Short answer
Yes, in the Hanafi school. The prostration of recitation (sajdah tilawah) is wajib on anyone who recites one of the 14 ayat of sajdah, and on anyone who hears it, whether or not they meant to listen. The Shafi'i, Maliki and Hanbali schools hold that it is a sunnah.
Sajdah tilawah is wajib (necessary, one level below fard) on the reciter and on the hearer, if they are people on whom salah is due. It is not due from a woman in her period or postnatal bleeding, or from a child. Leaving it without excuse is sinful, and one that becomes due outside salah stays owed until it is done.
Other madhhabs
- Shafi'i
- A strongly recommended sunnah for the reciter and the listener, not wajib. There are 14 places, counting two in Surah al-Hajj and none in Surah Sad, where the prostration is one of gratitude.
- Maliki
- A sunnah. The well-known Maliki view counts 11 places, leaving out the three in al-Najm, al-Inshiqaq and al-Alaq.
- Hanbali
- A sunnah, with 14 places as in the Shafi'i school.
Explanation
The Hanafi scholars base the wajib ruling on ayat that blame those who do not prostrate when the Quran is recited to them (84:21) and on ayat that command prostration. The Prophet ﷺ also said that when the son of Adam recites a sajdah and prostrates, Shaytan withdraws weeping. Ibn Umar reports that when he recited a surah with a sajdah he prostrated and the Companions prostrated with him, so crowded that some could not find room for their foreheads.
The other schools point to Zayd ibn Thabit, who recited Surah al-Najm to the Prophet ﷺ and he did not prostrate, and to a statement of Umar that it was not made obligatory. The Hanafis answer that a wajib act may be delayed, so not prostrating at that moment does not show it was optional.
The 14 places in the Hanafi count are in these surahs: al-A'raf, al-Ra'd, al-Nahl, al-Isra, Maryam, al-Hajj (the first one), al-Furqan, al-Naml, al-Sajdah, Sad, Fussilat, al-Najm, al-Inshiqaq and al-Alaq. Most printed mushafs mark each place in the margin.
It becomes due when you recite the ayah, or hear it. A woman in her period does not owe it, even if she hears it. For the method, delays and recordings, see how to do sajdah tilawat.
The evidence
Quran, Surah Al-Inshiqaaq 84:20-21
فَمَا لَهُمْ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ ﴿٢٠﴾ وَإِذَا قُرِئَ عَلَيْهِمُ ٱلْقُرْءَانُ لَا يَسْجُدُونَ ۩ ﴿٢١﴾
So what is [the matter] with them [that] they do not believe, And when the Qur'an is recited to them, they do not prostrate [to Allah]?
Blames those who do not prostrate at the recitation, which the Hanafis take as a sign of obligation.
Quran, Surah Maryam 19:58
أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَنْعَمَ ٱللَّهُ عَلَيْهِم مِّنَ ٱلنَّبِيِّۦنَ مِن ذُرِّيَّةِ ءَادَمَ وَمِمَّنْ حَمَلْنَا مَعَ نُوحٍۢ وَمِن ذُرِّيَّةِ إِبْرَٰهِيمَ وَإِسْرَٰٓءِيلَ وَمِمَّنْ هَدَيْنَا وَٱجْتَبَيْنَآ ۚ إِذَا تُتْلَىٰ عَلَيْهِمْ ءَايَٰتُ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ خَرُّوا۟ سُجَّدًۭا وَبُكِيًّۭا ۩ ﴿٥٨﴾
Those were the ones upon whom Allah bestowed favor from among the prophets of the descendants of Adam and of those We carried [in the ship] with Noah, and of the descendants of Abraham and Israel, and of those whom We guided and chose. When the verses of the Most Merciful were recited to them, they fell in prostration and weeping.
Praises the prophets who prostrated when Allah's ayat were recited.
Sahih Muslim 81
Sahih... إذا قرأ ابن آدم السجدة فسجد اعتزل الشيطان يبكي ...
"When the son of Adam recites a sajdah and prostrates, Shaytan withdraws weeping."
Shows the virtue of the prostration of recitation.
Sahih al-Bukhari 1075
Sahih... يقرأ علينا السورة فيها السجدة فيسجد ونسجد ...
"He would recite to us a surah containing a sajdah, and he would prostrate and we would prostrate."
The listeners prostrated with the reciter, which shows it is owed by the hearer too.
Sahih al-Bukhari 1073
Sahih... قرأت على النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم والنجم فلم يسجد فيها ...
"I recited al-Najm to the Prophet and he did not prostrate in it."
The main evidence of the schools that hold it is a sunnah.
Where the ruling is recorded
- al-Hidaya, Kitab al-Salah, chapter on the prostration of recitation. It is wajib on the reciter and the hearer, with the 14 places.
- Nur al-Idah with Maraqi al-Falah, Chapter on the prostration of recitation. Who owes it, and its places.
- al-Majmu' (Nawawi), Chapter on the prostration of recitation. The Shafi'i ruling that it is sunnah, and its places.
- al-Mughni (Ibn Qudama), Chapter on the prostration of recitation. The Hanbali ruling.
This answer is pending review by the scholars on our team. 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.