Chapter: Regarding Someone Who Sneezes During Prayer
• I said to Ishaq: A man sneezes during prayer? He said: "He should praise Allah, the Exalted." I said: In the obligatory and the voluntary [prayers]? He said: "Yes."
1050 - Yahya al-Himmani narrated to us, saying: Sharik narrated to us, from 'Asim, from 'Abd Allah ibn 'Amir ibn Rabi'ah, from his father, who said: A man sneezed behind the Prophet (peace be upon him) during prayer and said: "Al-hamdu lillahi hamdan kathiran tayyiban mubarakan fihi; kama yarḍa rabbuna, wa ba'd al-rida, wa-l-hamdu lillahi 'ala kulli hal" (Praise be to Allah, a praise that is abundant, good, and blessed therein; just as our Lord is pleased, and beyond what is pleasing, and praise be to Allah in every circumstance). When the Prophet (peace be upon him) finished the prayer, he said: "Who is the speaker of these words?" He said: "I am, O Messenger of Allah; I intended nothing but good by them." He said: "I saw twelve angels vying [to see] which of them would write it down."
1051 - Muhammad ibn al-Wazir narrated to us, saying: al-Walid ibn Muslim narrated to us, saying: al-Wadin ibn 'Ata' said: "They used to prefer that the sneeze during prayer be like the sneeze of a cat."
Chapter: Regarding Someone Who Scratches His Leg During Prayer, or Carries Something from the Ground
• I asked Ahmad, I said: The man is praying, his leg itches, should he scratch it? It was as if he disliked it. I said: Should he scratch it with his foot? He said: "It is easier with the foot," and it was as if he granted a concession for that.
1052 - Muhammad ibn Yahya narrated to us, saying: 'Umar ibn 'Ali narrated to us, saying: 'Abd al-Malik ibn Abi Sulayman narrated to us, from 'Ata' - regarding the man who is praying while having baggage in front of him, and the row moves forward or backward, and he bends his back, and [moves his] baggage forward or backward -; he said: "There is no harm in it."
(1) Thus it is in the original, and the correct reading is: "yahnī" (he bends). (2) It is obscured in the original, and it is as I have established in Fath al-Bari by Ibn Rajab (2/723), where he quoted it from Harb.