Question: In the ”Absolute Essentials of Islam” it’s written that women should have their hands at shoulder level in prostration and keep their forearms on the ground. Yet when I attempted to practice this, I found that I could not keep my forearms on the ground without having my hands at head-level, like men. Can you explain this and the way women should perform prostration? Can you also describe the exact sitting position women should be in, please.
Answer: Assalamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa baraktuhu The basis of the woman’s prayer in the Hanafi madhhab is that it follows the same rulings as the man’s prayer, and any differences between the two return to the principle of what is most concealing and modest for her. [Ibn `Abidin, Radd al Muhtar]
In prostration, it is sunna for a woman to draw all of her limbs closely together in order to achieve maximum modesty. Her abdomen rests on top of her thighs and her upper-arms remain closely at her sides while her forearms lay on the floor.
[Radd al- Muhtar; Shurunbulali, Maraqi al-Falah] It is sunna for men to prostrate in-between their hands, and their hands are placed at the level of the ears like the opening takbir. So far, I have not found a specific text that indicates that a woman does differently but I am still researching this matter.
Yet, it should be noted that the placement of the hands do not affect the validity of the prayer and it is permissible to place one’s hands at the head level while prostrating as long as the ideals of modesty and concealment are upheld. In regards to her toes,
it is obligatory for a part of the toes to touch the ground while in prostration in order for the prayer to be considered valid. Shaykh Faraz Rabbani has mentioned that it is not a specific sunna for women to keep their toes upright but there is no harm in doing so during prostration.
