Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

Dear Burhan,
Another question on sajdas. I have just read your answer on sajda-e-sahoo. Although someone had told me about this earlier, I did not know how to perform it. Whenever I make a mistake in my prayers and I realise it, I usually break the rakaat and start from scratch. I believe this is wrong and I should complete the rakaats in any case and then do the sajda-e-sahoo.
My question is; after completing the rakaats and the sajda-e-sahoo, are we required to pray the namaaz again, as we made a mistake? For example, people say that if a person loses his/her wudu, while in prayers, he / she is required to finish the namaaz, perform wudu again and then pray the namaaz again. Is this applicable to any mistake during namaaz as well or after doing the sajda-e-sahoo, our namaaz has been accepted and we do not have o repeat the namaaz?
Regards

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Answer:

Should one repeat prayer after sahoo?

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad(saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Fiqh-us-Sunnah Fiqh 2.47

When to perform the prostrations of forgetfulness (Sajdah-Sahu)

The "sujjud us-sahu" are to be performed in the following circumstances:

1. If a person makes the taslim before he actually completes the prayers. Ibn Sireen relates from Abu Hurairah who said: "The Prophet (saws) prayed either Dhuhr or Asr salah with us and he prayed only two rak'at and made the taslim. He (saws) got up and leaned against a piece of wood in the mosque as if he was angry. He (saws) put his right hand on his left and interlocked his fingers. Then, he (saws) placed his cheek on the back of his left hand. And some people left the mosque in a hurry. And they said: 'The prayer has been shortened?' Among the people were Abu Bakr and 'Umar, and they were shy to speak to him. One of the people, who was called Dhul-Yadain, said: 'O Messenger of Allah (saws) have you forgotten or has the prayer been shortened?' He answered: 'I have not forgotten and it has not been shortened.' Then he (saws) asked: 'Is it as Dhul-Yadain has said?' The people answered in the affirmative...At that, he(saws) led the people in what he had ommitted and made the taslim. After which he made the takbir and prostrated the way he usually prostrated or perhaps even longer. Next, he (saws) raised his head and made the takbir. Then, he made the takbir [again] and prostrated, like one of his customary sujjud or perhaps even longer, and finally, he raised his head."

This is related by al-Bukhari and Muslim.

2. In the case of an addition to the prayer. Ibn Mas'ud narrates that the Prophet (saws) prayed five rak'at and the people asked him: "Has there been an addition to the prayer?" He (saws) asked: "Why do you say that?" They replied: "You prayed five rak'at" Then he (saws) made two sujJud after he had made the taslim.

This is related by the group. This hadith proves that the prayer of one who prays five rak'at out of forgetfulness, without sitting during the fourth rak'ah, is acceptable.

3. In the case of forgetting the first tashahud or one of the other sunnah acts of the prayer. Ibn Buhainah narrates that the Prophet (saws) stood after two rak'at. The people tried to correct him but he (saws) continued. When he (saws) finished his salah, he made two sujjud and made the taslim. This is related by the group.' This hadith shows that one who forgets the first sitting but is reminded of it and he recalls it before he completely stands should return and sit, but if he is already completely standing, he should not sit down. This is supported by what Ahmad, Abu Dawud, and Ibn Majah recorded from al-Mughirah ibn Shu'bah, that the Prophet (saws) said: "If one of you stands after two rak'at and he has not completely stood, then he should sit. If he is already completely standing, he should not sit and he should make two sujjud of forgetfulness."

4. In the case of doubt over whether or not one performed some act of the prayer. 'Abdurrahman ibn 'Auf reported that he heard the Prophet (saws) say: "If one of you has some doubt during his salah and he does not know if he prayed one rak'ah or two, he should take it to have been just one. If he does not know if he prayed two rak'at or three, he should take it to have been just two. If he does not know if he prayed three rak'at or four, he should take it to have been just three. [In all such cases] at the end of his prayer, while sitting, he should make two sujjud before the taslim."

This is related by Ahmad, Ibn Majah, and at-Tirmidhi. Abu Sa'id al-Khudri narrated that the Prophet sallallahu alehi wasallam said: "If one of you has some doubts during his prayer and does not know if he prayed three or four [rak'at], then he should remove his doubt by praying according to the amount that he is certain he had performed and then make two sujjud before the taslim. If he had prayed five rak'at, the two sujjud would make it even. If he had prayed a complete four rak'at [when he had finished], they would be in defiance of the Satan." This is related by Ahmad and Muslim. These two ahadith prove what the majority of the scholars have said, namely, if one has some doubt concerning the number of rak'at one has prayed, one should act according to the amount that one is certain to have prayed (the lesser amount) and then make two sujjud before the taslim.

Your Question: Whenever I make a mistake in my prayers and I realise it, I usually break the rakaat and start from scratch. I believe this is wrong and I should complete the rakaats in any case and then do the sajda-e-sahoo.
If one makes a mistake in any act of prayer, there is absolutely no need to break the prayer; but rather one should complete the prayer and at the end of the prayer perform the sajdah-us-sahoo or prostrations of forgetfulness as taught by the Messenger of Allah (saws).

Your Question: after completing the rakaats and the sajda-e-sahoo, are we required to pray the namaaz again, as we made a mistake?

The ‘sajdah-us-sahu’ itself is the atonement of the mistake or error in the prayer; thus there is absolutely no need to repeat the prayer again. This was the practice and Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (saws) when performing the sajdah-us-sahu.

Your Question: For example, people say that if a person loses his/her wudu, while in prayers, he / she is required to finish the namaaz, perform wudu again and then pray the namaaz again. Is this applicable to any mistake during namaaz as well or after doing the sajda-e-sahoo, our namaaz has been accepted and we do not have o repeat the namaaz?
Being in the state of wudu is a pre-requisite obligatory condition of prayer. Thus if one breaks one wudu when in the state of prayer, one cannot continue the prayer. It is incumbent upon the person to leave the prayer immediately, perform the wudu again, and then offer the prayer from the beginning again.

But when one is in the state of wudu, and if one realizes that one has made a mistake in any part of the prayer, then one should complete the prayer and end it with a sajdah-sahoo. There is absolutely no need to repeat the prayer again as was the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (saws).

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan