Bayhaqi 3172 — There is no negligence on one who sleeps through

(a) Abdullah bin Rabah mentioned from Sayyiduna Abu Qatadah (may Allah be pleased with him) the complete hadith about the Companions' journey. He said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) turned a little away from the road, then laid down his blessed head (that is, he lay down to rest), and then said: "Watch over our prayer for us." The first to wake up was the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and the sun had already come out. We too woke up in alarm, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Mount your riding animals and move on." We set off until the sun had become fully bright. Then he called for a vessel of ablution water that was with me; there was a little water in it, and we all performed ablution from it. He mentioned the complete hadith and said: Then the mu'adhdhin of the Messenger, Sayyiduna Bilal (may Allah be pleased with him), called the adhan, and the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) offered two rak'ahs (the sunnah of Fajr). Then he led the morning prayer, and he did just as he used to do every day. Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) and all of us mounted our riding animals. Some of us Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) began whispering to one another: "What will be the expiation for the negligence we have shown in our prayer?" He (peace and blessings be upon him) saw us and asked: "What are you whispering about?" We said: "O Messenger of Allah! Our negligence in the prayer." He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Do you not have in my life an excellent example?" Then he said: "There is no negligence in missing the prayer because of sleep. Negligence is only on the part of the one who, while awake and remembering, does not pray the prayer until the time of the next prayer comes. When something like this happens to someone, he should pray it as soon as he wakes up, and offer the coming prayer at its time."
Then Abdullah bin Rabah narrates: I was narrating this hadith in the Jami' Mosque, and Sayyiduna Imran bin Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) said to me: "Young man, look carefully at how you narrate it, for I too was one of that night's caravan." I said: "O Abu Nujayd! You narrate it, for you know this hadith well." He said: "Whom are you from?" I said: "From the Ansar." He said: "Then you know the hadith better." So I narrated the hadith before the people, and Sayyiduna Imran (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "I was certainly present that night, but I did not think that anyone had remembered this hadith as you have remembered it."
(b) In the narration of Imam Muslim (may Allah have mercy on him) it says: "Whoever does that, let him pray it when he becomes aware of it, and when the next day comes, let him pray it at its time."
(c) What was meant, and Allah knows best, was to make clear that the time of that prayer had not shifted to after sunrise; so when the next day comes, he should pray the (next day's) prayer at its proper time.
Some scholars regarded this (wording) from Abdullah bin Rabah as an error (wahm).