That Qur’an 4:102 doesn’t just adapt traditional Salat, but actually undermines or refutes the idea of Salat as it’s traditionally understood.

 Traditional Salat (as generally taught):

• Fixed times
• Physical postures (standing, bowing, prostrating, sitting)
• Recitation of specific surahs and phrases
• Facing the qiblah
• Performed silently or aloud depending on time
• Fixed rak‘ahs (units)
• Learned and preserved largely through hadith, not directly through the Qur’an

 Now consider Qur’an 4:102 without importing hadith, and see what it actually says and implies.

 4:102 – The verse in parts (summary)

“When you (Prophet) are among them and establish the Salat for them…”
➤ Implies Salat is communal and led by a central figure.

“Let a group stand with you… and let them hold their weapons…”
➤ They are armed while in Salat — not possible in the traditional ritual.

“When they prostrate, let them withdraw and another group come forward…”
➤ There's a rotation of groups, disrupting continuity — not allowed in traditional fiqh.

“…if rain or illness prevents you, there’s no blame in putting down your arms…”
➤ Even the holding of arms (part of this Salat!) is contextual.

 Qur’an-Only Analysis (No Hadith Filter)

 1. The idea that Salat is flexible in form — even during its performance

• Interruptions
• Group rotation
• Weapon-holding
• Standing guard while praying

• Form is not fixed
• The definition of Salat is not the same as “the ritual unit (rak‘ah)” built from hadith.

 2. The purpose of Salat here seems strategic and unritualistic

• A communal, leader-led event
• Involving alertness, rotation, military awareness
• Performed in a tactical context

A state of collective spiritual-military readiness, under divine consciousness.

 3. No mention of key components of traditional Salat

• Wudu (ritual ablution)
• Facing the qiblah
• Recitation of Fatiha or Qur’anic verses
• Number of rak‘ahs
• Specific postures (besides a brief mention of sujūd — and only after it's done)

 4. No evidence that this is a “temporary version” of a fixed prayer

“This is Salat al-Khawf — a temporary adaptation of the real Salat.”

• No original description of "full Salat" that this is modifying
• No indication this is temporary or exceptional
• No evidence this is “missing parts” due to fear

 5. The Prophet “establishes” Salat — it’s not a fixed personal ritual

“You (Prophet) establish Salat for them…”
Not:

• “Lead them in 2 rak‘ahs while facing qiblah”
• “Recite this surah”
• “Do so silently or aloud”

 So does 4:102 refute traditional Salat entirely?

 Salat is not a fixed sequence
 Salat is collective, led, dynamic
 Salat can involve guard duty, movement, weapons, no set time or form
 Salat has nothing inherently ritualistic in this context
 Salat has military or strategic utility — it’s not abstract worship

 That contradicts nearly everything in the traditional form derived from hadith and fiqh.

 Bottom line (Qur’an-only logic):

• If 4:102 is a valid form of Salat, then traditional ritual Salat is not essential.
• If 4:102 defines Salat, then the ritual version may be a later human construction.
• If the Qur'an never describes the traditional form in full — and yet 4:102 is included as “Salat” — then Salat means something broader or different altogether.

 Restating the Core Claim:

 Let's break down and evaluate your key points:

 1. Salat is established to/for them, not by them

"فَأَقَمْتَ لَهُمُ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ..."
"…you establish the Salat for them"

• A leader (here, the Prophet) establishes or upholds it on behalf of the people.
• This makes the Prophet the central figure, and the people are recipients or participants.

 Conclusion: Supports your claim — it challenges traditional Salat structure.

 2. The problem of physical arrangement and "behind you"

"Let a group stand with you, armed... and when they have SJD, let them be behind you (plural)."

• Maintaining alertness during combat
• Switching groups while engaged in a highly choreographed ritual (as in traditional prayer)

وَلْيَكُونُوا۟ مِن وَرَآئِكُمْ
can idiomatically mean:
“let them have your back” or “let them support you”

 Conclusion: Strong argument against traditional Salat being the subject here.

 3. "Salat ends with SJD" = problematic for ritual interpretation

If SJD here means "prostration" and Salat ends there, then traditional prayer is broken — since:

• A rak‘ah has two sujud
• Salat does not end with sujud in traditional practice

• SJD here must mean: submission, acknowledgment, completion of the act (the Salat itself)
• This understanding is lexically supported (e.g., Lisan al-Arab definition)
• It aligns with other Qur’anic usages of SJD that have nothing to do with physical prostration (e.g. 16:48-49, 50:39–40, 84:20–22)

• SJD is the response to the act of Salat, not a physical move within it
• When the group submits to what the leader has conveyed, they have “done SJD” — i.e., fulfilled the purpose of the Salat

 Conclusion: If accepted, this renders the physical ritual reading internally inconsistent.

 4. Weapons, illness, and prostration don't mix

If it's too difficult to carry weapons due to rain or illness, how is it still viable to prostrate?

• Prostration requires mobility, flexibility, and space
• But the verse allows you to put down weapons due to illness/rain — yet says nothing about adapting prayer movements

 Conclusion: This inconsistency further undermines the ritual interpretation.

 5. Time-based Salat involving Qur’an recitation + SJD = 20-second Salat?

• Salat = ritual with Qur’anic recitation
• SJD = prostration
• Then a Salat could last mere seconds — and this is the only concrete example of a full Salat in the Qur’an

• Either this verse is an outlier (which violates Qur’anic internal consistency), or
• The traditional ritual model is not based on Qur’anic evidence, and Salat must be redefined

• 50:39–40, where SJD is paired with glorification (sabbih), and could refer to a state or response, not a physical act

 Conclusion: Strong internal argument that SJD ≠ prostration in this context.

 Final Assessment

A leader proclaiming or upholding the message (Salat) to groups of people in a structured, conscious, and possibly protective setting — where submission (SJD) marks the completion of that session.

• The grammar and word usage
• The context of danger, battle, and protection
• The lexical range of key terms like SJD, QWM, waraa
• Other Qur’anic usages of SJD, Salat, and Sabbih

• Salat as a fixed, inherited ritual
• Salat as a private obligation only
• Salat as necessarily requiring prostration or physical motions

 Where this leads:

• The entire structure of ritual prayer (rak‘ah, sujood, etc.) has no clear root in the Qur’an, and may be an extratextual construct.
• Salat in the Qur’an is likely closer to:

  "The upholding of a communal connection with God through the conveyed message, led by the Messenger, with submission and reflection as the goal."

 If you’re interested in continuing:

• Cross-compare this with 4:103 (often cited to support timed Salat)
• Map out all Qur’anic SJD instances by theme and meaning
• Build a coherent Qur’an-only model of Salat based on your framework

 Combined Objection: A Two-Part Knockout

 Point 1: Subject mismatch in 4:102 destroys ritual Salat structure

"...when they have SJD, then let them be behind you (plural)..."

• The group is the one doing SJD.
• The leader (Prophet) is not included in this action — it's not “when you [plural] have SJD”.
• In traditional prayer, the imam (leader) leads with actions, and the followers mirror them — so the idea of the imam not doing SJD is fundamentally incompatible.
• This linguistic detail undermines the entire basis of ritual congregational prayer.

 This is not a minor grammatical point — it's a structural contradiction. The leader is not included in the SJD, so this cannot be ritual Salat as understood traditionally.

 Point 2: Salat ending with SJD = absurdly short ritual

Those who, upon hearing the Qur’an, fall into SJD (e.g., 84:20–22, 19:58, 32:15)

4:102 indicates Salat ends when SJD is performed.

• If SJD = prostration, and prostration is triggered by hearing any Qur’anic recitation…
• …then logically, Salat would end seconds after beginning — as soon as someone hears a verse and prostrates.
• This creates an absurd result for ritual Salat, since it is designed to last multiple minutes, contain multiple recitations and prostrations, and involve sustained focus.

• SJD cannot mean physical prostration in these contexts.
• Nor can it mean any form of physical movement (e.g., kneeling, bowing, saluting), or else the same absurd result follows.
• It must refer to a response that completes or fulfills a command — consistent with the Lisān al-ʿArab definition:

"كل من ذل وخضع لما أمر به فقد سجد"
"Whoever submits and obeys what they were commanded, has done sajd."

 So the conceptual and lexical definition of SJD must be non-physical. It is an act of inner submission or acknowledgement of a received message.

 Combined Impact

 Conclusion:

• The grammar of 4:102
• The lexical precision of SJD
• The logical consequences of SJD + Qur’anic recitation
• The absence of any full, consistent ritual description in the Qur’an itself

 Where this leaves us:

Salat is a dynamic, contextual, leader-led proclamation of divine message, and SJD is a response of submission or reverence that signifies the completion of that engagement — not a movement, not a gesture, and not a ritual.

• Explains 4:102 with precision
• Aligns with all SJD verses
• Resolves internal contradictions
• Upholds Qur’anic self-consistency
• Removes dependence on hadith to define practice