Prostration in Prayer: A Path to Peace 🌟

The world we live in is so turbulent, isn’t it? There is so much goodness, alhamdulillah, but lots of distress-inducing things too. Natural calamities, man-made injustices, and diseases and viruses that can’t always be healed, even with the best doctors and scientists in the world. 

How can we find peace internally when havoc is reaped upon our external environments? It is natural to feel stress and sorrow – in fact, we wouldn’t be human if we were so apathetic. But how can we channel this stress and sorrow to seek solace in a way that heals us but also makes us contributors to our world and our communities? 

Now you know this is a prayer-dedicated portal. So, you already know we are going to talk about prayer as our solution. But let’s narrow this down because while peace is what we are all seeking within our prayer journeys, as a whole, the concept could feel vague and vast. This could make our end goal feel a little unattainable. So, what we really want to focus on is the most humility-inducing – and by association, peaceful - act of prayer and that is prostration – i.e. sujood.

What does sujood mean?

Sujood is the act of bowing or prostrating to Allah. The word sujood is made up of the root letters sa-ja-da. ‘Resting’ and ‘submitting’ are two definitions that are given for these root letters. This is interesting because if we take the first meaning of resting, then sujood is an act of prayer that induces rest and healing. Scientifically, there are many medical and physical benefits of sujood but we can also understand the healing nature of sujood on the heart in an emotional, psychological and spiritual sense. This is especially true when we consider the connection between the physical and spiritual self in Islam. All physical acts of goodness strengthen the spiritual soul. 

The second definition of ‘submitting’ is synonymous with the Arabic word ‘Khudoo’ meaning ‘submission and humility. Khudoo is an aspect of prayer which always has scope for improvement and one way khudoo can be personified is through prostration. This is because there is no better act of humbling oneself in front of Allah than in sujood. 

Visualize your prostration. 

The hands, the forehead, the nose, the knees, the feet – all these different components that make up the human body – are lowered until they come into contact with the ground. A gentle reminder of the fragility of the composition of the human body; we were made from dust and it is in this very dust that we will return.  

It is not just the physical self that prostrates before our Creator. As we align our upper and lower bodies in a bowing position, we are also unconsciously aligning our hearts.

This is a symbolic expression of humility: just as our bodies are lowered and humbled before their Creator, our hearts are filled with humility and modesty too. “The closest an ‘abd (worshipper) comes to Allah is when he is in prostration.” 

Reflecting on this is mind-blowing. In sujood, an individual finds themselves in the physically lowest position possible. Allah Almighty, on the other hand is Al-‘Aly; Al-‘A’laa, Al-Muta’aal: The High; The Most High; The Exalted. Allah has absolute highness in every sense of the word with regard to His Being, His majestic position, attributes, dominance and all else that mortals cannot fully comprehend. Now Ibn Al-Qayyim remarks that the closest a worshipper comes to Allah is when he is in sujood. The implication of this is that when we are in our lowest possible position, we are closest to the One Who is the eternally highest. As the noblest parts of our bodies touch the lowly ground, we are reminded of our utter helplessness in the Presence of Allah. So, an individual reaches the highest level of worship in the culmination of their most humble state. Glory truly belongs to Allah! 

This brings the realisation that sujood really holds a status of the highest esteem in prayer. Just as many things in existence if not all, are contained within hierarchies of sorts, the act of prostrating is at the top of the hierarchy in prayer and worship. In fact, Ibn Al-Qayyim described Sujood as ‘the secret of prayer’ before which all other actions are mere preludes.  Allah raises our statuses higher than that of the angels as we tame our egos and renounce Shaytaan whose pride deterred him from bowing down to Adam despite Allah’s command. We succumb to Allah’s orders knowing that this decision will result in tranquillity, peace and harmony – after all, it is only Allah’s word and Allah’s decision for us that matters.

It is vital that the body, heart and mind are synchronized in prayer. Achieving this requires an active consciousness that we prostrate not just with our bodies, but with our hearts too. This is especially significant if we go back to the physicality of sujood quickly. We’ve established that the highest part of our body – the head – becomes the lowest part in sujood. Our hearts hidden in our chests become higher than the head and there is something to be said about this powerful image. Not only does this place emphasis on the presence of the heart, as our heads bow in humility, it is our hearts that feel the impact. 

Here are some ways to become more mindful in our practice of sujood in our quest to seek peace, contentment and pure humility. 

1. Extend Sujood

سُبْحَانَ رَبِّـيَ الْأَعْلَىٰ

How Perfect is my Lord, The Most High.

Refrain from lifting your head off the ground until you have as calmly as possible recited the tasbeeh for sujood: ‘Subhana Rabbiya Aa’la’. Try and do this three times adhering to the sunnah to lengthen your sajdah especially as every preparation in the run up to salah has been for this meeting point with Allah. The greater our relationship with an individual in this world, the more time we seek to spend with them. Similarly, the longer the sajdah, the closer to Allah’s intimacy we can hope to achieve. 

      2. Visualise

Imagine a big boulder of your sins perched on your shoulders. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, “When the believer stands to pray, all of his sins are brought and placed on his head and shoulders. Whenever he bows or prostrates, they fall off him.” [Tabarani]

Consider that after performing sujood, this boulder of sins is lifted from your shoulders. Praise be to Allah for the emotional relief that He bestows upon us because we do not have to carry our shortfalls with us. Allah has prescribed Sujood as a remedy. We might stand a few pounds heavier with sin at the beginning of our prayer but by the end we stand a few pounds lighter. SubhanAllah. May Allah grant us all the sweetness of this relief. 

       3. Supplicate 

We have discussed the significance of salaah as a conversation and sujood is the climax. Extend and beautify this occasion by discussing your fears and needs, and wants with the only Being that can solve and resolve. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, “As for sujood, go to great lengths in making du’a in it, as it is likely that your du’a shall be answered” [Muslim] We’ve discussed the struggles of making dua here but a quick suggestion to untie the tongue is to pause after your prayer. Just pause. Don’t rush off the mat. Stay awhile in the company of your Creator, in blissful silence, and then somehow, making dua will just become easier insha’Allah. 

      4. Reflect 

Reflect on the act of defeating Shaytaan, who weeps when a servant of Allah bows in prostration. “Woe to me! The son of Adam was commanded to prostrate, and he prostrated so for him is Paradise. I was commanded to prostrate, and I refused, so for me is Hell-fire.” [Muslim] Visualising a cowering Shaytaan crying in the corner of the room will make the resolve to perfect one’s sujood even stronger. 

     5. Succumb

As your body come into contact with the floor, release the tensions, worries and stresses you carry into the ground. Make space to focus on every part of the body signalling its servitude to Allah. Consider the position of your hands, your arms, your knees, your feet. Understand that each limb is in need of the honour of bowing to its Lord. Devoting physical attention to your sujood will allow the prostration of body and soul in its truest meaning. 

In Surah al-Fath Allah says of those who prostrate:

“Their distinguishing features [as a result of prostration] is on their faces. [48:29] 

Allah will manifest the sujood of a person on the noblest part of their body – the face – and their face will shine with brightness and radiance on the Day of Judgement. 

May Allah make us amongst them. 

Ameen. 🤲💜