1171 — Al-Hasan ibn Muhammad al-Za'farani narrated to us, 'Affan narrated to us, Hammad narrated to us, Thabit informed us, on the authority of Anas, that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, used to pray for rain like this — meaning he extended his hands and turned their palms toward the ground, until I saw the whiteness of his armpits.(1)

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It was also recorded by al-Bukhari (1030) as a suspended commentary, via the chain of Yahya ibn Sa'id al-Ansari and Sharik ibn Abi Namr, from Anas ibn Malik.

It was also recorded in similar form, both abbreviated and expanded, within the story of his prayer for rain, peace and blessings be upon him, on Friday while he was delivering the sermon, raising his hands in supplication without mention of prayer: al-Bukhari (933), (1029) as a suspended commentary, and (1033), and Muslim (897), and al-Nasa'i (1851) and (1852), via multiple chains from Anas ibn Malik.

It was also recorded with mention of the supplication without mention of raising the hands therein and without mention of prayer: al-Bukhari (1015–1019), (1021), and (6093), and al-Nasa'i (1818) and (1836), via multiple chains from Anas.

It is also in the Musnad of Ahmad (12019), and Sahih Ibn Hibban (992) and (2863).

See what follows it, and what will come later under numbers (1174) and (1175).

And the statement of Anas that he, peace and blessings be upon him, did not raise his hands in any supplication except in the prayer for rain.

Al-Hafiz said: Its apparent meaning is a denial of raising [the hands] in every supplication other than the prayer for rain, and this is contradicted by the established hadiths about raising [the hands] in other than the prayer for rain, which have been mentioned as numerous. Al-Bukhari devoted a separate chapter to them in the Book of Supplications, 11/141, and cited therein several hadiths. Some scholars held that acting upon them is more appropriate, and interpreted the hadith of Anas as a denial of his own observation, which does not necessarily entail denial of what others observed.

Others held that the hadith of Anas should be interpreted by construing the denial as referring to a specific manner — namely, the exaggerated raising — as indicated by his statement: "until the whiteness of his armpits was seen." This is supported by the fact that most of the hadiths reported about raising the hands in supplication mean merely extending and spreading the hands during supplication, and it is as if he, in the prayer for rain, additionally raised them toward his face until they were level with it, and it was then that the whiteness of his armpits was seen.

(1) Its chain is sound. Thabit: he is Ibn Aslam al-Bunani, and Hammad: he is Ibn Salamah, and 'Affan: he is Ibn Muslim. =