The Book of Forgetfulness (In Prayer)

Qutaybah ibn Sa‘id informed us; he said: Abu ‘Awanah narrated to us, from al-Suddi, who said: I asked Anas ibn Malik, “Which way should I turn after I pray, to my right or to my left?” He said: “As for me, most often I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) turn to his right.”

Abu Hafs, ‘Amr ibn ‘Ali, informed us; he said: Yahya narrated to us; he said: al-A‘mash narrated to us, from ‘Umarah, from al-Aswad, who said: ‘Abdullah said: “Let none of you give Satan a share of himself by thinking that he is bound to turn only to his right. I saw that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) most often turned to his left.”

Ishaq ibn Ibrahim informed us; he said: Baqiyyah informed us; he said: al-Zubayri narrated to us that Makhul told him that Masruq ibn al-Ajda‘ narrated to him, from ‘A’ishah, who said: I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) drink while standing and sitting, pray barefoot and wearing sandals, and turn away to his right and to his left.

‘Ali ibn Khashram informed us; he said: ‘Isa ibn Yunus informed us, from al-Awza‘i, from al-Zuhri, from ‘Urwah, from ‘A’ishah, who said: The women would pray the dawn prayer with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). When he said the salutation, they would leave, wrapped in their outer garments, and could not be recognized in the darkness before dawn.

‘Ali ibn Hujr informed us; he said: ‘Ali ibn Mushir narrated to us, from al-Mukhtar ibn Fulful, from Anas ibn Malik, who said: One day the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) led us in prayer. Then he turned to face us and said: “I am your imam, so do not precede me in bowing, prostrating, standing up, or turning away. I see you in front of me and behind me.” Then he said: “By the One in whose hand is my soul, if you saw what I have seen, you would laugh little and weep much.” We said, “What have you seen, Messenger of Allah?” He said, “I have seen Paradise and the Fire.”

Isma‘il ibn Mas‘ud informed us; he said: Bishr—namely, Ibn al-Mufaddal—narrated to us; he said: Dawud ibn Abi Hind narrated to us, from al-Walid ibn ‘Abd al-Rahman, from Jubayr ibn Nufayr, from Abu Dharr, who said: We fasted Ramadan with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). The Prophet did not lead us in night prayer until seven nights of the month remained. He led us then until about a third of the night had passed. On the sixth night remaining, he did not lead us. When five nights remained, he led us until about half the night had passed. We said, “Messenger of Allah, if only you would give us extra night prayer tonight.” He said: “If a man prays with the imam until he finishes, it is counted for him as night prayer for a whole night.” Then came the fourth night remaining, and he did not lead us. When a third of the month remained, he sent for his daughters and wives and gathered the people. He led us in prayer until we feared we would miss al-falah.” Dawud said: I asked, “What is al-falah?” He said, “The pre-dawn meal.” Then he did not lead us in prayer for the rest of the month.

Ahmad ibn Bakkar al-Harrani informed us; he said: Bishr ibn al-Sari narrated to us, from ‘Umar ibn Sa‘id ibn Abi Husayn al-Nawfali, from Ibn Abi Mulaykah, from ‘Uqbah ibn al-Harith, who said: I prayed the afternoon prayer with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in Madinah. Then he left, quickly stepping over people’s necks, until they were amazed at how quickly he moved. Some of his Companions followed him. He entered the home of one of his wives, then came out and said: “While I was praying the afternoon prayer, I remembered some uncoined gold we had. I disliked the thought of it spending the night with us, so I ordered that it be distributed.”

Isma‘il ibn Mas‘ud and Muhammad ibn ‘Abd al-A‘la informed us; they said: Khalid—namely, Ibn al-Harith—narrated to us, from Hisham, from Yahya ibn Abi Kathir, from Abu Salamah ibn ‘Abd al-Rahman, from Jabir ibn ‘Abdullah, that on the day of the Battle of the Trench, after the sun had set, ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab began cursing the disbelievers of Quraysh and said, “Messenger of Allah, I could hardly pray before the sun was about to set.” The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “By Allah, I have not prayed it.” We went down with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) to Buthan. He performed ablution for the prayer, and we performed ablution for it. He prayed the afternoon prayer after the sun had set, then prayed the sunset prayer afterward.