The Duha prayer

Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) says that he never saw the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) offering the prayer at the time of Duha, except when he was about to set out on a journey or when he returned from a journey (in which case he would offer the prayer at that time).
Ahmad and Abu Ya'la recorded it, but they recorded these words: "The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did not offer the Duha prayer, except when he returned from a journey or was about to set out on a journey, in which case he would do so." Both of these narrations were recorded by Ubaydullah bin Rawwahah, who says: Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated the hadith to me. (Allamah al-Haythami says:) I say: I have not found anyone who mentions him, and al-Sharif also overlooked him.

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) says: I saw the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) offering the Duha prayer only once.
Ahmad and al-Bazzar recorded it, but they recorded these words: "He (peace and blessings be upon him) offered the Duha prayer only once." Its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy).

Abu Ubaydah bin Abdullah bin Mas'ud says that his father (i.e. Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him) did not used to offer the Duha prayer.
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir, and its narrators have been declared trustworthy, except that the narrator Abu Ubaydah did not hear from his father (Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him).

Sayyiduna Abu Umamah bin Sahl bin Hunayf (may Allah be pleased with him) says: The first person to offer the Duha prayer was a man from among the Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), whose kunyah was "Abu al-Zawa'id".
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir; its narrators have been declared trustworthy. Among its narrators is Ma'mar bin Bakkar, about whom al-Dhahabi says: he is suwaylih (of a lower degree of reliability); al-Azdi says: there is error (wahm) in his hadith; and Ibn Hibban mentioned him in the book "al-Thiqat".

Sayyidah Aishah Siddiqah (may Allah be pleased with her) says: the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) never offered the Duha prayer; he offered it only on the day of the Conquest of Makkah.
Al-Bazzar recorded it, and its narrators have been declared trustworthy; there is some criticism about some of its narrators that does no harm.

Sayyiduna Ali bin Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) says: the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to offer the Duha prayer.
Ahmad and Abu Ya'la recorded it, but they recorded these words: "He (peace and blessings be upon him) used to offer the Duha prayer." The narrators of Ahmad are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr bin al-As (may Allah be pleased with him) says: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sent out a military expedition. They obtained spoils of war and returned quickly. The people talked about how near their battleground was, how plentiful their spoils were, and how quickly they had returned. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Shall I not guide you to something for which one need not go far, the spoils are greater, and the return is quicker? Whoever performs ablution and then goes to the mosque in order to offer the Duha prayer, such a person need not go far, his spoils are greater, and his return is quicker."
Ahmad and al-Tabarani in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir recorded it; its chain contains Ibn Lahi'ah, about whom there is criticism. The narrators of al-Tabarani are thiqat (trustworthy), however, he mentioned Ibn Wahb in place of Ibn Lahi'ah.

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) says: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sent out an expedition. They obtained a great deal of spoils and also returned quickly. A man said: O Messenger of Allah, we have never seen an expedition that returned so quickly, nor one that obtained more spoils than these people. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Shall I not tell you of something with a quicker return than this and with greater spoils? A man who performs ablution in his house and performs it well, then goes to the mosque and offers the morning prayer in it, then after that offers the Duha prayer: he returns quickly and obtains greater spoils."
Abu Ya'la recorded it, and its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih.

Sayyiduna A'idh bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) says: The water was scarce. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) performed ablution and sprinkled that water on us. The narrator says: The fortunate one among us was the one whom that water reached, and we think that it reached all the people. The narrator says: After that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) led us in prayer at the time of Duha.
Ahmad and al-Tabarani in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir recorded it, but they recorded these words: A cup or a vessel containing a little water was brought to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) performed ablution, then by his (peace and blessings be upon him) order it was sprinkled on the people (the narrator is unsure of the word used for sprinkling). The chain of this narration contains a narrator who has not been named.

Sayyiduna Itban bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) says: the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) offered the voluntary Duha prayer in his house.
(Allamah al-Haythami says:) I say: A hadith from Sayyiduna Itban (may Allah be pleased with him) is recorded in the Sahih, other than this hadith.
Ahmad recorded it, and its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih.

Sayyiduna Uqbah bin Amir al-Juhani (may Allah be pleased with him) says that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, Allah Almighty says: O son of Adam, offer four rak'ahs for Me in the early part of the day, and because of them I will suffice you until the last part of the day."
Ahmad and Abu Ya'la recorded it, and its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Abu al-Darda' (may Allah be pleased with him) reports this saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "Allah Almighty says: O son of Adam, do not fall short of four rak'ahs in the early part of the day (i.e. do offer them), and I will suffice you until the last part of it (the day)."
Ahmad recorded it, and its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Abu Murrah al-Ta'ifi (may Allah be pleased with him) says: I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) saying: "Allah Almighty says: O son of Adam, offer four rak'ahs for My sake in the early part of the day, and I will suffice you until the last part of it (the day)."
Ahmad recorded it, and its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih.

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Allah Almighty says: O son of Adam, offer two rak'ahs for My sake in the early part of the day, and I guarantee you until the last part of it (the day)."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir; its chain contains Layth bin Abi Sulaym, and he is a mudallis (one who commits tadlis).

Sayyiduna al-Nawwas bin Sam'an (may Allah be pleased with him) says: I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) saying: "Allah Almighty says: O son of Adam, do not fail to offer four rak'ahs in the early part of the day, and I will suffice you until the last part of it (the day)."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir, and its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Abu Umamah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, Allah Almighty says: O son of Adam, offer four rak'ahs for My sake in the early part of the day, and I will suffice you until the last part of it (the day)."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir; its chain contains Salman bin Salamah al-Khaba'iri, and he is matruk (abandoned).

Sayyiduna Sa'd bin Abi Waqqas (may Allah be pleased with him) says: On the day of the Conquest of Makkah, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) offered eight rak'ahs in Makkah, in which he (peace and blessings be upon him) prolonged the recitation and the bowing.
Al-Bazzar recorded it; its chain contains Abdullah bin Shabib, and he is da'if (weak).

Sayyiduna Uqbah bin Amir (may Allah be pleased with him) says that one day, during the Battle of Tabuk, he went out with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was sitting and talking with his companions, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever stands up when the sun has come in front of him, performs ablution well, then stands and offers two rak'ahs of prayer, (Allah Almighty) forgives his sins, and that person becomes as he was on the day his mother gave birth to him."
Abu Ya'la recorded it, and its chain contains a narrator whom I do not know.

Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) says: During a journey I saw the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) offer eight rak'ahs at the time of Duha. When he (peace and blessings be upon him) completed the prayer, he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I have offered a prayer in which there is both longing and an aspect of fear. I asked my Lord for three things; He granted me two of them and did not grant me one. I asked Him (after this, some words are missing in the original text:) that He would not afflict my Ummah with years of famine, and that He would not let its enemy prevail over them, and He did so. And I supplicated to Him that He would not divide them into different factions, but He did not accept this request of mine."
(Allamah al-Haythami says:) I say: Al-Tirmidhi has also recorded a hadith from Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him), but it is different from this hadith.
Ahmad recorded it, and its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) says: I said to Sayyiduna Abu Dharr al-Ghifari (may Allah be pleased with him): O uncle, give me some advice. He said: You have asked me about the very thing I asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) about, and he said: "If you offer two rak'ahs at the time of Duha, your name will not be recorded among the heedless (ghafilin); if you offer four rak'ahs, your name will be recorded among the worshippers; if you offer six rak'ahs, you will be sufficed; if you offer eight rak'ahs, you will be counted among the devoutly obedient (qanitin); and if you offer twelve rak'ahs, a house will be built for you in Paradise. In every moment of the night and the day, Allah Almighty gives charity, through which He bestows favour on whomever He wills of His servants; and Allah Almighty does not bestow on His servant any favour like His granting him the ability to remember Him."
Al-Bazzar recorded it; its chain contains Husayn bin Ata', whom Abu Hatim and others declared da'if (weak). Ibn Hibban mentioned him in the book "al-Thiqat" and said: He makes mistakes and commits tadlis.

Sayyiduna Abu al-Darda' (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever offers two rak'ahs at the time of Duha is not recorded among the heedless (ghafilin); whoever offers four rak'ahs is counted among the worshippers; whoever offers six rak'ahs is sufficed for that day; whoever offers eight rak'ahs, Allah Almighty records his name among the devoutly obedient (qanitin); and whoever offers twelve rak'ahs, Allah Almighty builds a house for him in Paradise. At all times of night and day, Allah Almighty bestows favour on His servants and gives charity, and Allah Almighty does not bestow on any one of His servants a grace more excellent than that Allah Almighty grants him the ability to remember Him."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir; its chain contains Musa bin Ya'qub al-Zam'i, whom Yahya bin Ma'in and Ibn Hibban declared thiqah (trustworthy), while Ali bin al-Madini and others declared him da'if (weak); the rest of the narrators of this narration are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) reports this as a marfu' hadith going back to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him); he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Upon every joint of a human being, giving charity is due every day, and for all of that, the two rak'ahs of Duha suffice."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Saghir and al-Mu'jam al-Awsat; its chain contains a narrator whose biography I have not found.

Sayyiduna Abu Umamah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When the sun has risen from its place of rising as far as it is towards the west at the time of the Asr prayer, if at that time a person offers two rak'ahs and makes four prostrations, he receives the reward of that day." The narrator says: I think the narration also contains these words: "His mistakes and his sins are removed from him." The narrator says: I think he also said: "If he dies on that day, he will enter Paradise."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir; its chain contains Maymun bin Zayd, about whom al-Dhahabi says: Abu Hatim declared him weak (layyin). Ibn Hibban mentioned him in the book "al-Thiqat" and said: He makes mistakes. The rest of the narrators of this narration have been declared trustworthy, except that among them is Layth bin Abi Sulaym, about whom there is criticism.

Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) says: I saw the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) offering six rak'ahs in the Duha prayer, and after that I never abandoned these rak'ahs.
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat; its chain contains Sa'id bin Maslamah al-Umawi, whom al-Bukhari (may Allah have mercy on him), Yahya bin Ma'in and a group declared da'if (weak), while Ibn Hibban mentioned him in the book "al-Thiqat" and said: He makes mistakes.

Sayyiduna Jabir bin Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with them both) says: I was travelling with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and he (peace and blessings be upon him) gave me a camel to ride. He (peace and blessings be upon him) passed by me while I was the last of the people and was driving it on by beating it. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) struck it with his stick, and it began to go ahead of the people. Then, when we came to Makkah, I came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), wanting to return it (the camel) to him, and I found that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) had at that time offered six rak'ahs.

In one narration the words are: I came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in order to present my camel to him, and I saw that he (peace and blessings be upon him) had offered six rak'ahs at the time of Duha.
Al-Tabarani recorded both these narrations in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat through Muhammad bin Qays, as a hadith narrated from Sayyiduna Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him). Ibn Hibban mentioned this narrator (i.e. Muhammad bin Qays) in the book "al-Thiqat".

Sayyiduna Abu Musa al-Ash'ari (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever offers four rak'ahs at the time of Duha and offers four rak'ahs before Zuhr, a house is built for him in Paradise."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat and al-Mu'jam al-Kabir; its chain contains a group of narrators who are not known.

Sayyiduna Jubayr bin Mut'im (may Allah be pleased with him) says that he saw the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) offering the Duha prayer.
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir, and its chain is hasan (good).

It is reported about Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abi Awfa (may Allah be pleased with him) that he offered two rak'ahs at the time of Duha, and his wife said to him: You have offered (only) two rak'ahs? He told her that when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was given the glad tidings of the conquest, he (peace and blessings be upon him) offered two rak'ahs in this prayer, and when he was given the glad tidings of Abu Jahl's head (he also offered two rak'ahs at that time). (Allamah al-Haythami says:) I say: Ibn Majah recorded from this Companion only
this narration: "When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was given the glad tidings of Abu Jahl's head, he offered prayer."
Al-Bazzar and al-Tabarani in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir recorded part of it; its chain contains a narrator Sha'tha', and I have not found anyone declaring her trustworthy, nor anyone criticising her.

Sayyidah Umm Hani (may Allah be pleased with her) says: On the day of the Conquest of Makkah, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) asked for water. Sayyidah Umm Hani (may Allah be pleased with her) and Sayyidah Umm Sulaym (may Allah be pleased with her), the mother of Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him), held up a sheet as a screen. Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) entered the house of Sayyidah Umm Hani (may Allah be pleased with her), and he (peace and blessings be upon him) offered four rak'ahs at the time of Duha.
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir and al-Mu'jam al-Awsat, and its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy). A hadith from Sayyidah Umm Hani (may Allah be pleased with her) is mentioned in the Sahih, other than this hadith.

It is reported from her that on the day of the Conquest of Makkah, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) came to her house, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) offered six rak'ahs at the time of Duha.
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir and al-Mu'jam al-Awsat, and its chain is hasan (good). A hadith from Sayyidah Umm Hani (may Allah be pleased with her) is mentioned in the Sahih, in which it is stated that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) offered eight rak'ahs.

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) says: I used to recite this verse, "in the evening and at sunrise (al-ishraq)", but I did not know what was meant by it, until Sayyidah Umm Hani bint Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with her) narrated this hadith to me: the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) came to her house, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) asked for water for ablution in a vessel in which I could see the traces of dough. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) performed ablution, then he offered prayer at the time of Duha, and then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Umm Hani, this is the Ishraq prayer."
(Allamah al-Haythami says:) I say:
This narration is mentioned in the Sahih without this context.
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir; its chain contains Hajjaj bin Nusayr, whom Ali bin al-Madini and a group declared da'if (weak), while Yahya bin Ma'in and Ibn Hibban declared him thiqah (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) says: the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did not abandon the Duha prayer, whether during travel or otherwise.
Al-Bazzar recorded it, and its chain contains Yusuf bin Khalid al-Samti, and he is da'if (weak).

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "None will regularly observe the Duha prayer except an 'awwab' (i.e. one who turns to Allah Almighty frequently with repentance; according to one view it means an obedient person)."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat; its chain contains Muhammad bin Amr, about whom there is criticism, and its chain also contains a narrator whom I do not know.