The Book of Mosques and Places of Prayer

Ibn Umar reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) assaying:

Prayer said in a congregation is twenty-seven degrees more excellent than prayer said by a single person.

Ibn 'Umar reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

The prayer of a person in congregation is twenty-seven times in excess to the prayer said alone.

Ibn Numair reported it on the authority of his father (a preference of) more than twenty (degrees) and Abu Bakr in his narration (has narrated it) twenty- seven degrees.

Ibn 'Umar reported from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as some and twenty (degrees).

Abu Huraira reported:

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) found some people absenting from certain prayers and he said: I intend that I order (a) person to lead people in prayer, and then go to the persons who do not join the (congregational prayer) and then order their houses to be burnt by the bundles of fuel. If one amongst them were to know that he would find a fat fleshy bone he would attend the night prayer.

Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

The most burdensome prayers for the hypocrites are the night prayer and the morning prayer. If they were to know the blessings they have in store, they would have come to them, even though crawling, and I thought that I should order the prayer to be commenced and command a person to lead people in prayer, and I should then go along with some persons having a fagot of fuel with them to the people who have not attended the prayer (in congregation) and would burn their houses with fire.

Hammam b. Munabbih reported:

This is what Abu Huraira reported to us from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and (in this connection) he narrated some ahadith, one of them is: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: I intend that I should command my young men to gather bundles fuel for me, and then order a person to lead people in prayer, and then burn the houses with their inmates (who have not joined the congregation).

A hadith like this has been narrated by Abu Huraira.

'Abdullah reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying about people who are absent from Jumu'a prayer:

I intend that I should command a person to lead people in prayer, and then burn those persons who absent themselves from Jumu'a prayer in their houses.

Abu Huraira reported:

There came to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) a blind man and said: Messenger of Allah, I have no one to guide me to the mosque. He, therefore, asked. Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) permission to say prayer in his house. He (tee Prophet) granted him permission. Then when the man turned away he called him and said: Do you hear the call to prayer? He said: Yes. He (the Prophet (ﷺ) then) said: Respond to it.

'Abdullah (b. Mas'ud) reported:

I have seen the time when no one stayed away from prayer except a hypocrite, whose hypocrisy was well known, or a sick man, but if a sick man could walk between two persons (i.e. with the help of two persons with one on each side) he would come to prayer. And (further) said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) taught us the paths of right guidance, among which is prayer in the mosque in which the Adhan is called.

Abdullah (b. Mas'ud) reported:

He who likes to meet Allah tomorrow as Muslim, he should persevere in observing these prayers, when a call is announced for them, for Allah has laid down for your Prophet (ﷺ) the paths of right guidance, and these (prayers) are among the paths of right guidance. If you were to pray in your houses as this man why stays away (from the mosque) prays in his house, you would abandon the practice of your Prophet, and if you were to abandon the practice of your Prophet, you would go astray. No man purifies himself, doing it well, then makes for one of those mosques without Allah recording a blessing for him for every step he takes raising him a degree for it, and effacing a sin from him for it. I have seen the time when no one stayed away from it, except a hypocrite, who was well known for his hypocrisy, whereas a man would be brought swaying (due to weakness) between two men till he was set up in a row.

Abu Sha'tha' reported:

While we were sitting with Abu Huraira in a mosque a man went out of the mosque after the call to prayer had been announced. (A man stood up in the mosque and set off.) Abu Huraira's eyes followed him till he went out of the mosque. Upon this Abu Huraira said: This man has disobeyed Abu'l- Qasim (Muhammad) (ﷺ).

Abu Sha'tha' al-Muharibi reported on the authority of his father, who said:

I heard it from Abu Huraira that he saw a person getting out of the mosque after the call to prayer had been announced. Upon this he remarked: This (man) disobeyed Abu'l-Qasim (ﷺ).

'Abd al-Rahman b. Abd 'Amr reported:

'Uthman b. 'Affan (narrated the mosque after evening prayer and sat alone. I also sat alone with him, so he said: 0, son of my brother, I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: He who observed the 'Isha' prayer in congregation, it was as if he prayed up to midnight, and he who prayed the morning prayer in congregation, it was as if he prayed the whole night.

This hadith has been narrated by the chain of transmitters by Abu Sahl 'Uthman b. Hakim.

Jundab b. 'Abdullah reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

He who prayed the morning prayer (in congregation) he is in fact under the protection of Allah. And it can never happen that Allah should demand anything from you in connection with the protection (that He guarantees) and one should not get it. He would then throw him in the fire of Hell.

Anas b. Sirin reported:

I heard Jundab b. Qasri saying that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: He who observed the morning prayer (in congregation), he is in fact under the protection of Allah and it never happens that Allah should make a demand in connection with the protection (that He guarantees and should not get it) for when he asks for anything in relation to His protection, he definitely secures it. He then throws him flatly in the Hell-fire.

This hadith has been narrated by Jundab b. Sufyan in from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) with the same chain of transmitters, but this has not been mentioned:

" He would throw him in fire."

Anas b. Malik reported that his grandmother, Mulaika, invited the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) to a dinner which she had prepared. He (the Prophet) ate out of that and then said:

Stand up so that I should observe prayer (in order to bless) you Anas b. Malik said: I stood up on a mat (belonging to us) which had turned dark on account of its long use. I sprinkled water over it (in order to soften it), and the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) stood upon it, and I and an orphan formed a row behind him (the Prophet) and the old woman was behind us, and the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) led us in two rak'ahs of prayer and then went back.