‘peace’, most of the versions have ‘peace upon you, O Prophet’, as well as ‘peace be upon us’ with the definite article. Some versions it have merely ‘peace’, both [letters of the definite article] being omitted.

According to our colleagues, both are permitted, although the better one is ‘peace’ with the definite article, owing to its preponderance [in the narrations] as additions.

As for the tasmiyah before the tashahhud, we have related a marfū‘ hadith from the Sunans of an-Nasā’ī, al-Bayhaqī and others, establishing its [veracity] in the narration of Ibn ‘Umar, as previously cited. However, al-Bukhārī and an-Nasā’ī as well as other scholars of hadith say that the addition of tasmiyah is not authenticated from the Prophet . Therefore, the majority of scholars hold that tasmiyah is not mustaḥabb. Others of our colleagues hold that it is mustaḥabb. The preferred view is that it should not be performed, because the majority of the Companions that narrated the tashahhud did not do so.

The sequence in tashahhud is Sunnah and not wājib. It is permissible to say some things before others. This is the correct and preferred view of the majority, as ash-Shāfi‘ī states in al-Umm. Some hold that it is not permissible, as with the wording of al-Fātiḥah. Its permissibility is indicated because in some reports the words of greeting come before the bearing of witness and in others they come after. The words and their order in al-Fātiḥah are a divine miracle and it is not permissible to change them. It is not permissible to say the tashahhud in another language if one has the ability to recite Arabic. Anyone who is unable to should say the tashahhud in his own language and learn [the Arabic], as we have already explained about the takbīrat al-iḥrām.

It is Sunnah to say the tashahhud silently, according to the consensus of the Muslims, as is indicated by the hadith which we related in the Sunans of Abū Dāwūd, at-Tirmidhī and al-Bayhaqī from ‘Abdullāh ibn Mas‘ūd said: “It is Sunnah to say the tashahhud silently.” ^[8].At-Tirmidhī said the hadith is ḥasan and al-Ḥākim said it is ṣaḥīḥ. One [Shāfi‘ī] colleague says that this is Sunnah,” which is like saying: “The Messenger of Allah said such-and-such.” This is the preferred and correct view held by the majority of ‘ulamā’, jurists, and scholars of hadith (may Allah have mercy on them), experts in juristic principles (uṣūl) and scholars of theology (kalām). Reciting it aloud, although disliked, does not nullify the ṣalāh and one does not have to prostrate for forgetfulness.