Hadith #62

Arabic Text

English Translation

Abū Nuʿaym narrated to us, he said: Badr ibn ʿUthmān — a freed slave of the family of ʿUthmān — narrated to us, he said: Abū Bakr ibn Abī Mūsā narrated to me, from his father, from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. He said: A questioner came to him asking about the times of prayer, and he did not reply to him. He ordered Bilāl, and he called the iqāmah for Fajr when dawn had just broken and the people could barely recognize one another. Then he ordered him and he called the iqāmah for Ẓuhr when the sun had passed its zenith, and someone would say: It is midday — or is it not yet? And he knew better than them. Then he ordered him and he called the iqāmah for ʿAṣr while the sun was still high. Then he ordered him and he called the iqāmah for Maghrib when the sun had set. Then he ordered him and he called the iqāmah for ʿIshāʾ when the twilight had disappeared. Then on the next day he delayed Fajr until after finishing it, one would say: The sun has risen — or nearly. He delayed Ẓuhr until it was close to the time of ʿAṣr the day before. Then he delayed ʿAṣr until after finishing it, one would say: The sun has reddened. Then he delayed Maghrib until just before the twilight disappeared. Then he delayed ʿIshāʾ until the first third of the night. Then he called the questioner and said: ‘The time is between these two.’