The two sheikhs mentioned a tradition that Abu Hurayra had said: "Prophet Muhammad offered one of the day prayers, I think it was the Asr prayer 1, in two sections (rak'ah) instead of four and he finished it. Then he stood up to a piece of wood was in the front of the mosque and put his hand on it.2 Among the people in the mosque were Abu Bakr and Omar, but they feared to ask the Prophet about that. The hurried people left the mosque and asked if the prayer had been lessened. Someone, whom the Prophet called Thul-Yadayn, asked the Prophet: "Did you forget or lessen the prayer?" The Prophet said: "I didn't forget and the prayer wasn't lessened." Thul-Yadayn said: "Yes, you forgot." The Prophet offered two additional rak'ahs, made tassleem (the ending of a prayer), said Allahuakbar (Allah is great) and prostrated for the forgetness." 3
1. What prudent and cautious Abu Hurayra was! Don't you see that he didn't decide certainly it was the Asr prayer and didn't certify his guess!
2. The piety of Abu Hurayra led him to mention even that piece of wood and that the Prophet put his hand on it, which had nothing to do with the subject of the tradition, but because he was so cautious in mentioning the details!!.
3. Exactly as it was mentioned in al-Bukhari's Sahih, vol. 1, p.p. 145 and in other places of the book. Refer to Muslim's Sahih, vol. 1, p.p. 215 and Ahmed's Musnad, vol. 2, p.p. 234.
This tradition was untrue for many reasons:
First: It was not possible that this forgetness came from someone, who went to prayer with heart and soul. It came from that, who was inattentive in his prayers. The prophets were too far above inattentiveness and too glorious than to be defamed.
I swear by the master of the prophets (s) that if such forgetness came from me, shame and shyness would occupy me and the prayers, behind me, would make fun of me and of my worship, so how about the prophets, whom Allah had chosen to be the excellent models for people!
Second: Prophet Muhammad said: "I didn't forget and the prayer wasn't lessened." So how would it be for him, after that, to declare that he forgot? Suppose that he was not infallible in forgetting, but he was infallible not to be obstinate and imprudent in his sayings if they were in contradictory to the reality. This was certain among all the Muslims.
Third: Abu Hurayra was confused in this tradition and his sayings were different. Sometimes he said: "The prophet Muhammad led us in one of the day prayers; either the Zuhr (noon) prayer or the Asr (afternoon) prayer." He was doubt between them. Another time he said: "The Prophet led us in the Asr prayer", as if he was certain. In the third he said: "While I was offering the Zuhr prayer with the Prophet..." These traditions were in al-Bukhari and Muslim's Sahihs. Those, who explained the Sahihs, were confused to a degree led them into affectedness and they took upon themselves what they couldn't bear in order to defend these traditions as they did when they refuted the opinion of az-Zuhri when he confirmed that Thul-Yadayn and Thush-shamalayn was the same man.
Fourth: The tradition showed that the Prophet left his place of praying, stood up and put his hand on a piece of wood in the front the mosque. The hurried people left the mosque and said: "Was the prayer lessened?" Thul-Yadayn said to the Prophet: "Did you forget or lessen the prayer." The Prophet said: "I didn't forget nor lessen the prayer." He said to the Prophet: "Yes, you forgot." Then the Prophet said to his companions: "Was he right?" They said: "Yes, he was." Another one mentioned by Abu Hurayra that the Prophet entered the room (of the mosque) and came out then the people returned. All that invalidated the prayer, because according to the Islamic Sharia, the prayer is a continuous unit, which can not be interrupted. So how could the Prophet depend on his first two rak'ahs to complete them by other two rak'ahs to be four, the right number of rak'as for the Zuhr or Asr prayer?
Fifth: Thul-Yadayn, who was mentioned in the tradition, was the same as Thush-Shamalayn, 1 Ibn Abd Amr, the ally of the tribe of Zuhra. The two names referred to one person. He was martyred during the battle of Badr. That was confirmed by the imam of the tribe of Zura and the best of those, who knew about their allies, Muhammad bin Muslim az-Zuhri, as it was mentioned by Ibn Abdul-Birr in his book al-Isstee'ab, ibn Hajar in his book al-Issaba, Sharh Sahih Muslim and Sharh Sahih al-Bukhari. Also the same was confirmed by Sufyan ath-Thawri and Abu Haneefa when they considered the tradition as untrue one and gave fatwas contradicting it. 2 An-Nassa'ei declared in his tradition that Thul-Yadayn and Thush-Shamalayn referred to the same person. He said: 3.. .Thush-Shamalayn ibn Amr said to him (to the Prophet): "Did you lessen the prayer or did you forget?" The Prophet said: "What did Thul-Yadayn say?" So he confirmed that Thush-Shamalayn was the same as Thul-Yadayn. Clearer than that was a tradition mentioned by Ahmed bin Hanbal 4 narrated by Abu Salama bin Abdur Rahman and Abu Bakr bin Abu Khaythama that Abu Hurayra had said: "Prophet Muhammad offered the prayer of Zuhr or Asr in two rak'ahs and finished it by tasleem (saying assalamualaykum). Thush-Shamalayn bin Abd Amr, the ally of the tribe of Zuhra, said to him: "Did you lessen the prayer or did you forget?" The Prophet (s) said: "What did Thul-Yadayn say?" They said: "He was right."
1. His name was Omayr or Amr as mentioned in Ibn Hajr's book al-Issaba.
2. Refer to an-Nawawi's book Sharh Sahih Muslim, vol. 4, p.p. 235, printed in the margins of al- Qastalani's book Irshad as-Sari and Zakariyya al-Ansari's book Tuhfa.
3. Refer to al-Qastalani's Irshad as-Sari, vol. 3, p.p. 267.
4. In his book Musnad, vol. 20, p.p. 271 and p.p. 284.
Abu Musa mentioned a tradition narrated by Ja'far al-Mustaghfiri 1 from Muhammad bin Katheer from al-Awza'ee from az-Zuhri from Sa'eed bin al-Mussayab, Abu Salama and Obaydullah bin Abdullah that Abu Hurayra had said: "The Prophet ended the prayer after two rak'ahs instead of four. Abd Amr 2 bin Nadhla, who was from the tribe of Khuza'a and an ally of the tribe of Zuhra, stood up and said to the Prophet: "Did you lessen the prayer or did you forget?".. .including the saying of the Prophet (was Thush-Shamalayn true?)
All these traditions showed clearly that Thul-Yadayn, mentioned in Abu Hurayra's tradition was Thush-Shamalayn ibn Abd Amr, the ally of the tribe of Zuhra. No doubt that Thush-Shamalayn, mentioned above, was killed in the battle of Badr more than five years before Abu Hurayra became a Muslim. His killer was Ossama aj-Jasmi. Ibn Abdul Birr and all of the historians said that. So how could it be possible for Abu Hurayra to meet him in one prayer behind the prophet Muhammad (s)?!
Some, who defended Abu Hurayra, justified that the companion might narrate about something that he didn't attend either by hearing about it from the Prophet or from another companion. Hence the death of Thul-Yadayn five years before Abu Hurayra became a Muslim would not prevent Abu Hurayra to narrate the tradition.
This excuse was definitely wrong. Abu Hurayra pretended that he had attended the prayer, and that was confirmed by all those, who mentioned this tradition. Al-Bukhari mentioned the tradition in his Sahih 3 narrated by Adam bin Shu'ba from Sa'd bin Ibrahim that Abu Hurayra had said: "The Prophet (s) led us in the Zuhr prayer or Asr prayer...
etc."
Muslim mentioned in his Sahih 4 that Muhammad bin Seereen had said: "I heard Abu Hurayra saying: The prophet Muhammad (s)
1. Refer to Ibn Hajr's book al-Issaba, vol. 20, p.p. 271 and p.p. 284.
2. As it was mentioned in al-Issaba. Notice he said that the name of Thush-Shamalayn was Abd Amr.
3. Vol. 1, p.p. 145.
4. Vol. 1, p.p. 215.
led us in one of the day prayers, either the Zuhr prayer or the Asr prayer.. .etc."
Imam at-Tahawi was confused about this tradition. He said that it was a true tradition, although he was certain that Thul-Yadayn was Thush-Shamalayn himself, the ally of the tribe of Zuhra, who was martyred in the battle of Badr, five years before Abu Hurayra became a Muslim, so it was impossible for them to be together at one prayer. Hence he was obliged to interpret Abu Hurayra's saying 1 as the following: "The Prophet led us in prayer (metaphorically) that he meant: he led the Muslims in prayer."
The answer for their excuse was that Abu Hurayra confirmed his definite attendance in a way, which could not be interpreted here and there. Muslim mentioned a tradition in his Sahih 2 that Abu Hurayra had said: "While I was offering the Zuhr prayer with the prophet Muhammad (s), he ended the prayer after two rak'as.. .etc." What about this saying? Was it possible to look for excuses to defend it? Certainly not! But we were afflicted with those, who never ponder! We do not have but Allah to resort to!
1. Refer to al-Qastalani's book Irshad as-Sari, vol. 3, p.p. 266.
2. vol. 1, p.p. 216.
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