and he permitted them, when Eid fell on a Friday, to suffice with the Eid prayer instead of attending the Friday prayer (1).

He (peace and blessings be upon him) would take different routes on Eid, going by one route and returning by another (2). Some said this was so that he could greet the people along both routes; others, so that both groups might receive his blessing (3); others, so that he could attend to anyone along either route who needed his help; and others, so that he could make the rites of Islam manifest throughout the pathways and roads. Others said it was to vex the hypocrites by showing them the strength of Islam and its people and the observance of its rites. Others said it was so that more places would bear witness in his favour, for a person going to the mosque or the prayer ground has his rank raised by one step and a sin removed by the next, until he returns home. Another explanation—and this is the most correct—is that he did so (4) for all these reasons, as well as other wise purposes that invariably underlie his actions.

It is reported that he would proclaim Allah’s greatness from the Fajr prayer on the Day of ‘Arafah until the ‘Asr prayer on the last of the days of Tashrīq, saying:

“Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest. There is no deity but Allah. Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest, and all praise belongs to Allah” (5).