The Messenger of Allah (saws) prohibited buying and selling in the mosque, announcing aloud about a lost thing, the recitation of a poem in it, and prohibited sitting in a circle (in the mosque) on Friday before the prayer.

One day when the Messenger of Allah (saws) was sitting, his foster-father came forward. He spread out of a part of his garment and he sit on it. Then his mother came forward to him and he spread out the other side of his garment and she sat on it. Again , his foster-brother came forward. The Messenger of Allah (saws) stood for him and seated him before himself.

Allah's Apostle once led us in a prayer and offered two rak`at and got up (for the third rak`a) without sitting (after the second rak`a). The people also got up with him, and when he was about to finish his prayer, we waited for him to finish the prayer with Taslim but he said Takbir before Taslim and performed two prostrations while sitting and then finished the prayer with Taslim.

"The Prophet used to make his she-camel sit across and he would pray facing it (as a Sutra)." I asked, "What would the Prophet do if the she-camel was provoked and moved?" He said, "He would take its camel-saddle and put it in front of him and pray facing its back part (as a Sutra). And Ibn `Umar used to do the same." (This indicates that one should not pray except behind a Sutra).

Allah's Apostle during his illness prayed in his house sitting, whereas some people followed him standing, but the Prophet beckoned them to sit down. On completion of the prayer he said, "The Imam is to be followed. So, bow when he bows, and raise your head when he raises his head." (See Hadith No. 657 Vol 1 for taking the verdict).

The Prophet (saws) said: When an imam stands up at the end of two rak'ahs , if he remembers before standing straight up, he should sit down, but if he stands straight up, he must not sit down, but perform the two prostrations of forgetfulness.

Abu Dawud said: I have not narrated in this book of mine any hadith from Jabir Al-Ju'fi (one of the narrators) except this one.

I witnessed the `Id-al-Fitr prayer with Allah's Apostle , Abu Bakr, `Umar and `Uthman; and all of them offered it before delivering the sermon... and then delivered the sermon. Once the Prophet (after completing the prayer and the sermon) came down, as if I am now looking at him waving at the men with his hand to sit down, and walked through them till he, along with Bilal, reached (the rows of) the women. Then he recited: 'O Prophet! When believing women come to you to take the oath of allegiance that they will not worship anything other than Allah, will not steal, will not commit illegal sexual intercourse, will not kill their children, and will not utter slander, intentionally forging falsehood (by making illegal children belonging to their husbands)'....(60.12) Having finished, he said, 'Do you agree to that?" One lady, other than whom none replied the Prophet said, "Yes, O Allah's Apostle!" (The, sub-narrator, Al-Hasan did not know who the lady was.) Then the Prophet said to them: "Will you give alms?" Thereupon Bilal spread out his garment and the women started throwing big rings and small rings into Bilal's garment. (See Hadith No. 95 vol.2)

Allah's Apostle used to pray eleven rak`at at night and that was his night prayer and each of his prostrations lasted for a period enough for one of you to recite fifty verses before Allah's Apostle raised his head. He also used to pray two rak`at (Sunnah) before the (compulsory) Fajr prayer and then lie down on his right side till the Mu'adh-dhin came to him for the prayer.

(he was from the tribe of Uzd Shanu'a [??] and was the ally of the tribe of `Abdul-Manaf and was one of the companions of the Prophet): Once the Prophet led us in the Zuhr prayer and stood up after the second rak`a and did not sit down. The people stood up with him. When the prayer was about to end and the people were waiting for him to say the Taslim, he said Takbir while sitting and prostrated twice before saying the Taslim and then he said the Taslim."

When the Prophet came to Medina, he stayed first with his grandfathers or maternal uncles from Ansar. He offered his prayers facing Baitul-Maqdis (Jerusalem) for sixteen or seventeen months, but he wished that he could pray facing the Ka'ba (at Mecca). The first prayer which he offered facing the Ka'ba was the 'Asr prayer in the company of some people. Then one of those who had offered that prayer with him came out and passed by some people in a mosque who were bowing during their prayers (facing Jerusalem). He said addressing them, "By Allah, I testify that I have prayed with Allah's Apostle facing Mecca (Ka'ba).' Hearing that, those people changed their direction towards the Ka'ba immediately. Jews and the people of the scriptures used to be pleased to see the Prophet facing Jerusalem in prayers but when he changed his direction towards the Ka'ba, during the prayers, they disapproved of it.

Al-Bara' added, "Before we changed our direction towards the Ka'ba (Mecca) in prayers, some Muslims had died or had been killed and we did not know what to say about them (regarding their prayers.) Allah then revealed: And Allah would never make your faith (prayers) to be lost (i.e. the prayers of those Muslims were valid).' " (2:143).

Allah's Apostle made a small room in the month of Ramadan (Sa`id said, "I think that Zaid bin Thabit said that it was made of a mat") and he prayed there for a few nights, and so some of his companions prayed behind him. When he came to know about it, he kept on sitting. In the morning, he went out to them and said, "I have seen and understood what you did. You should pray in your houses, for the best prayer of a person is that which he prays in his house except the compulsory prayers."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Rabia ibn Abi Abd ar-Rahman that if Abdullah ibn Umar arrived at the mosque and the people had already prayed, he would begin with the obligatory prayer and not pray anything before it.

I came while the Prophet (saws) was saying the prayer. I sat down and did not pray along with them. The Messenger of Allah (saws) turned towards us and saw that Yazid was sitting there. He said: Did you not embrace Islam, Yazid? He replied: Why not, Messenger of Allah; I have embraced Islam. He said: What prevented you from saying prayer along with the people? He replied: I have already prayed in my house, and I thought that you had prayed (in congregation). He said: When you come to pray (in the mosque) and find the people praying, then you should pray along with them, though you have already prayed. This will be a supererogatory prayer for you and that will be counted as obligatory.

We were sitting with the Prophet and he looked at the moon on the night of the full-moon and said, "You people will see your Lord as you see this full moon, and you will have no trouble in seeing Him, so if you can avoid missing (through sleep or business, etc.) a prayer before sunrise (Fajr) and a prayer before sunset (`Asr) you must do so." (See Hadith No. 529, Vol. 1)

Narrated Al-Bara bin Azib that once he had a guest, so he told his family (on the Day of Id-ul-Adha) that they should slaughter the animal for sacrifice before he returned from the ('Id) prayer in order that their guest could take his meal. So his family slaughtered (the animal ) before the prayer. Then they mentioned that event to the Prophet who ordered Al-Bara to slaughter another sacrifice. Al-Bara' said to the Prophet , "I have a young milch she-goat which is better than two sheep for slaughtering." (The sub-narrator, Ibn 'Aun used to say, "I don't know whether the permission (to slaughter a she-goat as a sacrifice) was especially given to Al-Bara' or if it was in general for all the Muslims.") (See Hadith No. 99, Vol. 2.)

(the wife of the Prophet) During my menses, I never prayed, but used to sit on the mat beside the mosque of Allah's Apostle. He used to offer the prayer on his sheet and in prostration some of his clothes used to touch me."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Ibn Shihab from al-Araj that Abdullah ibn Buhayna said, "The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, prayed two rakas with us and then stood without sitting and the people stood with him. When he had finished the prayerand we had seen him say the taslim, he said 'Allah is greater' and did two sajdas from the sitting position and then said the taslim again."

Abu Dawud said: 'Alqamah b. Waqqas narrated this tradition on the authority of 'Aishah from the Prophet (saws) to the same effect.

Allah's Apostle used to pray two rak`at before the Zuhr prayer and two rak`at after it. He also used to pray two rak`at after the Maghrib prayer in his house, and two rak`at after the `Isha' prayer. He never prayed after Jumua prayer till he departed (from the Mosque), and then he would pray two rak`at at home.

I asked Ibn `Umar, "What is your opinion about the two rak`at before the Fajr (compulsory) prayer, as to prolonging the recitation in them?" He said, "The Prophet used to pray at night two rak`at followed by two and so on, and end the prayer by one rak`ah witr. He used to offer two rak`at before the Fajr prayer immediately after the Adhan." (Hammad, the sub-narrator said, "That meant (that he prayed) quickly.)"

When we would pray behind the Messenger of Allah (saws), we liked to be on his right side. He (the Prophet) would sit turning his face towards us (and back towards the Ka'bah) (saws).