Prayer (Kitab Al-Salat)

Narrated Abdullah Ibn Abbas:





The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) said: Gabriel
(peace_be_upon_him) led me in prayer at the House (i.e. the Ka'bah). He
prayed the noon prayer with me when the sun had passed the meridian to
the extent of the thong of a sandal; he prayed the afternoon prayer with
me when the shadow of everything was as long as itself; he prayed the
sunset prayer with me when one who is fasting breaks the fast; he prayed
the night prayer with me when the twilight had ended; and he prayed the
dawn prayer with me when food and drink become forbidden to one who is
keeping the fast.




On the following day he prayed the noon prayer with me when his shadow
was as long as himself; he prayed the afternoon prayer with me when his
shadow was twice as long as himself; he prayed the sunset prayer at the
time when one who is fasting breaks the fast; he prayed the night prayer
with me when about the third of the night had passed; and he prayed the
dawn prayer with me when there was a fair amount of light.




Then turning to me he said: Muhammad, this is the time observed by the
prophets before you, and the time is anywhere between two times.

Narrated Jabir ibn Abdullah:





I would offer my noon prayer with the Apostle of Allah
(peace_be_upon_him) and took a handful of gravels so that they might
become cold in my hand and I placed them (before me) so that I may put
my forehead on them at the time when I would prostrate. I did this due
to the intensity of heat.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Mas'ud:





The extent of the shadow when the Apostle of Allah prayed (the noon
prayer) was three to five feet in summer and five to seven feet in
winter.

Narrated Ali ibn Shayban:





We came upon the Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) in Medina. He
would postpone the afternoon prayer as long as the sun remained white
and clear.

Narrated AbuAyyub:





Marthad ibn Abdullah said: When AbuAyyub came upon us to fight the
infidels and in those days Uqbah ibn Amir was the Governor of Egypt, he
(Uqbah) delayed the sunset prayer. Hence AbuAyyub stood and said: What
kind of prayer is this, Uqbah? He said: We were busy. He said: Did you
not hear the Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) say: My community will
remain well, or he said: will remain on its natural condition, so long
as it would not delay the evening prayer until the stars shine brightly
just like a network.

Narrated An-Nu'man ibn Bashir:





I am the one who is best informed of the time of this prayer, i.e. the
night prayer. The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) used to offer it
at the hour when the moon went down on its third night.

Narrated Mu'adh ibn Jabal:





We waited for the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) to offer the night prayer.
He delayed until people thought that he would not come out and some of
us said that he had offered the prayer. At the moment when we were in
this condition the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) came out. People said to
him as they were already saying. He said: Observe this prayer when it is
dark, for by it you have been made superior to all the peoples, no
people having observed it before you.

Narrated AbuSa'id al-Khudri:





We observed the prayer after nightfall with the Apostle of Allah
(peace_be_upon_him), and he did not come out till about half the night
had passed. He then said: Take your places. We then took our places.
Then he said: The people have prayed and gone to bed, but you are still
engaged in prayer as long as you wait for the prayer. Were it not for
the weakness of the weak and for the sickness of the sick. I would
delay this prayer till half the night had gone.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Sunabihi:





AbuMuhammad fancies that witr prayer is essential. (Hearing this) Ubadah
ibn as-Samit said: AbuMuhammad was wrong. I bear witness that I heard
the Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) say: Allah, the Exalted, has
made five prayers obligatory. If anyone performs ablution for them well,
offers them at their (right) time, and observes perfectly their bowing
and submissiveness in them, it is the guarantee of Allah that He will
pardon him; if anyone does not do so, there is no guarantee for him on
the part of Allah; He may pardon him if He wills, and punish him if He
wills.

Narrated Umm Farwah:





The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) was asked: Which of the actions
is best? He replied: Observing prayer early in its period.




Al-Khuza'i narrated in his version from his aunt named Umm Farwah who
took the oath of allegiance to the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him): He was
questioned.

Narrated Umarah ibn Ruwaybah:





A man from Basrah said: Tell me what you heard from the Apostle of Allah
(peace_be_upon_him). He said: I heard the Apostle of Allah
(peace_be_upon_him) say: No one will enter Hell who has prayed before
the rising of the sun and before its setting (meaning the dawn and the
afternoon prayers). He said three times: Have you heard it from him? He
replied: Yes, each time saying: My ears heard it and my heart memorised
it. The man then said: And I heard him (the Prophet) say that.

Narrated Fudalah:





The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) taught me and what he taught me
is this: Observe the five prayers regularly. He said: I told (him): I
have many works at these times; so give me a comprehensive advice which,
if I follow, should be enough for me. He said: Observe the two
afternoon prayers (al-asrayn). But the term al-asrayn (two afternoon
prayers) was not used in our language. Hence I said: What is al-asrayn?
He said: A prayer before the sunrise and a prayer before the sunset
(i.e. the dawn and the afternoon prayers).

Narrated AbuQatadah ibn Rab'i:





Allah , the Exalted said: I made five times' prayers obligatory on your
people, and I took a guarantee that if anyone observes them regularly at
their times, I shall admit him to Paradise; if anyone does not offer
them regularly, there is no such guarantee of Mine for him.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Mas'ud:





Amr ibn Maymun al-Awdi said: Mu'adh ibn Jabal, the Messenger of the
Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) came to us in Yemen, I heard his
takbir (utterance of AllahuAkbar) in the dawn prayer. He was a man with
loud voice. I began to love him. I did depart from him until I buried
him dead in Syria (i.e. until his death).




Then I searched for a person who had deep understanding in religion
amongst the people after him. So I came to Ibn Mas'ud and remained in
his company until his death. He (Ibn Mas'ud) said: The Apostle of Allah
(peace_be_upon_him) said to me: How will you act when you are ruled by
rulers who say prayer beyond its proper time? I said: What do you
command me, Apostle of Allah, if I witness such a time? He replied:
Offer the prayer at its proper time and also say your prayer along with
them as a supererogatory prayer.

Narrated Ubadah ibn as-Samit:





After me you will come under rulers who will be detained from saying
prayer at its proper time by (their) works until its time has run out,
so offer prayer at its proper time. A man asked him: Apostle of Allah,
may I offer prayer with them? He replied: Yes, if you wish (to do so).




Sufyan (another narrator through a different chain)said: May I offer
prayer with them if I get it with them? He said: Yes, if you wish to do
so.

Narrated Qabisah ibn Waqqas:





The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) said: After me you will be
ruled by rulers who will delay the prayer and it will be to your credit
but to their discredit. So pray with them so long as they pray facing
the qiblah.

Narrated Amr ibn Umayyah ad-Damri:





We were in the company of the Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him)
during one of his journeys. He overslept abandoning the morning prayer
until the sun had arisen. The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) awoke
and said: Go away from this place.




He then commanded Bilal to call for prayer. He called for prayer. They
(the people) performed ablution and offered two rak'ahs of the morning
prayer (sunnah prayer). He then commanded Bilal (to utter the iqamah,
i.e. to summon the people to attend the prayer). He announced the prayer
(i.e. uttered the iqamah) and he led them in the morning prayer.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Mas'ud:





We proceeded with the Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) on the
occasion of al-Hudaybiyyah. The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him)
said: Who will keep watch for us? Bilal said: I (shall do). The
overslept till the sun arose. The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) awoke and
said: Do as you used to do (i.e. offer prayer as usual). Then we did
accordingly. He said: Anyone who oversleeps or forgets (prayer) should
do similarly.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Abbas:





I was not commanded to build high mosques. Ibn Abbas said: You will
certainly adorn them as the Jews and Christians did.

Narrated Anas ibn Malik:





The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: The Last Hour will not come until
people vie with one another about mosques.

Narrated Uthman ibn Abul'As:





The Prophet (nay peace be upon him) commanded him to build a mosque at
Ta'if where the idols were placed.

Narrated Aisha, Ummul Mu'minin:





The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) commanded us to build mosques
in different localities (i.e. in the locality of each tribe separately)
and that they should be kept clean and be perfumed.

Narrated Maymunah ibn Sa'd:





I said: Apostle of Allah, tell us the legal injunction about (visiting)
Bayt al-Muqaddas (the dome of the Rock at Jerusalem). The Apostle of
Allah (peace_be_upon_him) said: go and pray there. All the cities at
that time were effected by war. If you cannot visit it and pray there,
then send some oil to be used in the lamps.

Narrated Anas ibn Malik:





The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: The rewards of my people were
presented before me, so much so that even the reward for removing a mote
by a person from the mosque was presented to me. The sins of my people
were also presented before me. I did not find a sin greater than that of
a person forgetting the Qur'anic chapter or verse memorised by him.

Narrated Abdullah al-Muharibi:





The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) said: When a man stands with
the intention of saying prayer, or if any of you says prayer, he should
not spit before him, nor at his right side; but he should do so at his
left side, if there is a place for it; or he should spit under his left
foot and then rub it off.

Narrated Ubadah ibn as-Samit:





We came to Jabir ibn Abdullah who was sitting in his mosque. He said:
The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) came to us in this mosque and
he had a twig of date-palm of the kind of Ibn Tab. He looked and saw
phlegm on the wall towards qiblah. He turned to it and scraped it with
the twig.




He then said: Who of you likes that Allah turns His face from him? He
further said: When any of you stands for praying, Allah faces him. So he
should not spit before him, nor on his right side. He should spit on
his left side under his left foot. If he is in a hurry (i.e. forced to
spit immediately), he should do with his cloth in this manner. He then
placed the cloth on his mouth and rubbed it off.




He then said: Bring perfume. A young man of the tribe stood and hurried
to his house and returned with perfume in his palm. The Apostle of Allah
(peace_be_upon_him) took it and put it at the end of the twig. He then
stained the mark of phlegm with it.




Jabir said: This is the reason you use perfume in your mosques.

Narrated AbuSahlah as-Sa'ib ibn Khallad:





A man led the people in prayer. He spat towards qiblah while the Apostle
of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) was looking at him. The Apostle of Allah
said to the people when he finished his prayer: He should not lead you
in prayer (henceforth).




Thenceforth he intended to lead them in prayer, but they forbade him and
informed him of the prohibition of the Apostle of Allah
(peace_be_upon_him). He mentioned it to the Apostle of Allah
(peace_be_upon_him) who said to him: Yes.




The narrator said: I think he (the Prophet) said: You did harm to Allah
and His Apostle.

Narrated Wathilah ibn al-Asqa':





AbuSa'id said: I saw Wathilah ibn al-Asqa' in the mosque of Damascus. He
spat at the mat and then rubbed it with his foot. He was asked: Why did
you do so? He said: Because I saw the Apostle of Allah
(peace_be_upon_him) doing so.

Narrated AbuDharr:





The earth has been made for me purifying and as a mosque (place for
prayer).

Narrated Ali ibn AbuTalib:





AbuSalih al-Ghifari reported: Ali (once) passed by Babylon during his
travels. The mu'adhdhin (the person who calls for prayer) came to him to
call for the afternoon prayer. When he passed by that place, he
commanded to announce for the prayer. After finishing the prayer he
said: My affectionate friend (i.e. the Prophet) prohibited me to say
prayer in the graveyard. He also forbade me to offer prayer in Babylon
because it is accursed.

Narrated Sa'id:





and the narrator Musa said: As far as Amr thinks, the Prophet
(peace_be_upon_him) said: The whole earth is a place of prayer except
public baths and graveyards.

Narrated As-Saburah:





The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: Command a boy to pray when he
reaches the age of seven years. When he becomes ten years old, then beat
him for prayer.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-'As:





The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) said: Command your children to
pray when they become seven years old, and beat them for it (prayer)
when they become ten years old; and arrange their beds (to sleep)
separately.

Narrated Mu'adh ibn Abdullah ibn Khubayb al-Juhani:





Hisham ibn Sa'd reported: We entered upon Mu'adh ibn Abdullah ibn
Khubayb al-Juhani. He said to his wife: When (at what age) should a boy
pray? She replied: Some person of us reported: The Apostle of Allah
(peace_be_upon_him) was asked about it; he said: When a boy
distinguishes right hand from the left hand, then command him to pray.

Narrated AbuUmayr ibn Anas:





AbuUmayr reported on the authority of his uncle who was from the Ansar
(the helpers of the Prophet): The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) was
anxious as to how to gather the people for prayer.




The people told him: Hoist a flag at the time of prayer; when they see
it, they will inform one another. But he (the Prophet) did not like it.
Then someone mentioned to him the horn.




Ziyad said: A horn of the Jews. He (the Prophet) did not like it. He
said: This is the matter of the Jews. Then they mentioned to him the
bell of the Christians. He said: This is the matter of the Christians.
Abdullah ibn Zayd returned anxiously from there because of the anxiety
of the Apostle (peace_be_upon_him). He was then taught the call to
prayer in his dream. Next day he came to the Apostle of Allah
(peace_be_upon_him) and informed him about it.




He said: Apostle of Allah, I was between sleep and wakefulness; all of a
sudden a newcomer came (to me) and taught me the call to prayer. Umar
ibn al-Khattab had also seen it in his dream before, but he kept it
hidden for twenty days.




The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said to me (Umar): What did prevent you
from saying it to me?




He said: Abdullah ibn Zayd had already told you about it before me:
hence I was ashamed.




Then the Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) said: Bilal, stand up, see
what Abdullah ibn Zayd tells you (to do), then do it. Bilal then called
them to prayer.




AbuBishr reported on the authority of AbuUmayr: The Ansar thought that
if Abdullah ibn Zayd had not been ill on that day, the Apostle of Allah
(peace_be_upon_him) would have made him mu'adhdhin.

Narrated Mu'adh ibn Jabal:





Prayer passed through three stages and fasting also passed through three
stages. The narrator Nasr reported the rest of the tradition
completely. The narrator, Ibn al-Muthanna, narrated the story of saying
prayer facing in the direction of Jerusalem.




He said: The third stage is that the Apostle of Allah
(peace_be_upon_him) came to Medina and prayed, i.e. facing Jerusalem,
for thirteen months.




Then Allah, the Exalted, revealed the verse: "We have seen thee turning
thy face to Heaven (for guidance, O Muhammad). And now verily We shall
make thee turn (in prayer) toward a qiblah which is dear to thee. So
turn thy face toward the Inviolable Place of Worship, and ye (O
Muslims), wherever ye may be, turn your face (when ye pray) toward it"
(ii.144). And Allah, the Reverend and the Majestic, turned (them)
towards the Ka'bah. He (the narrator) completed his tradition.




The narrator, Nasr, mentioned the name of the person who had the dream,
saying: And Abdullah ibn Zayd, a man from the Ansar, came. The same
version reads: And he turned his face towards the qiblah and said: Allah
is most great, Allah is most great; I testify that there is no god but
Allah, I testify that there is no god but Allah; I testify that Muhammad
is the Apostle of Allah, I testify that Muhammad is the Apostle of
Allah; come to prayer (he pronounced it twice), come to salvation (he
pronounced it twice); Allah is Most Great, Allah is most great. He then
paused for a while, and then got up and pronounced in a similar way,
except that after the phrase "Come to salvation" he added. "The time for
prayer has come, the time for prayer has come."




The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) said: Teach it to Bilal, then
pronounce the adhan (call to prayer) with the same words. As regards
fasting, he said: The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) used to fast
for three days every month, and would fast on the tenth of Muharram.
Then Allah, the Exalted, revealed the verse: ".......Fasting was
prescribed for those before you, that ye may ward off (evil)......and
for those who can afford it there is a ransom: the feeding of a man in
need (ii.183-84). If someone wished to keep the fast, he would keep the
fast; if someone wished to abandon the fast, he would feed an indigent
every day; it would do for him. But this was changed. Allah, the
Exalted, revealed: "The month of Ramadan in which was revealed the
Qur'an ..........(let him fast the same) number of other days" (ii.185).





Hence the fast was prescribed for the one who was present in the month
(of Ramadan) and the traveller was required to atone (for them); feeding
(the indigent) was prescribed for the old man and woman who were unable
to fast. (The narrator, Nasr, further reported): The companion Sirmah,
came after finishing his day's work......and he narrated the rest of the
tradition.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Umar:





The words of adhan were pronounced from the time of the Apostle of Allah
(peace_be_upon_him) twice in pairs (i.e. four times) each, and the
words of iqamah were pronounced once in pairs (twice each), except that
the phrase "The time for prayer has come" would be pronounced twice.
When we heard iqamah, we would perform ablution, and go out for prayer.
Shu'bah said: I did not hear AbuJa'far narrating any other tradition
except this one.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Zayd:





The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) intended to do many things for calling
(the people) to prayer, but he did not do any of them. Then Abdullah ibn
Zayd was taught in a dream how to pronounce the call to prayer. He came
to the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) and informed him. He said: Teach it
to Bilal. He then taught him, and Bilal made a call to prayer. Abdullah
said: I saw it in a dream and I wished to pronounce it, but he (the
Prophet) said: You should pronounce iqamah.

Narrated Ziyad ibn al-Harith as-Suda'i:





When the adhan for the dawn prayer was initially introduced, the Prophet
(peace_be_upon_him) commanded me to call the adhan and I did so. Then I
began to ask: Should I utter iqamah, Apostle of Allah? But he began to
look at the direction of the east, (waiting) for the break of dawn, and
said: No.




When the dawn broke, he came down and performed ablution and he then
turned to me. In the meantime his Companions joined him. Then Bilal
wanted to utter the iqamah, but the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said to
him: The man of Suda' has called the adhan, and he who calls the adhan
utters the iqamah.

Narrated AbuHurayrah:





The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: The mu'adhdhin will receive
forgiveness to the extent to which his voice reaches, and every moist
and dry place will testify on his behalf; and he who attends (the
congregation of) prayer will have twenty-five prayers recorded for him
and will have expiation for sins committed between every two times of
prayer.

Narrated AbuHurayrah:





The imam is responsible and the mu'adhdhin is trusted, O Allah, guide
the imams and forgive the mu'adhdhins.

Narrated A woman from Banu an-Najjar:





Urwah ibn az-Zubayr reported on the authority of a woman from Banu
an-Najjar. She said: My house was the loftiest of all the houses around
the mosque (of the Prophet at Medina). Bilal used to make a call to the
morning prayer from it. He would come there before the break of dawn and
wait for it. When he saw it, he would yawn and say: O Allah, I praise
you and seek Your assistance for the Quraysh so that they might
establish Thine religion. He then would make the call to prayer.




She (the narrator) said: By Allah, I do not know whether he ever left
saying these words on any night.

Narrated Anas ibn Malik:





The supplication made between the adhan and the iqamah is not rejected.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-'As:





A man said: Apostle of Allah, the mu'adhdhins excel us. The Apostle of
Allah (peace_be_upon_him) said: Say (the same words) as they say, and
when you come to the end, make a petition and that will be granted to
you.

Narrated AbuUmamah, or one of the Companion of the Prophet:





Bilal began the Iqamah, and when he said: "The time for prayer has
come," the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: "May Allah establish it and
cause it to continue."

Narrated Umm Salamah, Ummul Mu'minin:





The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) taught me to say when the adhan
for the sunset prayer was called; "O Allah, this is the time when Thy
night comes on, Thy day retires, and the voices of Thy summoners are
heard, so forgive me."

Narrated Uthman ibn Abul'As:





Apostle of Allah, appoint me the leader of the tribe in prayer. He said:
You are their leader, but you should follow on who is the weakest of
them: and appoint a mu'adhdhin who does not charge for the calling of
adhan.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Umar:





Bilal made a call to prayer before the break of dawn; the Prophet
(peace_be_upon_him), therefore, commanded him to return and make a call:
Lo! the servant of Allah (i.e. I) had slept (hence this mistake).




The version of Musa has the addition: He returned and made a call: Lo!
the servant of Allah had slept.

Narrated Bilal:





The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) said to Bilal: Do not call
adhan until the dawn appears clearly to you in this way, stretching his
hand in latitude.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Umar:





Mujahid reported: I was in the company of Ibn Umar. A person invited the
people for the noon or afternoon prayer (after the adhan had been
called). He said: Go out with us (from this mosque) because this is an
innovation (in religion).

Narrated AbudDarda':





I heard the Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) say: If there are three
men in a village or in the desert among whom prayer is not offered (in
congregation), the devil has got the mastery over them. So observe
(prayer) in congregation), for the wolf eats only the straggling animal.
Sa'ib said: By the word Jama'ah he meant saying prayer in company or in
congregation.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Abbas:





If anyone hears him who makes the call to prayer and is not prevented
from joining the congregation by any excuse--he was asked what an excuse
consisted of and replied that it was fear or illness--the prayer he
offers will not be accepted from him.

Narrated Amr ibn Za'dah, Ibn Umm Maktum:





Ibn Umm Maktum asked the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) saying: Apostle of
Allah, I am a blind man, my house is far away (from the mosque), and I
have a guide who does not follow me. Is it possible that permission be
granted to me for saying prayer in my house? He asked: Do you hear
summons (adhan)? He said: Yes. He said: I do not find any permission for
you.

Narrated Ibn Umm Maktum:





Apostle of Allah, there are many venomous creatures and wild beasts in
Medina (so allow me to pray in my house because I am blind). The Prophet
(peace_be_upon_him) said: Do you hear the call, "Come to prayer," "Come
to salvation"? (He said: Yes.) Then you must come.

Narrated Ubayy ibn Ka'b:





The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) led us in the dawn prayer one
day. And he said: Is so and so present? They said: No. He (again) asked:
Is so and so present? They replied: No. He then said: These two prayers
are the ones which are most burdensome to hypocrites. If you knew what
they contain (i.e. blessings), you would come to them, even though you
had to crawl on your knees. The first row is like that of the angels,
and if you knew the nature of its excellence, you would race to join it.





A man's prayer said along with another is purer than his prayer said
alone, and his prayer with two men is purer than his prayer with one,
but if there are more it is more pleasing to Allah, the Almighty, the
Majestic.

Narrated AbuHurayrah:





The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: The further one is from the mosque
, the greater will be one's reward.

Narrated AbuUmamah:





The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) said: If anyone goes out from
his house after performing ablution for saying the prescribed prayer in
congregation (in the mosque), his reward will be like that of one who
goes for hajj pilgrimage after wearing ihram (robe worn by the hajj
pilgrims).




And he who goes out to say the mid-morning (duha) prayer, and takes the
trouble for this purpose, will take the reward like that of a person who
performs umrah. And a prayer followed by a prayer with no worldly talk
during the gap between them will be recorded in Illiyyun.

Narrated AbuSa'id al-Khudri:





Prayer in congregation is equivalent to twenty-five prayers (offered
alone). If he prays in a jungle, and performs its bowing and
prostrations perfectly, it becomes equivalent to fifty prayers (in
respect of reward).