Muslim

Hadith Commentary:
Vocabulary of the Hadith:
(1)
Fay’:
The shadow that appears after the sun has passed its zenith is called fay’.

(2)
Tilul:
Plural of til, meaning a mound of soil or sand.

Benefits and Issues:
The purpose of the hadith of Abu Hurairah radi Allahu anhu is that in those seasons and places where there is intense heat at midday and the atmosphere becomes like Hell due to the severity of the heat, the Dhuhr prayer should be delayed and performed at a time when the intensity of the heat has subsided and the weather has become somewhat cooler. This is the position of the majority (jumhur). Imam Shafi’i rahimahullah considers this (delaying) to be for those coming from afar for the congregational prayer (jama‘ah). In accordance with this, Imam Nawawi rahimahullah has established a chapter, but this interpretation is not correct. From the hadith of Abu Dharr radi Allahu anhu, it is understood that the cooling (ibrad) should be to the extent that the shadow of the walls becomes such that coming and going within it is possible. The objective is not that the heat should completely end and the ground should become cool, because if that were the objective, then the noble Companions radi Allahu anhum ajma‘in would not have needed to spread a cloth on the ground for prostration, nor would they have felt the need to complain about the heat.

Explanation:
To "cool down" here means to perform the prayer after the sun has passed its zenith (zawal), not that it should be delayed until the shadow becomes equal to the object (one mithl), because when the shadow reaches one mithl, the beginning time for the ‘Asr prayer starts. This is the opinion of the majority of scholars. To perform the prayer immediately after zawal is called ta‘jil (hastening), and to delay it a little so that some coolness comes during the summer and then perform it is called ibrad (delaying for coolness).

Imam Tirmidhi rahimahullah says:
«وقداختار قوم من اهل العلم تاخيرصلوٰة الظهر فى شدة الحر وهوقول ابن المبارك واحمدواسحاق»
That is, the preferred opinion of a group of scholars is that in intense heat, the Zuhr prayer should be performed after a short delay. This is also the fatwa of ‘Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak, Ahmad, and Ishaq. However, this absolutely does not mean that Zuhr should be delayed until the beginning time of ‘Asr, i.e., until the shadow becomes one mithl, because it is established by strong evidences that the time for ‘Asr begins after the shadow reaches one mithl. Imam Bukhari rahimahullah himself, at this very place, has mentioned through multiple narrations that the beginning time for ‘Asr starts when the shadow becomes one mithl, which is the preferred opinion, and its details are mentioned elsewhere.

Hadith Commentary:
(1)
This is an incident from a journey, the details of which are forthcoming in Hadith (539).
The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) forbade giving the call to prayer (adhan) during intense heat, because when there is leeway in the timing, people should not be invited to come for prayer in severe heat.
It is not correct to subject them to hardship.
When the intensity subsides, then the adhan should be given so that gathering for prayer does not become difficult.
It should be noted that the command to delay the Zuhr prayer until it cools down is general, whether one is traveling or resident, whether the mosque is far or near, whether there is provision for shade or not, because the reason given for delaying the prayer is that during the days of intense heat, at the very time of midday, Hell (Jahannam) breathes, which is a sign of Allah’s wrath.
As is mentioned in the hadith:
Do not pray at the exact time of midday, for it is an hour in which Hell is kindled.
(Sahih Muslim, al-Masajid, Hadith: 1930(832))

(2)
At this point, the question arises: when prayer is a means of Allah’s mercy, should not the prayer be performed immediately so that it becomes a cause for the removal of Allah’s wrath? The answer to this is given thus: when the Lawgiver (shari‘ alayhis-salam) himself states the reason for something, it is necessary to accept it without objection, whether its meaning is understood or not.
(Fath al-Bari: 2/24)

Explanation:
It is the habit of Imam Bukhari rahimahullah that whenever a word appears in a hadith which is also found in the Qur'an, he provides the explanation of the Qur'anic word as well. Here, the word «يتفيا» appears in the hadith, which is mentioned in the Noble Qur'an as «يتفيؤا»; the root of both is the same, therefore he has also transmitted its explanation. The complete verse is in Surah An-Nahl, in which it is mentioned that the shadow of everything inclines sometimes to the right and sometimes to the left in order to prostrate to Allah Ta'ala.

Hadith Commentary:
(1)
In one narration, it is explicitly stated that the one who gave the call to prayer (adhan) was Sayyiduna Bilal (radi Allahu anhu), and the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) instructed him three times to wait for a cooler time. From a narration in Sahih al-Bukhari, it is understood that when the shade of the sand dunes became equal to them, the adhan was given.
(Sahih al-Bukhari, al-Adhan, Hadith: 629)
This equality does not mean that the prayer of Zuhr was delayed until the shadow of everything became equal to it; rather, the words "sawa" are used in the sense of "zahara" (to appear).
It is also possible that during travel, the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) waited until the last time for Zuhr prayer in order to combine it with Asr.
(Fath al-Bari: 2/29)
However, there is no indication of combining (the prayers) in the hadith.
Apparently, the narrator's intention is not to state actual equality, but rather to indicate the appearance of the shadow, as is understood from Hadith:
(535).
(2)
Some of the esteemed Imams have taken the position regarding delaying Zuhr prayer on extremely hot days that such a delay is permissible only when it is difficult for people to perform the prayer in intense heat and when worshippers have to come from afar to the mosque for congregational prayer. For an individual (praying alone), in any case, it is preferable to perform the prayer at its earliest time.
Similarly, if there is no need to come from afar for congregational prayer, or if the worshippers are gathered at one place, or if arrangements for shade, etc., are made for those coming from afar, then delaying the prayer should be avoided; rather, it should be performed at its earliest time.
As Imam Tirmidhi (rahimahullah) writes:
"Imam Shafi'i (rahimahullah) said that the instruction to perform Zuhr prayer at a cooler time is only in the case when worshippers have to come from afar to the mosque, but regarding one who prays alone or with congregation in his own community's mosque, I prefer that even in intense heat, Zuhr prayer should not be delayed."
(Jami' al-Tirmidhi, al-Salat, Hadith: 157)
Through this chapter heading, Imam Bukhari (rahimahullah) most likely intends to point towards this very position: that the ruling of delaying Zuhr prayer in intense heat is general for both travel and residence, and there is no specification in this regard.
(3)
No specific limit has been stated for "abrad" (cooling/delaying for coolness) as to what its end is. Its ruling can vary according to different circumstances and conditions.
However, it is necessary to ensure that in cooling (delaying) the prayer, it is not postponed until its last time.
It should be noted that during travel, the prayer should be delayed for coolness when the travelers are encamped; otherwise, when the journey is ongoing, both combining prayers at the earlier or later time (jam' taqdim and jam' ta'khir) are possible.
(4)
It is Imam Bukhari's (rahimahullah) method that if a word appears in a hadith which, or a similar word, is used in the Qur'an, he mentions the Qur'anic word and provides its linguistic explanation. Thus, in relation to the word (fay’ al-tilal) that appears in the hadith, he presents the literal explanation of (yatafayya'u zilaluhu)
(al-Nahl: 16:48)
by quoting the statement of Ibn Abbas (radi Allahu anhu) that its meaning is "to incline," i.e., the shadow is called (fay’) because it is first inclined to one side, then inclines to the other side.

Hadith Commentary: Imam Bukhari rahimahullah wishes to clarify that when there is a group of Muslim travelers present, they too should give the call to prayer (adhan), pronounce the opening takbir, and establish the congregational prayer (jama‘ah) in the same manner as they do in a state of residence.

It is also established from this that in the summer, it is appropriate to delay the Zuhr prayer a little.

This is so that the intensity of the heat, which is produced by the breath of Hellfire, may subside somewhat.

Just as Hell exists, so too does its breath exist.

The reality of this is best known to Allah.

There is no need for further investigation.

Hadith Commentary:
(1)
Abdullah ibn Umar (radi Allahu anhu) states that during travel, the call to prayer (adhan) should be given when there is a leader (amir) present with the army or caravan; otherwise, only the iqamah (second call to prayer) is to be given.
Imam Malik holds the same position: if there is an amir in the congregation, then the adhan should be given; otherwise, it should not.
Imam Bukhari (rahimahullah) says that the adhan is an independent matter; it is not conditional upon the presence of an amir. As is evident from the aforementioned hadith, the mu’adhdhin (caller to prayer) intended to give the adhan repeatedly during travel, and finally, when the intensity of the heat lessened, the adhan for Zuhr was given, and then the congregational prayer was performed with the iqamah.
The purpose of this heading is not to suggest that a person traveling alone cannot give the adhan and iqamah, because previously, a hadith narrated from Abu Sa’id al-Khudri (radi Allahu anhu) (609) has already been mentioned, in which it is stated that even a person alone should give the adhan aloud.
There are countless benefits and numerous advantages to the adhan; among them is the legislated purpose of gathering (for prayer). Therefore, even if there is no congregation, giving the adhan is still legislated.

(2)
Imam Bukhari (rahimahullah) has also mentioned the adhan and iqamah in the plains of Arafat and Muzdalifah, even though the Hajj of the House of Allah is not conditional upon the presence of an amir.
From this, it is established that during travel, if there are many travelers, they should certainly make arrangements for the adhan and iqamah, whether there is an amir or not.

Benefit:

This hadith has already been mentioned in (535). Some people say that during travel, neither the call to prayer (adhan) nor the commencement (iqamah) should be given. Ibn Umar radi Allahu anhuma says that during travel, only the iqamah should be given, not the adhan, because the adhan should only be given in an army or such a caravan that has a leader; however, at the time of Fajr, they used to give two adhans. [فتح الباري] The purpose of Imam Bukhari rahimahullah in bringing this chapter is to show that even during travel, if there are more than one person, they should give both the adhan and the iqamah for all prayers, as is evident from this hadith of Abu Dharr radi Allahu anhu that the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam was on a journey, yet he had the mu’adhdhin (Bilal radi Allahu anhu. [فتح الباري]) give the adhan for Dhuhr with some delay. Similarly, he also instructed Malik bin Huwairith radi Allahu anhu and his companion to give the adhan and the iqamah, as will be mentioned in the following ahadith. In Arafat and Muzdalifah as well, the adhan should be given in the same manner. This alludes to those ahadith in which it is mentioned that the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, during Hajj, performed Dhuhr and Asr in Arafat with one adhan and two iqamahs, and Maghrib and Isha in Muzdalifah with one adhan and two iqamahs.