Chapter Nine: The Traveller's Prayer

باب صَلوةَ الْمُسَافِرِ

بَابُ صَلٰوةِ الْمُسَافِرِ — Chapter on the Traveller's Prayer

(This chapter is about the prayer of the traveller [musāfir].)

قَالَ اللّٰهُ تَبَارَكَ وَ تَعَالٰى : وَاِذَا ضَرَبْتُمْ فِي الْاَرْضِ فَلَيْسَ عَلَيْكُمْ جُنَاحٌ اَنْ تَقْصُرُوْا مِنَ

الصَّلٰوةِ اِنْ خِفْتُمْ اَنْ يَّفْتِنَكُمُ الَّذِيْنَ كَفَرُوْا اِنَّ الْكٰفِرِيْنَ كَانُوْا لَكُمْ عَدُوًّا مُّبِيْنًا ۔

(al-Nisāʾ 4:101)

Vocabulary: ḍarabtum fi'l-arḍ — [when] you travel; junāḥ — sin; taqṣurū — you shorten, perform qaṣr [shortening].

Translation: Allah Most High says: "When you are travelling, there is no sin upon you that you shorten (qaṣr) the prayer, if you fear the mischief of the disbelievers. Indeed, the disbelievers are your open enemies." (al-Nisāʾ 4:101)

عَنْ عَائِشَةَ رَضِيَ اللّٰهُ عَنْهَا زَوْجِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَ سَلَّمَ اَنَّهَا قَالَتْ " فُرِضَتِ الصَّلٰوةُ رَكْعَتَيْنِ فِي الْحَضَرِ وَ السَّفَرِ فَاُقِرَّتْ صَلٰوةُ السَّفَرِ وَزِيْدَ فِيْ صَلٰوةِ الْحَضَرِ " ۔

(Reported by al-Bukhārī and Muslim.)

Vocabulary: furiḍat — was made obligatory; ḥaḍar — residence [being at home]; uqirrat — remained fixed; zīda — was increased.

Translation: From Ḥaḍrat ʿĀʾisha (may Allah be pleased with her), wife of the Prophet ﷺ, [it is reported] that she said: "The prayer was made obligatory as two rakʿas only, in travel and in residence. Then the prayer of travel remained fixed just as it was, and an addition was made to the prayer of residence."

(Al-Bukhārī and Muslim reported it.)

عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ رَبِيْعَةَ الْوَالِبِيِّ رَضِيَ اللّٰهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ سَاَلْتُ عَبْدَ اللّٰهِ بْنَ عُمَرَ اِلٰى كَمْ تُقْصَرُ الصَّلٰوةُ فَقَالَ اَتَعْرِفُ السُّوَيْدَاءَ ؟ قَالَ قُلْتُ " لَا وَلٰكِنِّيْ قَدْ سَمِعْتُ بِهَا قَالَ " هِيَ ثَلَاثُ لَيَالٍ قَوَاصِدَ فَاِذَا خَرَجْنَا اِلَيْهَا قَصَرْنَا الصَّلٰوةَ " ۔

(Reported by Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥasan in al-Āthār, and its chain is sound.)

Vocabulary: ilā kam — up to what distance; tuqṣaru'l-ṣalāh — the prayer will be shortened; a-taʿrifu — do you know?; qawāṣid — of moderate distance [at an average pace].

Translation: From Ḥaḍrat ʿAlī ibn Rabīʿa al-Wālibī (may Allah be pleased with him) [it is reported]; he said that I asked ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿUmar (may Allah be pleased with him): "Up to what distance (i.e. on travelling how far) will the prayer be shortened?" He said: "Do you know al-Suwaydāʾ (the name of a place)?" The narrator said: "I said, 'No,' but I have heard about it." He said: "It is at three nights' [journey] (at) a moderate (pace). So when we went out towards it, we shortened the prayer."

(Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥasan has reported it in "al-Āthār", and its chain is sound.)

عَنْ اَبِيْ هُرَيْرَةَ رَضِيَ اللّٰهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ " سَافَرْتُ مَعَ رَسُوْلِ اللّٰهِ صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَ سَلَّمَ وَمَعَ اَبِيْ بَكْرٍ وَ عُمَرَ كُلُّهُمْ صَلّٰى مِنْ حِيْنِ يَخْرُجُ مِنَ الْمَدِيْنَةِ اِلٰى حِيْنِ يَرْجِعُ اِلَيْهَا رَكْعَتَيْنِ فِي الْمَسِيْرِ وَالْقِيَامِ بِمَكَّةَ " ۔

(Reported by Abū Yaʿlā and al-Ṭabarānī; and al-Haythamī said: the men of Abū Yaʿlā's chain are the men of the Ṣaḥīḥ.)

Vocabulary: sāfartu — I travelled; min ḥīni — from the time [when]; al-masīr — travelling, going along.

Translation: From Ḥaḍrat Abū Hurayra (may Allah be pleased with him) [it is reported]; he said: "I have travelled with the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and with Abū Bakr and ʿUmar. All of them, from the time they set out from Madīna until they returned there, would pray two rakʿas, in travel and during the stay in Makka."

(Abū Yaʿlā and al-Ṭabarānī have reported it, and al-Haythamī said that the narrators of Abū Yaʿlā are the narrators of the Ṣaḥīḥ.)

عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ رَضِيَ اللّٰهُ عَنْهُمَا قَالَ " اَقَامَ رَسُوْلُ اللّٰهِ صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَ سَلَّمَ بِمَكَّةَ عَامَ الْفَتْحِ خَمْسَ عَشْرَةَ يَقْصُرُ الصَّلٰوةَ " ۔

(Reported by Abū Dāwūd, and its chain is sound.)

Translation: From Ḥaḍrat ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbbās (may Allah be pleased with them both) [it is reported]; he said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, in the year of the Conquest of Makka, stayed in Makka for fifteen days, shortening the prayer. (Abū Dāwūd has reported it, and its chain is sound.)

عَنْ نَافِعِ بْنِ عُمَرَ رَضِيَ اللّٰهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ اِرْتَجَّ عَلَيْنَا الثَّلْجُ وَنَحْنُ بِاَذْرَبِيْجَانَ سِتَّةَ اَشْهُرٍ فِيْ غَزَاةٍ ۔ قَالَ ابْنُ عُمَرَ " وَكُنَّا نُصَلِّيْ رَكْعَتَيْنِ " ۔ [reading uncertain]

(Reported by al-Bayhaqī in al-Maʿrifa, and its chain is sound.)

Vocabulary: irtajja — it raged [as a storm]; al-thalj — snowfall; ghazāt — in a campaign, in battle.

Translation: From Ḥaḍrat Nāfiʿ ibn ʿUmar (may Allah be pleased with him) [it is reported]; he said that a storm of snow raged upon us (snow kept falling) for six months, while we were in Ādharbayjān in battle. Ibn ʿUmar said: "We used to pray two rakʿas."

(Al-Bayhaqī has reported it in "al-Maʿrifa", and its chain is sound.)

وَعَنْ مُوْسَى بْنِ سَلَمَةَ قَالَ كُنَّا مَعَ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ رَضِيَ اللّٰهُ عَنْهُ بِمَكَّةَ فَقُلْتُ " اِنَّا اِذَا كُنَّا مَعَكُمْ صَلَّيْنَا اَرْبَعًا وَ اِذَا رَجَعْنَا اِلٰى رِحَالِنَا صَلَّيْنَا رَكْعَتَيْنِ " ۔ قَالَ " تِلْكَ سُنَّةُ اَبِي الْقَاسِمِ صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ " ۔

(Reported by Aḥmad, and its chain is ḥasan.)

Translation: From Ḥaḍrat Mūsā ibn Salama (may Allah be pleased with him) [it is reported] [reading uncertain]; he said that we were with Ibn ʿAbbās (may Allah be pleased with him) in Makka. I said: "When we are with you, we pray four (rakʿas), and when we return to our mounts [i.e. our lodgings], we pray two rakʿas." (ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbbās (may Allah be pleased with him)) said: "This is the Sunna of Abu'l-Qāsim ﷺ." [reading uncertain]

(Aḥmad has reported it, and its chain is sound.)

وَعَنْ سَالِمِ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللّٰهِ عَنْ اَبِيْهِ اَنَّ عُمَرَ بْنَ الْخَطَّابِ رَضِيَ اللّٰهُ عَنْهُمْ كَانَ اِذَا قَدِمَ مَكَّةَ صَلّٰى بِهِمْ رَكْعَتَيْنِ ثُمَّ يَقُوْلُ " يَا اَهْلَ مَكَّةَ ! اَتِمُّوْا صَلٰوتَكُمْ فَاِنَّا قَوْمٌ سَفْرٌ " ۔

(Reported by Mālik, and its chain is sound.)

Translation: Ḥaḍrat Sālim ibn ʿAbd Allāh narrates from his father that when ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (may Allah be pleased with him) came to Makka, he would pray two rakʿas with them, then say: "O people of Makka, complete your prayer (i.e. two further rakʿas), for we are travellers." (Mālik has reported it, and its chain is sound.)

عَنْ شُرَيْحِ بْنِ هَانِئٍ قَالَ اَتَيْتُ عَائِشَةَ رَضِيَ اللّٰهُ عَنْهَا اَسْاَلُهَا عَنِ الْمَسْحِ عَلَى الْخُفَّيْنِ فَقَالَتْ عَلَيْكَ بِابْنِ اَبِيْ طَالِبٍ فَاسْاَلْهُ فَاِنَّهٗ كَانَ يُسَافِرُ مَعَ رَسُوْلِ اللّٰهِ صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَ سَلَّمَ فَسَاَلْنَاهُ فَقَالَ جَعَلَ رَسُوْلُ اللّٰهِ صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَ سَلَّمَ ثَلَاثَةَ اَيَّامٍ وَّلَيَالِيَهُنَّ لِلْمُسَافِرِ وَيَوْمًا وَّ لَيْلَةً لِّلْمُقِيْمِ ۔

(Reported by Muslim.)

Vocabulary: ataytu — I came; asʾaluhā — that I might ask her; fa-saʾalnāhu — then we asked him.

Translation: From Ḥaḍrat Shurayḥ ibn Hāniʾ [it is reported]; he said that I came to ʿĀʾisha (may Allah be pleased with her) to ask her the ruling on "al-masḥ ʿala'l-khuffayn" (wiping over leather socks). Bībī [ʿĀʾisha] (may Allah be pleased with her) said: "You should ask Ibn Abī Ṭālib (Ḥaḍrat ʿAlī (may Allah be pleased with him)); ask him, because he used to travel with the Messenger of Allah ﷺ." So we asked him, and he said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ gave permission to the traveller for three days and three nights, and to the resident (muqīm) for one day and one night. (Muslim has reported it.)