What these prostrations are

Sujud (prostration) is putting your forehead on the ground for Allah. It is the closest a person comes to Allah. Most sujud happen inside salah. But there are two kinds of single sujud you can do on their own:

• Sujud at-tilawah (the prostration of recitation): when you read or hear certain ayat of the Quran.
• Sujud ash-shukr (the prostration of thanks): when good news comes to you.

Nabi ﷺ said: when a person reads an ayah of sajdah and goes down in sujud, Shaytan goes away crying. He says: the son of Adam was told to prostrate and he did, so Paradise is his. I was told to prostrate and I refused, so the Fire is mine¹.

The places of sajdah in the Quran

In most printed Qurans, these places are marked in the margin, often with the word as-sajdah or a small mark. Here is the list:

Where the schools differ

• The second sajdah in al-Hajj (22:77). Shafi'is and Hanbalis count it. Hanafis and Malikis do not, because this ayah is about the sujud inside salah.
• Sad (38:24). Hanafis and Malikis count it as a sajdah of recitation. Shafi'is and Hanbalis say it is a sujud of thanks: you do it when you read it outside salah, but not inside salah. Ibn Abbas said: the sajdah of Sad is not one of the stressed ones, but I saw Nabi ﷺ prostrate there².
• The last three (an-Najm, al-Inshiqaq, al-'Alaq). Malikis do not count these among the main sajdahs. The others do. Nabi ﷺ prostrated in an-Najm³ and in al-Inshiqaq⁴.

So Hanafis have 14, Shafi'is and Hanbalis have 14 (a different 14), Malikis have 11, and some scholars count all 15. If you follow the marks in your Quran, you are fine.

Is it a must?

• Hanafi: wajib. If you read or hear a sajdah ayah, you must do the sujud. If you cannot do it right away, do it later.
• Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali: a sunnah. It is very good to do it, but not a sin to leave it.

Nabi ﷺ almost always did it. But once he did not, which shows the majority view has a strong proof.

How to do sujud at-tilawah

Outside salah

• Face the qiblah, if you can.
• Say Allahu akbar and go down into one sujud.
• Say in sujud what you normally say, Subhana Rabbiyal-A'la (Glory be to my Lord, the Most High), and the dua below if you know it.
• Say Allahu akbar and come up.
• That is all. There is no tashahhud.

Shafi'is and Hanbalis also end with a salam when the sujud is done outside salah. Hanafis and Malikis do not. You can do it from standing or from sitting.

Inside salah

• When you reach the sajdah ayah in your recitation, say Allahu akbar and go straight down into one sujud.
• Say Allahu akbar and stand up again.
• Then carry on reciting a little, or go straight into ruku. Both are fine.

If the imam does it, follow him. When the imam reads a sajdah ayah and goes down, the people behind him go down too, even if they did not hear the ayah. Nabi ﷺ used to recite a sajdah and prostrate, and the Companions prostrated with him. It was so crowded that some could not find space for their foreheads¹⁰.

Nabi ﷺ used to read Surah as-Sajdah (32) in Fajr on Fridays¹¹. So do not be surprised when your imam prostrates in the first rakah of Friday Fajr.

What to say

Aisha said that in the sujud of recitation Nabi ﷺ would say¹²¹³:

Sajada wajhiya lilladhi khalaqahu, wa shaqqa sam'ahu wa basarahu, bi-hawlihi wa quwwatih.

It means: my face bows down to the One who created it, and gave it hearing and sight, by His might and power.

If you do not know it, Subhana Rabbiyal-A'la is enough.

Do you need wudu?

• Most scholars, including all four schools: yes. This sujud is like a part of salah, so you need wudu, clean clothes, covered 'awrah, and you should face the qiblah.
• Some early scholars, and it is reported from the Companion Ibn Umar, did the sujud of recitation without wudu. A few later scholars followed this.

If you do not have wudu when you reach a sajdah:

• Hanafi: since it is wajib, do it later, when you have wudu. It does not have to be straight away.
• Other schools: it is a sunnah tied to the moment. If you cannot do it then, you may leave it. Making wudu and doing it soon after is good.

If you hear someone else recite

• Hanafi: anyone who hears the sajdah ayah must do the sujud, even if they were not trying to listen.
• Shafi'i and Hanbali: it is a sunnah for someone who is listening on purpose. Someone who just overhears it is not asked to. Hanbalis add: the listener prostrates only if the reciter does.

A recording, like a Quran app or the radio, is different. Many scholars say no sujud is needed when you hear a recording, because no one is reciting in front of you. If you do it anyway, there is no harm.

Reading on your phone, on the bus or at work

Many of us read Quran on a phone, on a train or at our desk. When you reach a sajdah:

• If you have wudu and space, face the qiblah if you can, and do the sujud.
• If you are on a bus or train and cannot go down, many scholars say you may just bow your head a little, the way you would pray voluntary prayers while riding.
• If you have no wudu, follow the rules above: Hanafis do it later, others may leave it.
• If you are a woman on your period, you do not do this sujud. All four schools agree it needs the same purity as salah.

In our Quran reader, keep an eye out for the sajdah ayat so you are ready.

Sujud ash-shukr: the prostration of thanks

When something made Nabi ﷺ happy, or good news came to him, he went down in sujud to thank Allah¹⁴¹⁵.

The Companion Ka'b ibn Malik stayed behind from the Tabuk expedition without an excuse. For fifty days, Nabi ﷺ told people not to speak to him. Then, after Fajr on the fiftieth morning, he heard someone calling from a hill: O Ka'b ibn Malik, good news! His repentance had been accepted. He said: I fell down in sujud, knowing relief had come¹⁶.

When to do it

• When you get good news: a baby is born, you pass an exam, you get a job, a sick person gets better.
• When you are saved from a harm: you walk away from an accident, a danger passes.

How

• Go down in one sujud, thank Allah and praise Him in your own words, and come up.
• It is done outside salah, not inside it.
• Shafi'is and Hanbalis treat it like the sujud of recitation: wudu, the qiblah, Allahu akbar going down. Many scholars say it may be done straight away, even without wudu, since good news comes suddenly.

Where the schools differ

• Shafi'i and Hanbali: a sunnah when a new blessing comes or a harm is lifted.
• Hanafi: Abu Hanifa did not see it as a sunnah. His student Imam Muhammad did, and later Hanafi scholars say it is allowed and rewarded.
• Maliki: the well-known Maliki view is that it is disliked. Some Maliki scholars allowed it.

Given the clear hadith above, doing it is fine. If your local scholars hold otherwise, a simple Alhamdulillah from the heart is also thanks.

Common questions

I was reading Quran in bed and reached a sajdah. Do I have to get up?

If you have wudu, it is best to get up, face the qiblah and do it. If you have no wudu, Hanafis say do it later. The other schools say you may leave it.

I read the same sajdah ayah three times while memorizing. Do I prostrate three times?

No. If you repeat the same ayah in the same sitting, one sujud is enough. Hanafis say do it once for the sitting. The others say once is enough if you prostrated after the first time.

My child is reading Quran out loud and reaches a sajdah. Do I prostrate?

Hanafis say yes, because you heard it. The others say it is a sunnah if you were listening. Prostrating together is a beautiful way to teach your child.

The imam prostrated in the middle of the recitation and I thought it was ruku.

This happens often. Just follow the imam. If you went into ruku by mistake, go down to sujud as soon as you see him. Your prayer is fine.

I heard a sajdah ayah on a Quran recording in the car.

Many scholars say there is no sujud for a recording. If you want to, you can do it when you arrive and have wudu.

I just found out I passed my driving test. I am in the street.

If it is safe and clean, you may go down in one sujud of thanks. If not, say Alhamdulillah from the heart, and you can do the sujud when you get home.