Forgotten to sit for Tashahhud

If one forgets the first tashahhud

What should one do if one forgets the first tashahhud (sitting after the second rak’ah?

If one forgets the first tashahhud, stands up for the third rak‘at and recites Al-Fatihah, then according to the majority of scholars, he should not return back to the sitting position. If he does return knowing that his return is not permissible, his prayer will be nullified because he has already started another obligatory act.

The first tashahhud is obligatory part of Solāt [Hanbalis and Hanafis: Obligatory (Wajib); whilst Shafi'es : Sunnah Ab'adh (almost equivalent to wajib). Due to his missing (forgotten) the wajib (or sunnah ab'adh) part of solāt he is has to make the prostrations of forgetfulness (Sujud al-Sahwi).

The evidence is the hadith narrated by Al-Mughirah bin Shu‘bah that the Prophet (sallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said:

If the Imām [mistakenly] stands up after the second rak‘ah, and realized that he has to sit, [just] before he straightens himself (upright), then he should sit down; and if he straightened upright, he should not sit and [to] make two prostrations of forgetfulness.

[Abu Dawud, No. 1036; Silsilah Al-Sahihah, 321]

In short, if someone stands up for the third rak‘at, forgetting the tashahhud, he is in one of the three situations:

• He remembers it before standing up straight: then he should return to tashahhud.
• He remembers after standing up straight, and before starting the recitation of Al-Fātihah: then it is better for him not to sit, but if he sits his prayer will be correct.
• He remembers it after starting the recitation of Al-Fātihah: then he is not allowed to return to tashahhud. [He is has to make the prostrations of forgetfulness at the end of the Solāt].

These three cases have been deduced from the above Hadith.

[Al-Mughni 1/677; ‘What Should You Do in the Following Situations?’]

[Excerpted with minor modification from Fatwa No: 50 Islam QA]