Mishkat al-Masabih
Mishkat al-Masabih 1687
وَعَنْ مَالِكِ بْنِ هُبَيْرَةَ قَالَ: سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَقُولُ: «مَا مِنْ مُسْلِمٍ يَمُوتُ فَيُصَلِّي عَلَيْهِ ثَلَاثَةُ صُفُوفٍ مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ إِلَّا أَوْجَبَ» . فَكَانَ مَالِكٌ إِذَا اسْتَقَلَّ أَهْلَ الْجَنَازَةِ جَزَّأَهُمْ ثَلَاثَةَ صُفُوفٍ لِهَذَا الْحَدِيثِ. رَوَاهُ أَبُو دَاوُدَ وَفِي رِوَايَةِ التِّرْمِذِيِّ: قَالَ كَانَ مَالِكُ بْنُ هُبَيْرَةَ إِذَا صَلَّى الْجِنَازَة فَتَقَالَّ النَّاسَ عَلَيْهَا جَزَّأَهُمْ ثَلَاثَةَ أَجْزَاءٍ ثُمَّ قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: «مَنْ صَلَّى عَلَيْهِ ثَلَاثَةُ صُفُوفٍ أَوْجَبَ» . وروى ابْن مَاجَه نَحوه
Malik ibn Hubayra reported: I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, say, ‘No Muslim dies with three rows of Muslims praying over him but that it is made binding.’ Malik would divide the people accompanying a funeral into three rows whenever he considered them few, in accordance with this hadith. Abu Dawud transmitted it. In the version of al-Tirmidhi, it says: When Malik ibn Hubayra prayed over a funeral and found the people few, he divided them into three groups and then said, ‘The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: Whoever has three rows pray over him, it is made binding.’ Ibn Majah transmitted something similar.
Translation notes
The object of أوجب is not explicit in the Arabic wording. The English witness supplies ‘Paradise’ in brackets; that gloss has not been added to the translation.
إِلَّا أَوْجَبَ
The verb means to make obligatory or assured, but its object is not stated in this Arabic text; the witness supplies Paradise as an explanatory completion.
What is understood to be made binding by the three rows praying over the deceased?