Anas b. Malik reported that when Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) had completed his dawn prayer, the servants of Medina came to him with utensils containing water, and no utensil was brought in which he did not dip his hand; and sometime they came in the cold dawn (and he did not feel reluctant in acceding to their request even in the cold weather) and dipped his hand in them.

Abu Dawud said: This tradition has also been narrated by Hafs b. Ghiyath from Hisham.

Abu Hurayra continued, "Then I met Abdullah ibn Salam and I told him that I had sat with Kabal-Ahbar, and I mentioned what I had related to him about the day of jumua, and told him that Kab had said, 'That is one day in every year.' Abdullah ibn Salam said, 'Kab lied,' and I added, 'Kab then recited the Tawrah and said, "No, it is in every jumua.'' ' Abdullah ibn Salam said, 'Kab spoke the truth. 'Then Abdullah ibn Salam said, 'I know what time that is.' "

Abu Hurayra continued, "I said to him, 'Let me know it - don't keep it from me.' Abdullah ibn Salam said, 'It is the last period of time in the dayof jumua.' "

Abu Hurayra continued, "I said, 'How can it be the last period of time in the day of jumua, when the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "a muslim slave standing in prayer", and that is a time when there is no prayer?' Abdullah ibn Salam replied, 'Didn't the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, say, "Whoever sits waiting for the prayer is in prayer until he prays?" "'

Abu Hurayra added, "I said, 'Of course.' He said, 'Then it is that.' "

In the lifetime of Allah's Apostle (p.b.u.h) the sun eclipsed, so he led the people in prayer, and stood up and performed a long Qiyam, then bowed for a long while. He stood up again and performed a long Qiyam but this time the period of standing was shorter than the first. He bowed again for a long time but shorter than the first one, then he prostrated and prolonged the prostration. He did the same in the second rak`a as he did in the first and then finished the prayer; by then the sun (eclipse) had cleared. He delivered the Khutba (sermon) and after praising and glorifying Allah he said, "The sun and the moon are two signs against the signs of Allah; they do not eclipse on the death or life of anyone. So when you see the eclipse, remember Allah and say Takbir, pray and give Sadaqa." The Prophet then said, "O followers of Muhammad! By Allah! There is none who has more ghaira (selfrespect) than Allah as He has forbidden that His slaves, male or female commit adultery (illegal sexual intercourse). O followers of Muhammad! By Allah! If you knew that which I know you would laugh little and weep much.

Yahya related to me from Malik from Muhammad ibn Yusuf that as- Sa'ib ibn Yazid said, "Umar ibn al-Khattab ordered Ubayy ibn Kab and Tamim ad-Dari to watch the night in prayer with the people for eleven rakas.The reciterof the Qur'an would recite the Mi'in (a group of medium-sized suras) until we would be leaning on our staffs from having stood so long in prayer. And we would not leave until the approach of dawn."

The Prophet heard a man (reciting Qur'an) in the Mosque, and he said, "May Allah bestow His Mercy upon him. No doubt, he made me remember such-and such Verses of such-and-such Sura which I dropped (from my memory). Narrated Aisha: The Prophet performed the Tahajjud prayer in my house, and then he heard the voice of `Abbad who was praying in the Mosque, and said, "O `Aisha! Is this `Abbad's voice?" I said, "Yes." He said, "O Allah! Be merciful to `Abbad!"

Allah's Apostle said, "There will be afflictions (and at the time) the sitting person will be better than the standing one, and the standing one will be better than the walking, and the walking will be better than the running. And whoever will look towards those afflictions, they will overtake him, and whoever will find a refuge or a shelter, should take refuge in it." The same narration is reported by Abu Bakr, with the addition, "(The Prophet said), 'Among the prayers there is a prayer the missing of which will be to one like losing one's family and property."

Yahya related to me from Malik from al-Ala ibn Abd ar-Rahman ibn Ya'qub that he heard Abu's-Sa'ib, the mawla of Hisham ibn Zuhra, say he had heard Abu Hurayra say, "I heard the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, say, 'Whoever prays a prayer without reciting the umm al-Qur'an in it, his prayer is aborted, it is aborted, it is aborted, incomplete.' So I said, 'Abu Hurayra, sometimes I am behind the imam.'Hepulled my forearm and said, 'Recite it to yourself, O Persian, for I heard the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, say that Allah the Blessed, the Exalted, said, "I have divided the prayer into two halves between me and my slave. One half of it is for Me and one half of it is for IVly slave, and My slave has what he asks." ' The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Recite." The slave says, 'Praise be to AIIah, the Lord of theWorlds.' Allah the Blessed, the Exalted, says, 'My slave has praised Me.' The slave says, 'The Merciful, the Compassionate.' Allah says, 'My slave has spoken well of Me.' The slave says, 'Master of the Day of the Deen.' Allah says, 'My slave has glorified Me.' The slave says, 'You alone we worship and You alone we askforhelp.'Allahsays,'This ayat is between Me and My slave, and for My slave is what he asks. 'The slave says, 'Guide us in the straight Path, the Path of those whom You have blessed, not of those with whom You are angry, nor those who are in error. ' Allah says, 'These are for My slaves, and for my slave is what he asks . ' " ' "

That he heard Allah's Apostle on raising his head from the bowing in the last rak`a in the Fajr prayer, saying, "O Allah, curse such-and-such person and such-and-such person, and such-and-such person," after saying, "Allah hears him who sends his praises to Him, O our Lord, all praise is for you." So Allah revealed:--"Not for you (O Muhammad) (but for Allah) is the decision, verily they are indeed wrongdoers." (3.128)

That he heard the Prophet, after raising his head from the bowing in morning prayer, saying, "O Allah, our Lord! All the praises are for you." And in the last (rak`a) he said, "O Allah! Curse so-and-so and so--and-so." And then Allah revealed:-- 'Not for you (O Muhammad) is the decision, (but for Allah), whether He turns in mercy to them or punish them, for they are indeed wrongdoers.' (3.128)

Yahya related to me from Malik from Nafi that Abdullah ibn Umar, if he wished to sleep or eat while junub, would wash his face, and his arms to the elbows, and wipe his head. Then he would eat or sleep.

2.20 The Repetition of the Prayer by a Person in a State of Major Ritual Impurity, his Doing Ghusl, when He has Prayed without Remembering it, and his Washing his Garments.

Yahya related to me from Malik from Nafi that Abdullah ibn Umar used to recite in all four rakas as when he prayed alone - in every raka the umm al-Qur'an and another sura from the Qur'an. Sometimes he would recite two or three suras in one raka in the obligatory prayer. Similarly, he recited the umm al-Qur'an and two suras in the first two rakas of maghrib.

Yahya related to me from Malik from Muhammad ibn al-Munkadir from Said ibn al-Jubayr that a man who has approval (as a relater of hadith), told him that A'isha, the wife of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "If a man prays in the night and sleep overcomes him during it, Allah writes for him the reward of his prayer, and his sleep is sadaqa for him."

Once Allah's Apostle remained behind us in a journey. He joined us while we were performing ablution for the `Asr prayer which was over-due. We were just passing wet hands over our feet (not washing them properly) so the Prophet addressed us in a loud voice and said twice or thrice, "Save your heels from the fire."

Abu Musa said to `Abdullah bin Mas`ud, "If one does not find water (for ablution) can he give up the prayer?" `Abdullah replied, "If you give the permission to perform Tayammum they will perform Tayammum even if water was available if one of them found it cold." Abu Musa said, "What about the statement of `Ammar to `Umar?" `Abdullah replied, "`Umar was not satisfied by his statement."

While the people were offering the Fajr prayer at Quba' (near Medina), someone came to them and said: "It has been revealed to Allah's Apostle tonight, and he has been ordered to pray facing the Ka`ba." So turn your faces to the Ka`ba. Those people were facing Sham (Jerusalem) so they turned their faces towards Ka`ba (at Mecca).

Allah's Apostle went out (of the mosque) when the Iqama had been pronounced and the rows straightened. The Prophet stood at his Musalla (praying place) and we waited for the Prophet to begin the prayer with Takbir. He left and asked us to remain in our places. We kept on standing till the Prophet returned and the water was trickling from his head for he had taken a bath (of Janaba).

I heard Um Ad-Darda' saying, "Abu Ad-Darda' entered the house in an angry mood. I said to him. 'What makes you angry?' He replied, 'By Allah! I do not find the followers of Muhammad doing those good things (which they used to do before) except the offering of congregational prayer." (This happened in the last days of Abu Ad-Darda' during the rule of `Uthman) .

I saw Allah's Apostle opening the prayer with the Takbir and raising his hands to the level of his shoulders at the time of saying the Takbir, and on saying the Takbir for bowing he did the same; and when he said, "Sami`a l-lahu liman hamidah ", he did the same and then said, "Rabbana wa laka lhamd." But he did not do the same on prostrating and on lifting the head from it."

Whenever Ibn `Umar started the prayer with Takbir, he used to raise his hands: whenever he bowed, he used to raise his hands (before bowing) and also used to raise his hands on saying, "Sami`a l-lahu liman hamidah", and he used to do the same on rising from the second rak`a (for the 3rd rak`a). Ibn `Umar said: "The Prophet used to do the same."

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).

Whenever Ibn `Umar intended to go to Mecca he used to oil himself with a sort of oil that had no pleasant smell, then he would go to the Mosque of Al-Hulaita and offer the prayer, and then ride. When he mounted well on his Mount and the Mount stood up straight, he would proclaim the intention of assuming Ihram, and he used to say that he had seen the Prophet doing the same.

Ata' ibn AbuRabah said: Ibn az-Zubayr led us in the 'Id prayer on Friday early in the morning. When we went to offer the Friday, he did not come out to us. So we prayed ourselves alone. At that time Ibn Abbas was present in at-Ta'if. When he came to us, we mentioned this (incident) to him. He said: He followed the sunnah.

Abu Dawud said: This tradition has been transmitted by al-Darawardi from ‘Ubaid Allah on the authority of Ibn ‘Umar, saying: there was a mu'adhdhin of ‘Umar, named Mas’ud. He then narrated the rest of the tradition. This version is more correct than one.

Zaid b. Arqam used to utter four takbirs (Allah is Most Great) over our dead person (during prayer). He uttered five takbirs on a dead person. So I asked him. He replied: The Messenger of Allah (saws) used to utter those.

Abu Dawud said: I remember the tradition of Ibn al-Muthanna in a more guarded way.

I heard Ka`b bin Malik who was one of the three who were forgiven, saying that he had never remained behind Allah's Apostle in any Ghazwa which he had fought except two Ghazwat Ghazwat- Al-`Usra (Tabuk) and Ghazwat-Badr. He added. "I decided to tell the truth to Allah's Apostle in the forenoon, and scarcely did he return from a journey he made, except in the forenoon, he would go first to the mosque and offer a two-rak`at prayer. The Prophet forbade others to speak to me or to my two companions, but he did not prohibit speaking to any of those who had remained behind excepting us. So the people avoided speaking to us, and I stayed in that state till I could no longer bear it, and the only thing that worried me was that I might die and the Prophet would not offer the funeral prayer for me, or Allah's Apostle might die and I would be left in that social status among the people that nobody would speak to me or offer the funeral prayer for me. But Allah revealed His Forgiveness for us to the Prophet in the last third of the night while Allah's Apostle was with Um Salama. Um Salama sympathized with me and helped me in my disaster. Allah's Apostle said, 'O Um Salama! Ka`b has been forgiven!' She said, 'Shall I send someone to him to give him the good tidings?' He said, 'If you did so, the people would not let you sleep the rest of the night.' So when the Prophet had offered the Fajr prayer, he announced Allah's Forgiveness for us. His face used to look as bright as a piece of the (full) moon whenever he was pleased. When Allah revealed His Forgiveness for us, we were the three whose case had been deferred while the excuse presented by those who had apologized had been accepted. But when there were mentioned those who had told the Prophet lies and remained behind (the battle of Tabuk) and had given false excuses, they were described with the worse description one may be described with. Allah said: 'They will present their excuses to you (Muslims) when you return to them. Say: Present no excuses; we shall not believe you. Allah has already informed us of the true state of matters concerning you. Allah and His Apostle will observe your actions." (9.94)

We accompanied the Messenger of Allah (saws) at Usfan, and Khalid ibn al-Walid was the chief of unbelievers. We offered the noon prayer.

Thereupon, the unbelievers said: We suffered from negligence; we became careless. We should have attacked them while they were praying. Thereupon the verse was revealed, relating to the shortening of the prayer (in time of danger) between the noon and afternoon (prayer).

When the time of the afternoon prayer came, the Messenger of Allah (saws) stood facing the qiblah, and the unbelievers were standing in front of him. The people stood in a row behind the Messenger of Allah (saws) and there was another row behind this row. The Messenger of Allah (saws) bowed and all of them bowed. He then prostrated and also the row near him prostrated. The other people in the second row remained standing and stood guard over them. When they performed two prostrations and stood up, those who were behind them prostrated. The people in the front row near him then stepped backward taking the place of the people in the second row and the second row took the place of the first row.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) then bowed and all of them bowed together. Then he and the row near him prostrated themselves. The other people in the second row remained standing and stood guard over them. When the Messenger of Allah (saws) and the row near him (i.e. the front row) were seated, the people in the second row behind them prostrated themselves. Then all of them were seated. (He (the Prophet) then uttered the salutation upon all of them. He prayed in his manner at Usfan as well as at the territory of Banu Sulaym.

Abu Dawud said: This tradition has been narrated by Ayyub and Hisham from Abu al-Zubair on the authority of Jabir to the same effect from the Prophet (saws). Similarly, this has been transmitted by Dawud b. Husain from 'Ikrimah, on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas. This has also been reported by 'Abd al-Malik, from 'Ata' from Jabir in like manner. This has also been narrated by Qatadah from al-Hasan from Hittan on the authority of Abu Musa in a similar way. Similarly, this has been reported by 'Ikrimah b. Khalid from Mujahid from the Prophet (saws). This has also been reported by Hisham b. 'Urwah from his father from the Prophet (saws). This is the opinion of al-Thawri.

The Prophet used to teach us the Istikhara for each and every matter as he used to teach us the Suras from the Holy Qur'an. (He used to say), "If anyone of you intends to do something, he should offer a two-rak`at prayer other than the obligatory prayer, and then say: 'Allahumma inni astakhiruka bi'ilmika, wa astaqdiruka biqudratika, wa as'aluka min fadlika-l-'azim, fa innaka taqdiru wala aqdiru, wa ta'lamu wala a'lamu, wa anta'allamu-l-ghuyub. Allahumma in kunta ta'lamu anna hadha-lamra khairun li fi dini wa ma'ashi wa 'aqibati `Amri (or said, fi 'ajili `Amri wa ajilihi) fa-qdurhu li, Wa in kunta ta'lamu anna ha-dha-l-amra sharrun li fi dini wa ma'ashi wa 'aqibati `Amri (or said, fi ajili `Amri wa ajilihi) fasrifhu 'anni was-rifni 'anhu wa aqdur li alkhaira haithu kana, thumma Raddani bihi," Then he should mention his matter (need).