Prostrating for a Verse of Prostration at the End of a Sura

Answered by Ustadha Shaista Maqbool

Question: During Surah Al-Alaq, there is an ayah of prostration at the end of it. Do we need to do sujood during prayer when we recite it? I know we are normally supposed to do sujood for those kinds of ayahs, but since it is at the end of the surah and we are about to go into rukoo, is there an exception for doing sujood for this particular Surah?

Answer: Wa’alaikum assalaam warahmatu Allah,

When the verse of prostration is at the end of the surah, the rukoo’ will suffice if:

1 – one intends to fulfill the prostration through the rukoo’ and

2- it is done immediately, namely: the ayah of prostration is not separated from the ruku’ by reciting three* or more verses.

If one did not make an intention to fulfill the prostration during the ruku’, the prostration of the prayer suffices to fulfill it even without intention given that three or more verses were not recited after the verse of prostration.

If three or more verses were recited, then one may only fulfill it by making a separate prostration for the recitation.

*For a surah like Surah Inshiqaq, where there are only three verses left to the end, if one completes the surah and then does ruku’ for the recitation, this is valid as it is still considered as having done ruku’ immediately after the recitation, since he is simply completing the surah. (Ibn Abideen, Hashiyah)

Wasalaam,

Shaista Maqbool

Checked & Approved by Faraz Rabbani