Aslam

Praise be to Allah.The Prophet

(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) commanded us to do rukoo’

and sujood perfectly and completely.

It was reported

from Anas ibn Maalik (may Allaah be pleased with him) that he heard the

Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Do your

rukoo’ and sujood perfectly and completely, for by the One in Whose Hand

is my soul, I can see you behind me when you do rukoo’ and sujood.” (Narrated

by al-Bukhaari, 6268; Muslim, 425)

Part of doing

rukoo’ and sujood properly and correctly is to be at ease in both.

It was reported

from Abu Hurayrah that a man entered the mosque and prayed. The Messenger

of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was sitting in

a corner of the mosque, and the man came and greeted him with salaam. The

Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) answered “Wa

‘alayk (and also upon you). Go back and pray, for you have not

prayed.” So he went back and prayed, then he came and greeted the

Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) with salaam, and

the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) answered

“Wa ‘alayk (and also upon you). Go back and pray, for you have not

prayed yet.” The third time this happened, the man said, “Teach me, O

Messenger of Allaah.” He said: “When you stand up to pray, do wudoo’

properly, then face the qiblah and say ‘Allaahu akbar.’ Then recite

whatever you can of Qur’aan. Then do rukoo’ until you are at ease in

rukoo’. Then stand up until you are at ease in standing, then do sujood

until you are at ease in sujood. Then sit up until you are sitting up

straight. Do that throughout your prayer.” (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 724; Muslim, 397).

Not doing rukoo’ and sujood properly and completely is something which

invalidates one's prayer.

It was reported

that Abu Mas’ood al-Ansaari al-Badri said: “The Messenger of Allaah

(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: ‘A prayer in

which a person does not straighten his spine in his rukoo’ and sujood

does not count.” (Narrated by al-Tirmidhi, 265; he said it is

hasan saheeh. Also narrated by al-Nasaa’i, 1027; Abu Dawood, 855; Ibn

Maajah, 870)

Imaam al-Tirmidhi

said:

“Prayer

should be done in accordance with this, according to the scholars among

the Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon

him) and later scholars, who said that a man should straighten his spine

when he does rukoo’ and sujood.”

Al-Shaafa'i, Ahmad

and Ishaaq said: “A prayer in which a person does not straighten his

spine in his rukoo’ and sujood does not count, because of the hadeeth of

the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him): ‘A prayer

in which a person does not straighten his spine in his rukoo’ and sujood

does not count.’” (Sunan

al-Tirmidhi, 2/52)

It was reported

from Abu Waa’il that Hudhayfah saw a man who was not doing rukoo’ and

sujood perfectly and completely. When he finished praying, Hudhayfah said

to him, “You have not prayed.” He (the narrator) said: “I think he

said, ‘If you were to die now, you would die on something other than the

Sunnah of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).’”

(Narrated

by al-Bukhaari, 382).

According to

another report (758): it was reported that Zayd ibn Wahb said:

“Hudhayfah saw a man who was not doing rukoo’ and sujood perfectly and

completely. He said, ‘You have not prayed. If you were to die now, you

would die on something other than the fitrah to which Allaah guided

Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).’”

It is essential

to place the forehead and nose firmly on the ground when making sujood.

It was reported

that Ibn ‘Abbaas (may Allaah be pleased with them both) said: “The

Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: ‘I was

commanded to prostrate on seven bones: the forehead’ – and he pointed

to his nose – ‘the two hands, the two knees and the toes. And do not

tie up your clothes or hair.’” (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 779; Muslim, 490).

There is nothing wrong with making the sujood long, especially when

praying alone, or in Salaat al-Kusoof (eclipse prayer) or in qiyaam

al-layl (naafil prayers at night).

It was reported

from Asmaa’ bint Abi Bakr al-Siddeeq (may Allaah be pleased with her)

that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) prayed

Salaat al-Kusoof (eclipse prayer). He stood and made his standing lengthy;

then he did rukoo’ and made his rukoo’ lengthy; then he stood up and

made his standing lengthy; then he did rukoo’ and made his rukoo’

lengthy; then he stood up and did sujood, then he sat up and did sujood

again, and made his sujood lengthy. Then he stood up and made his standing

lengthy; then he did rukoo’ and made his rukoo’ lengthy; then he stood

up and made his standing lengthy; then he did rukoo’ and made his

rukoo’ lengthy; then he stood up and did sujood, and made his sujood

lengthy; then he sat up and did sujood again, and made his sujood lengthy,

then he finished.” (Narrated by

al-Bukhaari, 812).

It was reported

that Hudhayfah said: “I prayed with the Prophet (peace and

blessings of Allaah be upon him) one night. He started to recite

al-Baqarah, and I thought that he would do rukoo’ after one hundred

aayaat, but he carried on. I thought that he would finish it and then do

rukoo’, but he carried on. Then he started to recite al-Nisaa’ and he

recited it all, then he started to recite Aal ‘Imraan, and he recited it

all, at a steady and moderate pace. If he recited an aayah which mentioned

tasbeeh (glorifying Allaah), he would glorify Allaah; if he recited an

aayah which mentioned asking, he would ask Allaah; if he recited an aayah

which mentioned seeking refuge with Allaah, he would seek refuge with Him.

Then he did rukoo’ and started saying ‘Subhaan

Rabbi al-al’Azeem,’ and his rukoo’ was almost as long as

his standing. Then he said, ‘Sami’a

Allaahu li man hamidah’ and stood up, and his standing was

almost as long as his rukoo’. Then he prostrated and said, ‘Subhaana

Rabbi al-A’laa’, and his sujood was almost as long as his

standing.” (Narrated by Muslim,

772)

The Sunnah in

sujood is to be level in sujood, as it was narrated from Anas that the

Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “be level

in sujood, and none of you should spread his forearms as a dog spreads

them.” (Narrated

by al-Bukhaari, 788; Muslim, 493).

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah preserve him) said:

This means that

you should do sujood in a level way, not bunched up tight so that the

stomach rests on the thighs and the thighs on the calves, and not

stretched out as some people do when they prostrate, so that they are

almost lying on their fronts. Undoubtedly this is a kind of bid’ah and

is not Sunnah. It was not narrated from the Prophet (peace and

blessings of Allaah be upon him) or from any of the Sahaabah, as far as we

know, that a person should stretch out his back in sujood. He should

stretch his back in rukoo’, but in sujood he should raise his stomach

and not stretch it out.” (al-Sharh

al-Mumti’, 3/168).

If a person

does as the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)

commanded, and he is prostrating on soil or a rough surface, then he may

get a mark on his forehead. This may generate some pride in his heart, as

mentioned in the question, but if a person’s heart is filled with

sincere faith and he does what he does only for the purpose of seeking

that which is with Allaah, then he will not care what people say about

him. But if he deliberately tries to make a mark on his forehead that

looks like the sign of sujood, then this is a kind of showing off and

lying, so woe to him of the punishment of a painful Day!

With regard to

the aayah (interpretation of the meaning):

“… You see them bowing and falling down

prostrate (in prayer), seeking Bounty from Allaah and (His) Good Pleasure.

The mark of them (i.e. of their Faith) is on their faces (foreheads) from

the traces of prostration (during prayers)….” [al-Fath 48:29]

-- the correct meaning of the phrase “the

mark of them is on their faces” is that this refers to the

light of obedience and worship, and it does not necessarily mean that

there is a physical mark on the skin in the place of prostration.

Ibn Katheer (may Allaah have mercy on

him) said in his Tafseer of

this aayah:

“… ‘the

mark of them is on their faces from the traces of prostration’

-‘Ali ibn Abi Talhah said,

narratingfrom Ibn ‘Abbaas

(may Allaah be pleased with them): ‘the

mark of them is on their faces’ means their outward

appearance. Mujaahid and others said that it means khushoo’ and

humility. Ibn Abi Haatim said: my father told us, ‘Ali ibn Muhammad

al-Tanaafusi told us, Husayn al-Ja’fi told us, from Zaa’idah from

Mansoor from Mujaahid: ‘the mark of

them is on their faces from the traces of prostration’ – he

said: (this means) khushoo’ (humility). I said, I always thought that it

meant this mark on the face. He said, That may appear between the eyes of

one whose heart is harder than Pharaoh’s. Al-Saddi said: Prayer makes

their faces beautiful. One of the Salaf said; Whoever prays more at night,

his face becomes more handsome by day… Some of them said that a hasanah

(good deeds) brings light (noor) to the heart and a glow to the face, an

increased provision and the love of the people.”

The point is, the fact that this mark is

present on the skin and there is a change in the colour of the forehead,

does not mean that a person is righteous and sincere. By the same token,

if this mark is absent, that does not mean that a person is failing in his

prayers. In many cases it has to do with the nature and sensitivity of an

individual’s skin.

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah

preserve him) was asked: is there any report to indicate that the mark on

the forehead caused by sujood is a sign of the righteous?

He replied:

This is not one of the signs of the

righteous; the sign is the light (noor ) which appears on the face, and

being content and at peace, a good attitude, and the like.

As for the mark made by sujood on the

face, it may appear on the faces of people who do not even pray the

obligatory prayers, if their skin is very soft and sensitive, and it may

not appear of the faces of people who pray a lot and make lengthy sujood.

(Fataawaa

Islamiyyah, 1/484)

In

conclusion, then, if you are sincere towards Allaah and seek to earn His

pleasure when you pray, then what people say will not affect you; in fact,

their praise of you may be a kind of hastening of glad tidings for you in

this world. So follow the Sunnah and do sujood properly, and then do not

worry about whether people praise you or condemn you. We ask Allaah to

make you sincere and to accept your prayers.

And Allaah knows best.