How Should the Hands Be Folded in Salah?
After saying Allahu Akbar and entering into Salah, the hands are to be folded by placing
the right hand over the left hand.
Wa’il ibn Hujr (RA) narrates:
Hadith:
- I observed the prayer of the Prophet (PBUH) closely. When I watched him pray,
he entered the prayer by saying Allahu Akbar, raised both hands to the level of his ears, and then placed his right hand over his left hand
(Sahih Muslim: 401a; Sunan Abi Dawud: 727).
According to this Hadith, the right hand is placed over the left hand in such a way that it covers the back of the left hand, the left wrist joint, and the left wrist.
All three areas come under the right hand. This is the method described by Wa’il ibn Hujr (RA) (Sunan an-Nasa’i: 889; Sunan Abi Dawud: 727).
It should be noted that some narrations use general wording such as “he placed his
right hand on his left hand”
without specifying an exact position, and some narrations use the word “dhira'”
(forearm, meaning the area from the fingertips to the elbow), indicating
that the right hand was placed on the left forearm (Sahih al-Bukhari: 740).
However, the narration of Wa’il ibn Hujr (RA) provides the specific detail that the right hand was placed over the back of the left hand, the wrist joint, and the wrist.
When a person places their hands in this manner, both descriptions are fulfilled: the hand is resting on the forearm (since the forearm extends from the wrist to the elbow),
and it is also specifically on the hand, the joint, and the wrist as described in the detailed narration.
The best and most preferred method is therefore to place the right hand over the left hand, covering the wrist joint and the wrist.
This is the method of placing the hands in Salah established from the Prophet (PBUH).
Should the Hands Be Placed on the Chest or Below the Navel?
After placing the right hand over the left in the manner described above, the Prophet (PBUH) would bring both hands and place them on his chest.
Explanation of the chest: The chest (Sadr) refers to the area from the point where the collarbones meet below the neck down to where the rib bones converge.
The area between these two points is called the chest.
The Prophet (PBUH) would place his right hand over his left hand and position them on his chest.
The evidence for this is found in the following narrations:
- This is established from Wa’il ibn Hujr (RA) himself. Allamah al-Albani (may Allah have mercy on him) has narrated this report with thorough verification in “Irwa al-Ghalil,” and it reaches the level of authenticity (Sahih Ibn Khuzaymah: 479; Irwa al-Ghalil: 352).
- A second narration on this subject is from Qabisah ibn Hulb (RA), who narrates from his father that the Prophet (PBUH) would place his right hand over his left hand and position them on his chest (Jami` at-Tirmidhi: 252; Musnad Ahmad: 21957).
This practice is found in the authentic and acceptable Hadiths of the Prophet (PBUH).
Placing the hands below the chest, whether above the navel or below the navel, is not established from the Prophet (PBUH) in any authentic narration.
The practice found in the sound and actionable narrations is what has been presented above.
Is There a Different Method of Hand Placement for Women in Salah?
It should also be kept in mind regarding the folding of the hands that there is no difference between the prayer of a man and the prayer of a woman as instructed by the Prophet (PBUH) (Sahih al-Bukhari: 631).
The method of raising the hands and the method of folding them is exactly the same for women as it is for men.
In the Islamic Shariah, there is no distinction between men and women in the method of performing Salah.
