بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Sa’d ibn Abi Waqqas رضي الله عنه narrates that a man came to the Salah while the Messenger ﷺ was performing the Salah with us and he said when he reached the saff (row),
اَللّٰهُمَّ آتِنِيْ أَفْضَلَ مَا تُؤْتِيْ عِبَادَكَ الصَّالِحِيْنَ
Allahumma aatini af-dhala maa tu-ti ebaadakas-saliheen
(O Allah, grant me the best of that which you give your righteous servants.)
When the Prophet ﷺ completed the Salah, he asked, “Who was the speaker just now?” The man said, “I, O Messenger of Allah.” The Prophet ﷺ said, “Then your horse will be crippled and you will be martyred in the path of Allah.”
[Collected by Nasai in ‘Amalul Yawm’,[1] Ibn Sunni,[2] Ibn Khuzaimah[3], Ibn Hibban[4], Bazzar[5], Abu Ya’la[6], Tabarani in ‘Dua’[7], Hakim in ‘Mustadrak’[8].]
The following muhaddithun placed this hadith under the title,
[باب القول عند الانتهاء الى الصف [قبل تكبيرة الافتتاح
“What to say when one reaches the saff (rows) [before the tabir to commence salah]”
- Nasaai,
- Ibn Sunni,
- Ibn Khuzaimah,
- Tabarani in ‘Dua’,
- Nawawi in ‘Azkaar’[9],
- Ibn Hajr in ‘Nataaijul Afkaar’[10],
- and Ibn A’llan in ‘Futoohaat Rabbaniyah’[11]
Points derived from this Hadith:
It is masnoon and desirable to recite this dua (supplication) when one reaches the saff (row) of the congregational salah before he says the takbir tahrimah (the takbir to commence the salah) as the Messenger of Allah ﷺ did not simply approve of it but also indicated to the acceptance of his supplication.
Another point noteworthy is that one of the best gifts a Muslim may be granted is martyrdom in the path of Allah.
Grade of the Hadith:
Imam Hakim has classified it authentic on the condition of ‘Sahih Muslim’ and Hafidh Zahabi agreed with him. However, Hafidh Haithami and Hafidh Ibn Hajr[12] pointed out that one of its narrators, Muhammad ibn Muslim ibn ‘Aa-idh is not a narrator of ‘Sahih Muslim’. The scholars then disagree on the status of this narrator. Some have graded him unknown, but this is incorrect, as Hafidh Ibn Hibban[13], Hafidh E’jli[14] and Hafidh Haithami[15] all graded him as reliable. Therefore, some conclude that this narration is authentic صحيح (including Imam Ibn Khuzaimah, Imam Ibn Hibban, and Shaikh Daaraani[16]) while, others say it is sound حسن (including Hafidh Ibn Hajr, Dr. Muhammad Saeed[17] and Dr. Farooq Hammadah[18]).
And Allah Ta’ala knows best.
[1] (#93)
[2] (#106)
[3] (#453)
[4] (#4640)
[5] (#1113)
[6] (#769)
[7] (#492)
[8] (Vol.1 Pg.207)
[9] (Pg.63)
[10] (Vol.1/379)
[11] (Vol.2 Pg.143)
[12] Nataijul Afkaar Vol.1 Pg.397
[13] Thiqaat Vol.7 Pg.388
[14] Ma’rifah Thiqaat Vol.2 Pg.252 #1644
[15] Majmauz Zawaid Vol.5 Pg.295
[16] See his ta’leeq on ‘Majmauz Zawaid’ Vol.12 Pg.407
[17] See his ta’leeq of ‘Dua of Tabarani’ #492
[18] See his ta’leeq on ‘Amalul Yawm’ of Nasai #93
