548 – Anas ibn Mālik RA narrated that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “Take the pre-dawn meal, for there is blessing in the pre-dawn meal.” Agreed upon (1).

Glossary of the ḥadith
• al-sahūr – with a fatha on the sīn – denotes the food eaten for the pre-dawn meal. It is also reported with a ḍamma, in which case it is the verbal noun meaning “the act of taking the pre-dawn meal.” The reading with fatha is the one most commonly transmitted. The term is derived from sahar, the time just before daybreak.
• barakah – with two fathas – signifies abundant good. Among its connotations are growth and increase; tabrīk is the invocation of barakah. A water-pond is called a birkah because of the profusion of its water. Barakah may relate to actions or to food.

Points derived from the ḥadith

1. Imam Aḥmad (10646), in the narration of Abū Saʿīd, adds: “So do not neglect it, even if one of you only sips a mouthful of water, for Allah and His angels send prayers upon those who partake of the pre-dawn meal.”
2. The outward purport of the ḥadith indicates that sahūr is obligatory, yet other evidence—namely the Prophet’s ﷺ practice of continuous fasting—shows that it is recommended rather than compulsory. Ibn al-Mundhir has transmitted consensus that taking sahūr is encouraged but not binding.
3. The blessing obtained through sahūr consists first in obeying the divine command, for obedience to Allah is realized by carrying out what He orders and shunning what He forbids. Further blessings include: eating at that time to gain strength for the fast and for worship; its providing the fasting person with energy so he does not become weary, unlike one who omits sahūr and finds fasting and devotion burdensome; and among the blessings of sahūr is that it—