Sajdah al-Sahw — The Prostration of Forgetfulness
Sajdah al-Sahw (“the prostration of inadvertence”) is a pair of prostrations performed immediately after the salam to make good certain mistakes made by forgetfulness during the prayer. It does not replace anything that was missed — a forgotten sajdah or tashahhud is first made up separately — and it cannot repair a missed pillar (rukn), which invalidates the prayer. When one of its causes occurs, performing it is obligatory (wajib); the prayer itself remains valid whether or not it is performed, but leaving it out deliberately is a sin.
[ Image placeholder — a person seated after the salam, about to go into the Sajdah al-Sahw ]
When Sajdah al-Sahw Becomes Obligatory
According to the well-known rulings of the maraji‘ of the Ja‘fari school, Sajdah al-Sahw becomes obligatory in the following cases when they happen by mistake (sahwan), not deliberately:
Speaking inadvertently during the prayer. If you utter a word or more that is not part of the prayer — for example you answer someone, or you speak thinking the prayer has ended — you perform Sajdah al-Sahw after the salam. Saying a dhikr, a dua or a Qur’anic verse is not “speaking”. A sigh, cough or clearing of the throat is not speaking either.
Forgetting one sajdah. If you forget one of the two sajdahs of a rak‘ah and remember it only after entering ruku‘ of the next rak‘ah (or after the salam), the prayer is valid; after the salam you first perform the qada of the forgotten sajdah, then Sajdah al-Sahw.
Forgetting the tashahhud. If you forget the tashahhud and remember only after entering ruku‘ of the next rak‘ah, complete the prayer; after the salam, as an obligatory precaution perform the qada of the tashahhud and then Sajdah al-Sahw.
Giving the salam in the wrong place. If you say the salam by mistake where it does not belong — for example after the second rak‘ah of a four-rak‘ah prayer, or after the third rak‘ah — and then remember before doing anything that invalidates the prayer, you stand up, complete the remaining rak‘ahs, and after the final salam perform Sajdah al-Sahw for the misplaced salam.
Doubt between four and five. If, after entering the second sajdah of a four-rak‘ah prayer, you doubt whether you have prayed four or five rak‘ahs (or four or six), you treat it as four, complete the prayer, and perform Sajdah al-Sahw. Any doubt whose one side is “four” and the other side is “more than four”, arising after the second sajdah, is settled in this way.
Standing where you should sit, or sitting where you should stand. If you stand up by mistake where you should have sat (for example before the tashahhud) or sit where you should have stood, and then correct yourself, perform Sajdah al-Sahw as an obligatory precaution.
Beyond these six cases, it is a recommended precaution to perform Sajdah al-Sahw for any part that was inadvertently added to or omitted from the prayer, provided it was not a pillar.
What Sajdah al-Sahw Does Not Cover
A missed or repeated pillar. Forgetting the ruku‘, both sajdahs of one rak‘ah, or the takbirat al-ihram — or adding an extra ruku‘ — invalidates the prayer. It must be repeated; Sajdah al-Sahw cannot repair it.
Doubts that invalidate the prayer. A doubt about the number of rak‘ahs in the two-rak‘ah prayers (Fajr, the traveller’s prayer), in the three-rak‘ah Maghrib, or within the first two rak‘ahs of a four-rak‘ah prayer invalidates the prayer.
Doubts settled by Salat al-Ihtiyat. Doubts such as “three or four?”, “two or three?” (after the second sajdah), or “two or four?” are settled by building on the higher number, finishing the prayer, and then performing the Salat al-Ihtiyat (the precautionary prayer) — not by Sajdah al-Sahw. Salat al-Ihtiyat is explained under the rulings of doubt.
How to Perform Sajdah al-Sahw — Step by Step
Sajdah al-Sahw is performed immediately after the salam, while still seated facing the qibla, before speaking, turning away or doing anything else. As an obligatory precaution, observe the conditions of the prayer sajdah: be in wudu, face the qibla, and place the forehead on the turbah with the seven parts on the ground.
Step 1 — Intention
Immediately after the salam, intend in your heart: “I perform Sajdah al-Sahw, obligatory, seeking nearness to Allah.” It does not need to be spoken. No takbirat al-ihram is said.
Step 2 — The first sajdah
[ Image placeholder — Sajdah al-Sahw: forehead on the turbah, seven parts of the body on the ground, exactly as in the prayer sajdah ]
Go into sajdah exactly as in the prayer — forehead on the turbah, both palms, both knees and the tips of the big toes on the ground — and, once still, say:
بِسْمِ اللّٰهِ وَبِاللّٰهِ، اَلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكَ اَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ وَرَحْمَةُ اللّٰهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهٗ
Bismillāhi wa billāh, as-salāmu ʿalayka ayyuhan-Nabiyyu wa raḥmatullāhi wa barakātuh.
In the name of Allah and by Allah. Peace be upon you, O Prophet, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
This dhikr is the one most commonly recited and is sufficient according to all the maraji‘. Another narrated form is بِسْمِ اللّٰهِ وَبِاللّٰهِ، اَللّٰهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلٰى مُحَمَّدٍ وَّاٰلِ مُحَمَّدٍ — “In the name of Allah and by Allah; O Allah, bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad.” Either one may be said; do not mix the two into one.
Step 3 — Sit up
[ Image placeholder — sitting upright and still between the two sajdahs of Sajdah al-Sahw ]
Raise your head and sit upright and still, exactly as between the two sajdahs of the prayer. No dhikr is required here.
Step 4 — The second sajdah
Go into the second sajdah in the same way and say the same dhikr:
بِسْمِ اللّٰهِ وَبِاللّٰهِ، اَلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكَ اَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ وَرَحْمَةُ اللّٰهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهٗ
Step 5 — Tashahhud
[ Image placeholder — seated in tawarruk reciting the tashahhud after the two sajdahs ]
Sit up and recite the tashahhud in full, as in the prayer:
اَشْهَدُ اَنْ لَّاۤ اِلٰهَ اِلَّا اللّٰهُ وَحْدَهٗ لَا شَرِيْكَ لَهٗ
وَاَشْهَدُ اَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهٗ وَرَسُوْلُهٗ
اَللّٰهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلٰى مُحَمَّدٍ وَّاٰلِ مُحَمَّدٍ
Ash-hadu an lā ilāha illallāhu waḥdahū lā sharīka lah, wa ash-hadu anna Muḥammadan ʿabduhū wa rasūluh. Allāhumma ṣalli ʿalā Muḥammadin wa āli Muḥammad.
Step 6 — Salam
Then say the salam:
اَلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللّٰهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهٗ
As-salāmu ʿalaykum wa raḥmatullāhi wa barakātuh.
Peace be upon you all, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
Sajdah al-Sahw is complete. There is no recitation, no ruku‘ and no qunut in it — only two sajdahs with their dhikr, the tashahhud and the salam.
Making Up a Forgotten Sajdah or Tashahhud (Qada)
When the cause was a forgotten sajdah or tashahhud, the forgotten part is made up first, right after the salam, and the Sajdah al-Sahw follows it:
Qada of a sajdah: after the salam, with the intention of the qada of the forgotten sajdah, perform one sajdah with its dhikr سُبْحَانَ رَبِّيَ الْاَعْلٰى وَبِحَمْدِهٖ, sit up, then perform Sajdah al-Sahw as above.
Qada of the tashahhud: after the salam, with the intention of the qada of the forgotten tashahhud, recite the tashahhud in full while seated, then perform Sajdah al-Sahw as above.
All the conditions of the prayer — wudu, qibla, covering, stillness — apply to these qada parts. If Salat al-Ihtiyat is also due for a doubt, perform it first, then the qada of the forgotten part, then Sajdah al-Sahw.
Further Rulings
One pair for each cause. If two different causes occur in one prayer — for example you spoke inadvertently and also forgot a sajdah — perform two separate Sajdah al-Sahw. Several words spoken in one stretch count as one cause; speaking, stopping, and speaking again by mistake counts as two.
If you forget to perform it. Perform it as soon as you remember, even much later; the prayer remains valid. It is not permitted to delay it deliberately after the salam.
If you did something invalidating before performing it. If you spoke or turned from the qibla after the salam before remembering, still perform the Sajdah al-Sahw; there is no need to repeat the prayer.
Doubt about whether it became obligatory. If you doubt whether a cause actually occurred, it is not obligatory. If you are sure a cause occurred but doubt whether you performed the Sajdah al-Sahw, perform it.
Doubt within the Sajdah al-Sahw itself. If you doubt whether you performed one sajdah or two, assume one and perform the second. If you doubt whether you have performed two or three, assume two.
It does not break the prayer’s connection. Because it is performed after the salam, nothing done in it can invalidate the prayer that has just ended.
In congregation. If the follower (ma’mum) alone commits a cause, only he performs it. If the imam commits a cause and the follower did not, only the imam performs it; the follower need not. Where the maraji‘ differ on a follower joining the imam’s Sajdah al-Sahw, follow your own marja‘.
Quick Reference
Spoke by mistake → Sajdah al-Sahw.
Forgot one sajdah → qada of the sajdah, then Sajdah al-Sahw.
Forgot the tashahhud → qada of the tashahhud (precaution), then Sajdah al-Sahw.
Salam in the wrong place → complete the prayer, then Sajdah al-Sahw.
Doubt “four or five?” after the second sajdah → treat as four, then Sajdah al-Sahw.
Stood instead of sitting, or sat instead of standing → Sajdah al-Sahw (obligatory precaution).
Missed a pillar (ruku‘, both sajdahs, takbirat al-ihram) → the prayer is invalid; repeat it.
Doubt “three or four?” and similar → build on the higher number, then Salat al-Ihtiyat.
The rulings on this page follow the widely accepted verdicts of the maraji‘ of the Ja‘fari school (Tawdih al-Masa’il, chapter on Sajdah al-Sahw). Where your own marja‘ taqlid differs on a detail — for instance on the qada of the tashahhud or on the sixth case — act on his ruling.
اَللّٰهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلٰى مُحَمَّدٍ وَّاٰلِ مُحَمَّدٍ