‘Ata b. Yasar said that Abu Sa'id reported God’s Messenger as saying, “When one of you is in doubt aoout his prayer and does not know how much he has prayed, three or four rak'as, he should subtract what he is doubtful about and base his prayer on what he is sure of, then perform two prostrations before giving the salutation. If he has prayed five rak'as they will make his prayer an even number for him, and if he has prayed exactly four they will be a humbling for the devil.” Muslim transmitted it, and Malik transmitted it from ‘Ata’ in mursal form. In his version it says, “he will make it an even number by these two prostrations.”

‘A’isha said that between the time when he finished the evening prayer and the dawn prayer the Prophet used to pray eleven rak'as, uttering the salutation at the end of every two and observing the witr,* with a single one, and during that he would make a prostration about as long as one of you would take to recite fifty verses before raising his head. When the mu’adhdhin finished making the call for the dawn prayer and he saw the dawn clearly, he stood up and prayed two short rak'as, then lay down on his right side till the mu’adhdhin came to him for the iqama, whereupon he would go out. *Cf. chap. 36 (Bukhari and Muslim.)

Abu Huraira told how when God's Messenger encamped between Dajnan and ‘Usfan1 the polytheists said, “These people observe a prayer which is dearer to them than their fathers and their sons, and it is the afternoon prayer, so join together and attach them in a single rush.”2 But Gabriel came to the Prophet and ordered him to divide his companions into two divisions and lead one section in prayer while another stood behind them on guard and armed. They would pray one rak'a and God’s Messenger two. 1. Dajnan is a mountain near Mecca and ‘Usfan, a place two days’ journey from Mecca on the way to Medina. 2. Cf. Al-Qur'an; 4:102. Tirmidhi and Nasa’i transmitted it.

When a woman went out in the time of the Prophet (saws) for prayer, a man attacked her and overpowered (raped) her.

She shouted and he went off, and when a man came by, she said: That (man) did such and such to me. And when a company of the Emigrants came by, she said: That man did such and such to me. They went and seized the man whom they thought had had intercourse with her and brought him to her.

She said: Yes, this is he. Then they brought him to the Messenger of Allah (saws).

When he (the Prophet) was about to pass sentence, the man who (actually) had assaulted her stood up and said: Messenger of Allah, I am the man who did it to her.

He (the Prophet) said to her: Go away, for Allah has forgiven you. But he told the man some good words (AbuDawud said: meaning the man who was seized), and of the man who had had intercourse with her, he said: Stone him to death.

He also said: He has repented to such an extent that if the people of Medina had repented similarly, it would have been accepted from them.

Abu Dawud said: Asbat bin Nasr has also transmitted it from Simak.

the Prophet said: "Salatul-wusta is the Asr prayer."

"The Prophet liked to perform Salat in Al-Hitan."

"The Prophet would perform Salat in sheep pens."

"The Prophet (S) stood (in prayer) with an Ayah from the Qur'an at night"

that the Prophet (SAW) said: "Between disbelief and faith is abandoning the Salat."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Sadaqa ibn Yasar that al- Mughira ibn Hakim saw Abdullah ibn Umar sit back from the two sajdas of the prayer onto the top of his feet. When he had finished, al- Mughira mentioned it to him, and Abdullah ibn Umar explained, "It is not a sunna of the prayer. I do it because I am ill."

Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that Said ibn Abi Waqqas used to pass in front of some of the rows while the prayer was in progress.

Malik said, "I consider that it is permissible to do that if the iqama for the prayer has been said and the imam has said the initial takbir and a man cannot find any way into the mosque except by going between the rows."

"Allah's Messenger prayed the Subh prayer, and he had difficulty with the recitation. When turned (after finishing) he said: 'I think that you are reciting behind your Imam?'" He said: "We said: 'Yes, Messenger of Allah, by Allah!' He said: 'Do not do that, except for Umm Al-Kitab, for there is no Salat for one who does not recite it.'"

the Prophet said: "It is not allowed for a man to look into the interior of a man's house until he has been given permission, for if he looks, then he has entered. And one who leads people (in Salat) should not supplicate for himself alone with the exclusion of his congregation. If he does, then he has betrayed them. And one is not to stand for Salat while he has to urinate."

"The Prophet (S) stood for the Zuhr prayer, and he had a sitting to perform, so when he completed his Salat, he performed two prostrations, saying the Takbir for each prostration. So he was sitting before saying the Salam, and the people prostrated with him in place of the sitting he forgot."

"I said to Abu Sa'eed: 'One of us performs Salat and we do not know how (much) we prayed.' So he said: 'Allah's Messenger (S) said: "When one of you performs Salat and he does now know how (much) he prayed then let him perform two prostrations while he is sitting."

The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, "He who apprehends that he may not get up in the later part of the night, should observe the Witr prayer in the first part of it; and he who is certain to get up in the last part of it, he should observe Witr at the end of the night, because Salat at the end of the night is attended (by the angels), and that is better."

[Muslim].

‘A'isha told of Fatima daughter of Abu Hubaish coming to the Prophet and saying, “I am a woman whose blood keeps flowing, and I am never purified; Shall I therefore abandon prayer?” He replied, “No that is only a vein and is not menstruation; so when your menstrua­ tion comes on abandon prayer, and when it ends wash the blood from yourself and then pray.” (Bukhari and Muslim.)

Abu Qatada said that in the first two rak'as of the noon prayer the Prophet used to recite Umm al-Kitab and two suras, and in the last two rak'as Umm al-Kitab, and he would sometimes recite loud enough for them to hear the verse. He would prolong the first rak'a more than the second; and he acted similarly in the afternoon and the Morning Prayer. (Bukhari and Muslim.)

Anas reported God’s Messenger as saying, “To sit with people who make mention of God after the morning prayer till sunrise is more pleasing to me than setting free four of the descendants of Ishmael, and to sit with people who make mention of God after the afternoon prayer till the sun sets is more pleasing to me than setting four free.” Abu Dawud transmitted it.

Salim b. Abul Ja'd told of a man of Khuza'a saying, “I wish I had prayed and been at rest.” When the people seemed to disapprove of his saying that, he replied that he had heard God’s Messenger say, “Declare that the time for prayer has come, Bilal, and give us rest by it.”* * This probably means that prayer brings peace of mind. Abu Dawud transmitted it.

They well know that prayer at another time than this is more excellent. God’s Messenger said, “The prayer of those who are penitent is observed when the young weaned camels feel the heat of the sun.”* * Young camels are said to feel the sand too hot when a quarter of the day has passed. Muslim transmitted it.

One night I joined the Prophet (PBUH) in his (optional) Salat. He (PBUH) prolonged the Qiyam (standing) so much that I made up my mind to commit an act of wrong. He was questioned: "What did you intend to do?" He replied: "I intended to sit down and stop following him (in Salat)."

[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

Allah's Messenger said: "Salatul-Wusta is the Asr prayer."

"The Prophet would open his Salat with (Bismillahir-Rahmanir-Rahim)."

the Prophet said: "The Salat during the night and the day is two and two."

"The Prophet recited Fatihatil-Kitab for a funeral (prayer)." (Da'if Jiddan)

She said that the Prophet recited the Qur’an in a loud voice in the prayer at an eclipse. (Bukhari and Muslim.)

Yahya related to me from Malik from Yahya ibn Said from Abd ar- Rahman ibn Hurmuz that Abdullah ibn Buhayna said, "The Messengerof Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, prayed dhuhr with us and he stood straight up after two rakas without sitting. When he had finished the prayer, he did two sajdas and then said the taslim after that."

Malik said, concerning someone who forgot in his prayer and stood up after he had completed four rakas and recited and then went into ruku and then, when he raised his head from ruku, remembered that he had already completed (his prayer), "He returns to a sitting position and does not do any sajda. If he has already done one sajda I do not think he should do the other. Then when his prayer is finished he does two sajdas from the sitting position after saying the taslim."

Before the prohibition of khamr was revealed, ‘Umar said: O Allah, give us a clear ruling on khamr. Then the verse which is in Soorat al Baqarah was revealed: `They ask you (O Muhammad (ﷺ) concerning alcoholic drink and gambling. Say: “In them is a great sin...” [al-Baqarah 2:219]. `Umar was summoned and it was recited to him. He said: O Allah, give us a clear ruling on khamr, and the verse which is in Soorat an-Nisa` was revealed: “O you who believe Approach not As-Salah (the prayer) when you are in a drunken state.` [an-Nisa 4:43). When the Iqamah for prayer was given, the caller of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) would call out: Do not approach the prayer drunk, ‘Umar was summoned and it was recited to him. He said: O Allah, give us a clear ruling on khamr, and this verse was revealed then Umar was summoned and recited to hirn when he reached `So, will you not then abstain?` |al-Ma`idah 5:91]. Then `Umar said: We abstain, we abstain.

"My father narrated to me: 'The Night of Al-Qadr was mentioned in the presence of Abu Bakrah, so he said: "I do not search for it due to something that I heard from the Messenger of Allah, except for during the last ten (nights); for indeed I heard him say: 'Search for it when nine remain, or; when seven remain, or; when five remain, or; during the last three nights.'" He (Uyainah) said: "During the twenty (nights) of Ramadan, Abu Bakrah used to perform Salat just as he performed Salat during the rest of the year. But when the (last) ten began, he would struggle (performing more Salat during the night)."

from Ibn 'Abbas regarding Allah's saying: "And offer your Salat neither aloud nor in a low voice but follow a way between." He said: "It was revealed when the Messenger of Allah (SAW) was hiding himself in Makkah, and when he led his Companions in Salat, he would raise his voice with the Qur'an. So when the idolaters heard it they would insult the Qur'an, the One Who revealed it, and the one who came with it. So Allah, Most High, said to His Prophet: 'And offer your Salat neither aloud' that is: Your recitation, so that the idolaters would not hear it and insult the Qur'an. 'Nor in a low voice (too low)' for your Companions, 'but follow a way between.'"

The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said to a man who was performing Salah while his lower garment was trailing, "Go and perform your Wudu' again." The man went and came back having performed it. The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said (again), "Go and perform your Wudu'." Someone present said to the Messenger of Allah (PBUH): "O Messenger of Allah! You ask him to perform his Wudu' and then you kept silent (without saying the reason for it)." He (PBUH) said, "He performed Salah while his lower garment was below his ankles. Allah does not accept the Salah of a man who trails his lower garment."

[Abu Dawud].

‘Abdallah b. Unais told that he said, “Messenger of God, I have a place in the desert where I live and in which I pray praising God, but give me command about a night when I may leave it and come to this mosque.” He replied, “Come on the twenty-third night.” His son was asked how his father used to act and said he used to enter the mosque when he had prayed the afternoon prayer and not leave it for any purpose till he prayed the morning prayer. Then when he had prayed the morning prayer he found his beast at the door of the mosque, mounted it and got back to his desert region. Abu Dawud transmitted it.

God's messenger led us in prayer and prolonged it, and when the people said, "Messenger of God, you have prayed a prayer such as you have not been accustomed to pray," he replied, "Yes, it was a prayer of hope and fear during which I asked God for three things, two of which He granted me but one of which He refused me. I asked Him not to destroy my people by famine and He granted me that, I asked Him not to let an enemy from another people rule over them and He granted me that, and I asked Him not to let them experience one another's violence but He refused me that." Tirmidhi and Nasa'i transmitted it.

Yahya related to me from Malik from Nafi from Abdullah ibn Umar that Hafsa, the wife of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, told him that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, used to pray two quick rakas when the muadhdhin had finished the adhan for the subh prayer, before the iqama was said for the prayer.

Yahya related to me from Malik from Ismail ibn Muhammad ibn Said ibn Abi Waqqas from a mawla of Amr ibn al-As or of Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-As that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "The prayer of one of you sitting down is only equal to half the prayer of one of you when he is standing."

He passed by Al-Hasan bin Ali while he was performing Salat and he had gathered his locks at the back of his head, so he (Abu Rafi) undid them, and Al-Hasan turned to him angrily. He said: "Resume your Salat and do not be angry, for indeed I heard Allah's Messenger (S) saying: 'That is the seat of Ash-Shaitan.'"

"I heard the Messenger of Allah, while he was performing Salat for a deceased person. I could hear him saying in his prayer: (Allahummagfir lahu, war hamhu, waghsilhu bil-baradi (waghsilhu) kama yughsaluth-thawb) 'O Allah! Forgive him, have mercy upon him, and wash him with (snow or ice) (and wash him) just as a garment is washed.'"

The Prophet was brought a (deceased) man to perform Salat over. So the Prophet said: "Pray for your companion; for indeed he had a debt upon him." Abu Qatadah said: "It shall be upon me." So the Messenger of Allah said: "To pay it off?" (He said: "To pay it off.") So he performed the prayer for him.

narrated from Abu Umamah, that he Prophet (SAW) said: "Allah does not listen to anything more virtuous from the worshiper than the two Rak'ah of Salat he performs. And the righteousness spreads over the head of a worshiper as long as he remains in his Salat. And the worshipers shall not draw nearer to Allah, Mighty and Sublime is He, with similar to what came from Him."

Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, "Three are the signs of a hypocrite: When he speaks, he lies; when he makes a promise, he breaks it; and when he is trusted, he betrays his trust."

[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

Another narration adds the words: "Even if he observes Saum (fasts), performs Salat (prayer) and claims to be a Muslim."

When Malik bin Hubairah (May Allah be pleased with him) offered a funeral prayer and found a small number of participants, he would divide them into three rows and would say that the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, "If three rows of men offer funeral prayer over anyone, his entry into Jannah will become certain."

[Abu Dawud and At- Tirmidhi].

The Prophet (PBUH) said, "When one of you dozes off while performing Salat, he should lie down till his drowsiness has gone away from him. When one of you performs Salat while dozing, he may abuse himself instead of seeking pardon (as a result of drowsiness)."

[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

‘Ā’isha reported the Prophet as saying, “Reciting the Qur’ān during prayer is more excellent than reciting it at other times, and reciting the Qur’ān at a time other than during prayer is more excellent than extolling God and declaring His greatness. Extolling God is more excellent than sadaqa, sadaqa is more excellent than fasting, and fasting is a protection from hell.” Transmitted by Baihaqī in Shu'ab al-īmān.

Abu Sa'id reported God’s Messenger as saying, “When one of you yawns during prayer he must restrain it as much as possible, for the devil gets in.” Muslim transmitted it. In a version by Bukhari from Abu Huraira he said, “When one of you yawns during prayer he must restrain it as much as possible and not say ‘Ha’, for that comes from the devil who is laughing at him.”(Or “at it”, i.e. at this action).

Abu Huraira reported God’s Messenger as saying, “Jihad is a necessary duty for you along with any commander, pious or impious, even if he commits heinous sins; prayer is a necessary duty for you behind any Muslim, pious or impious, even if he commits heinous sins; and prayer is a necessary duty for every Muslim, pious or impious, even if he commits heinous sins.” Abu Dawud transmitted it.

‘A’isha said that he, meaning God’s Messenger, would sleep in the early part of the night and keep awake in the latter part. If he then wished intercourse with his wife he satisfied his desire, and then went to sleep. If he was sexually defiled when the first call to prayer was made, he would get up and pour water on it, but if not, he performed the ablution for the prayer and then prayed two rak'as. (Bukhari and Muslim.)

I heard God's messenger say, “Were it not that I would distress my people, I would order them to use the tooth-stick before every prayer, and I would postpone the evening prayer till a third of the night had passed.” He said that Zaid b. Khalid used to attend the prayers in the mosque with his tooth-stick on his ear where a clerk carries a pen, and did not get up to pray without using it, after which he put it back in its place. Tirmidhi transmitted it, and also Abu Dawud, but he did not mention, “I would postpone the evening prayer till a third of the night had passed.” Tirmidhi said that this is a hasan sahih tradition.

It is related that 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar reported that 'Umar went with the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, with a group to visit Ibn Sayyad. They found him playing with some children in the hills of Banu Maghala. Ibn Sayyad, who was approaching puberty, did not notice them until the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, patted him with his hand and then said to him, 'Do you testify that I am the Messenger of Allah?' Ibn Sayyad looked at him and said, 'I testify that you are the Messenger of the unlettered.' Ibn Sayyad said to the Prophet, 'Do you testify that I am the Messenger of Allah?' He refuted it and said, 'I have believed in Allah and His Messengers.' Then he said to him, 'What dreams do you have?' Ibn Sayyad replied, 'Both truthful people and liars come to me.' The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, 'You are in a state of confusion.' Then the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said to him, 'I am concealing something from you.' Ibn Sayyad said, 'It is just smoke.' He said, 'Shame on you! You will not go too far.' 'Umar said, 'Messenger of Allah, let me cut his head off?' The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, 'If it is him (i.e. the Dajjal), you will not be able to get the better of him. If it is not him, there is no point in killing him.'"

"Allah's Messenger was among the lightest of people in Salat with its completeness."