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An objection on the index finger question and the answer

Answered as per Hanafi Fiqh by Tafseer Raheemi

If he would point with his index finger then why dont the hanafis point with their index finger from the moment of sitting in tashahhud until tasleem? There is no hadith which says it should be raised at time of saying shahadah. Check sahih muslim properly. There is no support of your position at all.

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You are wrong to assume that there is no support of the hanafi position. The hadith provided for the answer has the evidence itself. If you read it properly, it says that the prophet would raise his finger when he would suplicate. And the supplication begins with the shahadah.

Let me substantiate this with another hadith.

عن أبي هريرة رضي الله عنه أن رجلا كان يدعو بإصبعيه. فقال رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم: أحد أحد.
رواه الترمذي 3557 ص195 ج2، و قال حسن غريب، و معني الحديث إذا أشار الرجل بإصبعيه في الدعاء عند الشهادة لا يشير إلا بإصبع واحدة.

Over here the shahadah is being referred to as dua. And this is what Imam Tirmizi has interpreted it as.
This hadith is also in Sunan Abi Dawud (1499 the book of salah, chapter of dua) and in Mishkaat in the chapter of tashahhud (913).

There is further evidence to support the raising of the finger during the shahadah. The hadith is in Sunan Nasai.
عن مالك بن نمير الخزاعي من اهل البصرة أن أباه حدثه أنه راي رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم قاعدا في الصلاة، واضعا ذراعه اليمني على فخذه اليمني، رافعاإصبعه السبابة، قد أحناها شيئا و هو يدعو. (أخرجه النسئي باب رقم الحديث 1274 و سكت عنه)

عن عبد الله بن الزبير عن أبيه رضي الله عنهم قال: كان رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم إذا جلس،في الثنتين أو في الأربع يضع يديه على ركبتيه، ثم أشار بإصبعه. (أخرجه النسائي رقم الحديث 1161 ص173 ج1 و سكت عنه)

This hadith is crystal clear that the Prophet (peace be upon him) did not raise his finger right from the beginning. The word وضع is indicating that first the hand be placed on the thighs normally. Then with the words ثم أشار بإصبعه there is no scope of doubt left that the index finger is raised afterwards. The word thumma requires a delay of some sort.

Similarly all the ahadith that mention وضع and قبض, This cannot take place at once or the tahaqquq of each of them will not be possible. So it is not clear enough to prove that it should be raised right from the beginning as you may be implicating.

So if you say that it should be raised from the beginning till the end then it is now you that needs to substantiate your claim with evidence.

This answer was collected from Tafseer-Raheemi.com the official website of Sheikh Abdul Raheem Limbada (Hafizahullah) of UK.

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