till he reached near the women) He then moved forward and the people also moved forward along with him till he stood at his (original) place (of worship). He then completed the prayer as it was required to complete and the sun brightened and he said: O people! verily the sun and the moon are among the signs of Allah and they do not eclipse at the death of anyone among people (Abu Bakr said: On the death of any human being). So when you see anything like it (of the nature of eclipse), pray till it is bright. There is nothing which you have been promised (in the next world) but I have seen it in this prayer of mine. Hell was brought to me as you saw me moving back on account of fear lest its heat might affect me; and I saw the owner of the curved staff who dragged his intestines in the fire, and he used to steal (the belongings) of the pilgrims with his curved staff. If he (the owner of the staff) became aware, he would say: It got (accidentally) entangled in my curved staff, but if he was unaware of that, he would take that away. I also saw in it (in Hell) the owner of a cat whom she had tied and did not feed her nor set her free so that she could eat the creatures of the earth, till the cat died of starvation. Paradise was brought to me, and it was on that occasion that you saw me moving forward till I stood at my place (of worship). I stretched my hand as I wanted to catch hold of its fruits so that you may see them. Then I thought of not doing it. Nothing which you have been promised was there that I did not see in this prayer of mine.
Narrated by Jabir reported that the sun eclipsed during the lifetime of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) on that very day when Ibrahim (the Prophet's son) died. The Apostle of Allah (ﷺ) stood up and led people in (two rak'ahs of) prayer with six ruku's and four prostrations. He commenced (the prayer) with takbir (Allah-o-Akbar) and then recited and prolonged his recital. He then bowed nearly the (length of time) that he stood up. He then raised his head from the ruku' and recited but less than the first recital. He then bowed (to the length of time) that he stood up. He then raised his head from the ruku' and again recited but less than the second recital. He then bowed (to the length of time) that he stood up. He then lifted his head from the ruku'. He then fell in prostration and observed two prostrations. He stood up and then bowed, observing six ruku's like it, without (completing) the rak'ah in them, except (this difference) that the first (qiyam of ruku') was longer than the later one, and the ruku' was nearly (of the same length) as prostration. He then moved backward and the rows behind him also moved backward till we reached the extreme (Abu Bakr said:
Context
This hadith recounts an event during the lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) when a solar eclipse occurred on the day of his son Ibrahim's death. The Prophet led a special prayer with multiple prostrations and bowings, demonstrating the connection between natural phenomena and spiritual practices. He clarified that eclipses are signs from Allah, not linked to human events.
Modern Application
In contemporary society, this hadith serves as a reminder to turn to prayer during moments of awe or fear, such as natural events. It encourages individuals to seek solace and connection with Allah through prayer, especially during extraordinary occurrences.
Topics
This hadith is tagged with Prayer and Divine Signs because it illustrates the practice of prayer in response to a natural phenomenon and emphasizes the understanding of such events as signs from Allah.
And [had you been present], you would see the sun when it rose, inclining away from their cave on the right, and when it set, passing away from them on the left, while they were [laying] within an open space thereof. That was from the signs of Allah. He whom Allah guides is the [rightly] guided, but he whom He leaves astray - never will you find for him a protecting guide.
And do not pray [the funeral prayer, O Muhammad], over any of them who has died - ever - or stand at his grave. Indeed, they disbelieved in Allah and His Messenger and died while they were defiantly disobedient.
Establish prayer at the decline of the sun [from its meridian] until the darkness of the night and [also] the Qur'an of dawn. Indeed, the recitation of dawn is ever witnessed.
And when he saw the sun rising, he said, "This is my lord; this is greater." But when it set, he said, "O my people, indeed I am free from what you associate with Allah.
This hadith is #1990 from Sahih Muslim, in the Book of The Book of Prayer - Eclipses. It is graded Sahih and narrated by Jabir reported that the sun eclipsed during the lifetime of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) on that very day when Ibrahim (the Prophet's son) died. The Apostle of Allah (ﷺ) stood up and led people in (two rak'ahs of) prayer with six ruku's and four prostrations. He commenced (the prayer) with takbir (Allah-o-Akbar) and then recited and prolonged his recital. He then bowed nearly the (length of time) that he stood up. He then raised his head from the ruku' and recited but less than the first recital. He then bowed (to the length of time) that he stood up. He then raised his head from the ruku' and again recited but less than the second recital. He then bowed (to the length of time) that he stood up. He then lifted his head from the ruku'. He then fell in prostration and observed two prostrations. He stood up and then bowed, observing six ruku's like it, without (completing) the rak'ah in them, except (this difference) that the first (qiyam of ruku') was longer than the later one, and the ruku' was nearly (of the same length) as prostration. He then moved backward and the rows behind him also moved backward till we reached the extreme (Abu Bakr said:.
