836 – ʿAbd Allāh ibn Masʿūd (Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said to us, “O young men, whoever among you has the means to marry, let him do so; for it is more effective in lowering the gaze and better at safeguarding chastity. Whoever is unable, then let him fast, for fasting will serve as a restraint for him.” Agreed upon. (1)

Vocabulary of the ḥadīth
– maʿshar: a term for a group whose concern is one and the same, whether mixed or not—such as young people or elders. It is a plural with no singular from its own root, and its broken plural is maʿāshir.
– ash-shabāb: the plural of shābb; it is also pluralized as shubbān (with ḍamma on the first letter and a doubled bāʾ). Al-Azhari said that no other noun on the pattern fāʿil is pluralized as fuʿlān. The root connotes movement and vigor, and the term applies to the period from puberty until forty years of age—arguably the best delineation. Youth are singled out here because the urge for intimacy is generally strongest in them, unlike the elderly.
– man istaṭāʿa: al-Qurṭubī explains that ability here refers to possessing the wherewithal to marry, not merely the physical capacity for intercourse.
– al-bāʾah: has four accepted pronunciations, the most common being with a long ā and a feminine tāʾ. Linguistically it means sexual intercourse, but in this context it refers to the financial requisites of marriage—dowry and maintenance. In other words: whoever among you can shoulder the expenses of marriage should marry.
– fa-innahu: i.e., the pronoun refers to marriage itself, as indicated by the phrase falyatazawwaǧ (let him marry).