Issue No.922- It is recommended to utter words of [seeking] forgiveness from Allah after tasbīḥāt arbaʿah. For instance one should say " اَسْتَغْفِرُ اللّهَ رَبِّى وَ اَتُوبُ اِلَيْهِ " or, " اَللهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لي".
Issue No.923- If a person doubts while in rukū‘ whether or not he has recited tasbīḥāt arbaʿah, he should ignore his doubt. However, if he has not bowed to the extent enough for rukū‘, he should, as an obligatory precaution, return and recite it.
Issue No.925- It is recommended that in the first rak‘at the person offering prayer should say " اَعُوذُ بِاللّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطانِ الرَّجِيمِ " before reciting sūrah al-fātiḥa, and it is also recommended to recite "Bismillah" loudly in the first and second rak‘ats of ẓuhr and ‘aṣr prayers. It is also recommended to recite al-fātiḥa and the sūrah and other words of prayer distinctly, to leave a pause between verses and more importantly pay attention to their meaning. And if one is offering prayer in congregation, it is recommended to say " اَلْحَمْدُ لِلّهِ رِبِّ الْعالَمينَ " with hope of gaining Allah’s (swt) rewards after the completion of al-fātiḥa by the imam (leader of congregational prayer) and after reciting sūrah al-Ikhlas, he should say, “کَذلِکَ اللّهُ رَبِّى” or “کَذلِکَ اللّهُ رَبُّنَا” once, twice or three times.
Issue No.927- In every Rak’at, a person offering prayers should, after reciting the Surahs (Qira’at), bow to an extent that he is able to rest his palms on his knees. Rather, the obligatory precaution is that he should rest his palms on his knees.
Issue No.928- If a person is different from people in the hands and knees, e.g., if his hands are very long so that if he bends a little they reach his knees, or his knees are lower than others, so that he must bend himself much to make his hands reach his knees, he should bend to the usual extent.
Issue No.929- A person who performs rukū‘ in the sitting posture should bend so much so that it can be said that he has done rukū‘.
Issue No.930- Bending should be with the intention of rukū‘. Therefore, if a person bows without this intention, he cannot count it as rukū‘. He will have to stand up and bow once again in rukū‘.
Issue No.931- It is obligatory to utter a dhikr in rukū‘. One should, as an obligatory precaution, say "سُبْحانَ اللهِ" three times or "سُبْحانَ رِبِّىَ الْعَظِيمِ وَ بِحَمْدِهِ" once, and it should be uttered in correct Arabic. It is recommended that the dhikr be repeated three or five or seven times.
Issue No.932- The body should be still while reciting the obligatory dhikr, and if the recommended dhikr is being recited with the intention of dhikr of rukū‘, the body should be still as well.
Issue No.936- If a person cannot bow down for rukū‘ properly, if possible, he should lean on something and perform rukū‘. And if it is not possible, he should bow down as much as he can. And if he cannot bow at all, he should perform rukū‘ in the sitting posture. And if he cannot do this either, he should stand and indicate with his head for rukū‘. And if this cannot be done either, he should close his eyes with the intention of performing rukū‘ and utter the dhikr and then open his eyes with the intention of rising from rukū‘.
Issue No.937- If a person can perform rukū‘, but owing to a disease or other excuse he is not able to remain in rukū‘ to the extent of the obligatory dhikr, he should utter the obligatory dhikr before he exits the state of rukū‘, even though his body may not be still. And if that is not possible, he should finish the dhikr while rising from rukū‘.
Issue No.939- rukū‘ is one of the foundational elements (rukn) of prayer which, if abandoned or performed intentionally or unintentionally twice or more, will make the prayer void.
