Next, he (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) would
seek refuge with Allaah the Exalted, saying:
I seek refuge with Allaah from the Evil
One, the Rejected, from his madness123,
his arrogance, and his poetry124.
Sometimes he would add to this, saying:
I seek refuge with Allaah, the
all-Hearing, the all-Knowing, from the Evil One
...125
Then he would recite,
In the Name of Allaah, the Most Merciful,
the Bestower of Mercy, but not loudly126.
Next, he would recite Soorah al-Faatihah and
divide his recitation, reciting one verse at a time. He
would say:
[Here he would pause, and then
say:]
[Then he would pause, and then
say:]
[Then he would pause, and then
say:]
... and so on, until the end of the soorah.
The rest of his recitation was also like this: stopping
at the end of the verse and not joining it with the one
after.127
Sometimes, he would recite,
(King of the Day of Judgment) instead
of
(Master of the Day of Judgment).128
He
would vehemently emphasise the importance of this
soorah, saying: "There is no prayer for the one who
did not recite [in it] the opening chapter [at
least]"129,
and in another saying: That prayer is not sufficient
in which a man does not recite the Opening of the
Book130.
He also said: He who performs a prayer in which he
does not recite the Opening of the Book, then it (i.e.
the prayer) is deficient, it is deficient, it is
deficient, incomplete.131.
He also said:
Allaah the Blessed and Exalted has said:
"I have divided the prayer132 between Myself and My
servant, into two halves: half of it is for Me and
half is for My servant, and My servant shall have what
he has asked
for."
Then the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu
'alaihi wa sallam) said: Recite! The servant says
"Praise be to Allaah, the Lord of the Worlds"; Allaah
the Exalted says "My servant has praised
Me". The servant says,
"The Most Merciful, the Bestower of Mercy"; Allaah
says, "My servant has
extolled Me". The
servant says "Master of the Day of Judgment"; Allaah
the Exalted says, "My servant has
glorified Me". The
servant says, "It is You (alone) we worship and it is
You (alone) we ask for help"; [He says:],
"This is between Me
and My servant, and My servant shall have what he has
asked for". The servant
says, "Guide us to the Straight Path, the Path of
those whom You have favoured, not of those who receive
Your anger, nor of those who go astray". [He says:],
"All these are for My
servant, and My servant shall have what he has asked
for."133
He also used to say: Allaah did not reveal in
the Torah or the Gospel anything like the Mother of the
Qur'aan. It is the Seven Oft-Repeated134[and
the Grand Recitation which have been bestowed upon
me].135
He (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) commanded "the
one who prayed badly" to recite it in his prayer136,
but said to one who could not remember it,
Say:
(I declare Allaah free from all defects;
all Praise be to Allaah; none has the right to be
worshipped but Allaah; Allaah is the Greatest; there is
no might or power except by Allaah)137.
He also said to "the one who prayed badly": If
you know some of the Qur'aan, then recite it, otherwise
praise Allaah, declare His Greatness and declare that
none has the right to be worshipped but Allaah;138
He
had given permission for those being led by the Imaam to
recite Soorah al-Faatihah in the loud prayers, when
once:
"he was praying Fajr and the recitation became
difficult for him. When he finished, he said:
Perhaps you recite behind your imaam. We said:
"Yes, quickly139,
O Messenger of Allaah." He said: Do not do so,
except for [each of you reciting] the opening chapter
of the Book, for the prayer is not valid of the one
who does not recite it.140
Later, he forbade them from reciting in the loud
prayers at all, when:
"He finished a prayer in which he was reciting
loudly (in one narration: it was the dawn prayer) and
said: Were any of you reciting with me just
now?! A man said: "Yes, I was, O Messenger of
Allaah". He said: I say, why am I contended
with? [Abu Hurairah said:] So the people stopped
reciting with the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu
'alaihi wa sallam) when he was reciting loudly after
hearing that from him [but they recited to themselves
quietly when the imaam was not reciting loudly]."141
He also made silence during the imaam's
recitation part of the completeness of following the
imaam, saying: The imaam is there to be followed, so
when he says takbeer, say takbeer, and when he recites,
be silent142,
just as he made listening to the imaam's recitation
enough to not have to recite behind him, saying: He
who has an imaam, then the recitation of the imaam is
recitation for him143
- this applying in the loud prayers.
As
for the quiet prayers, he urged them to recite during
them; Jaabir said, "We used to recite behind the imaam
in Zuhr and 'Asr: soorah al-Faatihah and another soorah
in the first two rak'ahs, and soorah al-Fatihah in the
last two."144
However, he dissuaded them from confusing him
with their recitation, when:
"he prayed Zuhr with his Companions and said
(afterwards): Which of you recited "Glorify the
name of your Lord the Most High" (soorah al-A'laa,
87)? Someone said: It was I [but I was only
intending nothing but good by doing so]. So he said:
I knew that someone was contending with me by
it.145
In another hadeeth: "They used to recite behind the
Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) [loudly], so
he said: You have mixed up my (recitation of the)
Qur'aan.146
He also said: Truly, the person praying is
privately consulting his Lord, so he should be careful
about what he consults him with, and you should not
recite the Qur'aan loudly over each other.147
He also used to say: Whoever recited a harf
(letter) from the Book of Allaah, it will count for him
as one good deed, and a good deed is worth ten times
over. I do not mean that "alif laam meem" is a harf, but
"alif" is a harf, "laam" is a harf, and "meem" is a
harf.148
When
he (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) finished reciting al-
Faatihah, he would say:
("aameen") loudly, prolonging his voice.149
He also used to order the congregation to say
aameen: When the imaam says,
"Not of those who receive (Your) anger,
nor of those who go astray", then say "aameen" [for the
angels say "aameen" and the imaam says aameen"] (in
another narration: when the imaam says "aameen" say
"aameen"), so he whose aameen coincides with the aameen
of the angels (in another narration: when one of
you says "aameen" in prayer and the angels in the sky
say "aameen", and they coincide), his past sins are
forgiven.150
In another hadeeth: ... then say aameen; Allaah will
answer you.151
He also used to say: The Jews do not envy you
over anything as much as they envy you over the
salutation and aameen [behind the imaam].152
Next, he (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) would
recite another soorah after al-Faatihah, making it long
sometimes, and on other occasions making it short
because of travel, cough, illness or the crying of
infants.
Anas ibn Maalik (may Allaah be pleased with him)
said: "He (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) made it [i.e.
the recitation] short one day in the dawn prayer." (In
another hadeeth: he prayed the morning prayer and
recited the two shortest soorahs in the Qur'aan.) So it
was said: "O Messenger of Allaah, why did you make it
short?" He said: I heard the crying of a child, and I
supposed that his mother was praying with us, so I
wanted to free his mother for him.153
He also used to say: I enter into prayer
intending to lengthen it, but I hear the crying of a
child so I shorten my prayer because I know how deeply
his mother feels about his crying.154
He used to start from the beginnning of a soorah,
completing it most of the time.155
He used to say: Give every soorah its share of
rukoo' and sujood.156
In another narration: Every soorah should have a
rak'ah.157
Sometimes he would divide the soorah into two
rak'ahs158
and sometimes he would repeat the whole soorah in the
second rak'ah159.
Sometimes he would combine two or more soorahs in
one rak'ah.160
One of the Ansaar used to lead them in the mosque
of Qubaa', and every time he recited a soorah161
for them, he would begin with "Say: He is Allaah,
the One and Only " (soorah al- Ikhlaas,
112) until its end, and then recite another soorah with
it, and he would do this in every rak'ah. Because of
this, his people spoke to him, saying: "You begin with
this soorah, and then you do not regard it as enough
until you recite another one: you should either recite
it (only) or leave it and recite another one. He said:
"I will not leave it: if you do not mind me leading you
with it, I shall carry on, but if you do not like it, I
shall leave you." They knew that he was one of their
best, and they did not like to be led by anyone else, so
when the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) came to
them, they told him the story. He said: O so- and-so,
what stops you from doing what your people ask you to?
What makes you recite this soorah in every rak'ah?
He said: "I love this soorah." He said: Your love for
it will enter you into the Garden.162
He
used to combine the pairs163
of the mufassal164
soorahs, so he used to recite one of the following pairs
of soorahs in one rak'ah165:
- ar-Rahmaan (55:78)166
& an-Najm (53:62);
- al-Qamar (54:55) & al-Haaqqah (69:52);
- at-Toor (52:49) & Dhaariyaat (51:60);
- al-Waaqi'ah (56:96) & al-Qalam (68:52);
- al-Ma'aarij (70:44) & an-Naazi'aat (79:46);
- al-Mutaffifeen (83:36) & 'Abasa (80:42);
- al-Muddaththir (74:56 ) & al-Muzzammil
(73:20);
- ad-Dahr (76:31) & al-Qiyaamah (75:40);
- an-Naba (78:40) & al-Mursalaat (77:50);
- ad-Dukhaan (44:59) & at-Takweer
(81:29).
Sometimes he would combine soorahs from the seven
tiwaal (long soorahs), such as al-Baqarah, an-Nisaa' and
aal-Imraan in one rak'ah during night prayer (below). He
used to say: The most excellent prayer is one with
long standing.167
When he recited, "Does He not have the power
to give life to the dead?" (Qiyaamah 75:40), he
would say,
(Glory be to You, of course!)
and when he recited,"Glorify the name of your
Lord Most High" (A'laa 87:1), he would
say,
(Glorified be my Lord Most High).168
Mu'aadh ibn Jabal used to pray 'Ishaa' [the last]
with the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa
sallam), and then return and lead his people in prayer.
One night when he returned and prayed with them, a young
man [called Sulaim, of the Banu Salamah] from his people
prayed, but when it became too long for him, he [went
away and] prayed [in the corner of the mosque], then
came out, took the reins of his camel and departed. When
Mu'aadh had prayed, this was mentioned to him, so he
said: "He surely has some hypocrisy in him! I will
surely tell the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi
wa sallam) what he has done." The young man said: "And I
will tell the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi
wa sallam) what he has done." So in the morning they
came to the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa
sallam), and Mu'aadh informed him of what the young man
had done. The young man said: "O Messenger of Allaah! He
stays a long time with you, and then he returns and
lengthens it for us." So the Messenger of Allaah
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said: Are you one who
causes great trouble, Mu'aadh?! and he said to the
young man169:
What do you do when you pray, son of my brother?
He said: "I recite the opening chapter of the Book, then
I ask Allaah for the Garden, and seek refuge with Him
from the Fire. I know neither your dandanah170
nor the dandanah of Mu'aadh!" So the Messenger of Allaah
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said: I and Mu'aadh
are similar in this.
The narrator said: The young man said, "But
Mu'aadh will know (about me) on going to the people when
they will have been informed that the enemy has
arrived." The narrator said: So the enemy came, and the
young man attained shahaadah (martyrdom). So after that
the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam)
said to Mu'aadh, What did the one disputing with me
and you do? He said, "O Messenger of Allaah, he was
true to Allaah, and I spoke falsely - he was
martyred."171
He
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) used to recite loudly in
the morning prayer and in the first two rak'ahs of
Maghrib and 'Ishaa', and quietly in Zuhr, 'Asr, the
third rak'ah of Maghrib and the last two rak'ahs of
Ishaa'.172
They could tell when he was reciting quietly from
the movement of his beard173,
and because he would let them hear an aayah or so
sometimes174.
He also recited loudly in Friday prayer and the
two 'Eid prayers175,
in the prayer for rain176,
and in the eclipse prayer177.
As
for night prayer, he would sometimes recite quietly and
sometimes loudly179,
and "he used to recite in his house such that he could
be heard in the courtyard."180
"Occasionally he would raise his voice more than that
until someone lying in bed could hear him"181
(i.e. from outside the courtyard).
He ordered Abu Bakr and 'Umar (Allaah be pleased
with them) likewise, when:
"he came out at night to find Abu Bakr (Allaah
be pleased with him) praying in a low voice, and he
passed by 'Umar ibn al-Khattaab (Allaah be pleased
with him) who was praying in a loud voice. Later, when
they gathered around the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi
wa sallam) said: O Abu Bakr, I passed by you and
you were praying in a low voice? He said: "I let
Him whom I was consulting hear, O Messenger of
Allaah." He said to 'Umar: I passed by you and you
were praying raising your voice? So he said: "O
Messenger of Allaah, I repel drowsiness and keep the
devil away." The Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa
sallam) said: O Abu Bakr, raise your voice a little
bit and to 'Umar: lower your voice a little bit.182
He used to say: The one who recites the
Qur'aan loudly is like the one who gives charity loudly,
and the one who recites the Qur'aan quietly is like the
one who gives charity quietly.183
As
for which soorahs and aayaat he (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa
sallam) used to recite in prayer, this varied according
to the different prayers. The details now follow,
beginning with the first of the five prayers:
He
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) used to recite the
longer mufassal184
surahs185,
hence "he (sometimes) recited al-Waaqi'ah (56:96) and
similar surahs in two rak'ahs"186.
He recited from soorah at-Toor (52:49) during the
Farewell Pilgrimage.187
Sometimes "he would recite soorah Qaaf (50:45) or
similar [in the first rak'ah]."188
Sometimes "he would recite the shorter mufassal
surahs, such as "When the sun is folded up"
(at-Takweer 81:29)."189
Once, he recited "When the Earth is
shaken" (Zilzaal 99:8) in both rak'ahs, so that the
narrator said, "I do not know whether the Messenger of
Allaah forgot or recited it on purpose."190
Once, on a journey, he recited "Say: I seek
refuge with the Lord of the Daybreak" (Falaq 113:5)
and "Say: I seek refuge with the Lord of
Mankind" (Naas 114:6).191
He also said to 'Uqbah ibn 'Aamir (may Allaah be pleased
with him): Recite the mu'awwadhatain192
in your prayer, for no seeker of refuge has sought
refuge by means of anything like them.193
Sometimes he used to recite more than that: "he
would recite sixty aayaat or more"194
- one of the narrators said, "I do not know whether this
was in each rak'ah or in total."
He used to recite soorah ar-Room (30:60)195
and sometimes soorah Yaa Sin (36:83)196.
Once, "he prayed the Subh [i.e. Fajr Prayer] in
Makkah and started reciting soorah al-Mu'minoon (23:118)
until, when he got to the mention of Moosaa and Haaroon
or the mention of 'Isa197
- one of the narrators was not sure - he started
coughing and so made rukoo'."198
Sometimes, "he would lead them in Fajr with
as-Saaffaat" (77:182).199
"In Fajr on Friday, he would recite as-Sajdah
(32:30) [in the first rak'ah, and, in the second,]
ad-Dahr" (76:31).200
He used to make the first rak'ah longer than the
second.201
His
recitation in the two rak'ahs of sunnah in Fajr used to
be extremely short202,
so much so that 'Aa'ishah (may Allaah be pleased with
her) used to say: "Has he recited soorah al- Faatihah or
not ?"203
Sometimes, after al-Faatihah, he would recite the
aayah "Say: We believe in Allaah and the revelation
given to us..." (Baqarah 2:136) in the first
rak'ah; in the second, the aayah "Say: O People of
the Book! Come to common terms as between us and
you..." (aal-'Imraan 3:64).204
Occasionally, he would recite instead of the latter,
"When 'Isa found unbelief on their part..."
(aal-'Imraan 3:52).205
Sometimes he would recite soorah al-Kaafiroon
(109:6) in the first rak'ah, and soorah al-Ikhlaas
(112:4) in the second;206
also, he used to say: An excellent pair of soorahs
they are!207
He heard a man reciting the former soorah in the first
rak'ah, so he said, This is a slave who believes in
his Lord. Then the man recited the latter soorah in
the second rak'ah, so he said, This is a slave who
knows his Lord.208
"He
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) used to recite
al-Faatihah and two soorahs in the first two rak'ahs,
making the first one longer than the second."209
Sometimes he would make lengthen it to the extent
that "the Zuhr prayer would have started, and someone
could go to a plain: al-Baqi,' fulfil his need, [come
back to his place,] make his ablution, and then come (to
the mosque) while the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu
'alaihi wa sallam) was still in the first rak'ah, it was
that long."210.
Also, "they used to think that he did it so that the
people could catch the first rak'ah."211
"He used to recite in each of these two rak'ah
about thirty aayaat, such as al-Faatihah followed by
soorah as-Sajdah (32:30)."212
Sometimes "he would recite "By the Sky and
the Night-Visitant" (Taariq, 86:17), "By the
Sky, (displaying) the Constellations" (Burooj,
85:22), "By the Night as it conceals" (Layl,
92:21) and similar soorahs."213
Occasionally, he recited "When the Sky is
rent asunder" (Inshiqaaq 84:25) and similar ones.214
"They could tell that he was reciting in Zuhr and
'Asr from the movement of his beard."215
"He
used to make the last two rak'ahs about half as long as
the first two, about fifteen aayaat216,
and sometimes he would recite only al-Faatihah in
them."217
Sometimes "he would let them hear an aayah or
so."218
"They would hear the tones of his recitation of
"Glorify the name of your Lord Most High"
(A'laa 87:19) and "Has the story reached you of the
Overwhelming ?" (Ghaashiyah 88:26)."219
Sometimes "he would recite "By the Sky and
the Night-Visitant" (Taariq, 86:17), "By the
Sky, (displaying) the Constellations" (Burooj,
85:22), and similar soorahs."220
Sometimes "he would recite "By the Night as
it conceals" (Layl 92:21) and similar soorahs."221
"He
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) used to recite
al-Faatihah and two (other) soorahs in the first two
rak'ahs, making the first one longer than the second"222,
and "they used to think that he did it so that the
people could catch the rak'ah."223
"He used to recite about fifteen aayaat in each
of the first two rak'ahs, about half as much as he
recited in each of the first two rak'ahs of Zuhr, and he
used to make the last two rak'ahs about half as long the
first two."224
"He used to recite al-Faatihah in the last
two."225
"He
would let them hear an aayah or so sometimes."226
He used to recite the surahs mentioned under
"Zuhr prayer" above.
"He
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) used to (sometimes)
recite the short mufassal soorahs"227,
so that "when they had finished praying with him, they
could go away and (it was possible to) shoot an arrow
and see where it landed."228
Once, "while on a journey, he recited "By the Fig
and the Olive" (Teen 95:8) in the second rak'ah."229
But sometimes he would recite the long or medium
mufassal surahs, hence "he would recite "Those who
disbelieve and hinder (men) from the Path of
Allaah" (Muhammad 47:48);"230
or soorah at-Toor (52:49);231
or soorah al-Mursalaat (77:50), which he recited in the
last prayer he prayed.232
Sometimes "he would recite the longer of the two
long surahs233
(A'raaf 7:206) [in two rak'ahs]."234
Or he would recite al- Anfaal (8:75) in two rak'ahs.235
In
this prayer, "he used to recite "Say: O you who
reject faith" (Kaafiroon 109:6) and "Say: He is
Allaah, the One and Only" (Ikhlaas 112:4)."236
He
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) would recite the medium
mufassal surahs in the first two rak'ahs237,
hence "he used to recite "By the Sun and his
splendour" (Shams 91:15) and surahs like it."238
Or "he would recite "When the Sky is rent
asunder" (Inshiqaaq 84:25) and make sajdah during
it."239
Also, "he once recited "By the Fig and the
Olive" (Teen 95:8) [in the first rak'ah] while on a
journey."240
He forbade prolonging of recitation in 'Ishaa',
and that was when:
Mu'aadh ibn Jabal led his people in 'Ishaa'
prayer, and made it very long for them, so one of the
Ansaar left and prayed (alone). When Mu'aadh was
informed about this, he said: "He is surely a
hypocrite". When the man heard of this, he went to the
Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam)
and told him what Mu'aadh had said, so the Prophet
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said to him: "Do
you want to be on who causes a lot of trouble,
Mu'aadh?! When you lead the people, recite "By the
Sun and his splendour" (Shams 91:15) or
"Glorify the Name of your Lord Most High"
(A'laa 77:19) or "Read in the Name of your
Lord" ('Alaq 96:19) or "By the Night
as it conceals" (Layl 92:21) [because the
old, the weak and those who have a need to fulfil pray
behind you]."241
He
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) would sometimes recite
loudly in it and sometimes quietly,242
He (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) would shorten his
recitation in this sometimes and lengthen it sometimes,
occasionally making it so exceedingly long that
'Abdullaah ibn Mas'ood (radi Allaahu 'anhu) once said:
"I prayed with the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa
sallam) one night, and he carried on standing for so
long that I was struck by a wrong idea." He was asked,
"What was this idea?" He said: "I thought I would sit
down and leave the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa
sallam)!"243
Also Hudhaifah ibn al-Yamaan said:
"I
prayed with the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa
sallam) that night when he started soorah al-Baqarah
(2:286). So I said (to myself), "He will make rukoo'
after one hundred aayaat". But he carried on after
that, so I thought, "He will finish it (the soorah) in
two rak'ahs". But he carried on, so I thought, "He
will make rukoo' when he has finished it." Then he
started soorah an-Nisaa' (4:176) and recited it all,
then he started soorah aal-'Imraan (3:200)244
and recited it all. He was reciting slowly; when he
came to an aayah in which there was glorification of
Allaah, he glorified Allaah; at an aayah which had
something to be asked for, he asked for it; at mention
of seeking refuge, he sought refuge (with Allaah).
Then he made rukoo' ... " to the end of the hadeeth.245
Also, "one night when he was ill he recited the
Seven Long surahs."246
Also, "he would (sometimes) recite one of these
surahs in each rak'ah."247
"It was [totally] unknown for him to recite the
whole Qur'aan in one night."248
In fact, he did not recommend it for 'Abdullaah ibn 'Amr
(may Allaah be pleased with him) when he said to him:
Recite the whole Qur'aan in each month. I
said: "I have the power (to do more than that)." He
said: Recite it in twenty nights. I said: "I have
the power to do more". He said: Then recite it in
seven days and do not go beyond that.249
Then "he allowed him to recite it in five days."250
Then "he allowed him to recite it in three days."251
Further, he forbade him from reciting it in less time
than that252,
and he gave a reason for that by saying to him:
Whoever recites the Qur'aan in less than three days
does not understand it.253
In another version: He does not understand, the one
who recites the Qur'aan in less than three days.254
Also when he said to him: For every worshipper has a
(period of) keenness255
and every (period of) keenness has a lapse256,
either towards a sunnah or towards a bid'ah
(innovation); so he whose lapse is towards a sunnah has
found guidance, and he whose lapse is towards other than
that has been destroyed.257
For this reason, "he (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa
sallam) would not recite the whole Qur'aan in less than
three days."258
He used to say: Whoever prays at night
reciting two hundred aayaat will be written down as one
of the sincere devotees.259
Also, "he used to recite soorah Bani Israa'eel (17:111)
and soorah az-Zumar (39:75) every night."260
He also used to say: Whoever prays at night reciting
a hundred aayaat will not be written down as one of the
heedless.261
Sometimes "he would recite about fifty aayaat or more in
each rak'ah"262,
or he "would recite about as much as soorah al-Muzzammil
(73:20)."263
"He (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) would not
pray all through the night"264
except rarely, for once:
"
'Abdullaah ibn Khabbaab ibn al-Arat - who was present
at (the Battle of) Badr with the Messenger of Allaah
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) - stayed up the whole
night with the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu
'alaihi wa sallam) (in another version: a night when
he prayed throughout it) until it was dawn. So when he
finished his prayer, Khabbaab said to him: "O
Messenger of Allaah, may my father and mother be
sacrificed for you! Tonight, you have prayed a prayer
the like of which I have never seen?" He said: Yes,
it was a prayer of hope and fear; [indeed] I asked my
Lord, Mighty and Sublime, three things; He granted me
two, but refused me one. I asked my Lord that He would
not destroy us the way the nations before us were (in
another version: that He would not destroy my ummah
with famine) and He granted me this; I asked my Lord,
Mighty and Sublime, that He would not impose on us an
enemy from outside us, and He granted me this; and I
asked my Lord not to cover us with confusion in party
strife, but He refused me this." "265
Also, one night he stood (in prayer) repeating
one aayah until it was dawn:
"If You do punish them, they are Your
servants; if You do forgive them, You are indeed the
Exalted in Power, the Wise." (Maa'idah 5:121)
[with it he bowed, with it he prostrated, and with it
he supplicated], [so in the morning Abu Dharr (radi
Allaahu 'anhu) said to him: "O Messenger of Allaah,
you did not stop reciting this aayah until it was
morning; you bowed with it and you prostrated with it]
[and you supplicated with it,] [whereas Allaah has
taught you the whole Qur'aan;] [if one of us were to
do this, we would be stern with him?] [He said:
Indeed I asked my Lord, the Mighty and Sublime, for
intercession for my ummah: He granted me it, and it
will be possible if Allaah wills for whoever does not
associate any partners with Allaah.266
A man said to him: "O Messenger of Allaah, I have
a neighbour who stands (in prayer) at night and does not
recite anything except "Say: He is Allaah the One
and Only" (Ikhlaas 112:4), [repeating it,] [not
adding anything else,] as if he considers it little." So
the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said: By
Him in Whose Hand is my soul, it is worth a third of the
Qur'aan.267
"He
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) used to recite
"Glorify the Name of Your Lord Most High"
(al-A'laa 87:19) in the first rak'ah, "Say: O you
who disbelieve" (Kaafiroon 109:6) in the second,
and "Say: He is Allaah the One and Only"
(Ikhlaas 112:4) in the third.268
Sometimes he would add on to the last one "Say: I
seek refuge with the Lord of Daybreak" (Falaq
113:5) and "Say: I seek refuge with the Lord of
Mankind" (Naas 114:6).269
Once, "he recited a hundred aayaat from soorah an-Nisaa'
(4:176) in the third rak'ah."270
As for the two rak'ahs after witr271,
he used to recite "When the earth is shaken "
(Zilzaal 99:8) and "Say: O you who disbelieve"
(Kaafiroon 109:6) in them.272
He
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) would sometimes recite
soorah al-Jumu'ah (62:11) in the first rak'ah and
"When the hypocrites come to you" (Munaafiqoon
63:11)273
in the second, sometimes reciting "Has the story
reached you of the Overwhelming?" (Ghaashiyah
88:26) instead of the latter.274
Or sometimes "he would recite "Glorify the Name of
your Lord Most High" (A'laa 87:19) in the first
rak'ah and "Has the story reached you"
(Ghaashiyah 88:26) in the second."275
"He
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) would (sometimes) recite
"Glorify the Name of your Lord Most High"
(A'laa 87:19) in the first rak'ah and "Has the story
reached you" (Ghaashiyah 88:26) in the second."276
Or sometimes "he would recite in them "Qaaaaf. By
the Glorious Qur'aan." (Qaaf 50:45) and "The
Hour has drawn near" (Qamar 54:55)."277
"The
Sunnah is to recite al-Faatihah278
[and another soorah] in it."279
Also, "he would be silent for a while, after the first
takbeer."280
He
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) used to recite the
Qur'aan in slow, measured rythmic tones as Allaah had
instructed him, not racing or hurrying; rather, his was
"a recitation clearly- distinguishing each letter"1,
so much so that "he would recite a soorah in such slow
rhythmic tones that it would be longer than would seem
possible."2
He also used to say: It will be said to the
reciter of the Qur'aan (on the Day of Judgment), 'Recite
and ascend; recite slowly and rhythmically as you used
to do in the previous world; your place will be at the
last aayah you recite.3
He "used to prolong his recitation (at a letter
which can be prolonged), such as at bismil-laah, at
ar-rahmaan, and at ar- raheem"4,
and at "nadeed" (Qaaf 50:10)5
& their like.
He used to stop at the end of an aayah, as has
already been explained.6
Sometimes "he would recite in an attractive
vibrating tone7,
as he did on the Day of the Conquest of Makkah, when,
while on his she-camel, he recited soorah al-Fath
(48:29) [very softly]8,
and 'Abdullaah ibn Mughaffal narrated this attractive
tone thus : aaa."9
He used to command making one's voice beautiful
when reciting the Qur'aan, saying
Beautify the Qur'aan with your voices [for a
fine voice increases the Qur'aan in beauty]10
and
Truly, the one who has one of the finest
voices among the people for reciting the Qur'aan is the
one whom you think fears Allaah when you hear him
recite.11
He also used to command recitation of the Qur'aan
in a pleasant tone, saying: Study the Book of Allaah;
recite it repeatedly; acquire (memorise) it; and recite
it in a melodious tone, for by Him in whose Hand is my
soul, it runs away quicker than camels from their tying
ropes.12
He also used to say, He who does not recite
the Qur'aan in a pleasant tone is not of us13
and
Allaah does not listen to anything as he
listens (in some versions: as he is listening) to a
prophet [with a nice voice, and in one version: with a
nice melody] who recites the Qur'aan in a pleasant
tone14
[loudly].15
He said to Abu Moosaa al-Ash'ari (radi Allaahu
'anhu),
Had you seen me while I was listening to your
recitation yesterday! You have surely been given one of
the musical wind- instruments16
of the family of Daawood! [So Abu Moosaa said: "Had
I known you were there, I would have made my voice more
pleasant and emotional for you]."17
He
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) set the example of
correcting the imaam when his recitation becomes mixed
up, when once "he prayed, reciting loudly, and his
recitation became mixed up, so when he finished, he said
to Ubayy: Did you pray with us? He replied,
'Yes.' He said, So what prevented you [from
correcting me]?"18
'Uthmaan ibn Abi l-'Aas (radi Allaahu 'anhu) said
to him, "O Messenger of Allaah! The devil comes between
me and my prayer and confuses me in my recitation!" So
the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam)
said, That is a devil called Khinzab, so when you
detect him, seek refuge with Allaah from him, and spit
lightly19
on your left three times. He said, "So when I did
that, Allaah caused him to go away from me."20
