Jurisprudence and Juristic Principles

‘Ā'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported that A solar eclipse occurred during the Prophet's lifetime and he sent someone to summon people for a congregational prayer. They gathered and he came forward and began the prayer by making Takbīr. He bowed four times and prostrated four times in two Rak‘ahs.

‘Ā'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported: During the lifetime of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) the sun eclipsed, so he led the people in prayer. He stood for a long time and then bowed for a long time. He stood again for a long time, but this time the period of standing was shorter than the first time. He then bowed again for a long time, but it was shorter than the first time, and then he prostrated and prolonged the prostration. He did the same in the second Rak‘ah and then finished the prayer. By that time, the sun had appeared. He delivered a sermon to the people and, after praising and glorifying Allah, he said: "The sun and the moon are two of the signs of Allah; they do not eclipse on the death or life of anyone. So when you see that, supplicate to Allah, say Takbīr, pray, and give charity." Then he said: "O followers of Muhammad, by Allah! No one gets more jealously protective than Allah when His male or female servant commits adultery. O followers of Muhammad, by Allah! If you knew what I know, you would laugh a little and weep a lot." The wording of another narration reads: "He completed bowing four times and four prostrations."

‘Ā'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported: “The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) used to start the prayer with the Takbīr and then read: "All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worldd." When he bowed, he neither raised his head nor lowered it, but kept it in between. When he raised his head from bowing, he would not prostrate until he had stood upright. When he raised his head from prostration, he would not prostrate (again) until he had sat upright. After each two units of prayer, he would recite the Tashahhud. He used to spread his left foot out and raise his right foot. He would forbid sitting in the manner of the devil and resting the forearms on the ground, as a lion does. He used to conclude the prayer with the Taslīm.

‘Ā’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported: I used to sleep in front of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) with my legs in his prayer direction. When he wanted to prostrate, he would prod me so that I withdraw my feet, and when he stood up, I would stretch them. In those days, houses had no lamps.

‘Ā'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported: 'At every part of the night, the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) prayed Witr: at its beginning, middle, and end. Finally he settled on performing Witr just before dawn.

Jābir ibn Samurah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The people of Kufa complained to ‘Umar ibn al-Khattāb (may Allah be pleased with him) about their governor Sa‘d (ibn Abi Waqqās) (may Allah be pleased with him). He dismissed him and appointed ‘Ammār as their governor. They lodged many complaints against Sa‘d and even alleged that Sa‘d does not know how to perform the prayers properly. ‘Umar sent for him and said: "O Abu Is'hāq, those people claim that you do not pray properly." He replied: "By Allah, I used to lead them in prayer exactly as I learnt from the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him). I prolong the first two Rak‘ahs of the ‘Ishā' prayer and shorten the last two." ‘Umar then said: "That is what I thought of you, O Abu Is'hāq." Then he sent a man (or more) with him to Kufa to ask the people about him. This man went there and did not leave any mosque without asking about Sa‘d. All the people praised him till he came to the mosque of the tribe of Banu ‘Abs; where a man called Usāmah ibn Qatādah, with a surname of Abu Sa‘d, stood up and said: "Since you asked, I am bound to tell you that Sa‘d never marched with the armies, nor did he ever divide the spoils of war fairly, nor was he ever fair in delivering justice regarding legal verdicts." This complaint reached Sa‘d and he said: "By Allah, I shall make three supplications: O Allah, if this slave of Yours is a liar and got up for showing off and speaking boastfully, then prolong his life, make him poor for the rest of his life, and afflict him with trials." This person suffered, following the invocation of Sa‘d and would tell people he was an old man subjected to trials because of Sa‘d’s invocation. ‘Abd al-Malik ibn ‘Umayr, who narrated from Jābir ibn Samurah, said: "I saw this man afterwards in such a state that his eyebrows were shaggy and had fallen over his eyelids, because of old age; and he used to wink at young girls as they pass by in the roads.”

‘Amr ibn Shu‘ayb reported from his father on the authority of his grandfather that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Command your children to pray when they are seven years old, and beat them for (not offering) it when they are ten, and separate them (boys and girls) in beds."

‘Abdullāh ibn Mas‘ūd (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I heard the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) say: "Incantations, amulets, and love-potions are Shirk (polytheism)."

‘Abdullāh ibn Zayd ibn ‘Āsim al-Māzini (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) went out to invoke Allah for rain. He faced the direction of Qiblah as he invoked Allah, and turned his upper garment inside out. Then he prayed two Rak‘ahs and recited the Qur'an out loud in them. In another wording: "...facing the place of praying."

Mutarrif ibn ‘Abdullāh reported: I prayed with ‘Imrān ibn Husayn behind ‘Ali ibn Abi Tālib. When he prostrated, he made Takbīr, when he raised his head he made Takbīr, and when he stood up after two Rak‘ahs, he made Takbīr. After he had finished praying, ‘Imrān took my hand and said: "This reminded me of the prayer of Muhammad (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him)." Or he said: "He led us in prayer the same way Muhammad (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) did."

‘Ā'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) was shrouded in some white Yemeni garments, with neither a shirt nor a turban.

Jubayr ibn Mut‘im (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I heard the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) reciting Sūrat At-Tūr in the Maghrib prayer

‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) Abu Bakr, and ‘Umar used to offer the Eid prayers before delivering the sermon.

‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Abbās (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: When the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) was on a journey, he used to combine the Zhuhr and ‘Asr prayers, as long as he was continuing with his journey, and also used to combine the Maghrib and ‘Ishā' prayers.

Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Abu Dharr, if you cook broth, increase its water and take care of your neighbors."

‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Amr ibn al-‘Ās (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Eat, drink, give charity, and wear clothes without extravagance or pride."

‘Ā’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported: The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Do not curse the dead, for they have reached the result of what they have done."

‘Abdur-Rahmān ibn Abi Layla reported: I came across Ka‘b ibn ‘Ujrah who said: Shall I offer you a present? The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) came out to us, and we said: O Messenger of Allah, we have learned how to greet you, but how should we invoke the blessings of Allah upon you? He said: "Say: Allāhumma salli ‘ala Muhammad wa ‘ala āli Muhammad kama sallayta ‘ala āli Ibrāhīm innaka hamīdun majīd. Allāhumma bārik' ala Muhammad wa' ala āli Muhammad kama bārakta' ala āli Ibrāhīm innaka hamīdun majīd (O Allah, bestow Your grace upon Muhammad and the family of Muhammad just as You bestowed Your grace upon the family of Abraham. Verily, You are Praiseworthy, All-Glorious. O Allah, bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad just as You blessed the family of Abraham. Verily, You are Praiseworthy, All-Glorious)."

‘Ubādah ibn as-Sāmit (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The prayer of the one who did not recite the Opening of the Book (Surat al-Fātihah) is invalid."

Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I have never prayed behind an Imām who was more brief and more perfect in prayer than the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him).