Establishing the Prayer and the Sunnah Regarding Them

Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "(Voluntary) prayer in both the day and night is performed two by two."

Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "(Voluntary) prayer in both the day and night is performed two by two."

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When any of you sleeps, the devil ties three knots at the back of his head, striking each knot: Ahead of you is a long night, so keep sleeping. When he wakes up and remembers Allah, one knot is undone; when he performs ablution, one knot is undone; and when he prays, one knot is undone, and he gets up in the morning active and in good spirits; otherwise, he gets up in the morning low-spirited and sluggish."

‘Abdullah ibn Mas‘ūd (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: It was mentioned before the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) about a man who slept throughout the night until morning. He said, "That is a man in whose ears—or, he said, in whose ear—the devil urinated."

‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Amr ibn al-‘Ās (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said to me: "O ‘Abdullāh, do not be like so-and-so. He used to offer Qiyām al-Layl and then abandoned it."

‘Abdullāh ibn Salām (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: When the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) came to Madīnah, the people rushed to meet him, and it was said: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) has come! The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) has come! The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) has come! Three times. I came with the people to see him, and when I saw his face clearly, I knew that his face was not the face of a liar. The first thing I heard him say was: "O people, spread the greeting of peace, feed others, maintain kinship ties, and pray at night when people are asleep, and you will enter Paradise in peace."

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: ''May Allah have mercy upon a man who wakes up at night and prays, and awakens his wife. If she refuses, he sprinkles water on her face. May Allah have mercy upon a woman who wakes up at night and prays, and awakens her husband. If he refuses, she sprinkles water on his face.''

Al-Barā' ibn ‘Āzib (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Adorn the Qur'an with your voices."

‘Umar ibn al-Khattāb (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever sleeps and fails to recite his nightly portion, or part of it, and then recites it between the Fajr prayer and the Zhuhr prayer, it will be recorded for him as if he recited it during the night."

Ibn ‘Abbās (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: When the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) offered voluntary prayer during the night, he would say: "O Allah, our Lord! All praise belongs to You. You are the Custodian of the heavens and the earth, all praise belongs to You. You are the Lord of the heavens and the earth and all what is in them, all praise belongs to You. You are the Light of the heavens and the earth and all that is in them. You are the Truth, Your speech is the Truth, Your promise is the Truth, Your meeting is the Truth, Paradise is true, Hell-fire is true, and the Hour is true. O Allah, to You I submit, in You I believe, upon You I rely, By Your help I contend with my foes, and to You I refer for judgment. So, forgive me the sins I committed in the past and those I may commit in the future, those I did secretly and those I did openly, and all that which You know of better than I do. There is no god but You.”

Abu Salamah ibn ‘Abdur-Rahmān ibn ‘Awf reported: I asked ‘Ā'ishah, the Mother of the Believers, (may Allah be pleased with her) about the words with which the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) used to commence his voluntary night prayer. She said that when he got up at night, he would commence his prayer with these words: "O Allah, Lord of Jibrīl, Mikha'īl, and Israfil, Originator of the heavens and the earth, Knower of the unseen and the seen, You judge between Your slaves concerning that in which they used to differ. Guide me, by Your permission, to the truth about which people differ. Verily, You guide whom You will to the straight path!"

Abu Mas‘ūd (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever recites the last two verses of Sūrat al-Baqarah at a night, they will suffice him."

Abu Mas‘ūd (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever recites the last two verses of Sūrat al-Baqarah at a night, they will suffice him."

‘Ā’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When one of you feels drowsy during prayer, let him lie down till drowsiness goes away from him, because when one of you performs prayers while feeling sleepy, unknowingly instead of seeking forgiveness he might abuses himself."

Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) came one day into the mosque and saw a rope stretched between two poles. He inquired: "What is this rope for?" He was told: "This is Zaynab's rope. When she feels tired (in voluntary prayer), she holds on to it for support." The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Untie it. You should pray as long as you have the energy to do so. If you feel tired, then lie down."

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When one of you stands up for offering voluntary prayer at night and finds it difficult to recite the Qur'an accurately, and he is unaware of what he is reciting, he should lie down."

Jābir ibn ‘Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) used to teach us Istikhārah (guidance-seeking prayer) in all matters, as he would teach us a Surah from the Qur’an. He would say: "When one of you intends to do something, let him perform two Rak‘ahs other than the obligatory prayer and then say: Allāhumma inni astakhīruka bi‘ilmika, wa astaqdiruka biqudratika, wa as’aluka min fadlik al-‘azhīm, fa ’innaka taqdiru wa la aqdiru, wa ta‘lamu wa la a‘lamu, wa anta ‘allāmu al-ghuyūb. Allāhumma in kunta ta‘lamu anna hādha al-’amra khayrun li fi dīni wa ma‘āshi wa ‘āqibati amri, (or he said) ‘ājili amri wa ājilihi, faqdurhu li wa yassirhu li, thumma bārik li fīh. Wa in kunta ta‘lamu anna hādha al-’amra sharrun li fi dīni wa ma‘āshi wa ‘āqibati amri, (or he said) wa ‘ājili amri wa ājilihi, fasrifhu ‘anni, wasrifni ‘anhu, waqdur li al-khayra haythu kāna, thumma ardini. (O Allah, I consult You for Your knowledge, and I seek strength from You for Your power, and I ask You of Your great bounty. Indeed, You are capable and I am not, and You know and I do not, and You are the All-Knower of the unseen. O Allah, if You know that this matter is good for me in my religion, my livelihood, and the outcome of my affairs, (or he said), my immediate and future affairs, then decree it for me, make it easy for me, and then bless it for me. And if You know this matter is evil concerning my religion, my livelihood or the outcome of my affairs, (or he said) my immediate and future affairs, then turn it away from me, and turn me away from it, and decree for me what is good wherever it may be, and make me content).'' He said: ''And let him name his need.''

Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: While we were sitting with the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) in the mosque, a man came riding on a camel. He made his camel kneel in the mosque, tied its foreleg, and said: "Who amongst you is Muhammad?" At that time, the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) was sitting amongst us, leaning on his arm. We replied: "This white man reclining on his arm." The man then addressed him: "O son of ‘Abdul-Muttalib!" The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I am here to answer you." The man said to the Prophet: "I want to ask you something and will be hard in questioning. So do not get angry." The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Ask whatever you want." The man said: "I ask you by your Lord, and the Lord of those who came before you. Has Allah sent you as a messenger to all mankind?" The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) replied: "By Allah, yes." The man further said: "I ask you by Allah. Has Allah ordered you to offer five prayers in a day and night?" He replied: "By Allah, yes." The man further said: "I ask you by Allah. Has Allah ordered you to observe fasts during this month of the year?" He replied: "By Allah, yes." The man said: "I ask you by Allah. Has Allah ordered you to take this charity from our rich people and distribute it amongst our poor people?" The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) replied: "By Allah, yes." Thereupon, that man said: "I have believed in all that you have been sent with, and I have been sent by my people as a messenger. I am Dimām ibn Tha‘labah, from the brothers of Banu Sa‘d ibn Bakr."