Sunan Ibn Majah
Establishing the Prayer and the Sunnah Regarding Them
كتاب إقامة الصلاة والسنة فيها
Chapter 1
افْتِتَاحِ الصَّلاَةِ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
'Ali ibn Muhammad al-Tanafisi narrated to us: Abu Usamah narrated to us: 'Abd al-Hamid ibn Ja'far narrated to me: Muhammad ibn 'Amr ibn 'Ata' narrated to us, saying: I heard Abu Humayd al-Sa'idi say: When the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) stood for prayer, he faced the qiblah, raised his hands, and said: ‘Allah is the Greatest.’
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah narrated to us: Zayd ibn al-Hubab narrated to us: Ja'far ibn Sulayman al-Duba'i narrated to me: 'Ali ibn 'Ali al-Rifa'i narrated to me, from Abu al-Mutawakkil, from Abu Sa'id al-Khudri, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to begin his prayer by saying: ‘Glory be to You, O Allah, and praise be to You. Blessed is Your name, exalted is Your majesty, and there is no god besides You.’
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah and 'Ali ibn Muhammad narrated to us; they said: Muhammad ibn Fudayl narrated to us, from 'Umarah ibn al-Qa'qa', from Abu Zur'ah, from Abu Hurayrah, who said: When the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said the opening takbir, he paused between the takbir and the recitation. I said, ‘May my father and mother be your ransom, Messenger of Allah. What do you say during your pause between the takbir and recitation? Tell me.’ He said: ‘I say: O Allah, put distance between me and my sins as You have put distance between the East and the West. O Allah, cleanse me of my sins as a white garment is cleansed of dirt. O Allah, wash away my sins with water, snow, and hail.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The supplication's three parallel requests and the white-garment simile are preserved. The honorific expression is rendered idiomatically.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
'Ali ibn Muhammad and 'Abdullah ibn 'Imran narrated to us; they said: Abu Mu'awiyah narrated to us: Harithah ibn Abi al-Rijal narrated to us, from 'Amrah, from 'A'ishah, that when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) began the prayer, he would say: ‘Glory be to You, O Allah, and praise be to You. Blessed is Your name, exalted is Your majesty, and there is no god besides You.’
Chapter 2
الاِسْتِعَاذَةِ فِي الصَّلاَةِ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Muhammad ibn Bashshar narrated to us: Muhammad ibn Ja'far narrated to us: Shu'bah narrated to us, from 'Amr ibn Murrah, from 'Asim al-'Anazi, from Ibn Jubayr ibn Mut'im, from his father, who said: I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), when he began the prayer, say: ‘Allah is supremely great’ three times; ‘Much praise belongs to Allah’ three times; ‘Glory be to Allah morning and evening’ three times. ‘O Allah, I seek refuge in You from Satan, the accursed, from his hamz, nafkh, and nafth.’ 'Amr said: ‘His hamz is the seizure, his nafth is poetry, and his nafkh is pride.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The report includes a transmitter's gloss: hamz is identified as al-mawtah (a seizure), nafth as poetry, and nafkh as pride. The Arabic terms are retained in the supplication and glossed immediately after.
مِنْ هَمْزِهِ وَنَفْخِهِ وَنَفْثِهِ
The three terms are specialized; the subsequent narrator gloss explains them but hamz's exact English equivalent remains uncertain.
Is ‘seizure’ an adequate rendering of الْمَوْتَةُ in the transmitter's gloss?
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
'Ali ibn al-Mundhir narrated to us: Ibn Fudayl narrated to us: 'Ata' ibn al-Sa'ib narrated to us, from Abu 'Abd al-Rahman al-Sulami, from Ibn Mas'ud, from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), who said: ‘O Allah, I seek refuge in You from Satan, the accursed, and from his hamz, nafkh, and nafth.’ He said: ‘His hamz is the seizure, his nafth is poetry, and his nafkh is pride.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The report itself supplies the gloss for the three terms; the transliterations are retained alongside that explanation.
وَهَمْزِهِ وَنَفْخِهِ وَنَفْثِهِ
The terms are specialized and are glossed in the following sentence, including hamz as al-mawtah.
Is ‘seizure’ the most accurate English rendering of الْمَوْتَةُ in this explanatory gloss?
Chapter 3
وَضْعِ الْيَمِينِ عَلَى الشِّمَالِ فِي الصَّلاَةِ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
'Uthman ibn Abi Shaybah narrated to us: Abu al-Ahwas narrated to us, from Simak ibn Harb, from Qabisah ibn Hulb, from his father, who said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to lead us in prayer and hold his left hand with his right.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
'Ali ibn Muhammad narrated to us: 'Abdullah ibn Idris narrated to us. (A second route:) Bishr ibn Mu'adh al-Darir narrated to us: Bishr ibn al-Mufaddal narrated to us. Both said: 'Asim ibn Kulayb narrated to us, from his father, from Wa'il ibn Hujr, who said: I saw the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) praying, and he held his left hand with his right.
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The source gives two transmission routes that converge at 'Asim ibn Kulayb.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Abu Ishaq al-Harawi Ibrahim ibn 'Abdullah ibn Hatim informed us: Hushaym informed us: Al-Hajjaj ibn Abi Zaynab al-Sulami informed us, from Abu 'Uthman al-Nahdi, from 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud, who said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) passed by me while I had placed my left hand over my right. He took my right hand and placed it over my left.
Chapter 4
افْتِتَاحِ الْقِرَاءَةِ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah narrated to us: Yazid ibn Harun narrated to us, from Husayn al-Mu'allim, from Budayl ibn Maysarah, from Abu al-Jawza', from 'A'ishah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to begin the recitation with: ‘Praise belongs to Allah, Lord of the worlds.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The source quotes the opening words of Surat al-Fatihah as the beginning of recitation.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Muhammad ibn al-Sabbah informed us: Sufyan informed us, from Ayyub, from Qatadah, from Anas ibn Malik. (A second route:) Jubarah ibn al-Mughallis narrated to us: Abu 'Awanah narrated to us, from Qatadah, from Anas ibn Malik, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), Abu Bakr, and 'Umar used to begin the recitation with: ‘Praise belongs to Allah, Lord of the worlds.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The source gives two routes converging at Qatadah; the Quranic phrase is translated as the recitation's opening.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Nasr ibn 'Ali al-Jahdami, Bakr ibn Khalaf, and 'Uqbah ibn Mukram narrated to us; they said: Safwan ibn 'Isa narrated to us: Bishr ibn Rafi' narrated to us, from Abu 'Abdullah, the cousin of Abu Hurayrah, from Abu Hurayrah, that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to begin the recitation with: ‘Praise belongs to Allah, Lord of the worlds.’
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah narrated to us: Isma'il ibn 'Ulayyah narrated to us, from al-Jurayri, from Qays ibn 'Abayah: The son of 'Abdullah ibn al-Mughaffal narrated to me from his father. I have rarely seen a man more stern toward an innovation in Islam than he was. He heard me reciting, ‘In the name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful,’ and said: ‘My son, beware of newly introduced practices. I prayed with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), with Abu Bakr, with 'Umar, and with 'Uthman, and I never heard any of them say it. When you recite, say: “Praise belongs to Allah, Lord of the worlds.”’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The source includes a narrator's evaluation of the father's strictness toward religious innovation, followed by the father's instruction about the basmalah and opening recitation.
وَقَلَّمَا رَأَيْتُ رَجُلاً أَشَدَّ عَلَيْهِ فِي الإِسْلاَمِ حَدَثًا مِنْهُ
The subject and antecedent of the comparison are compact; the narrator may be describing the father before reporting his words.
Who is the subject of the introductory evaluation in the source wording?
Chapter 5
الْقِرَاءَةِ فِي صَلاَةِ الْفَجْرِ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah narrated to us: Sharik and Sufyan ibn 'Uyaynah narrated to us, from Ziyad ibn 'Ilaqah, from Qutbah ibn Malik, who heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) reciting in the Fajr prayer: ‘And the tall palm trees, with their clustered fruit.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The source quotes a Quranic phrase describing tall date palms with clustered fruit.
وَالنَّخْلَ بَاسِقَاتٍ لَهَا طَلْعٌ نَضِيدٌ
نَضِيدٌ describes fruit arranged/clustered in ordered layers; the exact botanical image can be refined.
Would ‘closely clustered fruit’ better convey the verse's description?
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Muhammad ibn 'Abdullah ibn Numayr narrated to us: My father narrated to us: Isma'il ibn Abi Khalid narrated to us, from Asbagh, the client of 'Amr ibn Hurayth, from 'Amr ibn Hurayth, who said: We prayed with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). He used to recite in the Fajr prayer, and it was as though I could hear him reciting: ‘No! I swear by the retreating stars, the ones that run their course and hide.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The report quotes Quran 81:15–16. The referent and rhetorical force of the Quranic terms are interpretively rich; rendered conservatively.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Muhammad ibn al-Sabbah narrated to us: 'Abbad ibn al-'Awwam narrated to us, from 'Awf, from Abu al-Minhal, from Abu Barzah. (A second route:) Suwayd narrated to us: Mu'tamir ibn Sulayman narrated to us, from his father; Abu al-Minhal related to him from Abu Barzah, that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to recite between sixty and one hundred verses in the Fajr prayer.
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The source gives two routes and an approximate range of sixty to one hundred verses for the dawn recitation.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Abu Bishr Bakr ibn Khalaf narrated to us: Ibn Abi 'Adi narrated to us, from Hajjaj al-Sawwaf, from Yahya ibn Abi Kathir, from 'Abdullah ibn Abi Qatadah and from Abu Salamah, from Abu Qatadah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to lead us in prayer, making the first rak'ah of Zuhr long and the second short; he did the same in Fajr.
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The source gives two routes to Abu Qatadah and says the same lengthening/shortening pattern applied to Fajr.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Hisham ibn 'Ammar narrated to us: Sufyan ibn 'Uyaynah narrated to us, from Ibn Jurayj, from Ibn Abi Mulaykah, from 'Abdullah ibn al-Sa'ib, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) recited Surat al-Mu'minun in the Fajr prayer. When he reached the mention of 'Isa, he was overcome by a choking fit and bowed. (That is, he coughed.)
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The final phrase يَعْنِي سَعْلَةً is a compiler/transmitter gloss explaining the preceding word as a cough; it is included in the translation.
Chapter 6
الْقِرَاءَةِ فِي صَلاَةِ الْفَجْرِ يَوْمَ الْجُمُعَةِ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Abu Bakr ibn Khallad al-Bahili narrated to us: Waki' and 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Mahdi narrated to us; they said: Sufyan narrated to us, from Mukhawwal, from Muslim al-Batin, from Sa'id ibn Jubayr, from Ibn 'Abbas, who said: On Friday, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to recite in the Fajr prayer: ‘Alif Lam Mim. The revelation...’ and ‘Has there not come upon man...’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The source names two Quranic passages recited in Friday Fajr: the opening of Surat al-Sajdah and the opening of Surat al-Insan. The quoted Arabic citation here is abbreviated; the translation reflects the passage titles/openings rather than supplying their full text.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Azhar ibn Marwan narrated to us: Al-Harith ibn Nabhan narrated to us: 'Asim ibn Bahdalah narrated to us, from Mus'ab ibn Sa'd, from his father, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to recite in the Fajr prayer on Friday: ‘Alif Lam Mim. The revelation...’ and ‘Has there not come upon man...’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The source names the openings of two Quranic passages recited in Friday Fajr: Surat al-Sajdah and Surat al-Insan.