حَدَّثَنَا
قُتَيْبَةُ ، حَدَّثَنَا
وَكِيعٌ ، عَنْ
مِسْعَرِ بْنِ حَبِيبٍ الْجَرْمِيِّ ، حَدَّثَنَا
عَمْرُو بْنُ سَلَمَةَ ، عَنْ
أَبِيهِ ، أَنَّهُمْ وَفَدُوا إِلَى النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَلَمَّا أَرَادُوا أَنْ يَنْصَرِفُوا ، قَالُوا : يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ، " مَنْ يَؤُمُّنَا ؟ قَالَ : أَكْثَرُكُمْ جَمْعًا لِلْقُرْآنِ ، أَوْ أَخْذًا لِلْقُرْآنِ " ، قَالَ : فَلَمْ يَكُنْ أَحَدٌ مِنَ الْقَوْمِ جَمَعَ مَا جَمَعْتُهُ ، قَالَ : فَقَدَّمُونِي وَأَنَا غُلَامٌ وَعَلَيَّ شَمْلَةٌ لِي فَمَا شَهِدْتُ مَجْمَعًا مِنْ جَرْمٍ إِلَّا كُنْتُ إِمَامَهُمْ ، وَكُنْتُ أُصَلِّي عَلَى جَنَائِزِهِمْ إِلَى يَوْمِي هَذَا ، قَالَ أَبُو دَاوُد : وَرَوَاهُ يَزِيدُ بْنُ هَارُونَ ، عَنْ مِسْعَرِ بْنِ حَبِيبٍ الْجَرْمِيِّ ، عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ سَلَمَةَ ، قَالَ : لَمَّا وَفَدَ قَوْمِي إِلَى النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ ، لَمْ يَقُلْ : عَنْ أَبِيهِ .
Amr bin Salamah reported on the authority of his father (Salamah) that they visited the Prophet ﷺ. When they intended to return, they said: Messenger of Allah, who will lead us in prayer? He said: The one of you who knows most of the Quran, or memorizes most of the Quran, (should act as your imam). There was none in the clan who knew more of the Quran than I did. They, therefore, put me in front of them and I was only a boy. And I wore a mantle, Whenever I was present in the gathering of Jarm (name of his clan), I would act as their Imam, and lead them in their funeral prayer until today. Abu Dawud said: This tradition has been narrated by Amr bin Salamah through a different chain of transmitter. This version has: “When my clan visited the Prophet ﷺ. . . . ” He did not report it on the authority of his father.
Related hadith on this topic
Explanation & Benefits
Hafiz Muhammad Ameen
637. Commentary: From this, it is understood that the person most deserving of leading the prayer (imamah) is the one who is most proficient in the Qur’an, is a memorizer (hafiz) of the Qur’an, and is also well-versed in the sciences of the Qur’an. In comparison, a person who is merely a religious scholar (alim) holds the second rank.
Source: Sunan Nasa'i: Translation and Benefits by Shaykh Hafiz Muhammad Amin Hafizullah, Page: 637