Category: Q n A

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, “If anyone forgets a prayer he should pray that prayer when he remembers it. There
is no expiation except to pray the same.” Then he recited: “Establish prayer for My (i.e. Allah’s)
remembrance.” (20.14).

`Umar came cursing the disbelievers (of Quraish) on the day of Al-Khandaq (the battle of Trench) and
said, “I could not offer the `Asr prayer till the sun had set. Then we went to Buthan and he offered the
(`Asr) prayer after sunset and then he offered the Maghrib prayer.

My father and I went to Abi Barza Al-Aslami and my father said to him, “Tell us how Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ)
used to offer the compulsory congregational prayers.” He said, “He used to pray the Zuhr prayer,
which you call the first prayer, as the sun declined at noon, the `Asr at a time when one of US could
go to his family at the farthest place in Medina while the sun was still hot. (The narrator forgot what
Abu Barza had said about the Maghrib prayer), and the Prophet (ﷺ) preferred to pray the `Isha’ late and
disliked to sleep before it or talk after it. And he used to return after finishing the morning prayer at
such a time when it was possible for one to recognize the person sitting by his side and he (the
Prophet) used to recite 60 to 100 ‘Ayat’ (verses) of the Qur’an in it.”

Once he waited for Al-Hasan and he did not show up till it was about the usual time for him to start
his speech; then he came and apologized saying, “Our neighbors invited us.” Then he added,
“Narrated Anas, ‘Once we waited for the Prophet (ﷺ) till it was midnight or about midnight. He came and
led the prayer, and after finishing it, he addressed us and said, ‘All the people prayed and then slept
and you had been in prayer as long as you were waiting for it.” Al-Hasan said, “The people are
regarded as performing good deeds as long as they are waiting for doing good deeds.” Al-Hasan’s
statement is a portion of Anas’s [??] Hadith from the Prophet (ﷺ) .

The Prophet (ﷺ) prayed one of the `Isha’ prayer in his last days and after finishing it with Taslim, he stood
up and said, “Do you realize (the importance of) this night? Nobody present on the
surface of the earth tonight would be living after the completion of one hundred years from this
night.”
The people made a mistake in grasping the meaning of this statement of Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) and they
indulged in those things which are said about these narrators (i.e. some said that the Day of
Resurrection will be established after 100 years etc.) But the Prophet (ﷺ) said, “Nobody present on the
surface of earth tonight would be living after the completion of 100 years from this night”; he meant
“When that century (people of that century) would pass away.”

`Abdur Rahman bin Abi Bakr said, “The Suffa Companions were poor people and the Prophet (ﷺ) said,
‘Whoever has food for two persons should take a third one from them (Suffa companions). And
whosoever has food for four persons he should take one or two from them’ Abu Bakr took three men
and the Prophet (ﷺ) took ten of them.”
`Abdur Rahman added, my father my mother and I were there (in the house). (The sub-narrator is in
doubt whether `Abdur Rahman also said, ‘My wife and our servant who was common for both my
house and Abu Bakr’s house). Abu Bakr took his supper with the Prophet (ﷺ) and remained there till the
`Isha’ prayer was offered. Abu Bakr went back and stayed with the Prophet (ﷺ) till the Prophet (ﷺ) took his
meal and then Abu Bakr returned to his house after a long portion of the night had passed. Abu Bakr’s
wife said, ‘What detained you from your guests (or guest)?’ He said, ‘Have you not served them yet?’
She said, ‘They refused to eat until you come. The food was served for them but they refused.” `Abdur
Rahman added, “I went away and hid myself (being afraid of Abu Bakr) and in the meantime he (Abu
Bakr) called me, ‘O Ghunthar (a harsh word)!’ and also called me bad names and abused me and then
said (to his family), ‘Eat. No welcome for you.’ Then (the supper was served). Abu Bakr took an oath
that he would not eat that food. The narrator added: By Allah, whenever any one of us (myself and the
guests of Suffa companions) took anything from the food, it increased from underneath. We all ate to
our fill and the food was more than it was before its serving.
Abu Bakr looked at it (the food) and found it as it was before serving or even more than that. He
addressed his wife (saying) ‘O the sister of Bani Firas! What is this?’ She said, ‘O the pleasure of my
eyes! The food is now three times more than it was before.’ Abu Bakr ate from it, and said, ‘That
(oath) was from Satan’ meaning his oath (not to eat). Then he again took a morsel (mouthful) from it
and then took the rest of it to the Prophet. So that meal was with the Prophet. There was a treaty
between us and some people, and when the period of that treaty had elapsed the Prophet (ﷺ) divided us
into twelve (groups) (the Prophet’s companions) each being headed by a man. Allah knows how many
men were under the command of each (leader). So all of them (12 groups of men) ate of that meal.”

The people mentioned the fire and the bell (they suggested those as signals to indicate the starting of
prayers), and by that they mentioned the Jews and the Christians. Then Bilal was ordered to
pronounce Adhan for the prayer by saying its wordings twice, and for the Iqama (the call for the
actual standing for the prayers in rows) by saying its wordings once. (Iqama is pronounced when the
people are ready for the prayer).

When the Muslims arrived at Medina, they used to assemble for the prayer, and used to guess the time
for it. During those days, the practice of Adhan for the prayers had not been introduced yet. Once they
discussed this problem regarding the call for prayer. Some people suggested the use of a bell like the
Christians, others proposed a trumpet like the horn used by the Jews, but `Umar was the first to
suggest that a man should call (the people) for the prayer; so Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) ordered Bilal to get up
and pronounce the Adhan for prayers.

I pray as I saw my companions praying. I do not forbid praying at any time during the day or night
except at sunset and sunrise.

Bilal was ordered to repeat the wording of the Adhan for prayers twice, and to pronounce the wording
of the Iqama once except “Qad-qamat-is-salat”.