The Book of the Prayer for the Two 'Eids

Qutaybah narrated to us; he said: ‘Abd al-‘Aziz narrated to us, from Dawud, from ‘Iyad ibn ‘Abdullah, from Abu Sa‘id al-Khudri, that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) would go out to the prayer ground on al-Fitr and al-Adha and lead the people in prayer. When he sat in the second rak‘ah and said the taslim, he stood and faced the people while they remained seated. If he had some matter, such as wanting to dispatch an expedition, he would mention it to the people; otherwise, he would command them to give charity, saying, “Give charity,” three times. The women were among those who gave the most in charity.

Muhammad ibn Salamah and al-Harith ibn Miskin narrated to us; the latter was read to while I listened, and the wording is his. Ibn al-Qasim said: Malik narrated to me, from Ibn Shihab, from Ibn al-Musayyab, from Abu Hurairah, that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “When you say to your companion, ‘Listen!’ while the imam is delivering the sermon, you have engaged in idle speech.”

‘Utbah ibn ‘Abdullah narrated to us; he said: Ibn al-Mubarak informed us, from Sufyan, from Ja‘far ibn Muhammad, from his father, from Jabir ibn ‘Abdullah, who said: In his sermon, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) would praise Allah and extol Him as He deserves, then say: “Whomever Allah guides, none can lead astray; and whomever He leads astray, none can guide. The truest speech is the Book of Allah, and the best guidance is the guidance of Muhammad. The worst matters are those newly introduced; every newly introduced matter is an innovation, every innovation is misguidance, and every misguidance is in the Fire.” Then he would say: “I and the Hour were sent like these two.” When he mentioned the Hour, his cheeks would redden, his voice would rise, and his anger would intensify, as though he were warning of an army, saying: “It may attack you in the morning or in the evening.” Then he would say: “Whoever leaves wealth, it belongs to his family. Whoever leaves a debt or dependents, that is for me to take responsibility for; I have a greater claim upon the believers.”

‘Amr ibn ‘Ali narrated to us; he said: Yahya narrated to us; he said: Dawud ibn Qays narrated to us; he said: ‘Iyad narrated to me, from Abu Sa‘id, that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) would go out on Eid, pray two rak‘ahs, then deliver the sermon and urge people to give charity. The women would give the most charity. If he had a matter to attend to or wished to dispatch an expedition, he would speak about it; otherwise, he would return.

‘Ali ibn Hujr narrated to us; he said: Yazid—meaning Ibn Harun—narrated to us; he said: Humayd informed us, from al-Hasan, that Ibn ‘Abbas delivered a sermon in al-Basrah and said: “Pay the zakat due for your fast.” The people began looking at one another. He said: “Those of you here from the people of Madinah, stand and teach your brothers, for they do not know that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) prescribed the charity of al-Fitr for the young and the old, the free and the enslaved, males and females: half a sa‘ of wheat, or one sa‘ of dates or barley.”

Qutaybah narrated to us; he said: Abu al-Ahwas narrated to us, from Mansur, from al-Sha‘bi, from al-Bara’, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) addressed us on the Day of Sacrifice after the prayer, then said: “Whoever prays our prayer and offers a sacrifice as we do has performed the rite correctly. Whoever offers his sacrifice before the prayer, that is only meat.” Abu Burdah ibn Niyar said: “Messenger of Allah, by Allah, I offered my sacrifice before I went out to the prayer. I knew that today was a day of eating and drinking, so I hurried, ate from it, and fed my family and neighbors.” The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “That is only meat.” He said: “I have a jadha‘ah that is better than two ordinary sheep; will it suffice for me?” He replied: “Yes, but it will not suffice for anyone after you.”

Qutaybah narrated to us; he said: Abu al-Ahwas narrated to us, from Simak, from Jabir ibn Samurah, who said: I used to pray with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). His prayer was moderate in length, and his sermon was moderate in length.

Qutaybah narrated to us; he said: Abu ‘Awanah narrated to us, from Simak, from Jabir ibn Samurah, who said: I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) delivering the sermon while standing. Then he sat for a brief pause without speaking, then stood and delivered another sermon. Whoever tells you that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) delivered the sermon seated, do not believe him.

Muhammad ibn Bashshar narrated to us; he said: ‘Abd al-Rahman narrated to us; he said: Sufyan narrated to us, from Simak, from Jabir ibn Samurah, who said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would deliver the sermon standing, then sit, then stand and recite some verses and remember Allah. His sermon was moderate in length, and his prayer was moderate in length.

Ya‘qub ibn Ibrahim narrated to us; he said: Abu Tumaylah narrated to us, from al-Husayn ibn Waqid, from Ibn Buraydah, from his father, who said: While the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was delivering a sermon on the pulpit, al-Hasan and al-Husayn (peace be upon them) came toward him wearing red shirts, walking and stumbling. He came down and carried them, then said: “Allah has spoken the truth: ‘Your wealth and your children are only a trial.’ I saw these two walking and stumbling in their shirts, and I could not hold back until I came down and carried them.”

‘Amr ibn ‘Ali narrated to us; he said: Yahya narrated to us; he said: Sufyan narrated to us; he said: ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn ‘Abis narrated to us; he said: I heard Ibn ‘Abbas. A man asked him, “Did you accompany the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) when he went out?” He said: “Yes. Were it not for my position with him, I would not have witnessed it”—meaning, because he was so young. The Prophet went to the marker near the house of Kathir ibn al-Salt and prayed, then delivered a sermon. Then he went to the women, exhorted and reminded them, and told them to give charity. A woman would reach her hand toward her neck, take off her necklace, and put it in Bilal’s garment.

‘Abdullah ibn Sa‘id al-Ashajj narrated to us; he said: Ibn Idris narrated to us; he said: Shu‘bah informed us, from ‘Adiyy, from Sa‘id ibn Jubayr, from Ibn ‘Abbas, that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) went out on the Eid day and prayed two rak‘ahs; he did not pray before or after them.

Isma‘il ibn Mas‘ud narrated to us; he said: Hatim ibn Wardan narrated to us, from Ayyub, from Muhammad ibn Sirin, from Anas ibn Malik, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) delivered a sermon to us on the Day of Adha, then turned toward two mottled rams and slaughtered them.

Muhammad ibn ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abd al-Hakam narrated to us, from Shu‘ayb, from al-Layth, from Kathir ibn Farqad, from Nafi‘, that ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar informed him that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) would slaughter or perform nahr at the prayer ground.

Muhammad ibn Qudamah reported to me, from Jarir, from Ibrahim ibn Muhammad ibn al-Muntashir. I asked, “From his father?” He replied, “Yes, from Habib ibn Salim, from al-Nu‘man ibn Bashir.” He said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) would recite on Friday and Eid: “Glorify the name of your Lord, the Most High” and “Has the account of the Overwhelming reached you?” When Friday and Eid fell on the same day, he would recite both of them.

‘Amr ibn ‘Ali narrated to us; he said: ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn Mahdi narrated to us; he said: Isra’il narrated to us, from ‘Uthman ibn al-Mughirah, from Iyas ibn Abi Ramlah, who said: I heard Mu‘awiyah ask Zayd ibn Arqam, “Did you attend two Eid prayers with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)?” He said: “Yes. He prayed the Eid prayer early in the day, then granted a concession concerning the Friday prayer.”

Muhammad ibn Bashshar narrated to us; he said: Yahya narrated to us; he said: ‘Abd al-Hamid ibn Ja‘far narrated to us; he said: Wahb ibn Kaysan narrated to me: Two Eids coincided during the time of Ibn al-Zubayr. He delayed going out until the day was well advanced, then went out and delivered a long sermon. Then he came down and prayed, and that day he did not lead the people in the Friday prayer. This was mentioned to Ibn ‘Abbas, and he said: “He followed the Sunnah correctly.”

Qutaybah ibn Sa‘id narrated to us; he said: Muhammad ibn Ja‘far narrated to us, from Ma‘mar, from al-Zuhri, from ‘Urwah, from ‘A’ishah, that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) came to her while two young girls with her were beating tambourines. Abu Bakr rebuked them, but the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Leave them, for every people has its own festival.”

Muhammad ibn Adam narrated to us, from ‘Abdah, from Hisham, from his father, from ‘A’ishah, who said: On an Eid day, some Black men came and played in front of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). He called me, and I watched them from over his shoulder. I kept watching them until I was the one who left.

‘Ali ibn Khashram narrated to us; he said: al-Walid narrated to us; he said: al-Awza‘i narrated to us, from al-Zuhri, from ‘Urwah, from ‘A’ishah, who said: I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) screen me with his cloak while I watched the Ethiopians playing in the mosque, until I became tired. So take into account the eagerness for play of a young girl who is still of tender age.