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English translation
1210. It was narrated that Abu Sa'eed Al-Khudri said: "The Messenger of Allāh ﷺ said: 'If anyone of you is uncertain about his prayer, let him put aside uncertainty and act upon that which is certain. When he has made sure that his prayer is complete, then let him prostrate twice. Then if his prayer was complete, that (extra) Rak'ah will be counted as voluntary, and if his prayer was lacking, that Rak'ah will complete his prayer, and the two prostrations will rub the Satan's nose in the dust.'"(Sahih)
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Commentary
a. If two sides look equally possible, in case of a doubt as to which one is
correct, then the right course would be to stick to what is on the lower side, as mentioned under Hadith 1209. This is because, if analyzed rationally, the element of doubt in such cases would be only in the greater number, not in the lesser one.
b. If, in spite of uncertainty in our mind as to the correctness or otherwise of our prayer, the prayer had in reality been completed, and still we had performed the prescribed 'prostration for forgetfulness', then we have certainly humiliated Satan. It is because Satan wanted to spoil our prayer and upset us, but thanks to our prostrations, Allāh blessed our prayer and accepted it, and thus defeated the designs of Satan. The Arabic idiomatic expression: 'rubbing someone's nose in the dust' means to discredit and humiliate him.
