136 – The Twentieth: On his authority it is related that the clan of Banū Salamah wanted to move closer to the mosque. When this reached the Messenger of Allah ﷺ he said to them, “I have been told that you wish to relocate nearer to the mosque?” They replied, “Yes, Messenger of Allah, we do.” He said, “Banū Salamah, stay in your homes; your footsteps are recorded. Stay in your homes; your footsteps are recorded.” Related by Muslim.

In another wording: “For every step there is a degree,” also related by Muslim. Al-Bukhārī likewise transmitted the same meaning from the narration of Anas ﵁.

Banū Salamah—with a kasrah on the lām—is a well-known tribe of the Anṣār. “Their traces” means their footsteps.

Explanation
The author—may Allah have mercy on him—cites what Jābir ibn ʿAbd Allah ﵄ narrated: the clan of Banū Salamah wished to draw nearer to the mosque; they planned to leave their dwellings and quarters so that they might be close to the Prophet’s mosque ﷺ, eager to join the prayers with him and observe his actions. When the Prophet ﷺ learned of this he asked them, “I have been informed that you want to move closer to the mosque.” They said, “Yes, Messenger of Allah, that is our intention.” The Messenger of Allah ﷺ replied, “Stay in your homes; your footsteps will be recorded,” and he repeated it twice, explaining to them that with every step they earn a good deed or rise by a degree.

From this ḥadith it is evidence that when a person walks to the mosque, he does not