“A man came to the Prophet ﷺ and said: ‘O Messenger of Allah! I stay behind and do not perform the morning prayer (in congregation) because of so-and-so, for he makes it too long for us.’ I never saw the Messenger of Allah ﷺ preaching with such anger as he did that day. He said; ‘O people! There are among you those who repel others. Whoever among you leads others in prayer, let him keep it short, for among them are those who are weak and elderly, and those who have pressing needs.’”  

أَتَى النَّبِيَّ ﷺ رَجُلٌ فَقَالَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ إِنِّي لأَتَأَخَّرُ فِي صَلاَةِ الْغَدَاةِ مِنْ أَجْلِ فُلاَنٍ لِمَا يُطِيلُ بِنَا فِيهَا قَالَ فَمَا رَأَيْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ قَطُّ فِي مَوْعِظَةٍ أَشَدَّ غَضَبًا مِنْهُ يَوْمَئِذٍ يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنَّ مِنْكُمْ مُنَفِّرِينَ فَأَيُّكُمْ مَا صَلَّى بِالنَّاسِ فَلْيُجَوِّزْ فَإِنَّ فِيهِمُ الضَّعِيفَ وَالْكَبِيرَ وَذَا الْحَاجَةِ  

“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to make his prayer brief but perfect.”  

كَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ يُوجِزُ وَيُتِمُّ الصَّلاَةَ  

“Mu’adh bin Jabal Al-Ansari led his companions in the ‘Isha’ prayer and he made it long. A man among us went away and prayed by himself. Mu’adh was told about that and he said: ‘He is a hypocrite.’ When the man heard about that, he went to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and told him what Mu’adh had said to him. The Prophet ﷺ said: ‘Do you want to be a cause of Fitnah (trial, tribulation), O Mu’adh? When you lead the people in prayer, recite “By the sun and its brightness,”[Ash-Shams 91] and “Glorify the Name of your Lord the Most High,” [Al-A’la 87] and “By the night as it envelopes,” [Al-Lail 92] and “Recite in the Name of your Lord.’”[Al-‘Alaq]  

إِنَّهُ مُنَافِقٌ فَلَمَّا بَلَغَ ذَلِكَ الرَّجُلَ دَخَلَ عَلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ فَأَخْبَرَهُ مَا قَالَ لَهُ مُعَاذٌ فَقَالَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ أَتُرِيدُ أَنْ تَكُونَ فَتَّانًا يَا مُعَاذُ إِذَا صَلَّيْتَ بِالنَّاسِ فَاقْرَأْ بِالشَّمْسِ وَضُحَاهَا وَسَبِّحِ اسْمَ رَبِّكَ الأَعْلَى وَاللَّيْلِ إِذَا يَغْشَى وَاقْرَأْ بِاسْمِ رَبِّكَ  

“I heard ‘Uthman bin Abul-‘As say: “The last thing that the Prophet ﷺ enjoined on me when he appointed me governor of Ta’if was that he said: “O ‘Uthman! Be tolerable in prayer and estimate the people based upon the weakest among them, for among them are the elderly, the young, the sick, those who live far from the mosque, and those who have pressing needs.”  

سَمِعْتُ عُثْمَانَ بْنَ أَبِي الْعَاصِ يَقُولُ كَانَ آخِرَ مَا عَهِدَ إِلَىَّ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ حِينَ أَمَّرَنِي عَلَى الطَّائِفِ قَالَ لِي يَا عُثْمَانُ تَجَاوَزْ فِي الصَّلاَةِ وَاقْدِرِ النَّاسَ بِأَضْعَفِهِمْ فَإِنَّ فِيهِمُ الْكَبِيرَ وَالصَّغِيرَ وَالسَّقِيمَ وَالْبَعِيدَ وَذَا الْحَاجَةِ  

“When you lead people, keep it short for them.”  

لِي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ إِذَا أَمَمْتَ قَوْمًا فَأَخِفَّ بِهِمْ