Sujud
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The Sajdah (Arabic: ُسجده) or sujud (Arabic: سُجود) is an Arabic word given to mean a prostration to God in the direction of the Ka'aba at Makkah which is usually done during the daily prayers (Salah). While in sujud, a Muslim is to praise Allah and glorify him. The position involves having the forehead, nose, hands, knees and toes all touching the sajada (prayer mat) or floor.
Sujud is an Arabic word and is the plural of Sajjada. Muslims do sajjda in each prayer many times depending upon the rakah of prayer. Rakah can be described as a unit of set actions that have to be performed in a prayer. A shortest (obligatory) Muslim prayer consists of two rakahs. Rakah can be described as follows.
1. Standing with hands on top of each other at chest level 2. bowing down with hands resting on knees 3. standing up from bowing with hands by the side 4. going in prostration (sajjda) once 5. lifting face up from prostration but sitting on the ground 6. doing a second prostration (Sajjda) and then getting up for the second/third/fourth rakah
points 1-6 define one rakah. So the shortest muslim prayer (2 Rakah)has a total of 4 sujud.
Sujud are one of the main pillars of Salah. If a person misses a sujud by forgetting or some other reason, he will need to make up his Prayer again.
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[edit] Other types of Sujud
1. Sajda of thankfulness: This is from the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad that whenever he used to hear news which would make him happy, he would make sujud for thanking Allah.
2. Sajda of recitation: During the recitation of the Koran there are fourteen places where when the prophet recited that ayat (verse) he prostrated to Allah. So whenever the muslims recite ayat (verses) from any of those ayat, muslims also prostrate following the sunnah (example) of the Islamic prophet Muhammed.
3. Sajda of forgetfulness: During the prayer if a person forgets to do one of the actions of prayer he can make up for certain actions by performing two sujud at the end of the prayer. This can only be done if specific types of actions are forgotten by the person praying.
[edit] Rule of Direction of the Sujud
Sujud is only made to Allah alone and none other. In prayer, Muslims face the Holy Kabba in Makkah, Saudi Arabia, but make their Sujud to Allah not the Kabba. Kabba is only a united direction that Muslims face as it is the order of Allah in Koran. If any person claiming to be Muslim makes a sujud to any thing/deity/person other than Allah, he is considered a disbeliever.
[edit] Sayings during Sujud
There are numerous things that a Muslim can say during Sujud as is evident from the example of the Prophet Muhammad. Among them are duas (prayers), Hamd (praising of Allah), Tasbeeh (glorfying Allah) and statements of Muhammed which make a person humble. Muslims are not allowed to recite the Koran during sujud.
