Sujood as-Sahw: What to Do When You Make a Mistake in Prayer

Lost count mid-salah? Prayed an extra rakah without realizing? There's a simple, built-in fix for exactly this — two extra prostrations, not a restart.

What Is Sujood as-Sahw?

Sujood as-Sahw — the "prostration of forgetfulness" — is two extra prostrations performed to correct an unintentional mistake made during salah. It exists precisely because forgetting a detail mid-prayer is common and human, and Islam built in a straightforward fix rather than requiring the entire prayer to be repeated every time concentration slips.

It applies to unintentional errors only — an accidentally skipped part, an extra movement added without realizing, or genuine uncertainty about the count. It isn't a substitute for care in prayer, but it is a real, sufficient correction when a slip happens.

Which Scenario Am I In?

Almost every situation people search for falls into one of three categories. Figuring out which one you're in tells you what to do next.

• You left something out — skipped a required part, like a tashahhud sitting.
• You added something extra — an extra rakah, an extra ruku or sujood, or a movement that shouldn't have been there.
• You're not sure — you genuinely don't know if you prayed 3 or 4 rakahs, for example.

Scenario 1: You Left Something Out

If you realize partway through, or right after, that you skipped something required — most commonly the first tashahhud sitting after the second rakah — continue the prayer as normal and perform Sujood as-Sahw before the final salam, once you reach the end of the prayer.

Scenario 2: You Added Something Extra

If you realize you've added an extra rakah, an extra ruku, or an extra sujood that shouldn't have been there, the general approach is: once you become aware of the mistake, stop adding to it, complete the prayer, give the final salam as normal, and then perform Sujood as-Sahw after the salam.

Scenario 3: You're Not Sure of the Count

This is the most common real-world case — standing mid-prayer thinking "was that the third rakah or the fourth?" The general guidance: act on whichever number you're more confident about (or the lower number, if you're genuinely unsure which is more likely), complete the prayer based on that, and perform Sujood as-Sahw before the salam to cover the uncertainty.

The key principle across all three scenarios: don't restart the prayer from scratch, and don't let the uncertainty spiral into anxious re-checking. Make your best reasonable judgment, correct with the two prostrations, and move on.

How to Actually Perform Sujood as-Sahw

1. At the appropriate point (before or after salam, per the scenario above), say "Allahu Akbar" and go into prostration, just as in a normal sujood during salah.

2. While prostrating, recite the same tasbih used in regular sujood: "Subhana Rabbiyal A'la" (Glory be to my Lord, the Most High), typically three times.

3. Rise to a brief sitting position, as you would between two normal prostrations.

4. Go into a second prostration, repeating the same tasbih.

5. Rise, and if this was done before the salam, complete the prayer with tashahhud and salam as normal. If it was done after the salam, the prayer is now complete.

Frequently Asked Questions

Losing count or missing a step mid-prayer isn't a crisis — it's common enough that a specific, simple fix exists for it. Two extra prostrations, and the prayer is complete.

Written by Yunus Khan

Founder of SabrTime — Building free Islamic digital tools that help Muslims strengthen their worship through technology.

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