Short answer
Yes. In the Hanafi school stillness (tuma'ninah) in ruku and sajdah, for at least the time of one "SubhanAllah", is wajib, and so is standing straight after ruku and sitting up between the two sajdahs. Rushing through them without stillness by mistake needs sajdah sahw; doing it deliberately means repeating the prayer. The other three schools make stillness a pillar.
According to Abu Hanifa and Muhammad, the relied-upon view, tuma'ninah in ruku and sajdah is wajib, and the later Hanafi scholars also made standing straight after ruku (qawmah) and sitting between the sajdahs (jalsah) wajib. Abu Yusuf held it to be fard. A prayer done hastily without it is deficient and must be repeated.
Other madhhabs
- Shafi'i
- Stillness in ruku, rising, sajdah and sitting between the sajdahs is a pillar; without it the prayer is invalid.
- Maliki
- Stillness is obligatory in the relied-upon view, and its absence invalidates the prayer.
- Hanbali
- Stillness is a pillar in every position; without it the prayer is invalid.
Explanation
A man prayed in the masjid and then greeted the Prophet ﷺ, who told him: go back and pray, for you have not prayed. This happened three times. Then the Prophet ﷺ taught him: say the takbir, recite what is easy for you, bow until you are still in ruku, rise until you stand straight, prostrate until you are still in sajdah, then sit until you are still. The schools agree from this that stillness is required. They differ only on its level.
What stillness means: every joint settles in the position before you move on. The minimum is the time it takes to say "SubhanAllah" once; the sunnah is to say the tasbih three times calmly.
- Ruku: back straight, hands on knees, settle before rising.
- Standing after ruku (qawmah): stand fully upright and settle; do not drop into sajdah halfway up.
- Sajdah: settle with forehead and nose on the ground.
- Between the two sajdahs (jalsah): sit up straight and settle; do not just lift your head and go back down.
Why it matters: "pecking" prayers are one of the most common mistakes, especially in fast congregations or when people are in a hurry. Another hadith calls the person who does not complete his ruku and sajdah the worst of thieves, stealing from his own prayer. The Hanafi school calls for repeating such a prayer within its time. For prayers prayed like this in the past whose time has gone, repeating them is recommended rather than required; ask a scholar about your own case rather than worrying. See the wajib acts of salah and how to pray.
The evidence
Quran, Surah An-Nisaa 4:142
إِنَّ ٱلْمُنَٰفِقِينَ يُخَٰدِعُونَ ٱللَّهَ وَهُوَ خَٰدِعُهُمْ وَإِذَا قَامُوٓا۟ إِلَى ٱلصَّلَوٰةِ قَامُوا۟ كُسَالَىٰ يُرَآءُونَ ٱلنَّاسَ وَلَا يَذْكُرُونَ ٱللَّهَ إِلَّا قَلِيلًۭا ﴿١٤٢﴾
Indeed, the hypocrites [think to] deceive Allah, but He is deceiving them. And when they stand for prayer, they stand lazily, showing [themselves to] the people and not remembering Allah except a little,
Careless, hasty prayer is a trait the Quran condemns.
Sahih al-Bukhari 757
Sahih... ارجع فصل فإنك لم تصل ...
"Go back and pray, for you have not prayed."
A prayer without stillness was not accepted as complete.
Sahih al-Bukhari 793
Sahih... ثم اركع حتى تطمئن راكعا ...
"Then bow until you are still in ruku, then rise until you stand straight."
Stillness in each position is commanded.
Where the ruling is recorded
- al-Hidaya, Kitab al-Salah, chapter on the description of the prayer. Tuma'ninah in ruku and sajdah is wajib according to Abu Hanifa and Muhammad, fard according to Abu Yusuf.
- Radd al-Muhtar (Ibn Abidin), Kitab al-Salah, chapter on the wajibs of the prayer. Stillness in the qawmah and jalsah is wajib in the preferred view.
Checked by our team. For a more accurate answer to your own situation, consult a scholar. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.