5. The Book of Mosques and Places of Prayer

٥۔ كتاب الْمَسَاجِدِ وَمَوَاضِعِ الصَّلاَةِ

5.37 The evidence for those who say that “the middle prayer” is the ʿAsr prayer

٥۔٣٧ باب الدَّلِيلِ لِمَنْ قَالَ الصَّلاَةُ الْوُسْطَى هِيَ صَلاَةُ الْعَصْرِ

(365) bukhari:2931Ibrāhīm b. Mūsá > ʿĪsá > Hishām > Muḥammad > ʿAbīdah > ʿAlī

When it was the day of the battle of Al-Ahzab (i.e. the clans), Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "O Allah! Fill their (i.e. the infidels') houses and graves with fire as they busied us so much that we did not perform the prayer (i.e. ʿAsr) till the sun set."  

(٣٦٥) البخاري:٢٩٣١حَدَّثَنَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ بْنُ مُوسَى أَخْبَرَنَا عِيسَى حَدَّثَنَا هِشَامٌ عَنْ مُحَمَّدٍ عَنْ عَبِيدَةَ عَنْ عَلِيٍّ ؓ قَالَ لَمَّا كَانَ يَوْمُ الأَحْزَابِ

قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ مَلأَ اللَّهُ بُيُوتَهُمْ وَقُبُورَهُمْ نَارًا شَغَلُونَا عَنِ الصَّلاَةِ الْوُسْطَى حِينَ غَابَتِ الشَّمْسُ  

(366) bukhari:596Muʿādh b. Faḍālah > Hishām > Yaḥyá > Abū Salamah > Jābir b. ʿAbdullāh > ʿUmar b. al-Khaṭṭāb Jāʾ Yawm al-Khandaq Baʿd Mā Gharabat al-Shams Fajaʿal Yasub Kuffār Quraysh

On the day of Al-Khandaq (the battle of trench.) ʿUmar bin Al-Khattab came cursing the disbelievers of Quraish after the sun had set and said, "O Messenger of Allah ﷺ I could not offer the ʿAsr prayer till the sun had set." The Prophet ﷺ said, "By Allah! I, too, have not prayed." So we turned towards Buthan, and the Prophet ﷺ performed ablution and we too performed ablution and offered the ʿAsr prayer after the sun had set, and then he offered the Maghrib prayer.  

(٣٦٦) البخاري:٥٩٦حَدَّثَنَا مُعَاذُ بْنُ فَضَالَةَ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا هِشَامٌ عَنْ يَحْيَى عَنْ أَبِي سَلَمَةَ عَنْ جَابِرِ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ أَنَّ عُمَرَ بْنَ الْخَطَّابِ جَاءَ يَوْمَ الْخَنْدَقِ بَعْدَ مَا غَرَبَتِ الشَّمْسُ فَجَعَلَ يَسُبُّ كُفَّارَ قُرَيْشٍ قَالَ

يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ مَا كِدْتُ أُصَلِّي الْعَصْرَ حَتَّى كَادَتِ الشَّمْسُ تَغْرُبُ قَالَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ وَاللَّهِ مَا صَلَّيْتُهَا فَقُمْنَا إِلَى بُطْحَانَ فَتَوَضَّأَ لِلصَّلاَةِ وَتَوَضَّأْنَا لَهَا فَصَلَّى الْعَصْرَ بَعْدَ مَا غَرَبَتِ الشَّمْسُ ثُمَّ صَلَّى بَعْدَهَا الْمَغْرِبَ