al-Qawl al-Mubin fi Akhta al-Musallin

al-Qawl al-Mubin fi Akhta al-Musallin (The Clear Word on the Errors of Those Who Pray) is a treatise on common mistakes and innovations in ritual prayer written by the Jordanian scholar Mashhur Hasan Al Salman al-Qawl al-Mubin fi Akhta…+1.

Purpose and Methodology

The author composed the work to identify and rectify the widespread errors, invented practices, and omissions of obligatory or recommended acts committed by worshipers, especially the common folk al-Qawl al-Mubin fi Akhta…+1. Grounding the study in the principle of enjoining good and forbidding wrong, he sought to bring Muslims' prayer into alignment with the established Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad al-Qawl al-Mubin fi Akhta…+1.

In his introduction, Mashhur Al Salman noted that not every error treated in the book necessarily invalidates the prayer or constitutes a sin; rather, some issues involve valid differences of opinion among jurists where he deemed an act erroneous because sound evidence or scholarly consensus contradicted it or supported a preferable prophetic alternative al-Qawl al-Mubin fi Akhta…. The book presents its critiques in accessible language tailored to contemporary readers, pairing the identification of each error with the correct practice according to legal proofs al-Qawl al-Mubin fi Akhta….

Structure and Contents

The book is arranged into an introduction, seven main chapters, and a concluding section al-Qawl al-Mubin fi Akhta…+1:

• Chapter One: Errors concerning garments and covering the awrah, including praying in tight or see-through clothes, trailing the lower garment below the ankles (isbal), tucking up sleeves or garments, leaving shoulders or the head uncovered, and wearing garments bearing images al-Qawl al-Mubin fi Akhta….
• Chapter Two: Errors regarding the places of prayer, such as prostrating on tablets made of soil from Karbala, praying facing depictions or on prayer rugs with ornate patterns, praying toward or over graves, reserving fixed spots in mosques, neglecting the prayer barrier (sutrah), and deviating from the qiblah al-Qawl al-Mubin fi Akhta….
• Chapter Three: Errors in the physical description and execution of the prayer from the opening takbir to the taslim, addressing vocalization of the intention (niyyah), failing to move the tongue during recitations, posture errors during standing, bowing (ruku), prostration (sujud), sitting (julus), reciting the tashahhud, and concluding the prayer al-Qawl al-Mubin fi Akhta…+1.
• Chapter Four: Errors related to mosques and congregational prayer, divided into four sections: mistakes made prior to the iqamah, errors from the iqamah up to the opening takbir (such as imperfect row alignment), faults committed during the congregational prayer (such as anticipating or lagging behind the imam), and issues regarding congregational attendance and multiple congregations in a single mosque al-Qawl al-Mubin fi Akhta…+1.
• Chapter Five: Errors occurring after the conclusion of prayer, including immediate post-prayer handshaking, collective audible remembrance (tasbih), using prayer beads inappropriately, prostrating specifically for supplication right after prayer, late-night socializing after the night prayer, and walking in front of those praying al-Qawl al-Mubin fi Akhta….
• Chapter Six: Errors related to the Friday prayer (Jumuah), covering unjustifiable absenteeism, neglecting ritual preparation (such as bathing and early arrival), talking, sleeping, or collecting donations during the sermon (khutbah), stepping over people's necks, baseless regular sunnah prayers before Friday prayer, and mistakes committed by preachers al-Qawl al-Mubin fi Akhta…+1.
• Chapter Seven: Errors in special prayers and the prayers of excused persons, including the guidance-seeking prayer (istikharah), Eid prayers, joining prayers during rain or travel, eclipse prayers, and fabricated or baseless prayers al-Qawl al-Mubin fi Akhta…+1.

The author concluded the work with an examination of widely circulated weak and fabricated hadiths concerning prayer, completing the compilation on the afternoon of Saturday, 3 Rabi al-Awwal 1409 AH al-Qawl al-Mubin fi Akhta…+1. The book was published in a first edition by Dar Ibn al-Qayyim in Dammam in 1412 AH al-Salat wasf mufassal li….