If one is reading the Qur’an after Asr prayers and comes across a verse that requires prostration (Ayat-e-Sajdah), should one prostrate straight away or later? Please also advise about the correct method of such prostration.

 Tehmina

 Answer:

Salaam sister

 Many thanks for your question. In the opinion of our scholars, Sajdah Talawa is a suprerogatory(nafl) sajdah which will earn rewards if done with good intentions but is definitely not obligatory, however, to respect and appreciate the message of the Quranic verses it is good to perform it. One may perform it while doing the prayer, or immediately after the prayer. Likewise, if one is reciting the Quran, it can be performed at the time of reciting the verses, albeit one may perform it later as well. It does not need ablution (of course if one is praying then naturally one is in state of cleanliness anyway).

 Sajdah Talawa is performed like a normal sajdah. For the Sajdah if it is out of prayer, being directed towards Qibla is good but not a requirement. We say Takbeer only if we do it in prayer, otherwise we do not normally say Takbeer. It entails simply going into sajdah, any Zikr to any number can be uttered during this sajdah, just as it is the case for any other sajdah as long as the Zikr is long enough to allow the person to settle in his Sajdah and do it with respect and not in the state of hurry (i.e. the number of repeating a Zikr is not an issue).

If you have any further queries please do not hesitate to contact us again.

Best regards

UIUK team