He said: Do you not see what (1) is stated in this hadith: “They record people in the order of their arrival. The one who goes early to the Friday prayer is like someone who offers a camel in sacrifice; then comes the next”—and so on? He thus called the first person a muhajjir (one who goes early). This word is derived specifically from hājira and hajīr (the midday heat), which is the time for setting out for the Friday prayer. This is not the time of sunrise, since that is neither hājira nor hajīr. The hadith says, “Then comes the next, then comes the next,” without mentioning an hour.
He said: There are many chains of transmission with this wording, recorded in al-Tamhīd (2). Some versions say, “The one who hastens to the Friday prayer is like someone who offers a camel in sacrifice.” Most say, “The one who goes early to the Friday prayer is like someone who offers a camel in sacrifice…”—and so on. Some indicate that he likened the person who goes to the Friday prayer at the beginning of the first hour to someone who offers a camel in sacrifice, and likewise the person who goes at its end. At the beginning of the second hour, he is like someone who offers (3) a cow in sacrifice, and likewise at its end.
Some of al-Shāfiʿī’s followers said: By saying, “The one who goes early to the Friday prayer is like someone who offers a camel in sacrifice,” the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, did not mean someone who sets out for it in the midday heat. Rather, he meant that someone who sets aside his occupations and work in pursuit of worldly gain to set out for the Friday prayer is like someone who offers a camel in sacrifice (4).