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Is there a sect-neutral tashahhud?

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1 answer
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Re-reading the answer to my question https://islam.stackexchange.com/q/32644/17163 , I encounter the importance of tashahhud . I'm embarrassed to admit it, but I haven't been doing tashahhud. After five months, I think it's no longer reasonable for me to use the excuse "...but I'm a new Muslim". While other aspects of my prayer seem fine (comparable to the other women at mosque), there's two obstacles: 1. I'm brand new to Arabic. 2. I don't belong to a sect ("...just a Muslim"), and I don't intend to (as per Qur'an 6:159 ; and I perceive them mostly as an obstruction to submitting to Allah). The Wikipedia page lists five different ones according to various sects [(a) Hanafi and Hanbali, (b) Maliki, (c) Shafii, (d) Ja'fari, and (e) Zaidi]. Basically, I want to avoid choosing one over the others. The attitude expressed in the question https://islam.stackexchange.com/q/10677/17163 also gives me the impression I should avoid "choosing a side". If I were to put my mind to it, I could memorize the Arabic (I can recite al Fatihah after all; and it seems I need to recite it in each rakaa, so at least 2+4+4+3+4=17 times per day, so I'd get used to it quickly). However, it seems different sects recite different tashahhud (though fairly similar in content) and I'm reluctant to single out one. **Question**: Is there a sect-neutral tashahhud? For example, could I just say the shahada instead? Or is there a version that the Prophet Muhammad is known to say?
Asked by Rebecca J. Stones (20998 rep)
Nov 4, 2016, 09:22 AM
Last activity: Aug 15, 2020, 09:02 AM