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Al-Salatu Khayrun min al-Nawm

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Al-Ṣalāt khayr min al-nawm (Arabic: الصَّلاَةُ خَیْرٌ مِنَ النَّوْمِ, lit. Prayer is better than sleep) is a sentence recited by Sunnis twice in the Adhan of Fajr prayer, after "Hayya 'ala l-falah". Relying on some hadiths, most Sunni jurists consider reciting this sentence in the Adhan of Fajr prayer as Mustahabb (recommended). In contrast, Imamiyya jurists have a consensus that reciting it in Adhan is not permissible and if it is said with the intention of Tashri' (legislation), it is Haram (forbidden) and a Bid'a (innovation). In their view, there is no religious proof for the legitimacy and permissibility of reciting this sentence in Adhan.

There are different reports in Sunni narrative sources regarding the time and the person who added the sentence "al-Salat khayr min al-nawm" to the Adhan. In some reports, it is stated that Bilal al-Habashi added it to the Fajr Adhan and it was accepted by the Prophet (s). In some others, it is said that the Prophet (s) taught it to Abu Mahdhura. Also, it is said that for the first time, Sa'd b. 'A'idh, the muazzin of Mosque of Quba in the time of the Prophet (s), innovated it during the caliphate of Umar b. al-Khattab. According to a narration quoted by Malik b. Anas in al-Muwatta, this sentence was added to the Adhan during the caliphate of Umar b. al-Khattab with his confirmation.

Reciting "al-Salat khayr min al-nawm" in Adhan is also called Tathwīb (Arabic: التثویب). In the terminology of jurists, Tathwib means that when the muazzin invites people to prayer by saying "Hayya 'ala l-salat" (Hasten to prayer), he returns to inviting to prayer by repeating another phrase, "al-Salat khayr min al-nawm". However, it is said that Tathwib has a more general meaning and some have called reciting the sentence "al-salat, rahimakum Allah, al-salat" (Prayer, may Allah have mercy upon you, Prayer) between Adhan and Iqama or reciting "Hayya 'ala l-salat" and "Hayya 'ala l-falah" between Adhan and Iqama of Fajr prayer as Tathwib as well.

Semantics and Status

"Al-Salat khayr min al-nawm" means "Prayer is better than sleep"; a sentence which Sunnis recite twice in the Adhan of Fajr prayer, after "Hayya 'ala l-falah".[1] Reciting this sentence in the Adhan of Fajr prayer is also called Tathwib.[2] Tathwib means inviting to prayer again; in this way that when the muazzin invites people to prayer by saying "Hayya 'ala l-salat; Hasten to prayer", he returns to inviting to prayer by repeating another phrase "al-Salat khayr min al-nawm".[3]

Some have counted reciting the sentence "al-salat, rahimakum Allah, al-salat" between Adhan and Iqama, which is a kind of inviting to prayer again, as examples of Tathwib.[4] Also, it is said that some Hanafi scholars of Kufa considered reciting "Hayya 'ala l-salat" and "Hayya 'ala l-falah" twice between Adhan and Iqama of Fajr prayer as another type of Tathwib.[5]

This title is discussed in fiqh books in the chapter of prayer[6] and has entered theological discussions between Shi'a and Sunni as well.[7]

Being an Innovation from the Viewpoint of Imamiyya

Imamiyya jurists have a consensus that saying "al-Salat khayr min al-nawm" in Adhan is not permissible and saying it with the intention of Tashri' (legislation) is a Bid'a (innovation) and Haram (forbidden).[8] They believe that there is no religious proof to prove the legitimacy of saying this sentence.[9] Of course, some narrations from Infallible Imams (a) have been mentioned in some Imami narrative sources, from which the permissibility of Tathwib in Adhan is understood,[10] but these narrations have been called Shādh (rare)[11] and contradict another group of narrations which have explicitly rejected the permissibility of Tathwib in Adhan;[12] thus, jurists have ignored them and considered them as instances of Taqiyya.[13]

It is said that there is no disagreement among Imami jurists that if Tathwib or saying "al-Salat khayr min al-nawm" is with the intention of alerting and reminding the time of prayer or out of Taqiyya, it is permissible;[14] but if it is said neither with the intention of legislation and alerting nor out of Taqiyya, there is a disagreement regarding its permissibility or impermissibility.[15] Jurists such as Fadil al-Hindi[16] and Fayd Kashani[17] believed it is Makruh (reprehensible) and jurists such as Muhammad Hasan al-Najafi[18] and Kashif al-Ghita[19] considered it Haram.

Kashif al-Ghita considered Tathwib or saying "al-Salat khayr min al-nawm" in Adhan as basically an innovation and inherently Haram and believed that nothing makes it permissible.[20]

Legitimacy from the Viewpoint of Sunnis

According to the famous viewpoint of Sunni jurists, saying "al-SalAt khayr min al-nawm" after "Hayya 'ala l-falah" in the Adhan of Fajr is Mustahabb.[21] Of course, it is said that Muhammad b. Idris al-Shafi'i believed in its recommendation in one case and considered it Makruh in another case.[22] Some Hanafi jurists considered saying it after finishing the Adhan of Fajr as permissible as well.[23]

According to the famous viewpoint of Sunni jurists, Tathwib or saying "al-Salat khayr min al-nawm" belongs only to the Adhan of Fajr.[24]

Symbol of Sunnis

Saying "al-Salat khayr min al-nawm" in Adhan has been considered as a kind of slogan and symbol of Sunnis throughout history; so that in governments where Sunni rulers were ruling, it was ordered that this sentence be said in Adhan.[25] For example, in the book al-Sira al-Halabiyya, it is mentioned that during the government of Buyids in Baghdad, the sentence "Hayya ala khayr al-amal" was said in Adhans until with the coming of Seljuqs to power, in 448/1056, saying this sentence in Adhan was banned and it was ordered that the sentence "al-Salat khayr min al-nawm" be said in Adhan instead.[26]

Disagreement on the Time and Quality of Entering to Adhan

There is a disagreement on when and by whom "al-Salat khayr min al-nawm" was added to the Adhan of Fajr:

Time of 'Umar's Caliphate

According to Sayyid Ali Shahristani in his book al-Salat khayr min al-nawm fi l-adhan, scholars of three major Shi'a sects, i.e. Imamiyya, Isma'iliyya and Zaydiyya, emphasize that "al-Salat khayr min al-nawm" was added to the Adhan during the caliphate of 'Umar b. al-Khattab and by him.[27] Malik b. Anas also has brought a narration in al-Muwatta based on which the muazzin went to 'Umar b. al-Khattab to inform him of the Fajr prayer and saw that 'Umar was asleep and the muazzin said: "al-Ṣalāt khayr min al-nawm", then 'Umar ordered that this sentence be brought in the Adhan of Fajr.[28] Also, some have said that for the first time, it was 'Umar b. al-Khattab who ordered that the sentence "Hayya ala khayr al-amal" be removed from Adhan and "al-Salat khayr min al-nawm" be said instead.[29]

According to another report, this sentence was innovated for the first time by Sa'd b. 'A'idh, the muazzin of Mosque of Quba, in the period of the caliphate of 'Umar b. al-Khattab.[30] Of course, in a narration from Imam al-Kazim (a), it is mentioned that the sentence "al-Salat khayr min al-nawm" was added to Adhan during the time of Umayyads.[31]

During the Lifetime of the Prophet (s)

Different and contradictory reports have been mentioned in Sunni narrative sources regarding the addition of this sentence to Adhan during the lifetime of the Prophet (s). In some of these narrations, it is mentioned that one day Bilal al-Habashi came to the Prophet (s) to inform him of the Fajr prayer and saw that the Prophet (s) was asleep, then he cried out: "al-Salat khayr min al-nawm" and after that saying this sentence in the Adhan of Fajr was confirmed and accepted by the Prophet (s).[32] In some narrations, it is also mentioned that the Prophet (s) taught it to Abu Mahdhura.[33]

According to Ja'far Subhani, narrations which have reported the quality of addition of "al-Salat khayr min al-nawm" to Adhan in Sunni sources are contradictory to each other and cannot be relied on; because in it, the command revolves between recommendation and innovation which is Haram, and thus saying this sentence in Adhan should be abandoned, because if it is Mustahabb, there is no punishment for abandoning it, but if it is innovation, saying it has punishment.[34]

Some Sunni scholars have also clarified that the sentence "al-Salat khayr min al-nawm" did not enter the Adhan by the Prophet (s) and was innovated after his life.[35]

Notes

  1. ↑ A Group of Authors, al-Mawsūʿat al-fiqhiyya al-Kuwaytiyya, 1404 AH, vol. 2, p. 360, vol. 11, p. 176; Sarkhasī, al-Mabsūṭ, vol. 1, p. 130.
  2. ↑ A Group of Authors, al-Mawsūʿat al-fiqhiyya al-Kuwaytiyya, 1404 AH, vol. 2, p. 360.
  3. ↑ Zabīdī, Tāj al-ʿarūs, under the word "Tathwīb".
  4. ↑ See: Ibn Manẓūr, Lisān al-ʿArab, under the word "Tathwīb".
  5. ↑ A Group of Authors, al-Mawsūʿat al-fiqhiyya al-Kuwaytiyya, 1404 AH, vol. 2, p. 361.
  6. ↑ See: Ibn Rushd, Bidāyat al-mujtahid, 1425 AH, vol. 1, p. 89; Baḥrānī, al-Ḥadāʾiq al-nāḍira, vol. 7, p. 418.
  7. ↑ See: ʿAllāma al-Ḥillī, Nahj al-ḥaqq, 1982, p. 351.
  8. ↑ Ṭūsī, al-Khilāf, vol. 1, p. 287; Najafī, Jawāhir al-kalām, 1362 Sh, vol. 9, p. 113.
  9. ↑ Sayyid Murtaḍā, Masāʾil al-Nāṣiriyyāt, 1417 AH, p. 184; Ṭūsī, al-Khilāf, vol. 1, p. 287.
  10. ↑ See: Ḥurr al-ʿĀmilī, Wasāʾil al-Shīʿa, 1416 AH, vol. 5, p. 427.
  11. ↑ Shahīd al-Thānī, Masālik al-afhām, 1413 AH, vol. 1, p. 190.
  12. ↑ See: Ḥurr al-ʿĀmilī, Wasāʾil al-Shīʿa, 1416 AH, vol. 5, p. 426.
  13. ↑ Shahīd al-Thānī, Masālik al-afhām, 1413 AH, vol. 1, p. 190; Najafī, Jawāhir al-kalām, 1362 Sh, vol. 9, p. 116; A Group of Authors, al-Mawsūʿat al-fiqhiyya, 1423 AH, vol. 8, p. 111.
  14. ↑ Baḥrānī, al-Ḥadāʾiq al-nāḍira, vol. 7, p. 421; A Group of Authors, al-Mawsūʿat al-fiqhiyya, 1423 AH, vol. 8, p. 111.
  15. ↑ A Group of Authors, al-Mawsūʿat al-fiqhiyya, 1423 AH, vol. 8, p. 111.
  16. ↑ Fāḍil al-Hindī, Kashf al-lithām, vol. 3, p. 385.
  17. ↑ Fayḍ Kāshānī, Mafātīḥ al-sharāʾiʿ, 1401 AH, vol. 1, p. 118.
  18. ↑ Najafī, Jawāhir al-kalām, 1362 Sh, vol. 9, p. 116.
  19. ↑ Kāshif al-Ghiṭāʾ, Kashf al-ghiṭāʾ, 1422 AH, vol. 3, p. 146.
  20. ↑ Kāshif al-Ghiṭāʾ, Kashf al-ghiṭāʾ, 1422 AH, vol. 3, p. 146.
  21. ↑ Ibn Rushd, Bidāyat al-mujtahid, 1425 AH, vol. 1, p. 89.
  22. ↑ Ṭūsī, al-Khilāf, vol. 1, p. 286.
  23. ↑ A Group of Authors, al-Mawsūʿat al-fiqhiyya al-Kuwaytiyya, 1404 AH, vol. 2, p. 360.
  24. ↑ See: Sarkhasī, al-Mabsūṭ, vol. 1, p. 130; Shawkānī, Nayl al-awṭār, 1413 AH, vol. 2, p. 46; Sharbīnī, Mughnī al-muḥtāj, vol. 1, p. 136.
  25. ↑ Shahrastānī, al-Adhān bayn al-aṣāla wa l-taḥrīf, 1426 AH, p. 343.
  26. ↑ Ḥalabī, al-Sīra al-Ḥalabiyya, vol. 2, p. 136.
  27. ↑ Shahrastānī, al-Salat khayr min al-nawm, p. 150.
  28. ↑ Mālik b. Anas, al-Muwaṭṭaʾ, 1406 AH, vol. 1, p. 72.
  29. ↑ Yaḥyā b. Ḥusayn, al-Aḥkām, 1410 AH, vol. 1, p. 84.
  30. ↑ ʿAbd al-Razzāq, al-Muṣannaf, 1403 AH, vol. 1, p. 474.
  31. ↑ Nūrī, Mustadrak al-Wasāʾil, vol. 4, p. 44.
  32. ↑ See: Ibn Māja, Sunan Ibn Māja, vol. 1, p. 237; Dārimī, Sunan al-Dārimī, 1412 AH, vol. 2, p. 762.
  33. ↑ See: Bayhaqī, al-Sunan al-kubrā, 1424 AH, vol. 1, p. 622.
  34. ↑ Subḥānī, Sīmā-yi ʿaqāyid-i Shīʿa, 1386 Sh, p. 385.
  35. ↑ See: Khwārazmī, Jāmiʿ al-masānīd, 1419 AH, vol. 1, p. 296; Ibn Ḥazm, al-Muḥallā, vol. 2, p. 194; ʿAbd al-Razzāq, al-Muṣannaf, 1403 AH, vol. 1, p. 474.

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