وَعَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ: سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَقُولُ: «أَفْضَلُ الصَّلَاةِ بَعْدَ الْمَفْرُوضَةِ صَلَاةٌ فِي جَوف اللَّيْل» . رَوَاهُ أَحْمد
Abu Huraira said he heard God’s Messenger say, “The most excellent prayer after that which is obligatory is one in the depth of the night.” Ahmad transmitted it.
وَعَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ: جَاءَ رجل إِلَى النَّبِي صلى فَقَالَ: إِن فلَانا يُصَلِّي بِاللَّيْلِ فَإِذَا أَصْبَحَ سَرَقَ فَقَالَ: إِنَّهُ سَيَنْهَاهُ مَا تَقُولُ. رَوَاهُ أَحْمَدُ وَالْبَيْهَقِيُّ فِي شُعَبِ الْإِيمَانِ
He told of a man who came to the Prophet and said, “So and so prays at night, and when morning comes he steals.” He replied, “What you say will restrain him.” Ahmad and Baihaqi, in Shu’ab al-iman , transmitted it.
وَعَنْ أَبِي سَعِيدٍ وَأَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ قَالَا: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: «إِذا أَيْقَظَ الرَّجُلُ أَهْلَهُ مِنَ اللَّيْلِ فَصَلَّيَا أَوْ صَلَّى رَكْعَتَيْنِ جَمِيعًا كُتِبَا فِي الذَّاكِرِينَ وَالذَّاكِرَاتِ» . رَوَاهُ أَبُو دَاوُد وَابْن مَاجَه
Abu Sa’id and Abu Huraira reported God’s Messenger as saying, “When a man wakens his wife* during the night and they pray (or he prays) two rak’as together, they are recorded among the men and women who make mention of God.” * The Arabic word is ahl which means “people” or “family”, and sometimes “wife. As the dual is used about them praying together, it obviously means “wife” here; but in Ibn ‘Umar’s tradition below the plural is used, and so the word is there translated “family”. Abu Dawud and Ibn Majah transmitted it.
وَعَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: «أَشْرَافُ أُمَّتَيْ حَمَلَةُ الْقُرْآنِ وَأَصْحَابُ اللَّيْلِ» . رَوَاهُ الْبَيْهَقِيُّ فِي شُعَبِ الْإِيمَان
Ibn ‘Abbas reported God’s Messenger as saying, “The nobles among my people are those, who know the Qur’an by heart and those who pray during the night.” Baihaqi transmitted it in Shu’ab al-iman .
وَعَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ أَنَّ أَبَاهُ عُمَرَ بْنَ الْخَطَّابِ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ كَانَ يُصَلِّي مِنَ اللَّيْلِ مَا شَاءَ اللَّهُ حَتَّى إِذَا كَانَ مِنْ آخِرِ اللَّيْلِ أَيْقَظَ أَهْلَهُ لِلصَّلَاةِ يَقُولُ لَهُمْ: الصَّلَاةُ ثُمَّ يَتْلُو هَذِهِ الْآيَةَ: (وَأْمُرْ أَهْلَكَ بِالصَّلَاةِ وَاصْطَبِرْ عَلَيْهَا لَا نَسْأَلُكَ رِزْقًا نَحن نرزقك وَالْعَاقبَة للتقوى) رَوَاهُ مَالك
Ibn ‘Umar said that his father ‘Umar b. al-Khattab used to pray during the night what God wished, then during the latter part of the night he woke his family for prayer saying to them, “Come to prayer.” Then he would recite this verse, “And command your family to observe the prayer, and be constant in it. We do not ask you for provision; We provide you, and the issue pertains to piety” (Al-Qur’an; 20:132). Malik transmitted it.
وَعَنْ جَابِرٍ قَالَ: سَمِعْتُ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَقُولُ: «إِنَّ فِي اللَّيْلِ لَسَاعَةً لَا يُوَافِقُهَا رَجُلٌ مُسْلِمٌ يَسْأَلُ اللَّهَ فِيهَا خَيْرًا مِنْ أَمْرِ الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةِ إِلَّا أَعْطَاهُ إِيَّاه وَذَلِكَ كل لَيْلَة» رَوَاهُ مُسلم
Jabir said he heard the Prophet say, “There is an hour during the night at which no Muslim man will ask God for good in this world and the next without His giving it to him; and that applies to every night.” Muslim transmitted it.
عَنْ أَنَسٍ قَالَ: كَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يُفْطِرُ مِنَ الشَّهْرِ حَتَّى يُظَنَّ أَنْ لَا يَصُومَ مِنْهُ وَيَصُومُ حَتَّى يُظَنَّ أَنْ لَا يُفْطِرَ مِنْهُ شَيْئًا وَكَانَ لَا تَشَاءُ أَنْ تَرَاهُ مِنَ اللَّيْلِ مُصَلِّيًا إِلَّا رَأَيْتَهُ وَلَا نَائِمًا إِلَّا رَأَيْتَهُ. رَوَاهُ البُخَارِيّ
Anas said, “God’s Messenger used to break his fast during a month so that we imagined he had not fasted during it at all, and he fasted so that we imagined he had not broken it. You did not wish to see him praying during the night without doing so, or sleeping without doing so.” Bukhari transmitted it.
وَعَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عَمْرٍو قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: «أَحَبُّ الصَّلَاةِ إِلَى اللَّهِ صَلَاةُ دَاوُدَ وَأَحَبُّ الصِّيَامِ إِلَى اللَّهِ صِيَامُ دَاوُدَ كَانَ يَنَامُ نِصْفَ اللَّيْلِ وَيَقُومُ ثُلُثَهُ وَيَنَامُ سُدُسَهُ وَيَصُومُ يَوْمًا وَيُفْطِرُ يَوْمًا»
‘Abdallah b. ‘Amr reported God’s Messenger as saying, “The prayer dearest to God is David’s and the fasting dearest to God is David’s. He would sleep half the night, get up to pray for a third of it, then sleep the remaining sixth; and he would fast on alternate days.” (Bukhari and Muslim.)
وَعَنْ عَائِشَةَ قَالَتْ: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: «أَحَبُّ الْأَعْمَالِ إِلَى الله أدومها وَإِن قل»
‘A’isha reported God’s Messenger as saying, “The acts most pleasing to God are those which are done most continuously, even if they amount to little.” (Bukhari and Muslim.)
وَعَنْ عَائِشَةَ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَا قَالَتْ: كَانَ تَعْنِي رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَنَامُ أَوَّلَ اللَّيْلِ وَيُحْيِي آخِرَهُ ثُمَّ إِنْ كَانَتْ لَهُ حَاجَةٌ إِلَى أَهْلِهِ قَضَى حَاجَتَهُ ثُمَّ يَنَامُ فَإِنْ كَانَ عِنْدَ النداء الأول جنبا وثب فَأَفَاضَ عَلَيْهِ الماس وَإِنْ لَمْ يَكُنْ جُنُبًا تَوَضَّأَ لِلصَّلَاةِ ثُمَّ صلى رَكْعَتَيْنِ ”
‘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.)