in some versions of his hadith, that the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, used to say in his bowing: "Subhana Rabbiya al-'Azim wa bi-hamdih," and in his prostration: "Subhana Rabbiya al-A'la wa bi-hamdih." This is an addition that it is imperative to adopt. It is reported from Ahmad that he said: "As for me, I do not say: 'wa bi-hamdih'." Ibn al-Mundhir attributed this to al-Shafi'i and the scholars of opinion (ashab al-ra'y). The rationale for this is that the narration without this (9) addition is more famous and more frequent, and regarding this addition, Abu Dawud said: "We fear it is not authentic (mahfuzah)." It is also said that this addition is from the narration of Ibn Abi Layla. Thus, it is possible that Ahmad omitted it because Ibn Abi Layla was weak in his estimation.

Section: The famous position of Ahmad is that the takbir for lowering and raising, the tasbih of bowing and prostration, the saying "Sami' Allahu liman hamidah" (Allah hears those who praise Him) and "Rabbana wa laka al-hamd" (Our Lord, and to You be praise), the saying "Rabbi ighfir li" (My Lord, forgive me) between the two prostrations, and the first tashahhud are all obligatory (wajib). This is the position of Ishaq and Dawud. Another narration from Ahmad states that they are not obligatory, which is the position of most jurists; this is because the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, did not teach them to the man who prayed poorly, and it is not permitted to delay explanation beyond the time of need. Furthermore, if they were obligatory, they would not be compensated for by the prostration of forgetfulness (sujud al-sahw), just like the pillars (arkan) of prayer. Our argument is that the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, commanded it, and his command implies obligation, and he performed it. He said: "Pray as you have seen me praying." Abu Dawud (10) narrated from 'Ali ibn Yahya ibn Khallad, from his uncle, from the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, that he said: "The prayer of any person is not complete until he performs wudu'" up to his saying: "Then he says the takbir, then he bows until his joints are at ease, then he says: 'Sami' Allahu liman hamidah' until he is standing upright, then he says: 'Allahu Akbar,' then"