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Raising hands in dua after salah

Answered as per Hanafi Fiqh by Tafseer Raheemi

Question: What is the ruling of raising the hands during performing dua after the obligatory prayers.one of the shaikhs in our place said it is Bid’ah because they said raising the hands after obligatory prayer for dua wasn’t done by our prophet sallalahu alayhi wassallam. For me it’s become my routine and I’ve never done dua without raising my hands. As I know raising the hands for supplication is just one of the humble expressions of asking something from Allah Ta’ala.


Answer: Raising the hands in the Dua after obligatory prayers is not ‘Bid’ah’, rather it is Mustahab to raise the hands during normal duas. After Salah is one of the places of acceptance of dua, therefore there is no harm in raising them during the dua after fardh. I have seen my mashaaikh raising them and they were staunch followers of the sunnah.

Those people who say it is ‘Bid’ah’ are mistaken due to a hadeeth of Saheehayn (Bukhari, Muslim) narrated on the authority of hazratAnas (Radhiyallahuanhu).
حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ بَشَّارٍ ، حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى ، وَابْنُ أَبِي عَدِيٍّ ، عَنْ سَعِيدٍ ، عَنْ قَتَادَةَ ، عَنْ أَنَسِ بْنِ مَالِكٍ قَالَ كَانَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم : لاَ يَرْفَعُ يَدَيْهِ فِي شَيْءٍ مِنْ دُعَائِهِ إِلاَّ فِي الاِسْتِسْقَاءِ وَإِنَّهُ يَرْفَعُ حَتَّى يُرَى بَيَاضُ إِبْطَيْهِ

Translation: Hazrat Anas bin Malik (Radhiyallahu Anhu) says: “Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam would not raise his hands for supplication except for that of Istisqâ’(seeking rain from Allah) ; and he used to raise them so much that the whiteness of his armpits would become visible”

However, this hadeeth only means that the narrator Hazrat Anas (radhiyallahuanhu) did not see the Prophet raise his hands in supplications except for Istisqa, but many other Sahaba did see him raise them on other occasions, as it is narrated in many ahadeeth.

Also Imam nawawi says that what Anas (rad) means is that he would not normally raise them high above his head except in istisqa.

Hafiz JalaluddinSuyooti has said in TadreeburRawi that the Ahadeeth of ‘raising the hands in dua’ have reached the level of Tawatur (Transmitted through such narrations that is it impossible to be fabricated).

He further on states that approximately 100 Ahadeeth have been narrated from the Prophet (sallalahu Alayhi wasallam) regarding raising the hands in supplication.

Imam Nawawi (RahmatullahiAlayh) has said in his commentry of Saheeh Al-Muslim Commentating on Hazrat Anas’s hadeeth:
“The apparent words of this hadeeth portray that the Prophet (sallalahu Alayhi wasallam) did not raise his hands in dua except for Istisqa, however it has been proven that the Prophet (sallalahu Alayhi wasallam) raised his hands in supplication as well as in Istisqa. There are countless such ahadeeth. I have gathered approximately 30 ahadeeth from the saheehayn which I have mentioned at the end of ‘The chapter of Sifate Salah’ in Sharhul Muhazzab”.

There are also many other ahadeeth besides the saheehayn in which there is reference of raising the hands.
حدثنا أبو موسى محمد بن المثنى و إبراهيم بن يعقوب وغير واحد قالوا حدثنا حماد بن عيسى الجهني عن حنظلة بن أبيسفيان الجمحي عن سالم بن عبد الله عن أبيه عن عمر بن الخطاب رضي الله عنه قال : كان رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم إذا رفع يديه في الدعاء لم يضعهما حتى يمسح بهما وجهه

Translation: Hazrat Umar (Radhiyallahu Anhu) narrates that when the Messenger of Allah (sallalahu Alayhi wasallam) would raise his hands in supplication he would not put them down until he would wipe them over his face.(Tirmizi)

حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو كُرَيْبٍ ، وَمُحَمَّدُ بْنُ الصَّبَّاحِ ، قَالاَ : حَدَّثَنَا عَائِذُ بْنُ حَبِيبٍ ، عَنْ صَالِحِ بْنِ حَسَّانَ الأَنْصَارِيِّ ، عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ كَعْبٍ الْقُرَظِيِّ ، عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ ، قَالَ : قَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ صَلَّى الله عَليْهِ وسَلَّمَ : إِذَا دَعَوْتَ اللَّهَ , فَادْعُ بِبَاطِنِ كَفَّيْكَ ، وَلاَ تَدْعُ بِظُهُورِهِمَا ، فَإِذَا فَرَغْتَ , فَامْسَحْ بِهِمَا وَجْهَكَ.
Translation: It is narrated that Ibn `Abbâs said: “The Messenger of Allâh said: `When you call upon Allâh, then do so with the palms of your hands (upwards). Do not do so with the back of your hands (upwards). And when you finish, then wipe your face with them.’ ’’(Ibn Majah)

Also raising the hands is one of the humble expressions that Allah Ta’ala likes and there is more hope of dua being accepted when one shows this humbleness as we learn from the hadeeth of Tabrani:
حدثنا عبدان بن أحمد قال حدثنا عبيد الله بن معاذ قال حدثنى ابي قال حدثنا يوسف بن محمد بن المنكدر عن ابيه عن جابر قال قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم أن الله عز و جل حيي كريم يستحي من عبده أن يرفع إليه يديه فيردهما صفرا ليس فيهما شيء
Translation: “Hazrat Jabir (Radhiyallahu Anhu) narrates that the prophet (Sallalahu Alayhi wasallam) said ‘Verily Allah Ta’ala is shy, generous, he feels ashamed when his servant raises hands making dua to Him that He should return them empty. (Muhsin2/12)

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

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