distract his attention] and he ( - صلى الله عليه وسلم -) strangulated him. All these ah?d?th affirm that he ( - صلى الله عليه وسلم -) used to keep his eyes open in his Sal?t.

The ‘Ulamah differed amongst themselves regarding the ruling of this act in Sal?t; Im?m Ahmad and others considered it a detested act for this was the act of the Jews, others considered it as something permissible for it helps a muslim be fully transcend into serenity which is the soul of the Sal?t.

The soundest of all opinions is that one should open one’s eyes in Sal?t, provided that this does not distract one’s attention from it.

Closing eyes in Sal?t is however, recommended in case one is unable to be fully given to Sal?t due to some decorations or distractors in front of him. All?h ( - عز وجل -) knows best. (1)

[6/ 19] Moving a lot in Sal?t:

Moving a lot in Sal?t without dire necessity deprives one from gaining the full reward for it. Some examples of such movements are the following: interlocking fingers, playing with one’s nails, moving feet a lot, adjusting the turban or the hat, looking at the watch, ... etc.

‘Indeed, being fully given to Sal?t is its soul and essence to which every muslim should pay much attention. Some scholars held that a muslim is permitted to only move three times; this opinion is, however, based on no authentic proof traced back to the prophet ( - صلى الله عليه وسلم -) , it is only a mere mental deduction of some ‘Ulamah. Moving a lot in Sal?t is detested such as: scratching the nose, playing with one’s beard or clothes ... etc, they could even render one’s Sal?t as void of its rewards.

Little movement does not, however, nullify one’s Sal?t although every muslim is urged to keep calm in Sal?t in order to get its full reward’. (2)