Abu 'Abd Allah. Indeed, Ibn Rahwayh says: If a man neglects the prayer upon the Prophet - God bless him and grant him peace - in the Tashahhud, his prayer is void. [Ahmad] said: I would not dare to say this. And he said in another place: This is an anomaly (shudhud). This indicates that he did not deem it obligatory (wajib). This is the position of Malik, al-Thawri, the proponents of opinion (ashab al-ra'y), and the majority of the scholars. Ibn al-Mundhir said: It is the opinion of the totality (1) of scholars, except for al-Shafi'i. Ishaq used to say: It does not suffice him if he neglects that intentionally. Ibn al-Mundhir said: I hold the first opinion, because I do not find the evidence present for making the repetition [of the prayer] obligatory upon him. They argued with the hadith of Ibn Mas'ud (2): That the Prophet - God bless him and grant him peace - taught him the Tashahhud, then said: "When you have said this - or finished this - your prayer has been completed." And in one wording: "And you have finished your prayer; if you wish to stand, then stand, and if you wish to sit, then sit." Narrated by Abu Dawud (3). The Prophet - God bless him and grant him peace - said: "When one of you performs the Tashahhud, let him seek refuge in God from four [things]." Narrated by Muslim (4). He commanded seeking refuge immediately following the Tashahhud without separation. Furthermore, the Companions used to say a certain expression in the Tashahhud, but the Prophet - God bless him and grant him peace - diverted them from it to the Tashahhud alone, which indicates that nothing else is obligatory. Furthermore, obligation comes from the Sharia, and no text regarding its obligation has reached us. The apparent view of the school (madhhab) of Ahmad, may God have mercy on him, is its obligation; for Abu Zur'ah al-Dimashqi (6) reported from Ahmad that he said: I used to be hesitant about that, then it became clear to me, and the prayer is indeed obligatory. The apparent meaning of this is that he retracted his first statement in favor of this; due to what Ka'b ibn 'Ujrah narrated, saying: The Prophet - God bless him and grant him peace - came out to us, and we said:
(1) In [M]: "jull". "Jumal", like "suhuf", refers to the majority among us. (2) The hadith of Ibn Mas'ud was previously cited on page 221. (3) In: Kitab al-Salah, the chapter on the Tashahhud. Sunan Abi Dawud 1/222. (4) In: Kitab al-Salah, the chapter on what one should seek refuge from in prayer. Sahih Muslim 1/412. It was also recorded by al-Nasa'i in: Kitab al-Sahw, the chapter on another type of seeking refuge in prayer, al-Mujtaba 3/49; and by Imam Ahmad in: al-Musnad 2/477. (5) In [M]: "amara-na" (he commanded us). (6) Abu Zur'ah 'Abd al-Rahman ibn 'Amr ibn Safwan al-Basri al-Dimashqi, a hafiz and scholar of hadith and the biographies of narrators (rijal). He heard many thorough and firm issues from Imam Ahmad and died in the year 280 AH. Tabaqat al-Hanabilah 1/205, 206.
