It is narrated from Sayyiduna Sa'd bin Hisham (may Allah be pleased with him) that he came to Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) and said: O Mother of the Believers! Tell me about the night prayer of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). She said: Have you not read "O you wrapped in garments" [Surah al-Muzzammil: 1]? He says: I said: Of course! Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: Allah Almighty made the night prayer obligatory at the beginning of the surah, so the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and his Companions stood in prayer for a year, until their feet became swollen. Allah withheld the final part of the surah in the heaven for twelve months; then Allah sent down the lightening (of the obligation) at the end of the surah, and the night prayer became voluntary after having been obligatory.
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الصلاة / 1677
It is narrated from Nafi' that Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) used to say that "the declining of the sun" (duluk al-shams) means its inclining.
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الصلاة / 1678
Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) used to say: "The declining of the sun" [Surah al-Isra: 78] means "when the shadow turns back", and "the darkness of the night" [Surah al-Isra: 78] means "the gathering of the night and its darkness".
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الصلاة / 1679
Sayyiduna Qatadah (may Allah have mercy on him) says concerning the saying of Allah Almighty "at the declining of the sun" [Surah al-Isra: 78]: When the sun inclines from the middle of the sky, at the time of the Zuhr prayer, until the darkness of the night; and he said: The beginning of the night is the Maghrib prayer.
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الصلاة / 1680
Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) says: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "Praying in congregation is twenty-five degrees more excellent than praying alone, and the angels of the night and the angels of the day gather at the Fajr prayer." Then Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: If you wish, recite: "And the recitation of dawn; indeed, the recitation of dawn is ever witnessed." [Surah al-Isra: 78]
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الصلاة / 1681
Sayyiduna Qays bin Abi Hazim (may Allah have mercy on him) says: I heard Sayyiduna Jarir bin Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) say: We were sitting with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) when suddenly he (peace and blessings be upon him) looked at the moon on the night of the full moon, and said: "You will see your Lord just as you see this moon; you will not be crowded in seeing Him. So if you are able, do not let yourselves be overcome (and miss) a prayer." Isma'il says: (That is,) do not let the prayer escape you (before the sun rises and before it sets, meaning Asr and Fajr). Then Sayyiduna Jarir (may Allah be pleased with him) recited this verse: "So glorify the praise of your Lord before the rising of the sun and before its setting." [Surah Ta Ha: 130]
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الصلاة / 1682
Nafi' bin al-Azraq came to Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) and asked: "Are the five prayers in the Qur'an?" He said: "Yes!" Then he recited this verse: "So glorify Allah when you reach the evening" [Surah al-Rum: 17] and said: "This is the Maghrib prayer"; "and when you reach the morning" [Surah al-Rum: 17]: "This is the Fajr prayer"; "and in the late afternoon" [Surah al-Rum: 18]: "This is the Asr prayer"; "and when you reach midday" [Surah al-Rum: 18]: "This is the Zuhr prayer." And he recited this verse: "And after the Isha prayer: three times of privacy for you" [Surah al-Nur: 58].
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الصلاة / 1683
Imam Hasan al-Basri (may Allah have mercy on him) says concerning the saying of Allah Almighty "So glorify Allah when you reach the evening" [Surah al-Rum: 17]: It means the Maghrib and Isha prayers; "and when you reach the morning" [Surah al-Rum: 17] means the morning prayer; "And to Him belongs all praise in the heavens and the earth, and in the late afternoon" [Surah al-Rum: 18] means the Asr prayer; and "when you reach midday" [Surah al-Rum: 18] means the Zuhr prayer.
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الصلاة / 1684
Hasan al-Basri (may Allah have mercy on him) says concerning the saying of Allah Almighty "And establish prayer at the two ends of the day" [Surah Hud: 114]: It means the Fajr prayer, and the other end means Zuhr and Asr; and "and in the early hours of the night" [Surah Hud: 114] means Maghrib and Isha.
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الصلاة / 1686
Qatadah (may Allah have mercy on him) says concerning the saying of Allah "And establish prayer at the two ends of the day" [Surah Hud: 114]: It means the morning and Asr prayers; and "and in the early hours of the night" [Surah Hud: 114] means the Maghrib and Isha prayers.
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الصلاة / 1687