What is Sunan Abu Dawud 814 about?

This hadith from Sunan Abu Dawud (Book of Prayer (Kitab Al-Salat)), narrated by ‘Amr b. Shu’aib, on his father’s authority, quoted his grandfather as saying:, states: "There is no short or long surah in al-Mufassal which I have not heard the Messenger of Allah (May peace be upon him) reciting when he led the people in the prescribed prayer."

Is this hadith authentic?

This hadith is graded Sahih. Sahih hadiths are considered the most authentic grade in hadith classification.

Which collection is this hadith from?

This hadith is from Sunan Abu Dawud, which contains 5,276 hadiths across 43 books. It is hadith number 814 in the Book of Prayer (Kitab Al-Salat).

I searched for a different number — is this the right hadith?

Hadith numbering varies across editions and translations (USC-MSA, Dar as-Salam, Fath al-Bari, and others). If you followed a link citing a different number but landed here, you may have been redirected to the canonical version in our library. If you were looking for a different hadith entirely, use the search bar to find it by text.

‹

#813

#814

Sunan Abu Dawud

#815

›

Sunan Abu Dawud #814

Prayer (Kitab Al-Salat)

Sahih

The Arabic includes the chain of narration (sanad) and the collector's commentary; the English translation shows the Prophet's words only.

حَدَّثَنَا أَحْمَدُ بْنُ سَعِيدٍ السَّرْخَسِيُّ، حَدَّثَنَا وَهْبُ بْنُ جَرِيرٍ، حَدَّثَنَا أَبِي قَالَ، سَمِعْتُ مُحَمَّدَ بْنَ إِسْحَاقَ، يُحَدِّثُ عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ شُعَيْبٍ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، عَنْ جَدِّهِ، أَنَّهُ قَالَ مَا مِنَ الْمُفَصَّلِ سُورَةٌ صَغِيرَةٌ وَلاَ كَبِيرَةٌ إِلاَّ وَقَدْ سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَؤُمُّ النَّاسَ بِهَا فِي الصَّلاَةِ الْمَكْتُوبَةِ ‏.‏

There is no short or long surah in al-Mufassal which I have not heard the Messenger of Allah (May peace be upon him) reciting when he led the people in the prescribed prayer.

Narrated by ‘Amr b. Shu’aib, on his father’s authority, quoted his grandfather as saying:

Context

This narration emphasizes that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ recited from the Mufassal chapters during prayer, indicating that both short and long surahs were included in his recitations. This illustrates the diversity of Quranic recitation in prayer and the Prophet's ﷺ inclusive approach to worship.

Modern Application

Today, this encourages Muslims to embrace the variety of Quranic chapters during their prayers, allowing for a richer and more varied spiritual experience that reflects the comprehensive nature of Islamic worship.

Topics

This hadith is tagged with Prayer and Quran because it highlights the practice of reciting various surahs from the Quran during prayer.

Prayer Quran