Al-Tirmidhī narrated in his Sunan, on the authority of Abū Hurayra—may Allah be pleased with him—that the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—came upon Ubayy ibn Ka‘b and called out to him while he was praying, “O Ubayy!” Ubayy turned toward him but did not answer. He then completed his prayer, making it brief, and went over to the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—saying, “Peace be upon you, O Messenger of Allah.” The Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—replied, “And peace be upon you. What prevented you, O Ubayy, from answering me when I called you?” He said, “O Messenger of Allah, I was praying.” He said, “Did you not find among what Allah revealed to me: ‘Respond to Allah and to the Messenger when he calls you to that which gives you life’?”1 He replied, “Yes, and I shall not do so again, Allah willing.” He asked, “Would you like me to teach you a surah the like of which has never been revealed in the Torah, the Gospel, the Psalms, or the Quran?” He replied, “Yes, O Messenger of Allah.” The Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—then asked, “What do you recite in the prayer?” He recited the Mother of the Quran. The Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—said, “By Him in whose hand is my soul, nothing like it has been revealed in the Torah, the Gospel, the Psalms, or the Criterion. It is seven of the oft-repeated verses and the Magnificent Quran that I was given.” The eminent scholar al-Albānī—may Allah preserve him—graded it authentic2.

[A report similar to the hadith of Ubayy also appears in Sahīh al-Bukhārī3, on the authority of Abū Saīd ibn al-Muallā. It explicitly states that it is the greatest surah in the Quran and that it is the seven oft-repeated verses and the Magnificent Quran].

Al-Bukhārī also narrated in his Sahīh, on the authority of Abū Hurayra—may Allah be pleased