Lesson 3 of 6 · Tahajjud is not owed from a night you do not have
A sleep you could not fight is described as a gift
If one thing in this course reaches you, let it be the first of these.
There is a sound report that a person who habitually prays at night, and is then overcome by sleep, has the reward of the prayer written for them, and the sleep itself is described as a charity given to them. Not a debt. Not a failure. A charity, to them.
Two of the chains add the detail that makes it usable. What is credited is the intention formed at bedtime: whoever goes to his bed intending to get up and pray, and is then overwhelmed by sleep until morning, has what he intended recorded for him, and his sleep is a charity given to him by his Lord. Forming the intention is something you can actually do, on a night when you have no idea what your body is going to do.
And the last two are the tradition telling a drowsy worshipper to go to bed, because somebody praying half asleep does not know whether they are asking forgiveness or cursing themselves. The instruction, in that state, is sleep.
Qur’an and Sunnah
If one thing reaches you, let it be this. A person who habitually prays at night and is then overcome by sleep has the reward written for them, and the sleep itself is described as a charity given to them. Not a debt. Not a failure.
It was narrated from Sa'd bin Jubair, from Al-Aswad bin Yazid, that Aishah said:"The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'Whoever has the habit of praying at night but he sleeps and misses it, that is a charity that Allah (SWT) has given to him, and the reward of his prayer will be recorded for him
Sunan an-Nasa'i 1785graded sound, albanithe Arabic and its grading
One of the two chains that add the detail making the promise usable: what is credited is the intention formed at bedtime.
It was narrated from Abu Ad-Darda' who attributed it to the Prophet (ﷺ):"Whoever goes to his bed intending to get up and pray qiyam at night, then sleep overwhelms him until morning, will have recorded that which he intended and his sleep is a charity given to him by his Lord, the Mighty and Sublime
Sunan an-Nasa'i 1787graded sound, albanithe Arabic and its grading
The same detail on a second chain, with the sleep itself called a charity given to him by his Lord. Forming the intention is something you can actually do on a night when you have no idea what your body is going to do.
It was narrated that Abu Darda’ conveyed that the Prophet (ﷺ) said:“Whoever goes to bed intending to wake up and pray during the night, but is overwhelmed by sleep until morning comes, what he intended will be recorded for him, and his sleep is a charity given to him by his Lord.”
Sunan Ibn Majah 1344graded sound, albanithe Arabic and its grading
The tradition telling a drowsy worshipper to go to bed, because somebody praying half asleep does not know what he is asking for.
Narrated `Aisha:Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "If anyone of you feels drowsy while praying he should go to bed (sleep) till his slumber is over because in praying while drowsy one does not know whether one is asking for forgiveness or for a bad thing for oneself
Sahih al-Bukhari 212graded sound, sahihaynthe Arabic and its grading
The same instruction in one line, in a second collection. In that state the instruction is sleep, and it is shown twice because that is a surprising thing to be told.
Narrated Anas:The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If anyone of you feels drowsy while praying, he should sleep till he understands what he is saying (reciting)
Sahih al-Bukhari 213graded sound, sahihaynthe Arabic and its grading