the evident position of Ahmad, as explicitly reported from him, and of other scholars. Any of his followers who declares either form of combining invariably preferable has misrepresented his position.

The authentic hadiths concerning the Prophet’s combining prayers—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—are transmitted from Ibn ‘Umar, Ibn ‘Abbās, Anas, Mu‘ādh, Abū Hurayrah and Jābir. Those who deny combining prayers have interpreted these hadiths as referring to delaying the first prayer until the end of its time and performing the second at the beginning of its time. Yet authentic reports establish that prayers were combined both at the time of the second prayer and at the time of the first. Other reports mention combining without specifying how; the detailed reports clarify the unspecified ones.

In the two Sahīh collections, Sufyān narrates from al-Zuhrī, from Sālim, from his father:

“When the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, needed to press on with his journey, he would combine Maghrib and ‘Ishā’.”

Mālik narrates from Nāfi‘, from Ibn ‘Umar, who said:

“When the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, needed to hasten his journey, he would combine Maghrib and ‘Ishā’.”

This was narrated by Muslim. Muslim also narrates through Yahyā ibn Sa‘īd, who said: ‘Ubayd Allāh narrated to us, saying: Nāfi‘ informed me, from Ibn ‘Umar, that when he needed to press on with his journey, he would combine Maghrib and ‘Ishā’ after the twilight had disappeared. He would mention:

“When the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, needed to press on with his journey, he would combine Maghrib and ‘Ishā’.”

Al-Tahāwī said:

“Ibn ‘Umar’s hadith mentions combining after the twilight had disappeared only as his own practice. He reported that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, combined the two prayers