Sahih Ibn Khuzaymah

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) intended to dispatch an expedition, and it consisted of only a few people. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) called them and asked: “How much of the Qur’an do you have memorized?” Then he listened to their recitation of the Qur’an, until he came to a young man among them and asked him: “O so-and-so, which surahs do you have memorized?” He replied: “I have memorized such-and-such surahs and Surah Al-Baqarah.” The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) asked: “You have memorized Surah Al-Baqarah as well?” He replied: “Yes.” Upon this, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Go, you are their leader.” A man among them who was of honor and status said: “O Messenger of Allah, by the One whose attributes are such-and-such, I did not learn the Qur’an except out of fear that I would not be able to act upon it (that I would not be able to recite it in the night prayer).” The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Learn the Qur’an, recite it, and sleep as well. Indeed, the example of the Qur’an for the one who learns it, recites it, and stands in prayer with it at night is like a bag filled with musk whose fragrance spreads everywhere. And the one who learns the Qur’an, preserves it in his chest, and sleeps (does not recite it in the night prayer), his example is like a bag whose musk is tied shut (so its fragrance does not spread).”