I asked Ibn ‘Umar whether he prayed in the forenoon and he said he did not. I asked whether ‘Umar did and he said he did not. I asked whether Abu Bakr did and he said he did not. I asked whether the Prophet did and he said, “I don’t think so.”
God’s Messenger used to pray in the forenoon so often that we felt he would never stop doing so; then he would leave off doing so for so long that we felt he would never resume prayer at that time.
Abu Huraira reported that God's Messenger said to Bilal at the dawn prayer, “Tell me, Bilal, of the action you have done since becoming a Muslim which is most calculated to cause hope in you, for I heard the sound of your sandals in front of me in paradise.” He replied, “I have done no action more calculated, in my opinion to cause hope than that I have never performed ablution at any hour of the night or day without immediately praying what was ordained for me to pray.”
