Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: When any one of you performs prostration, he should not sit like a camel sits, rather he should place his hands first and then his knees.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Verily, the hands also prostrate just as the face does, therefore when any one of you places his face for prostration, he should also place his hands, and when he lifts it, he should also lift them.

Sayyiduna Ibn Buhaina (may Allah be pleased with him) says: When the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) performed prostration, he would keep his arms so far from his sides that the whiteness of his armpits became visible.

The wording of the hadith narrated through (the second chain) is as follows: When the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, performed prayer, he would separate his arms from his sides to the extent that the whiteness of his armpits became visible.

Sayyiduna Abu Humayd Sa’idi (may Allah be pleased with him) describes the way the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) performed prayer: He said,“Then he bowed down for prostration saying ‘Allahu Akbar’, then he spread himself (in prostration), and kept his arms away from his sides and placed his toes (of the feet) bent towards the Qiblah. (Then he rose and) folded his (left) foot and sat upon it and became upright until every bone returned to its place, … .”

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Noble Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: Maintain moderation in prostrations, no person should spread his arms like a dog, complete the bowing and prostration, by Allah! When you bow and prostrate, I see you from behind my back.

Sayyiduna Jabir bin Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: When any one of you performs prostration, he should be moderate and should not spread his arms like a dog.

Shu’bah says: A man came to Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) and said: When your servant prostrates, he places his forehead, arms, and chest on the ground. He (Ibn Abbas) asked him: What makes you do this? He replied: I do it out of humility. Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: This is the posture of a dog. I saw the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that when he prostrated, the whiteness of his armpits would become visible.

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) says: I closely observed the prayer of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and I saw that he would lift his stomach away from the ground, and I also saw the whiteness of his armpits.

Sayyiduna Abu Sa'id Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) says: I saw the whiteness of the side of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) when he was in prostration.