These are acts which are undesirable, and are below the dignity of the Prayer. Prayer should always be offered with a consciousness that one is standing before one’s Lord. The Makruhat are:
To fiddle with one’s clothing.
To glance sideways or to the sky.
To keep the eyes closed.
To offer Prayer without any head dress.
Not to place one’s feet with toes towards the Qiblah during Prostration or to lift the feet from the ground in this position.
To start Prayer when one is hungry whilst food is laid on the table.
To continue the Prayer in spite of an urge to go to the toilet.
To pray in a cemetery while facing a grave.
To offer Prayer in very tight clothes so that one feels uncomfortable during the Prayer.
To pray in an unsuitable environment, e.g., in a stable, goat’s pen or in a noisy market place.
To stand with one’s weight shifted on to one leg alone or to do things which are below the dignity of the Prayer.
To pray in an open place without a Sutra. A Sutra is an object placed before the worshipper to mark the boundary of his Prayer.
To nod when someone says Assalamu ‘Alaikum during the Prayer.
To pray without washing one’s mouth after eating.
To change the order of Surahs in the Prayer, i.e. to recite Surahs which come later in the Quran in the first Rak‘at and the Surahs which appear earlier in the Holy Quran, in the following Rak‘at.
To place hands under the forehead while in prostration.
To rest one’s belly on things during prostration.
To spread one’s forearms on the ground while performing Sajdah.
To recite Quranic verses during Ruku‘ or Sajdah.
To go ahead of the Imam, i.e. to go into the next posture before the Imam.
Note 1: A worshipper is allowed to remove or kill any harmful insect in case he finds it close to where he is praying.
Note 2: The place of worship should be neat and clean and the air, as far as possible, should be free of any unpleasant odour. Every Muslim is enjoined to respect the dignity of the Prayer even if he is not praying himself. No one should in any way, e.g. by words of mouth or by his action, cause any worshipper discomfort or distraction. That is why it is not allowed to cross the path of a worshipper. This means that one should wait until the worshipper finishes his Prayer.