The Syed as teaches us to perform the 7 takbeerahs (raising one’s hands to beside the ear and neck area, then saying Allah-u-akbar) because it is linked to the spiritual ascension of mankind towards the higher spiritual realms

There are narrations about this practise from the Ahlulbayt, where they report the Prophet Muhammad (pbuhahf) having performed these. Further, the Syed as explains that the Qur’an alludes to 10 spiritual stations which are all denoted by the takbeerahs performed during the obligatory salawaat (7 at the start, then 3 at the end).

Some narrations are reproduced here, using the below links…

سؤل أبا الحسن الرضا (عليه السلام) عن تكبيرات الافتتاح , فقال سبع , قلت : روي عن النبي (ص) انه كان يكبر واحدة فقال إن النبي (ص)

كان يكبر واحدة يجهر بها ويسر ستا

عيون اخبار الرضا للشيخ الصدوق ص 251

Abu Al Hasan Al Ridha (as) was asked about the opening takbeerahs and he said “Seven”.

I said, “It has been narrated from the Prophet (pbuhahf) that he would perform one takbeerah, and he said, “The Prophet (pbuhahf) would perform one takbeerah loudly and six quietly.”

(Uyoon Akhbar Al-Ridha by Shaykh Sadooq p. 251)

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One explanation from Syed Ahmed Al Hasan (as)

ج/ التكبيرات للإحرام في الصلاة هي سبعة في الحقيقة وليست واحدة وان كان الإحرام بواحدة جائز إذا أراد بها السبع تكبيرات المقارنة للسبع سماوات، وكل تكبيرة تتعلق بسماء فقول الله اكبر الأولى أي إن الله اكبر من السماء الدنيا والأولى بكل ما فيها من خير وشر وتفاصيل مهما عظمت فأنت إذا عرفت أن الأرض بكل سعتها هي كحبة رمل في صحراء بالنسبة للمجرة وان المجرة هي كحبة رمل بالنسبة للكون الجسماني وان السماء الدنيا هي حبة رمل في صحراء بالنسبة للسماء الثانية وهكذا حتى يصغر في عينك كل ما سوى الله ويكبر في نفسك الله سبحانه وتعالى شأنه فتعلم انه لا يوصف وتكبيره علي (ع) بحسب معرفته لله سبحانه وتعالى وهو اعظم خلق الله معرفة بالله بعد محمد (ص) وكلما زادت المعرفة بالله زاد شأن الذكر لله فعلي (ع) يعرف من يكبر ولو حمّل الخلق ما يعرف لما احتملوه وقد قال (ع) ما معناه( انطويت على مكنون علم لو بحت به لأظطربتم إظطراب الارشية في الطوى البعيدة ) والاضطراب أي الحركة الاهتزازية والأرشية هو الحبل الذي يعلق به الدلو الذي يخرج الماء والطوى البعيدة أي البئر العميق . فإذا القي الدلو في البئر العميق أضطرب الحبل المعلق به كأنه أفعى تسير

Answer: The takbeerahs for Ihram (beginning of salaat) are in reality 7 and not 1, even though it is allowed to perform 1 when one intends with that 1 for it to be 7. And every takbeerah is linked to a spiritual realm, so when one says “Allah is great” the first time, it means, Allah is greater than the first spiritual realm and the first one with everything within it of good and bad and its details, however great they may be, when you realise that the earth with all of its expanse, is like a grain of sand in a desert, in relation to the galaxy and the galaxy is like a grain of sand in relation to the physical universe and the Dunya Spiritual Realm is like a grain of sand in a desert with regards the Second Spiritual Realm and it continues like this until everything other than Allah appears small to you, and Allah (swt) appears big in your heart, then you know that He cannot be described and the takbeerah of Ali (as) with his understanding of Allah (swt) with him being the greatest of creation of Muhammad (pbuhahf). And every time the status of Allah’s ma’rifah increases, the status of the remembrance of Allah increases, so Ali (as) knew who he was performing takbeerah for, and had the creation been given the same understanding to endure, they would not have been able to endure it, and he said, the meaning of which is, “I contain hidden knowledge, which, had I disclosed it, you would have trembled like a rope in a deep well) – like when a bucket is thrown into a deep well the rope trembles, as if it were a writhing snake.

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Further explanation from the Syed as (excerpt)…

قال تعالى: ﴿فَصِيَامُ ثَلاثَةِ أَيَّامٍ فِي الْحَجِّ وَسَبْعَةٍ إِذَا رَجَعْتُمْ تِلْكَ عَشَرَةٌ كَامِلَةٌ ذَلِكَ لِمَن لَّمْ يَكُنْ أَهْلُهُ حَاضِرِي الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ﴾(1 ). درجات الإيمان أو مقامات الارتقاء عشرة ثلاث في بيت الله وسبعة في بيوتكم (السماوات السبعة).

الإنسان المفروض أنه يرتقي بصلاته من حاله وهو في الدنيا إلى الآخرة، فالصلاة معراج المؤمن كما قال صل الله عليه وعلى اله وسلم ( 2).

فهو أولاً يريد الارتقاء فيكبر سبعاً يرتقي بها السموات السبع، ثم المفروض أن تكون صلاته ارتقاء في المتبقي ليكون حاله: ﴿قَابَ قَوْسَيْنِ أَوْ أَدْنَى﴾( 3)، فهذه هي التكبيرات الثلاث التي في نهاية الصلاة، أي المفروض أنّ صلاته توصله إلى أعلى مقام، وهو ارتقاء المراتب الثلاث المتبقية بعد السماء السابعة الكلية، وهذه الثلاث كما بينتها سابقاً هي: الكرسي والعرش الأعظم وسرادق العرش الأعظم (4 ).

وكما ترى أنّ الثلاث في الحج وفي المسجد الحرام وفي بيت الله، في ختام الصلاة، أي إنها أقصى ما يصله العبد من الارتقاء بصلاته.

Allah most high said: (The Fast of 3 days in the Hajj and 7 when you return home – that is the complete 10, for those whose families are not present in the sacred mosque). The levels of faith or the stations of ascension are 10, 3 in the house of Allah and 7 in your homes (the 7 spiritual realms).

Mankind is supposed to ascend with his salaat from his state of being in the world, to the other realm, so the salaat is the ascension of the believer, as the Prophet (pbuhahf) had said.

So he firstly wants to ascend, so performs takbeerah 7 times, through which he ascends through the 7 spiritual realms, then his salaat is supposed to be an ascension through the remaining, so that his status becomes (Was the distance of 2 bows or even closer). These 3 takbeerahs that come at the end of the salaat, are supposed to make his salaat convey him to the highest station, which is the ascension through the remaining 3 levels after the complete 7th spiritual realm. And these 3 as I have previously explained are: The Chair, The Mightier Throne, The Canopy of the Mightier Throne.

And as you can see the 3 are in the Hajj, the Sacred House and the House of Allah, at the end of the salaat, meaning that they are the furthest level of ascension that the servant can reach because of his salaat.

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Links to relevant Questions and Answers are given below:

The Allegories vol 2 collections of questions

Narrations from Imam Redha confirming the Prophet would perform 1 takbeerah loudly and 6 quietly

Explanation of Qur’anic verses linking to the concept of ascension, as denoted by the 7 + 3 takbeerahs in the salaat