Ya ayyuha allatheena amanoo irkaAAoo wasjudoo waAAbudoo rabbakum wafAAaloo alkhayra laAAallakum tuflihoon (surah Hajj: 77)

Tafseer Tafheem-ul-Quran by Syed Abu-al-A'la Maududi

(22:77) O people, who have believed, bow down and prostrate yourselves before Allah, worship your Lord and do righteous deeds: it may be that you attain true success. *127

Yaaa ayyuhal lazeena aamanur ka`oo wasjudoo wa`budoo Rabbakum waf`alul khaira la`allakum tuflihoon

*127) This is the right way of attaining we success, but even after adopting these ways of worship and performing good deeds one should not rest content or be proud that he would surely attain success because he is worshipping Allah and is doing good deeds. He should only expect that Allah will by His grace accept his services and bless him with we success.
Imam Shafi`i, Ahmad bin Hanbal, `Abdullah bin Mubarak and Ishaq bin Rahawayah hold the view that this verse of Surah Al-Hajj requires a `prostration'. But Imam 'Abu Hanifah, Imam Malik, Hasan Basri, Said bin al-Musayyab, Said bin Jubair, Ibrahim Nakha`i and Sufyan Thauri dispute this. The arguments of the two sides are briefly as follows:
The former group of commentators base their opinion on the following:
(1) The verb in the verse is in the imperative mood.
(2) The Tradition of `Uqbah bin `Amir, which has been reported by Imam Ahmad, Abu Dawud, Tirmizi, Ibn Marduyah and Baihaqi, says, "I asked, `O Messenger of Allah ! Dces the merit of Surah Al-Hajj consist in the fact that it contains two verses requiring prostration?' He replied, `Yes, the one who does not prostrate on these two verses, should not recite them.' "
(3) The Tradition of Abu Dawud and Ibn Majah in which `Amr bin `As says that he was told by the Holy Prophet that there were two verses requiring prostration in Surah Al-Hajj.
(4) Sayings of Hadrat `Umar, `Ali, `Uthman, Ibn `Umar, Ibn `Abbas, Abul Darda, Abu MUsa Ash`ari and `Ammar bin Yasir to the effect that Surah AIHajj contains two prostrations.'
The latter group of commentators argue as follows;
The verse contains a command both for Sajdah (prostration) and for Ruku' (bowing in prayer), which implies the whole Islamic Prayer according to the Qur'anic usage, and not `prostration' alone.
(2) The tradition reported by 'Uqbah bin `Amir is unauthentic as it has weak links.
(3) The Tradition of 'Amr bin `As is also unreliable, because its reporters are not well known.
(4) As for the sayings of the Companions, Ibn 'Abbas has clearly explained that prostration in respect of the first verse (in Surah AI-Hajj) is obligatory, whereas in regard to the second, it is only suggestive.