“I performed the ritual prayer one night with Allah’s Messenger (All^ bless him and give him peace), and he remained standing until I almost did something bad.” He was asked: “What did you almost do?” He replied: “I nearly sat down and left the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) in the lurch!”
حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو بَكْرٍ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ نَافِعٍ الْبَصْرِيُّ، قَالَ: حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ الصَّمَدِ بْنُ عَبْدِ الْوَارِثِ، عَنِ إِسْمَاعِيلَ بْنِ مُسْلِمٍ الْعَبْدِيِّ، عَنْ أَبِي الْمُتَوَكِّلِ، عَنْ عَائِشَةَ، قَالَتْ: قَامَ رَسُولُ اللهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم بِآيَةٍ مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ لَيْلَةً.
Narrated 'A’isha said (may Allah be well pleased with her):
"Allah’s Messenger (Allah bless him and give him peace) spent one whole night reciting a verse from the Qur’an.”
Commentary:
The aayah is the last aayah of Surah Maa-idah:In tu-adh-dhib-hum fa-innahum 'ibaaduk. Wa in tagh-fir lahum fa-innaka antal azizul hakim.Translation: "If Thou punish them, lo! they are Thy slaves, and if Thou forgive them, (lo! the are Thy slaves).Lo! Thou, only Thou, art Mighty, the wise".Surah Maa-idah, 118.The Being that possesses great power, if He wills, He may forgive the criminal. The One that is all Wise, there is Wisdom and benefit in every act of His. The reason for Sayyidina Rasulullah Sallallahu 'Alayhi Wasallam reciting this aayah while standing and also in the ruku and sajdah, and repeating it many times, is to bring to mind the two attributes of Allah, namely the attributes of justice and forgiveness. The whole scene on the day of qiyaamah will be of these two things. It is stated that Imaam Aa'zam Abu Hanifah RA. also recited the following aayah the whole night:Wamtaazul yauma ayyuhal mujrimun.Translation: "But avaunt ye, O ye guilty, this day!" Surah Yaseen, 58.In this aayah too the scene of qiyaamah is portrayed. That today the sinners should separate and distinguish themselves. What a severe and nerve-chilling command this is. Today they are together with the pious and holy people and benefiting from the barakaat (blessings) they receive, but at this moment the sinners will be separated from them. May the Most Merciful Allah with His Grace keep those pious souls under His shadow, otherwise it is really a time for great trials.
Narrated 'A’isha said (may Allah be well pleased with her):
“The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) used to perform the ritual prayer sitting down, so he would also recite the Qur’an while he was seated. If the amount of his recitation remaining was thirty or forty verses, he would rise and recite standing up, and then he would bow and prostrate. Then he would do likewise in the second cycle.”
Narrated Hudhaifa ibn al-Yaman (may Allah be well pleased with him) performed the ritual prayer with the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) during the night, and he said:
“When he entered into the ritual prayer, he said: ‘Allah is Supremely Great .”
According to Abu 'Isa: “Shu'ba is the one who entertained doubts about al-Ma'ida and al- Anam."
