During prayer, do you perform 'takbeer' during the course of a particular action or at the end of that action? E.g during sujood, should we say "Allah Akbar" DURING the course of getting up or once we've straightened up completely?
Praise be to Allah.The sunnah is for the takbeer to be in conjunction with the movement, such that one
begins the takbeer with the beginning of the movement. The daleel (evidence) for this is the
hadith of Abu Hurairah in which was said:
Abu Huraira used to say takbeer in all the prayers, compulsory and optional, ... He used to
say takbeer when standing for prayer and when bowing; then he would say, "Sami'allahu
li-man hamida," and before prostrating he would say "Rabbana walaka-l-hamd." Then he
would say takbeer when prostrating and when raising his head from the prostration, then
another takbeer when prostrating (for the second time), and when raising his head from the
prostration. He also would say the takbeer when standing from the second raka'a. He used
to do the same in every raka'a until he completed the prayer. On completion of the prayer,
he would say, "By Him in Whose Hands my soul is! No doubt my prayer is closer to that
of Allah's messenger than yours, and this was his prayer until he left this world."
(al-Bukhari)
The scholars have have understood from the Arabic word "heena" used in the hadith
(translated here as "when") that the beginning of the takbeer should be in conjunction with
the beginning of the movement.
Note that some scholars have recommended that the saying of takbeer should extend
throughout the movement, from when it starts until it ends; however, there is no daleel
(evidence) for this.