How should the position of the hands and fingers be in sajdah? Should they be adjacent or separate, or does it not matter?

Dear Brother / Sister,

In sajdah (prostration), the hands are kept neither very far from or very close to the head and forehead. The head remains between the two hands and the thumbs are in front of the nostrils. The other fingers are adjacent and face the qiblah. That is the best position. However, keeping them in other positions does not invalidate prayer. 

SAJDAH IN PRAYER

The Prophet uttered takbir first and prostrated after that. As a matter of fact, the Prophet (pbuh) ordered a person who did not perform his prayer well to do like that as follows:  

"The prayer of nobody is completed unless he stands upright by saying 'Samiallahu liman hamidah' and then saying 'Allahu Akbar' and prostrates so that all of his joints become still." (Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud and Hakim) Hakim said it was "sahih (sound)" and Dhahabi agreed.  

"When the Prophet (pbuh) wanted to prostrate, he would utter takbir, move his arms away from his sides and remain in prostration until his joints became still. He would sometimes raise his hands while bending down for prostration." (Nasai, Daraqutni, Mukhallis, al-Fawaid, 1/2/2) He narrated it with a sound chain of narrators. The raising of hands was reported from ten Companions.

To prostrate on hands

The Prophet (pbuh) said,

"Hands definitely prostrate like the face prostrates. When one of you puts his face on the ground when he prostrates, he should put his hands on the ground too. When he lifts his face, he should lift his hands too." (Ibn Khuzayma, I/79; Ahmad b. Hanbal)

"The Prophet (pbuh) leaned on his hands in prostration and placed them on the ground. He put his fingers together and made his hands face the qiblah." (Bayhaqi, with a sound chain of narrators. Ibn Abi Shayba, I/82/2)

"When the Prophet (pbuh) was in prostration, he would keep his hands in alignment with his shoulders and sometimes with his ears. He would place his nose and forehead on the ground." (Abu Dawud, Hakim)

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