Do the Feet Need to be Parallel in Prostration?
Hanafi Fiqh
Answered by Shaykh Abdullah Anik Misra
Question
Are the feet supposed to be parallel in sujud? Is it an obligation, and if missed, do we have to do sujud as-sahw? Also, are there any sunnah prayers for asr? Also, is saying “Allah Shafi Allah kafi” before taking medicine a bida?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful and Compassionate
You have asked three different questions:
1) Do the Feet Have to Be Parallel in Prostration? If Missed, Is the Prayer Unsound?
The feet being parallel to each other in prostration is not mentioned as one of the obligations of prayer. The validity or soundness of prostration, and therefore the prayer in general, is not dependent on this. Consequently, one should not go too far in matters like this, stick to only what is taught with sure knowledge and ignore other misgivings. [Shurunbulali, Maraqi al Falah]
2) Are There Sunnah Prayers for Asr?
There are no emphasized Sunnah prayers for Asr. However, it is desirable (mustahabb), though non-emphasized, to pray four rakats before Asr if one wishes, without any wrong one if one chooses not to. [Shurunbulali, Maraqi al Falah]
3) Is it an Innovation to Say a Supplication That is Not from a Prophetic Source Before Taking Medicine?
Supplications like the one you mentioned can be said before taking medicine are permissible without being a blameworthy innovation, as long as one understands that this is not obligatory or sunnah to do so. One should not make it an obsessive habit or rule in their mind, lest it furthers any misgivings.
Otherwise, outside of prayer, people are free to formulate and say their own supplications in any language, especially those passed down from the scholars and righteous people, because that is a praiseworthy innovation. [Jurdani, Al Jawahir Al Lulu‘iyya]
Read more about this below:
Clarifying Innovations in Islam – SeekersGuidance
Evaluating Innovations (seekersguidance.org)
Bida and Sunna in Sharia (masud.co.uk)
Wassalam,
[Shaykh] Abdullah Anik Misra
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat
Shaykh Abdullah Misra was born in Toronto, Canada, in 1983. His family hails from India, and he was raised in the Hindu tradition. He embraced Islam in 2001 while at the University of Toronto, from where he completed a Bachelor of Business Administration. He then traveled overseas in 2005 to study the Arabic language and Islamic sciences in Tarim, Yemen, for some time, as well as Darul Uloom in Trinidad, West Indies. He spent 12 years in Amman, Jordan, where he focused on Islamic Law, Theology, Hadith Sciences, Prophetic Biography, and Islamic Spirituality while also working at the Qasid Arabic Institute as Director of Programs. He holds a BA in Islamic Studies (Alimiyya, Darul Uloom) and authorization in the six authentic books of Hadith and is currently pursuing specialized training in issuing Islamic legal verdicts (ifta’). He holds a certificate in Counselling and often works with new Muslims and those struggling with religious OCD. He is an instructor and researcher in Sacred Law and Theology with the SeekersGuidance The Global Islamic Seminary. Currently, He resides in the Greater Toronto Area with his wife and children. His personal interests include Indian history, comparative religion, English singing, and poetry.
