15. The Qur'an

Yahya related to me from Malik from Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr ibn Hazm that in a letter that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, sent to Amr ibn Hazm it said that no-one should touch the Qur'an unless he was pure. Malik said, "No-one should carry the Qur'an by its strap, or on a cushion, unless he is pure. If it were permissible to do so, it would also have been permissible to carry it in its cover. This is not because there is something on the hands of the one who carries it by which the Qur'an will be soiled, but because it is disapproved of for someone to carry the Qur'an without being pure out of respect for the Qur'an, and in order to honour it." Malik said, "The best thing that I have heard about this is the ayat 'None touch it except the purified.' (Sura 56 ayat 79) It ranks with the ayat in Surat Abasa (Sura 80), where Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, says, 'No, it is a reminder, and whoever wishes will remember it. Upon honoured pages, exalted and purified, by the hands of scribes, noble and obedient.' " Yahya related to me from Malik from Ayyub ibn Abi Tamima as-Sakhtayani from Muhammad ibn Sirin that Umar ibn al-Khattab was withsome people who were reciting Qur'an. He went to relieve himself andthen came back and recited Qur'an. One of the men said to him, "Amiral muminin, are you reciting the Qur'an without being in wudu?" Umarreplied, "Who gave you a verdict on this? Was it Musaylima?"' Yahya related to me from Malik from Dawud ibn al-Husayn from al-Araj from Abd ar-Rahman ibn Abd al-Qari that Umar ibn al Khattab said,"Whoever misses reading his hizb at night and reads it from when thesun has passed the meridian until the dhuhr prayer has not missed it,or it is as if he has caught it." Yahya related to me from Malik that Yahya ibn Said said, "OnceMuhammad ibn Yahya ibn Habban and I were sitting down, and Muhammadcalled a man over to him and said to him, 'Tell me what you have heardfrom your father.' The man replied that his father had told him thathe went to Zayd ibn Thabit and asked him, 'What do you think ofreciting the whole Qur'an in seven days?' Zayd said, 'That's good,but I prefer to recite it in two weeks, or ten days. Ask me why thatis.' He said, 'I ask you then.' Zayd said, 'So that I can reflect onit and pause in it.' " Yahya related to me from Malik from Ibn Shihab from Urwa ibn az-Zubayr that Abd ar-Rahman ibn Abd al-Qari said that he had heard Umaribn al-Khattab say, "I heard Hisham ibn Hakim ibn Hizam reciting Suratal-Furqan (Sura 25) differently from me, and it was the Messenger ofAllah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, who had recited it tome. I was about to rush up to him but I granted him a respite until hehad finished his prayer. Then I grabbed him by his cloak and took himto the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace,and said, 'Messenger of Allah, I heard this man reciting Surat al-Furqan differently from the way you recited it to me.' The Messengerof Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, 'Let him go.'Then he said, 'Recite, Hisham,' and Hisham recited as I had heard himrecite. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant himpeace, said, 'It was sent down like that.' Then he said to me,'Recite' and I recited the sura, and he said, 'It was sent down likethat. This Qur'an was sent down in seven (different) ways, so recitefrom it whatever is easy for you .' " Yahya related to me from Malik from Nafi from Abdullah ibn Umarthat the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace,said, "A man who knows the Qur'an well is like a man who has a hobbledcamel. If he takes care of it, he keeps it, and if he lets it go, itgets away." Yahya related to me from Malik from Hisham ibn Urwa from hisfather from A'isha, the wife of the Prophet, may Allah bless him andgrant him peace, that al-Harith ibn Hisham asked the Messenger ofAllah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, "How does therevelation come to you?" and the Messenger of Allah, may Allah blesshim and grant him peace, said, "Sometimes it comes to me like theringing of a bell, and that is the hardest for me, and when it leavesme I remember what it has said. And sometimes the angel appears to mein the likeness of a man and talks to me and I remember what he says." A'isha added, "I saw it coming down on him on an intenselycold day, and when it had left him his forehead was dripping withsweat." Yahya related to me from Malik from Hisham ibn Urwa that hisfather said that Abasa (Sura 80) was sent down about Abdullah ibn UmmMaktum. He came to the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant himpeace, and began to say, "O Muhammad, show me a place near you (whereI can sit)," whilst one of the leading men of the idol worshippers wasin audience with the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace.The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, began to turnaway from him and give his attention to the other man, and he said tohim, "Father of so-and-so, do you see any harm in what I am saying?"and he said, "No, by the blood (of our sacrifices) I see no harm inwhat you are saying." And Abasa - "He frowned and turned away whenthe blind man came" - was sent down. Yahya related to me from Malik from Zayd ibn Aslam from his father that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was on one of his journeys, and one night Umar ibn al-Khattab, who was travelling with him, asked him about something, but he did not answer him. He asked him again, but he did not answer him. Then he asked him again, and again he did not answer him. Umar said, "May your mother be bereaved of you, Umar. Three times you have importuned the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, with a question and he has not answered you at all." Umar continued, "I got my camel moving until, when I was in front of the people, I feared that a piece of Qur'an was being sent down about me. It was not long before I heard a crier calling for me, and I said that I feared that a piece of Qur'an had been sent down about me." He continued, "I came to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and said, 'Peace be upon you' to him, and he said, 'A sura has been sent down to me this night that is more beloved to me than anything on which the sun rises.' Then he recited al-Fath (Sura 48). Yahya related to me from Malik from Yahya ibn Said from Muhammadibn Ibrahim ibn al-Harith at-Taymi from Abu Salama ibn Abd ar Rahmanthat Abu Said said that he had heard the Messenger of Allah, may Allahbless him and grant him peace, say, "A group of people will appearamong you whose prayer, fasting and deeds will make you think littleof your own prayer, fasting and deeds. They will recite the Qur'an,but it wil not get past their throats, and they will pass through thedeen like an arrow passes through game. You look at the arrowhead, andyou see nothing, and you look at the shaft, and you see nothing, andyou look at the flights, and you see nothing. And you are in doubtabout the notch." Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that it tookAbdullah ibn Umar eight years to learn Surat al-Baqara. (Sura 2) Yahya related to me from Malik from Abdullah ibn Yazid, the mawlaof al Aswad ibn Sufyan, from Abu Salama ibn Abd ar Rahman that AbuHurayra recited al-Inshiqaq (Sura 84) to them and prostrated in it.When he had finished he told them that the Messenger of Allah, mayAllah bless him and grant him peace, had prostrated in it. Yahya related to me from Malik from Nafi, the mawla of Ibn Umarthat a man from Egypt told him that Umar ibn al-Khattab recited Suratal-Hajj (Sura 22) and prostrated twice in it, and then said, "Thissura has been given special preference by having two prostrations init." Yahya related to me from Malik that Abdullah ibn Dinar said, "Isaw Abdullah ibn Umar prostrate twice in Surat al-Hajj (Sura 22)." Yahya related to me from Malik from Ibn Shihab from al-Araj thatUmar ibn al Khattab recited Surat an-Najm (Sura 53) and prostrated init, and then got up and recited another sura. Yahya related to me from Malik from Hisham ibn Urwa from his father that Umar ibn al-Khattab once recited a piece of Qur'an requiring a prostration while he was on the mimbar on the day of jumua, and he came down and prostrated, and everyone prostrated with him. Then he recited it again the next jumua and everybody prepared to prostrate but he said, "At your ease. Allah has not prescribed it for us, unless we wish." He did not prostrate, and he stopped them from prostrating. Malik said, "The imam does not come down and prostrate when he recites a piece of Qur'an requiring a prostration while he is on the mimbar." Malik said, "The position with us is that there are eleven prescribed prostrations in the Qur'an, none of which are in the mufassal." Malik said, "No-one should recite any of the pieces of Qur'an that require a prostration after the prayers of subh and asr. This is because the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, forbade prayer after subh until after the sun had risen, and after asr until the sun had set, and prostration is part of the prayer. So no-one should recite any piece of Qur'an requiring a prostration during these two periods of time." Malik was asked whether a menstruating woman could prostrate if she heard some-one reciting a passage of Qur'an requiring a prostration, and he said, "Neither a man nor a woman should prostrate unless they are ritually pure." Malik was asked whether a man in the company of a woman who was reciting a passage of Qur'an requiring a prostration should prostrate with her, and he said, "He does not have to prostrate with her. The prostration is only obligatory for people who are with a man who is leading them. He recites the piece and they prostrate with him. Some one who hears a piece of Qur'an that requires a prostration being recited by a man who is not leading him in prayer does not have to do the prostration." Yahya related to me from Malik from Abd ar-Rahman ibn Abdullahibn Sasaca from his father that Abu Said al-Khudri heard a manreciting Surat al-Ikhlas (Sura 112), repeating it over and over again.In the morning he went to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless himand grant him peace, and mentioned it to him, as if he thought littleof it. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant himpeace, said, "Bythe One in whose hand my self is, it is equal to onethird of the Qur'an." Yahya related to me from Malik from Ubaydullah ibn Abd ar-Rahmanthat Ubayd ibn Hunayn, the mawla of the family of Zayd ibn al Khattab,said that he had heard Abu Hurayra say, "I was going along with theMessenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, when heheard a man reciting Surat al-Ikhlas (Sura 112). The Messenger ofAllah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, 'It isobligatory,' and I asked him, 'What is, Messenger of Allah?' and hesaid, 'The Garden.' I wanted to tell the man the good news but I wasafraid that I would miss the midday meal with the Messenger of Allah,may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and I preferred to eat withthe Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. WhenI went to the man afterwards I found that he had gone." Yahya related to me from Malik from Ibn Shihab that Humayd ibnAbd ar-Rahman ibn Awf had told him that Surat al-Ikhlas (Sura 112) wasequal to a third of the Qur'an, and that Surat al-Mulk (Sura 67)pleaded for its owner. Yahya related to me from Malik from Sumayy, the mawla of AbuBakr, from Abu Salih as-Samman from Abu Hurayra that the Messenger ofAllah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Whoever says'There is no god but Allah, alone, without any partner. The Kingdomand praise belong to Him and He has power over everything' (La ilahailla'llah, wahdahu la sharika lah, lahu'l mulku wa lahu'l hamd, wahuwa ala kulli shay'in qadir) one hundred times a day, it is the samefor him as freeing ten slaves. One hundred good actions are writtenfor him and one hundred wrong actions are erased from him, and it is aprotection from Shaytan for that day until the night. No-one doesanything more excellent than what he does except someone who does morethan that." Yahya related to me from Malik from Sumayy, the mawla of AbuBakr, from Abu Salih as-Samman from Abu Hurayra that the Messenger ofAllah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Whoever says,'Glory be to Allah and with His praise' (Subhana'llah wa bi-hamdihi)one hundred times in a day will have his wrong actions taken away fromhim, even if they are as abundant as the foam on the sea." Yahya related to me from Malik from Abu Ubayd, the mawla ofSulayman ibn Abd al-Malik, from Ata ibn Yazid al-Laythi that AbuHurayra said, "Whoever says 'Glory be to Allah' (Subhana'llah) thirty-three times and 'Allah is Greater' (Allahu akbar) thirty-three timesand 'Praise be to Allah' (al-hamdu lillah) thirty-three times, andseals the hundred with 'There is no god but Allah, alone without anypartner. The Kingdom and praise belong to Him and He has power overeverything' (La ilaha illa'llah, wahdahu la sharika lah, lahu'l mulkuwa lahu'l hamd, wa huwa ala kulli shay'in qadir) after every prayerwill have his wrong actions forgiven him even if they are abundant asthe foam on the sea." Yahya related to me from Malik that Umara ibn Sayyad had heardSaid ibn al Musayyab say about abiding good deeds that they were aslave's saying 'Allah is greater' (Allahu akbar) and 'Glory be toAllah' (Subahana'llah) and 'Praise be to Allah' (al-hamdu lillah) and'There is no god but Allah and there is no power and no strengthexcept by Allah.' (La ilaha illa'llah wa la hawla wa laquwwata illa bi'llah.) Yahya related to me from Malik that Ziyad ibn Abi Ziyad said thatAbu'd-Darda had said, "Shall I not tell you the best of your deeds,and those that give you the highest rank, and those that are thepurest with your King, and are better for you than giving gold andsilver, and better for you than meeting your enemy and striking theirnecks?" They said, "Of course." He said, "Remembrance (dhikr) of Allahta ala." Malik related to me from Nuaym ibn Abdullah ibn al-Mujmir fromAIi ibn Yahya az-Zuraqi from his father that Rifaa ibn Rafi said, "Oneday we were praying behind the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless himand grant him peace, when the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless himand grant him peace, raised his head from ruku and said, 'Allah hearsthe one who praises Him' (Sami Allahu liman hamidah). A man behind himsaid, 'Our Lord, praise belongs to you - blessed, pure and abundantpraise' (Rabbana wa laka'l hamd, hamdan kathiran tayiban mubarakan fihi). Whenthe Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, hadfinished, he said, 'Who was it who spoke just now?' The man said, 'Idid, Messenger of Allah,' and the Messenger of Allah, may Allah blesshim and grant him peace, said, 'I saw more than thirty angels rushingto it to see which one of them would record it first.' " Yahya related to me from Malik from Abu'z-Zinad from al-Araj fromAbu Hurayra that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and granthim peace, said, "Every prophet is given a supplication (dua), and Iwish to preserve my dua as intercession for my community in the nextworld. Yahya related to me from Malik from Yahya ibn Said that he hadheard that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant himpeace, used to say the following dua, "O Allah, it is You who makesthe dawn break and makes the night a time for rest and appoints thesun and moon to reckon by. Relieve me of debt and enrich me frompoverty and let me enjoy my hearing, my sight and my strength in Yourway." Allahumma faliqa'l isbah, wa ja ila'l-layli sakana, wa'sh-shamsi wa'l-qamari husbana. Iqda anniy addayna, wa'ghnaniy mina'lfaqr. Na'mti aniy bi samiy wa basariy, wa quwwatiy fi sabilik. Yahya related to me from Malik from Abu'z Zinad from al-Arajfrom Abu Hurayra that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him andgrant him peace, said, ''When you are making dua do not say; 'O Allah,forgive me if You wish. O Allah, forgive me if you wish.' You shouldbe firm in your asking, for there is no compelling Him." Yahya related to me from Malik from Ibn Shihab from Abu Ubayd,the mawla of Ibn Azhar, from Abu Hurayra that the Messenger of Allah,may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "You will be answeredas long as you are not impatient and say, 'I have made a dua and Ihave not been answered .' " Yahya related to me from Malik from Ibn Shihab from Abu Abdullahal-Agharr and from Abu Salama from Abu Hurayra that the Messenger ofAllah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Our Lord, theBlessed and Exalted, descends every night to the heaven of this worldwhen the last third of the night is still to come and says, 'Who willcall on Me so that I may answer him? Who will ask Me so that I maygive him? Who will ask forgiveness of Me so that I may forgive him?' " Yahya related to me from Malik from Yahya ibn Said from Muhammadibn Ibrahim ibn al-Harith at-Taymi that A'isha, umm al-muminin said,"I was sleeping by the side of the Messenger of Allah, mayAllah blesshim and grant him peace, and I missed him in the night, so I felt forhim with my hand and I put my hand on his feet and he was in sajdasaying, 'I seek refuge in Your pleasure from Your wrath, and in Yourpardon from Your punishment, and in You from You. I cannot enumerateYour praises as You praise Yourself.' " Audhu bi ridaka minsakhatika, wa bi muafatika min uqubatika wa bika minka, la uhsiythana'an alayka, anta kama athnayta ala nafsika. Yahya related to me from Malik from Ziyad ibn Abi Ziyad fromTalha ibn Ubaydullah ibn Kariz that the Messenger of Allah, may Allahbless him and grant him peace, said, "The best dua is dua on the dayof Arafa, and the best thing that I or the Prophets before me havesaid is 'There is no god but Allah, alone, without any partner' (Lailaha illa'llah, wahdahu la sharika lah.)" Yahya related to me from Malik from Abu'zZubayr al-Makki fromTawus al-Yamani from Abdullah ibn Abbas that the Messenger of Allah,may Allah bless him and grant him peace, used to teach this dua in thesame way that he would teach them a sura of the Qur'an, "O Allah, Iseek refuge in You from the torment of Jahannam, and I seek refuge inYou from the trial of the Dajjal, and I seek refuge in You from thetrial of life and death." Allahumma inniy audhu bika minadhabi jahannama, wa audhu bika min adhabi'l-qabri, wa audhu bika minfitnati'l-mahya wa mamati. Yahya related to me from Malik from Abu'z Zubayr al-Makki fromTawus al-Yamani from Abdullah ibn Abbas that the Messenger of Allah,may Allah bless him and grant him peace, used to say, when he rose forprayer in the middle of the night, "O Allah, praise belongs to You.You are the light of the heavens and the earth and praise belongstoYou.You are the Sustainer of the heavens and the earth and praisebelongs to You. You are the Lord of the heavens and the earth andwhoever is in them. You are the Truth, and Your words are true. Yourpromise is true, and the meeting with You is true. The Garden is trueand the Fire is true and the Hour is true. O Allah, I submit toYou andI accept You and I trust in You and I turn to You and I argue by Youand I summon toYou for judgement. Forgive me what I have sent beforeme and what I have left behind, what I have kept secret and what Ihave proclaimed, You are my god - there is no god but You." Allahumma laka'l-hamdu anta nuru's-samawati wa'l-ardi, wa laka'l-hamduanta qayamu's-Samawati wa'l-ardi, wa laka'l-hamdu antarabbu's-Samawati wa'l-ardi,wamanfihina.Anta'l-haqqu,waqawluka'lhaqqu,wa waduka'l-haqqu, wa liqa'uka haqqun, wa jannatu haqqun, wa naruhaqqun, wa sactu haqqun. Allahumma laka aslamtu, wa bikaamantu,waalayka tawakaltu, wa ilayka anabtu, wa bika khasamtu, wa ilaykahakamtu, fa'ghfirliy ma qadamtu wa akhartu wa asrartu, wa alantu. Antailahiy, la ilaha illa ant. Yahya related to me from Malik that Abdullah ibn Abdullah ibnJabir ibn Atik said that Abdullah ibn Umar had come to them in BaniMuawiya, one of the villages of the Ansar, and said, "Do you knowwhere the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace,prayed in this mosque of yours? "I told him, "Yes," and I pointed outa place near where he was. He said, "Do you know the three things forwhich he made dua here?" I said "Yes." He said, "Tell me them then." Isaid, "He asked that He would not make an enemy from among the non-believers triumph over the believers and that He would not destroy thebelievers by bad harvests, and he was given both these things. And heasked that He would not make the believers fight among themselves, andthat was refused." Ibn Umar said, "You have told the truth," and headded, "Turmoil will not cease until the day of rising." Yahya related to me from Malik that Zayd ibn Aslam used to say,"No-one makes a dua without one of three things happening. Either itis answered, or it is stored up for him, or wrong actions are atonedfor by it." Yahya related to me from Malik that Abdullah ibn Dinar said,"Abdullah ibn Umar saw me when I was making dua and I was pointingwith two fingers, one from each hand, and he forbade me." Yahya related to me from Malik from Yahya ibn Said that Said ibnal-Musayyab used to say, "A man is raised by the dua of his son afterhis death." He spoke with his hands turned upwards, and then liftedthem up. Yahya related to me from Malik from Hisham ibn Urwa that hisfather said, "The following ayat was sent down about dua - 'And do notbe loud in your prayer and do not be silent in it, but seek a waybetween these.' " (Sura 17 ayat 110) Yahya said that Malikwas asked about making dua in obligatory prayers and he said, "Thereis no harm in making dua in them." Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that theMessenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, used tomake dua saying, "O Allah, I askYou for good actions and for leavingwhat is disapproved of and for love of the poor. And if You wish totry people, then bring me to You without being tried." Allahumma inniy asa'luka fala'l-khayrati, wa tarqa'l-munqarati, wahubba'l-masakin, wa idha aradta fi'n-nasi fitnatan fa'qbithni ilaykaghayra maftun. Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that theMessenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Noone calls to guidance without having the same reward as those whofollow him without diminishing their rewards at all. And no one callsto error without having the same burdens as they do withoutdiminishing their burdens at all." Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that Abdullahibn Umar said, "O Allah, make me one of the leaders of the people oftaqwa ." Allahumma jalniy min a'imati'l-mutaqin. Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that Abu'd-Dardaused to rise in the middle of the night and say, "Eyes have slept, andstars have set, and You are the Living and Self Subsistent." Namat'l uyun wa ghariti'n-nujum wa anta'lhayyu-l-qayyum. Yahya related to me from Malik from Zayd ibn Aslam from Ata ibnYasar from Abdullah as-Sunabihi that the Messenger of Allah, may Allahbless him and grant him peace, said, "The sun rises and with it is ahorn of Shaytan and when the sun gets higher the horn leaves it. Thenwhen the sun reaches the meridian the horn joins it and when the sundeclines the horn leaves it, and when the sun has nearly set it joinsit again." The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant himpeace, forbade prayer at these times. Yahya related to me from Malik from Hisham ibn Urwa that hisfather said that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and granthim peace, used to say, "Delay the prayer when the edge of the sunappears until it is completely in view, and delay the prayer when theedge of the sun is disappearing until it has completely disappeared." Yahya related to me from Malik that al-Ala ibn Abd ar-Rahmansaid, "We visited Anas ibn Malik after dhuhr and he stood up andprayed asr. When he had finished his prayer, we mentioned doingprayers early in their time, or he mentioned it, and he said that hehad heard the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant himpeace, say, the prayer of the hypocrites, the prayer of thehypocrites, the prayer of the hypocrites is that one of them sitsuntil the sun becomes yellow and is between the horns of Shaytan, oron the horn of Shaytan, and then gets up and rattles off four rakas,hardly remembering Allah in them at all.' " Yahya related to me from Malik from Nafi from Abdullah ibn Umarthat the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace,said, "You should not intend to pray either at sunrise or sunset." Yahya related to me from Malik from Muhammad ibn Yahya ibn Habbanfrom al Araj from Abu Hurayra that the Messenger of Allah, may Allahbless him and grant him peace, forbade prayer after asr until the sunhad set, and prayer after subh until the sun had risen. Yahya related to me from Malik from Abdullah ibn Dinar fromAbdullah ibn Umar that Umar ibn al-Khattab used to say, "Do not intendto do your prayer at either sunrise or sunset, for the horns ofShaytan rise with the rising of the sun and set with its setting." Umar used to beat people for that kind of prayer. Yahya related to me from Malik from Ibn Shihab from as-Sa'ib ibnYazid that he saw Umar ibn al-Khattab beating al-Munkadir for prayingafter asr.