The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) prayed one day and said the salam after two rak'ahs, then he left. Dhul-Shimalain caught up with him and said: "O Messenger of Alah, has the prayer been shortened or did you forget?" He said: "The prayer has not been shortened, and I did not forget." He said: "Yes, by the One Who sent you with the truth." The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'Is Dhul-Yadain speaking the truth?" They said: 'Yes.' So he led the people in praying two rak'ahs.
The Book of Forgetfulness (In Prayer)
Sunan an-Nasa'i 1228
Hadith Text
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) prayed one day and said the salam after two rak'ahs, then he left. Dhul-Shimalain caught up with him and said: "O Messenger of Alah, has the prayer been shortened or did you forget?" He said: "The prayer has not been shortened, and I did not forget." He said: "Yes, by the One Who sent you with the truth." The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'Is Dhul-Yadain speaking the truth?" They said: 'Yes.' So he led the people in praying two rak'ahs.
Scholarly Commentary
This hadith establishes the legal principle of sahw (forgetfulness) in prayer. The Prophet's initial denial of forgetting demonstrates that such lapses can occur without conscious awareness. The companion's respectful questioning shows the permissibility of correcting an imam when certain of an error.
The Prophet's verification with the congregation before acting teaches us to consider community testimony in matters of worship. His completion of the missed rak'ahs illustrates the prescribed remedy for omitting part of the prayer unintentionally - to perform what was missed and then prostrate for forgetfulness.
The variation in the companion's name (Dhul-Shimalain/Dhul-Yadain) indicates these were descriptive titles referring to his physical characteristics, not contradictory reports. This incident forms the foundation for the detailed rulings on prostrations of forgetfulness in Islamic jurisprudence.