Assalaamu alaykum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh. I am Mohamed Hafees; I have some questions; please give me the answers. Can I do separate sujuds (prostrations) (meaning, outside of the prayer), and can I make supplications in separate sujuds? Is it from the Sunnah or not? If it is not from the Sunnah, then am I allowed to do that?

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.

Seeking to get closer to Allaah by prostrating outside the prayer for other than the sujood of the recitation of the Quran or for thanking Allaah for a blessing that he bestowed on a person is an act that is not permissible according to the view of the majority of scholars. However, some scholars considered it to be permissible if there is a reason that necessitates it; such as wishing to supplicate, for example. This is the view favored by Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah .

Therefore, if a person wants to do sujood and ask Allaah for a need, and he did sujood for this and supplicated Allaah, then this act is permissible according to the view of some scholars. However, as regards doing sujood without a reason, then this is not permissible and is not from the Sunnah, according to the view of the majority of scholars.

Therefore, such an act should be avoided as the best guidance is the guidance of the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.

Allaah knows best.