Abu Bakra Narrated :
We were with Allah’s Apostle Rasul Allah Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam when the sun eclipsed. Rasul Allah ﷺ stood up 
dragging his cloak till he entered the Mosque. He led us in a two-Rakat prayer till the sun (eclipse) had cleared. Then the Prophet Mohammed ﷺ said, “The sun and the moon do not eclipse because of someone’s death. So whenever you see these eclipses pray and invoke (Allah) till the eclipse is over.” (Volume 2, Book 18, Number 150)
Narrated by Abu Masud :
The Prophet said, “The sun and the moon do not eclipse because of the death of someone from the people but they are two signs amongst the signs of Allah. When you see them stand up and pray.” (Volume 2, Book 18, Number 151)
Narrated by Al-Mughira bin Shu’ba :
“The sun eclipsed in the life-time of Allah’s Apostle on the day when (his son) Ibrahim died. So the people said that the sun had eclipsed because of the death of Ibrahim. Allah’s Apostle said, “The sun and the moon do not eclipse because of the death or life (i.e. birth) of some-one. When you see the eclipse pray and invoke Allah.” (Volume 2, Book 18, Number 153)
Narrated by ‘Abdullah bin ‘Amr
“When the sun eclipsed in the life-time of Allah’s Apostle an announcement was made that a prayer was to be offered in congregation.” Volume 2, Book 18, Number 155
Narrated by ‘Aisha :
In the life-time of Allah’s Apostle Prophet Mohammed ﷺ the sun eclipsed, so he led the people in prayer, and stood up and performed a long Qiyam, then bowed for a long while. He stood up again and performed a long Qiyam but this time the period of standing was shorter than the first. He bowed again for a long time but shorter than the first one, then he prostrated and prolonged the prostration. He did the same in the second Raka as he did in the first and then finished the prayer; by then the sun (eclipse) had cleared. He delivered the Khutba (sermon) and after praising and glorifying Allah he said, “The sun and the moon are two signs against the signs of Allah; they do not eclipse on the death or life of anyone. So when you see the eclipse, remember Allah and say Takbir, pray and give Sadaqa.” The Prophet Mohammed ﷺ then said, “O followers of Muhammad! By Allah! There is none who has more ghaira (self-respect) than Allah as He has forbidden that His slaves, male or female commit adultery (illegal sexual intercourse). O followers of Muhammad! By Allah! If you knew that which I know you would laugh little and weep much. (Volume 2, Book 18, Number 154)
The prayers for a lunar eclipse and a solar eclipse is the same. It’s important to pray this in congregation, although praying alone is permissible too. The importance is because the Prophet (peace be upon him) instructed us to remember Allah and invoke Allah during this time, and this was also a time when the Prophet (peace be upon him) was afraid of what was to come.
SO HOW DO YOU PRAYER THE ECLIPSE PRAYER?
An Eclipse prayer is made up of two rakaats of prayer (two units of prayer). Basically there are two rukus (bowings) and two recitations from Qur’an in each unit of prayer (rakaat) – in normal prayer, there is only one bowing per unit of prayer.
- So you stand up for prayer as normal
- Recite Qur’an as you normally would
- Go into Rukoo (bow) and prolong the rukoo with duas
- Stand up and recite Qur’an again
- Go into Rukoo (bow) again and prolong the rukoo with duas but not as long as the first rukoo
- Stand up and then go into sujood (prostration) and prolong the sujood with duas
- Sit up straight
- Go into sujood again and prolong it (but not as long as the first sujood)
- You repeat the above steps for the second rakaat (second unit of prayer)
The prayer is described in the following hadiths:
Narrated `Aisha: In the lifetime of Allah’s Apostle (p.b.u.h) the sun eclipsed, so he led the people in prayer, and stood up and performed a long Qiyam, then bowed for a long while. He stood up again and performed a long Qiyam but this time the period of standing was shorter than the first. He bowed again for a long time but shorter than the first one, then he prostrated and prolonged the prostration. He did the same in the second rak`a as he did in the first and then finished the prayer; by then the sun (eclipse) had cleared. He delivered the Khutba (sermon) and after praising and glorifying Allah he said, “The sun and the moon are two signs against the signs of Allah; they do not eclipse on the death or life of anyone. So when you see the eclipse, remember Allah and say Takbir, pray and give Sadaqa.” The Prophet then said, “O followers of Muhammad! By Allah! There is none who has more ghaira (self- respect) than Allah as He has forbidden that His slaves, male or female commit adultery (illegal sexual intercourse). O followers of Muhammad! By Allah! If you knew that which I know you would laugh little and weep much. [Bukhari, 2.154]
Related Links:
Eclipse In Islam
If an eclipse is a natural phenomenon
Source : Sahih-bukhari.com
