305 – ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ (may Allah be pleased with both of them) reported: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to me, “ʿAbd Allāh, do not be like so-and-so; he used to stand in prayer during the night and then gave up the night vigil.” Agreed upon. (1)

Vocabulary of the ḥadīth
• “Like so-and-so”: The narrator did not specify the man’s name. It seems one of the transmitters intentionally withheld it to shield him. The point was to warn ʿAbd Allāh against heedlessness and to encourage him to pray at night.
• “Of the night”: Al-ʿAynī notes that most versions omit the preposition “of,” reading simply, “he used to perform the night prayer,” meaning he prayed during a portion of the night.

Lessons derived from the ḥadīth

1. The excellence of the night vigil and the undesirability of abandoning it. Night-time prayer is superior to day-time prayer because it is performed in private, far from ostentation; it brings clarity to one’s intimate conversation with Allah, greater presence of heart, and a conscious preference for obedience over rest, bedding, and sleep. Its merits are attested by many clear Qurʾānic verses and well-known prophetic traditions.
2. Concerning the night prayer, Al-Saffārīnī writes in his commentary on Manẓūmat al-Ādāb:
   A discussion on tahajjud and the reports lauding it:
   Tahajjud is only after one has slept; al-nāshiʾa likewise follows a period of rest; then comes the general night prayer. The night prayer is an encouraged Sunnah and superior to the day prayer. The Exalted says, “And during the night, keep vigil with it as a voluntary devotion for you; perhaps your Lord will raise you to a praised station” (17:79).