Bukhari

Hadith Commentary:
In this narration, it is mentioned that the People of the Torah said this, and there is no doubt that their time was longer than the time of the Muslims. The narration in which it is stated that both the Jews and the Christians said this has been used by the Hanafis as evidence that the time for the ‘Asr prayer begins when the shadow becomes twice its length. However, this reasoning is not correct, and in fact, there is no basis for such reasoning in the wording of this narration.

Hadith Commentary:
1.
Qirat is the name of a specified portion, which is half a daniq and, according to the current decimal system, is equivalent to 1.255 milligrams. Sometimes, qirat also refers to a large quantity, as in the hadith where it is mentioned that whoever participates in a funeral will receive one qirat, and whoever remains until the burial will receive two qirats. The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) was asked, "What are the two qirats?" He (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) replied:
"The qirat are like two great mountains."
(Sahih al-Bukhari, al-Jana'iz, Hadith: 1325)
At the end of this hadith, it is stated: "I bestow My grace upon whomever I will."

2.
Imam al-Bukhari rahimahullah has established the chapter heading from this part of the hadith.
The will (mashiyyah) of Allah the Exalted is always carried out.
It is not dependent on any custom or rule; rather, whatever Allah the Exalted wills happens, and whatever He does not will does not happen. However, the Mu'tazilah and those who follow their path attempt to impose their rational judgments upon Allah the Exalted, saying that Allah should do such and such, or Allah should not do such and such—that is, Allah should punish the sinner and reward the obedient.
Whereas all these matters are dependent upon the will (mashiyyah) of Allah the Exalted.
If He wills, He may send a righteous and pious woman to Hell merely for tying up a cat at home without cause, and if He wills, He may forgive an immoral woman simply for giving water to a dog and grant her the certificate of Paradise.
In any case, the will (mashiyyah) of Allah the Exalted is operative throughout the entire world of color and scent.
Allah the Exalted does whatever He wills; there is none to prevent or overpower Him.

Hadith Commentary:
That is, this comparison includes both the Jews and the Christians together, and the time allotted to the Muslims in which they worked was very little. For where is the time from morning until ‘Asr, and where is the time from ‘Asr until sunset? Now, the argument of the Hanafis is not correct that the time for ‘Asr begins when the shadow reaches twice its length.

Hadith Commentary:
In acting upon the Torah and the Gospel, recitation (qira’ah) of both these books is also included.
From this, it is established that recitation is an action, which is the deed of the servant and is created by Allah, the Exalted.
Imam al-Bukhari rahimahullah has proven from this hadith that the act of recitation (tilawah) is the deed of the servant, and the recited (matluw), that is, that which is recited, is the speech of Allah, the Exalted.
And Allah knows best.

Explanation:
From this hadith, the Hanafis have derived the evidence that the time for the Asr prayer begins when the shadow becomes twice its length; otherwise, the time from Zuhr to Asr would not be longer than the time from Asr to sunset. However, an opponent could argue that in the hadith, the time from the Asr prayer to sunset is considered less than the time from midday to the Asr prayer. And even if the Asr prayer is performed when the shadow is equal to its length, the time from finishing the prayer until sunset will still be less than the time from midday until the completion of the Asr prayer, because there will be the call to prayer (adhan), people will gather, perform ablution (wudu), offer the sunnah prayers, etc. Besides, the hadith could also mean that the time allotted to the Muslims was less than the total time allotted to the Jews and Christians. And there is no doubt about this.

Imam Bukhari rahimahullah has brought this hadith in this chapter, and it is difficult to explain its relevance. Hafiz (Ibn Hajar) has said that from this and the following hadith, it is derived that sometimes a person receives the full wage for performing only a part of the work. Similarly, whoever catches one rak‘ah of Fajr or Asr, Allah can grant him the reward of performing the entire prayer on time. (In this hadith, Muslims are also mentioned, which means that) the work was done only from Asr to Maghrib, but the wage for the whole day was given. The reason is that they fulfilled the condition, worked until the evening, and completed the task. The previous two groups caused their own loss. They abandoned the work halfway and ran away. Their effort went in vain.

These examples refer to the Jews, Christians, and Muslims. The Jews accepted Musa alayhis salam and followed the Torah, but later deviated from the Holy Gospel (Injil) and the Noble Qur’an, and did not accept Isa alayhis salam and Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. The Christians accepted the Gospel and Isa alayhis salam, but deviated from the Noble Qur’an and Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. Thus, the efforts of both these groups were wasted. They were deprived of the reward that was to be given in the Hereafter. In the end times, the Muslims came and worked for a short period, but completed the task. They accepted all of Allah’s books and all of His prophets, so the entire reward came to their share. «ذلك فضل الله يوتيه من يشاءوالله ذوالفضل العظيم» (From Hazrat Maulana Waheeduz-Zaman Khan Sahib Muhaddith Hyderabadi rahimahullah)

Hadith Commentary:
(1)
While explaining this hadith, Allamah Sindhi rahimahullah writes:
It is a special characteristic of the Ummah of Muhammad that whoever among them performs a righteous deed until sunset will receive its full reward. Thus, any individual of this Ummah who performs the Asr prayer before sunset—even if it is only one rak‘ah—will receive the reward of the complete prayer.
This is the relevance of the hadith to the chapter.
(Hashiyat al-Sindi: 1/106)
Hafiz Ibn Hajar rahimahullah, quoting from Muhallab, writes:
From this hadith, it is understood that sometimes, for performing a partial act, the reward of the complete act is given, because for working from Asr until sunset, the wage for the entire day was granted.
This is exactly like the one who attains one rak‘ah being given the reward of the full prayer. Furthermore, in the hadith, the part and the act for which the full reward was given is the act of the last quarter of the day, i.e., the act from Asr until sunset, which is a quarter of the day. Just as for working in this quarter of the time the full reward was given, similarly, the one who attains one rak‘ah is considered like the one who attains all four rak‘ahs. Thus, in both the example and the thing exemplified, the matter of considering a quarter of the act as the full act is common.
(Fath al-Bari: 2/53)
From this hadith, the intent of Imam Bukhari rahimahullah is to clarify the end time of Asr, because in the hadith, the day is divided into three parts and assigned to three groups:
The first part, from morning until noon, is for the Jews, and no one else shares in it.
Then the second part, from Zuhr until Asr, is for the people of the Gospel, and again, no one else shares in it.
Then the third part, from Asr until sunset, remains.
It is thus understood that just as the time from Zuhr until Asr is one period, so too the time from Asr until Maghrib should remain one period.
From this, Imam Bukhari rahimahullah’s objective is established: that the end time of Asr is sunset.

(2)
Some scholars hold the view that, in light of this hadith, the time for Asr should begin when the shadow becomes twice the length (of an object), because the people of the Gospel said, “We have done more work,” and this would only be correct if the time from Zuhr until Asr is longer than the time from Asr until Maghrib.
Allamah Kirmani rahimahullah has responded to this assumption as follows: We do not accept that if the time for Asr begins at one shadow-length, then the time from Zuhr until Asr is less than the time from Asr until Maghrib.
Even if this is accepted, where is it stated that the work of each of the two groups is more than that of the Muslims?
Rather, the combined work of both groups is more than that of the Muslims.
It is also possible that the first group’s work is more and the second’s is not, but, by way of predominance, the same words were used for both groups.
It can also be said that having more work does not necessarily mean having more time, because more work can be done in less time.
(Sharh al-Kirmani: 2/202)
From a historical perspective as well, it is established that by “more or less” is meant the work, not the time, because there is a gap of six hundred years between ‘Isa alayhis salam and the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, whereas from the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam until now, 1432 years have passed. Therefore, having more work does not necessitate having more time.

Hadith Commentary:
The meaning is that the lifespans of those previous communities were long, while your lifespans are short.
The lifespan of the earlier communities is, metaphorically, from sunrise until ‘Asr, and yours is from ‘Asr until Maghrib, which is only a quarter of the previous period. By doing more deeds, the collective time of the Jews and Christians is meant—that is, from morning until ‘Asr is much more than the time from ‘Asr until Maghrib.
Now, the Hanafi inference from this hadith—that the time for the ‘Asr prayer begins at the shadow being twice the length (of an object)—will not be fully established.

Hadith Commentary:
➊
In this hadith, the virtue of the blessed Ummah (Ummah Marhoomah) is mentioned. This virtue is due to the recitation of the Noble Qur’an and acting upon it. When superiority over others is attained because of the Qur’an, then this also establishes the virtue of the Qur’an itself. There is no virtue greater than this.
➋
It is also understood from this that the lifespans of the previous nations were very long, and in comparison, the lifespan of this Ummah is very short. It is as if the lifespan of the previous nations is from sunrise until ‘Asr, and the lifespan of this Ummah is from ‘Asr until Maghrib, which is one fourth of the previous time.
By “doing more work,” what is meant is the collective time of the Jews and Christians, i.e., from morning until ‘Asr. This is much more than the time from ‘Asr until Maghrib.
(Fath al-Bari: 9/85)

Hadith Commentary:
The Jews, Christians, and Muslims are the three great religious communities of the world who have been given heavenly scriptures. Apart from them, divine inspiration has also been imparted to other nations of the world, but now their histories are not authentic.
In any case, these three communities still exist in the world today with their ancient claims, among which the Muslim community is the standard-bearer of a religion that claims to abrogate previous religions (nasikh al-adyan). Allah has granted them the distinction that for every good deed, they receive not only double but tenfold reward.
This is the parable mentioned in the hadith.
A qirat refers to a weight equal to four barley grains. For some righteous deeds, the reward is not just tenfold but can be many times more than that.

Hadith Commentary:
➊
The Jews, Christians, and Muslims are the three religious communities in the world who were given heavenly scriptures.
Apart from them, there are other nations among whom divine inspiration (ilham rabbani) was also imparted, but their history could not be compiled from reliable sources.
In any case, these three religious communities exist in the world with their ancient claims, among whom the Muslim community is the bearer of a religion that has abrogated all previous religions.
Allah Ta’ala has granted them this superiority that for every good deed, they are rewarded not only double but up to tenfold.
The command of Allah Ta’ala is:
“Whoever brings a good deed shall have ten times the like thereof.” ()
In fact, for some righteous deeds, the reward is even more than tenfold, reaching several hundred times.
There are some deeds for which no measure has been set for the reward; rather, the reward is given without limit or reckoning.
The command of Allah Ta’ala is:
“Indeed, the patient will be given their reward without account.” ()
According to the ahadith, fasting (sawm) is also among those deeds whose reward Allah Ta’ala will grant from Himself without reckoning.
➋
In any case, in this hadith, a particular characteristic of the Jews and Christians has been prominently mentioned, which is why Imam al-Bukhari rahimahullah has narrated it.

Delaying the Dhuhr or Asr Prayers
The reasoning of some people from this hadith to delay the Dhuhr or Asr prayers is invalid for several reasons. For example:

First: The time allotted to Muslims is much less than the combined time of the Jews and Christians.

Second: The total time from the sun’s decline (zawal) to one shadow-length, and from there until Maghrib, is less. See Hadiyyat al-Muslimeen (p. 25).

The fatwa of Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah radi Allahu anhu, “Pray the Dhuhr prayer when your shadow becomes equal to your height, and pray the Asr prayer when your shadow becomes twice your height,” means that you should perform the Dhuhr prayer from the time of zawal until your shadow is equal to your height, and the Asr prayer from one shadow-length until it becomes twice your height. See: [التعليق الممجد ص41 حاشيه: 9]

At the end of this fatwa of Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah radi Allahu anhu, it is mentioned that «وصل الصبح بغبش يعني الغلس» and perform the Fajr prayer in darkness. [موطا امام مالك ج1 ص8 ح7 بتحقيقي و سنده صحيح]

For further details, consult Hadiyyat al-Muslimeen (Hadith 6).

... See the original article ...

Fatawa Ilmiyyah (Tawdih al-Ahkam) vol. 2, p. 77