Caution: Translations of Quran and Ḥadīth may lead to possible misapplications and misinterpretations. This site is intended for students of sacred knowledge that are proficient in comprehending classical Arabic and have a strong foundation in Islamic sciences. Also note that religious injunctions rely on several aspects beyond what one may glean through reading individual aḥādīth.
darimi:1793ʿUthmān b. Muḥammad > Sufyān b. ʿUyaynah > ʿAmr / Ibn Dīnār > ʿAmr b. Aws > ʿAbdullāh b. ʿAmr Yarfaʿuh

[Machine] "I prefer fasting to Allah, Most High. The fasting of Dawood (David) was that he used to fast one day and break his fast the next day. And I prefer prayer to Allah, Most High. The prayer of Dawood was that he used to pray half the night and sleep for a third of it and glorify Allah for a sixth of it." Abu Muhammad said, "The last statement is incorrect or a mistake. Rather, he used to sleep half of the night, pray a third of it, and glorify Allah for a sixth of it."  

الدارمي:١٧٩٣أَخْبَرَنَا عُثْمَانُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ حَدَّثَنَا سُفْيَانُ بْنُ عُيَيْنَةَ عَنْ عَمْرٍو يَعْنِي ابْنَ دِينَارٍ عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ أَوْسٍ عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عَمْرٍو يَرْفَعُهُ قَالَ

«أَحَبُّ الصِّيَامِ إِلَى اللَّهِ ﷻ صِيَامُ دَاوُدَ كَانَ يَصُومُ يَوْمًا وَيُفْطِرُ يَوْمًا وَأَحَبُّ الصَّلَاةِ إِلَى اللَّهِ ﷻ صَلَاةُ دَاوُدَ كَانَ يُصَلِّي نِصْفًا وَيَنَامُ ثُلُثًا وَيُسَبِّحُ سُدُسًا» قَالَ أَبُو مُحَمَّد «هَذَا اللَّفْظُ الْأَخِيرُ غَلَطٌ أَوْ خَطَأٌ إِنَّمَا هُوَ أَنَّهُ كَانَ يَنَامُ نِصْفَ اللَّيْلِ وَيُصَلِّي ثُلُثَهُ وَيُسَبِّحُ سُدُسَهُ»  


See similar narrations below:

Collected by Bukhārī, Nasāʾī, Ibn Mājah, Ibn Ḥibbān
bukhari:3420Qutaybah b. Saʿīd > Sufyān > ʿAmr b. Dīnār

Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to me, "The most beloved fasting to Allah was the fasting of (the Prophet) David who used to fast on alternate days. And the most beloved prayer to Allah was the prayer of David who used to sleep for (the first) half of the night and pray for 1/3 of it and (again) sleep for a sixth of it."  

البخاري:٣٤٢٠حَدَّثَنَا قُتَيْبَةُ بْنُ سَعِيدٍ حَدَّثَنَا سُفْيَانُ عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ دِينَارٍ عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ أَوْسٍ الثَّقَفِيِّ سَمِعَ عَبْدَ اللَّهِ بْنَ عَمْرٍو قَالَ قَالَ

لِي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ أَحَبُّ الصِّيَامِ إِلَى اللَّهِ صِيَامُ دَاوُدَ كَانَ يَصُومُ يَوْمًا وَيُفْطِرُ يَوْمًا وَأَحَبُّ الصَّلاَةِ إِلَى اللَّهِ صَلاَةُ دَاوُدَ كَانَ يَنَامُ نِصْفَ اللَّيْلِ وَيَقُومُ ثُلُثَهُ وَيَنَامُ سُدُسَهُ  

nasai:1630Qutaybah > Sufyān > ʿAmr b. Dīnār > ʿAmr b. Aws > ʿAbdullāh b. ʿAmr b. al-ʿĀṣ

"The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: 'The most beloved of fasting to Allah is the fasting of Dawud, peace be upon him. He used to fast one day and not the next. And the most beloved of prayer to Allah (SWT) is the prayer of Dawud. He used to sleep half the night, spend one-third of the night in prayer and sleep for one-sixth of it.'"  

النسائي:١٦٣٠أَخْبَرَنَا قُتَيْبَةُ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا سُفْيَانُ عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ دِينَارٍ عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ أَوْسٍ أَنَّهُ سَمِعَ عَبْدَ اللَّهِ بْنَ عَمْرِو بْنِ الْعَاصِ يَقُولُ

قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ أَحَبُّ الصِّيَامِ إِلَى اللَّهِ ﷻ صِيَامُ دَاوُدَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ كَانَ يَصُومُ يَوْمًا وَيُفْطِرُ يَوْمًا وَأَحَبُّ الصَّلاَةِ إِلَى اللَّهِ صَلاَةُ دَاوُدَ كَانَ يَنَامُ نِصْفَ اللَّيْلِ وَيَقُومُ ثُلُثَهُ وَيَنَامُ سُدُسَهُ  

nasai:2344Qutaybah > Sufyān > ʿAmr b. Dīnār > ʿAmr b. Aws > ʿAbdullāh b. ʿAmr b. al-ʿĀṣ

"The Messenger of Allah said: 'The most beloved fasting to Allah, the mighty and sublime, is the fast of Dawud, peace be upon him. He used to fast one day and not the next. And the most beloved prayer to Allah, the mighty and sublime, is the prayer of Dawud, peace be upon him. He used to sleep half the night, stand for one-third of it (in prayer), and sleep for one-sixth of it."'  

النسائي:٢٣٤٤أَخْبَرَنَا قُتَيْبَةُ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا سُفْيَانُ عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ دِينَارٍ عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ أَوْسٍ أَنَّهُ سَمِعَ عَبْدَ اللَّهِ بْنَ عَمْرِو بْنِ الْعَاصِ يَقُولُ

قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ أَحَبُّ الصِّيَامِ إِلَى اللَّهِ ﷻ صِيَامُ دَاوُدَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ كَانَ يَصُومُ يَوْمًا وَيُفْطِرُ يَوْمًا وَأَحَبُّ الصَّلاَةِ إِلَى اللَّهِ ﷻ صَلاَةُ دَاوُدَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ كَانَ يَنَامُ نِصْفَ اللَّيْلِ وَيَقُومُ ثُلُثَهُ وَيَنَامُ سُدُسَهُ  

ibnmajah:1712Abū Isḥāq al-Shāfiʿī Ibrāhīm b. Muḥammad b. al-ʿAbbās > Sufyān b. ʿUyaynah > ʿAmr b. Dīnār > ʿAmr b. Aws > ʿAbdullāh b. ʿAmr

“The most beloved fast to Allah is the fast of Dawud, for he used to fast one day and not the next. And the most beloved of prayer to Allah is the prayer of Dawud; he used to sleep half of the night, pray one-third of the night and sleep one-sixth of the night.”  

ابن ماجة:١٧١٢حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو إِسْحَاقَ الشَّافِعِيُّ إِبْرَاهِيمُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ الْعَبَّاسِ حَدَّثَنَا سُفْيَانُ بْنُ عُيَيْنَةَ عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ دِينَارٍ قَالَ سَمِعْتُ عَمْرَو بْنَ أَوْسٍ قَالَ سَمِعْتُ عَبْدَ اللَّهِ بْنَ عَمْرٍو يَقُولُ

قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ أَحَبُّ الصِّيَامِ إِلَى اللَّهِ صِيَامُ دَاوُدَ كَانَ يَصُومُ يَوْمًا وَيُفْطِرُ يَوْمًا وَأَحَبُّ الصَّلاَةِ إِلَى اللَّهِ صَلاَةُ دَاوُدَ كَانَ يَنَامُ نِصْفَ اللَّيْلِ وَيُصَلِّي ثُلُثَهُ وَيَنَامُ سُدُسَهُ  

ذِكْرُ وَصْفِ قِيَامِ نَبِيِّ اللَّهِ دَاوُدَ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَى نَبِيِّنَا وَعَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَصِيَامِهِ

ibnhibban:2590ʿUmar b. Muḥammad al-Hamdānī > ʿAbd al-Jabbār b. al-ʿAlāʾ > Sufyān > Samiʿtuh from ʿAmr b. Dīnār Mundh Sabʿīn Sanah > ʿAmr b. Aws > ʿAbdullāh b. ʿAmr b. al-ʿĀṣ

Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to me, "The most beloved fasting to Allah was the fasting of (the Prophet) David who used to fast on alternate days. And the most beloved prayer to Allah was the prayer of David who used to sleep for (the first) half of the night and pray for 1/3 of it and (again) sleep for a sixth of it." (Using translation from Bukhārī 3420)  

ابن حبّان:٢٥٩٠أَخْبَرَنَا عُمَرُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ الْهَمْدَانِيُّ حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ الْجَبَّارِ بْنُ الْعَلَاءِ حَدَّثَنَا سُفْيَانُ قَالَ سَمِعْتُهُ مِنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ دِينَارٍ مُنْذُ سَبْعِينَ سَنَةً يَقُولُ أَخْبَرَنِي عَمْرُو بْنُ أَوْسٍ أَنَّهُ سَمِعَ عَبْدَ اللَّهِ بْنَ عَمْرِو بْنِ الْعَاصِ يُخْبِرُ

عَنِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ قَالَ «أَحَبُّ الصَّلَاةِ إِلَى اللَّهِ صَلَاةُ دَاوُدَ كَانَ يَنَامُ نِصْفَ اللَّيْلِ وَيَقُومُ ثُلُثَ اللَّيْلِ وَيَنَامُ سُدُسَهُ وَأَحَبُّ الصِّيَامِ إِلَى اللَّهِ صِيَامُ دَاوُدَ كَانَ يَصُومُ يَوْمًا وَيُفْطِرُ يَوْمًا»