The Book of the Commencement of the Prayer

كتاب الافتتاح

Chapter 37: Collection of what was narrated concerning the Quran

It was narrated that Ibn Abbas said

Concerning the saying of Allah, the Mighty and Sublime: "Move not your tongue concerning to make haste therewith. It is for Us to collect it and to give you the ability to recite it- "The Prophet (ﷺ) used to suffer a great deal of hardship when the Revelation came to him, and he used to move his lips. Allah said: Move not your tongue concerning to make haste therewith. It is for Us to collect it and to give you the ability to recite it." He said: " (This means) He will gather it in your heart, then you will recite it," And when We have recited it to you, then follow the recitation. He said: "So listen to it and remain silent. So when Jibril came to him, the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) listened, and when he left, he would recite it as he had taught him."

It was narrated from Ibn Makhramah that

Umar bin Al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, said: "I heard Hisham bin Hakim bin Hizam reciting: Surat Al-Furqan, in a way that the Prophet of Allah (ﷺ) had not taught me. I said: 'Who taught you this Surah?' He said: 'The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ).' I said: 'You are lying; the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) did not teach you like that. 'I took him by the hand and brought him to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and said: 'O Messenger of Allah, you taught me Surat Al-Furqan, but I heard this man reciting it in a way that you did not teach me.' The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'Recite, O Hisham.' So he recited it as he had recited it (before). The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'It was revealed like this.' Then he said: 'Recite, O Umar.' So I recited it, and he said: 'It was revealed like this.' Then the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'The Quran was revealed to be recited in seven different modes.'"

It was narrated that AbdurRahman bin Abdul-Qari said

"I heard Umar bin Al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, say: 'I heard Hisham bin Hakim bin Hizam reciting Surat Al-Furqan, in a way that I had not been taught, and the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) had taught me. I was about to interrupt him (in his prayer), but I left him alone until he had finished. Then I grabbed him by his garment and brought him to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and said: 'O Messenger of Allah, I heard this man reciting Surat Al-Furqan in a way that you did not teach me.' The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said to him: 'Recite.' So he recited it in the way that I had heard him recite. Then the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'It was revealed like this.' Then he said to me: 'Recite.' So I recited it and he said: 'It was revealed like this. This Quran has been revealed in seven different modes, so recite as much of the Quran as may be easy for you.'"

Urwah bin Az-Zubair narrated that Al-Miswar bin Makhramah and AbdurRahman bin Abdul-Qari told him that

They heard Umar bin Al-Khattab say: "I heard Hisham bin Hakim bin Hizam reciting Surat Al-Furqan during the lifetime of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), so I listened to his recitation and he was reciting it in a way that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) had not taught me. I was about to jump on him while he was praying, but I waited patiently until he said the Salam (at the end of the prayer). When he had said the Salam I grabbed him by his garment and said: 'Who taught you this Surah that I heard you reciting?' He said: 'The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) taught me it. I said: 'You are lying, by Allah! The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) is the one who taught me this Surah that I heard you reciting.' I took him to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and said: 'O Messenger of Allah, I heard this man reciting Surat Al-Furqan in a way that you did not teach me, but you taught me Surat Al-Furqan.' The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said:' Let him go, O Umar. Recite, O Hisham.' So I recited it to him in the way that I had heard him recite. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'It was revealed like this.' Then the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'Recite, O Umar.' So I recited it in the way that he had taught me. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'It was revealed like this.' Then the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'This Quran has been revealed to be recited in seven different modes, so recite as much of the Quran as may be easy for you.'"

It was narrated from Ubayy bin Ka'b that

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was by a pond belonging to Banu Ghifar when Jibril, peace be upon him, came to him and said: "Allah commands you to teach your Ummah the Quran with one way of recitation." He said: "I ask my Lord for protection and forgiveness, my Ummah cannot bear that." Then he came to him a second time and said: "Allah commands you to teach your Ummah the Quran with two ways of recitation." He said: ""I ask my Lord for protection and forgiveness, my Ummah cannot bear that." Then he came to him a third time and said: "Allah commands you to teach your Ummah the Quran with three ways of recitation." He said: "I ask my Lord for protection and forgiveness, my Ummah cannot bear that." Then he came to him a fourth time and said: "Allah commands you to teach your Ummah the Quran with seven ways of recitation, and whichever the way they recite it will be correct."

It was narrated that Ubayy bin Ka'b said

"The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) taught me a surah, and when I was sitting in the masjid I heard a man reciting it in a way that was different from mine. I said to him: 'Who taught you this surah?' He said: 'The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ).' I said: 'Stay with me until we go to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ).' So we came to him and I said: 'O Messenger of Allah, this man recites a surah that you taught me differently.' The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'Recite, O Ubayy.' So I recited it, and the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said to me: 'You have done well.' Then he said to the man: 'Recite.' So he recited it and it was different to my recitation. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said to him: 'You have done well.' Then the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'O Ubayy, the Quran has been revealed with seven different modes of reciation, all of which are good and sound."

It was narrated that Ubayy said

"I had no confusion in my mind from that time I embraced Islam, except when I recited a verse and another man recited it differently. I said: 'The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) taught me this.' And the other man said: 'The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) taught me too.' So I went to the Prophet (ﷺ) and said: 'O Prophet of Allah, did you not teach me such and such a verse?' He said: 'Yes.' The other man said: 'Did you not teach me such and such a verse?' He said: 'Yes. Jibril and Mika'il, peace be upon them, came to me, and Jibril sat on my right and Mika'il on my left. Jibril, peace be upon him, said: "Recite the Quran with one way of recitation.' Mika'il said: 'Teach him more, teach him more- until there were seven modes of recitation, each of which is good and sound.'"

It was narrated from Ibn Umar that

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: "The one who learns the Quran is like the owner of a hobbled camel. If he pays attention to it, he will keep it, but if he releases it, it will go away."

It was narrated from Abdullah that

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: "It is not right for any one of you to say: 'I have forgotten such and such a verse.' Rather, he has been caused to forget. Study the Qur'an, for it escapes from the heart of man faster than a camel escapes from its fetter. "

Chapter 38: Recitation in the two rak'ahs of Fajr

Ibn Abbad narrated that

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) used to recite in teh first rak'ah of Fajr "Say: We believe in Allah and that which has been sent down to us" to the end verse, and in the second rak'ah, "We believe in Allah, and bear witness that we are Muslims."

Chapter 39: Reciting: "Say: O you disbelievers" and "Say: He is Allah, (the) One" in the two rak'ahs

It was narrated from Abu Hurairah that

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) recited: "Say: O you disbelievers" and "Say: He is Allah, (the) One" in the two rak'ahs of Fajr.

Chapter 40: Making the two rak'ahs of Fajr brief

It was narrated that Aishah said

"I would see the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) praying two rak'ahs of Fajr and making them so brief that I said: 'Did he recite the Umm Al-Kitab in them?'"

Chapter 41: Reciting (Surat) Ar-Rum in Subh

It was narrated from Shabib Abi Rawh, from a man among the companions of the Prophet (ﷺ), that

He prayed Subh and recited Ar-Rum, but he stumbled in his recitation. When he had finished praying he said: 'What is the matter with people who pray with us without purifying themselves properly? Those people make us stumble in reciting Quran.'"

Chapter 42: Reciting between sixty and one hundred verses in Subh

It was narrated from Abu Barzah that

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) used to recite between sixty and one hundred verses in Al-Ghadah (Subh) prayer.

Chapter 43: Reciting (Surah) Qaf in Subh

It was narrated that Umm Hisham bint Harithah bin An-Nu'man said

"I only learned :Qaf. By the Glorious Quran.' Behind the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ); he used to recite it in Subh.

It was narrated that Ziyad bin Ilaqah said

"I heard my paternal uncle say: 'I prayed Subh with the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), and in one of the rak'ahs he recited: "And tall date palms, with ranged clusters."

Chapter 44: Reciting: "When the sun is wound round" in Subh

It was narrated that Amr bin Huraith said

"I heard the Prophet (ﷺ) reciting: 'When the sun is wound round.' in fajr. "

Chapter 45: Reciting Al Mua'awwidhatain in Subh

It was narrated from Uqbah bin Amr that

He asked the Prophet (ﷺ) about Al-Mua'awwidhatain. Uqbah said: "The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) led us in praying Fajr and recited them."

Chapter 46: The virtue of reciting Al-Mu'awwidhatain

It was narrated that Uqbah bin Amr said

"I followed the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) when he was riding, and I placed my hand on his foot and said : O Messenger of Allah, teach me Surah Hud and Surah Yusuf. He said: 'You will never recite anything greater before Allah than: "Say: I seek refuge with (Allah), the Lord of the daybreak." And "Say: I seek refuge with (Allah) the Lord of mankind.'"

It was narrated that Uqbah bin Amr said

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'Some verses were revealed to me tonight, the likes of which have never been seen: "Say: I seek refuge with (Allah), the Lord of the daybreak." [Surat al-Falaq:1] and "Say: I seek refuge with (Allah) the Lord of mankind." [Surat an-Naas:1]'