Bukhari

Benefits and Issues:
Relevance between the Chapter and the Hadith:
The relevance between the chapter and the hadith is that the hadith contains the words «فابعدهم ممشي», meaning the person who comes to the mosque from afar, i.e., endures hardship. It is as if the word "Fajr" is present in the chapter. If one reflects, among all the prayers, the prayer of Fajr involves the greatest hardship. Thus, the one who endures hardship to reach the mosque receives a much greater reward, and hardship is present in the Fajr prayer.

◈ Hafiz Ibn Hajar rahimahullah writes:
«دل على ان السبب فى زيادة الاجر وجود المشقة بالمشي الي الصلاة، و اذا كان كذالك فالمشي الي الصلاة الفجر فى جماعة اشق من غيرها .» [فتح الباري ج2، ص176]
“The reason for the increase in reward is walking towards the prayer with hardship, and since this is the case, then walking for the Fajr prayer is more arduous than for the other prayers.”

◈ Ibn al-Munir rahimahullah says:
«و لا شك ان المشي الى الصلاة الفجر اشق منه الى بقية الصلاة .» [المتواري، ص98]
“There is no doubt that walking towards the prayer for Fajr is more arduous than for the other prayers.”

◈ Allamah ‘Ayni rahimahullah says:
«مطابقة الترجمة تفهم من قوله اعظم الناس اجرا فى الصلاة ابعدهم . . . . . .» [عمدة القاري ج5، ص252]
The correspondence between the chapter heading and the hadith is as follows: the hadith states, “that person who comes from afar and endures hardship.” This mentions the great reward in prayer, and that is coming from afar (towards the mosque), and in this, distance and hardship are present. Thus, every prayer in which there is the hardship of coming from afar is greater in reward and virtue compared to those prayers in which there is no such hardship or effort, and these characteristics are not found.

◈ Badr al-Din Ibn Jama‘ah rahimahullah, while explaining the relevance between the chapter heading and the hadith, writes:
«ان صلاة الجماعة وبعد المشي انما كثر ثمرها المشقة الحاصل بالتقيد بالجماعة والمشي اليها والمشي الى الجماعة فى الفجر اشق من غيرها . . . . . . فيكون الأجر اكثر» [مناسبات تراجم البخاري، ص49]
“Indeed, joining the prayer in congregation and coming from afar to attain its fruits is specifically tied to walking towards the prayer for the congregation, and walking for the Fajr prayer is the most arduous among all (prayers)... thus, in terms of reward as well, it is the greatest among all prayers.”

◈ Abu Yahya Zakariya al-Shafi‘i rahimahullah writes:
“The relevance between the chapter heading and the hadith is that the cause of greater reward is walking towards the prayer from afar and with hardship, and (especially) in the Fajr prayer, distancing oneself from sleep, which is burdensome for the nature.” [منحة الباري بشرح صحيح البخاري ج2، ص366]
Therefore, the relevance between the chapter and the hadith is that walking towards the prayer and enduring hardship makes one deserving of reward, and all these things—overcoming sleep, walking in darkness, etc.—are more present in the Fajr prayer. (Thus, in this respect, its reward is also greater.)

◈ Mawlana Abu’l-Qasim Banarsi rahimahullah writes:
“Imam Bukhari rahimahullah has mentioned three ahadith in this chapter, and among the three types of correspondence we have mentioned above, each hadith is an example of one type. The first hadith, narrated from Abu Hurayrah radi Allahu anhu [صحيح بخاري برقم 621], corresponds to the chapter in a specific way, because the word ‘Fajr’ is present in it. This is the lowest level of ijtihad... The third hadith is from Abu Musa radi Allahu anhu, about which you have an objection (whereas from this very hadith, the highest level of ijtihad is established). Its correspondence to the chapter is by way of deduction as follows: this is what you have not understood, nor can you understand it. Listen carefully: it is that the wording of the hadith «فابعدهم ممشي» indicates that the increase in reward is due to the presence of hardship in walking towards the prayer, and in the Fajr prayer, compared to other prayers, there is the greatest hardship and difficulty in waking from sleep and walking to the mosque for congregational prayer. As one of the great experienced men of Asia has said:
‘The scribe of dreams, with the intention of departure... holds back the traveler from the path.
The sweet sleep of the morning... prevents the traveler from the journey.’
Thus, there is clear correspondence between the meaning of the hadith and the subject of the chapter, and this correspondence is by deduction and is the highest level of ijtihad.” [الخذي العظيم۔ ص7]

Hadith Commentary:
In the first hadith, the special virtue of the Fajr prayer is mentioned: that angels are present at this time and listen to the recitation of the Noble Qur’an.
In the next two hadiths, the general virtue of congregational prayer is mentioned.
This contains an indication that the Fajr prayer should be performed in congregation, so that, in addition to attaining twenty-seven times more reward, one may also gain the company of the angels who attend the congregation at Fajr to listen to the recitation of the Qur’an. Then, they ascend to the Throne (‘Arsh) and mention these righteous servants in the presence of Allah the Exalted.
May Allah the Exalted include us among them.
Ameen.

Hadith Commentary:
(1)
Although this hadith does not mention the Fajr prayer specifically, its relevance to the chapter heading is as follows: enduring greater hardship in going to prayer is a cause for increased reward, and going to the Fajr prayer involves more hardship, because there is greater laziness in waking up from sleep and a pronounced sense of difficulty, since one must abandon something as beloved as sleep. Although this is not the case for the ‘Isha prayer, walking in the darkness of night to attend it also becomes a reason for its virtue.
(Fath al-Bari: 2/180)

(2)
The level of intelligence, acumen, sharpness, and jurisprudential insight attained by Imam Bukhari rahimahullah is such that the objectors cannot even reach the dust of his feet. Thus, at this point, some individuals who consider themselves “jurists of the ummah” have objected that the hadith of Abu Darda radi Allahu anhu and the hadith of Abu Musa al-Ash‘ari radi Allahu anhu have no connection to the chapter heading. However, Imam Bukhari rahimahullah has established a methodology in his Sahih for proving issues and rulings. In light of this, sometimes he establishes a specific issue through a particular method, i.e., by a clear text. As, for example, the aforementioned chapter heading is established from the hadith of Abu Hurayrah radi Allahu anhu. And sometimes, by a general method, i.e., he derives specific issues from general evidence. As, for example, the affirmation of the above chapter heading from the hadith of Abu Darda radi Allahu anhu, as Hafiz Ibn Hajar rahimahullah has written quoting al-Zayn ibn al-Munir. At times, he also employs the method of deduction and extraction, as is clear from the hadith of Abu Musa al-Ash‘ari radi Allahu anhu. Hafiz Ibn Hajar rahimahullah has mentioned this in detail.
(Fath al-Bari: 2/180)
Therefore, instead of objecting to Imam Bukhari rahimahullah, one should remedy the shortcomings of one’s own understanding.

(3)
Sometimes it also happens that, under a chapter heading established by Imam Bukhari rahimahullah, a hadith is mentioned in which a new point is discussed. Therefore, Imam Bukhari rahimahullah, as a new benefit, establishes a new chapter heading for this hadith, which we, in our terminology, refer to as (bab fi’l-bab) — a chapter within a chapter. However, it is necessary that the mentioned hadith be related to both chapter headings. Thus, in this instance, the original chapter heading is “The Virtue of Congregational Prayer,” which is clearly established from the hadith of Abu Hurayrah radi Allahu anhu, and the virtue of the congregational Fajr prayer is established from the gathering of the angels. Therefore, here a new chapter heading, “The Virtue of the Congregational Fajr Prayer,” has been established. The subsequent narrations, i.e., the hadith of Abu Darda and the hadith of Abu Musa al-Ash‘ari, pertain to the previous chapter, i.e., the virtue of congregational prayer.
And Allah knows best.

Benefit:

The relevance of this hadith to the chapter is established in this way: just as the one coming from afar receives greater reward because he endures more hardship, likewise, attending the congregational prayer (jama‘ah) at dawn will also bring greater reward, since being present for the congregation early in the morning is very burdensome upon the self. [تيسير الباري]