and likewise the word nazʿ (pulling), as Ibn al-Athir records in al-Nihaya. Al-Khattabi remarks: “The Prophet’s objection was only to his matching the imam’s recitation of the surah until the two voices overlapped and vied with one another.” Al-Nawawi writes in his commentary on Sahih Muslim: “The purport of these words is that he was censured for reciting aloud, or for raising his voice so that others could hear him, not for reciting as such. The report itself shows that they used to recite the surah in silent prayers and that, in the zuhr prayer, both imam and congregation recite the surah. This is the ruling we hold. We do have one weak, anomalous view that the follower should not recite the surah in a silent prayer, just as he does not in an audible prayer. This is erroneous, for in an audible prayer he is commanded to listen, whereas here he hears nothing; silence without listening has no meaning. Even in an audible prayer, if he is so far from the imam that he cannot hear the recitation, the sounder opinion is that he should recite the surah for the reason just mentioned.” End quote. Thus it is established that the Prophet ﷺ approved their recitation in this prayer, which was silent; hence reciting behind the imam in silent prayers is recommended. Among its virtues is his ﷺ saying: “Whoever recites a single letter from the Book of Allah will receive one good deed for it, and each good deed is multiplied tenfold. I do not say that alif-lam-mim is one letter; rather alif is a letter, lam is a letter, and mim is a letter.” Al-Tirmidhi (2/149–150) transmits it through Ayyub ibn Musa—who said: I heard Muhammad ibn Kaʿb al-Qurazi say: I heard ʿAbd Allah ibn Masʿud say …—and cites it as marfuʿ, grading it hasan sahih. I say: the chain meets Muslim’s criterion. Al-Tirmidhi further notes: “It is also narrated through other lines from Ibn Masʿud. Abu al-Ahwas likewise reports it from him; some transmitters treat it as marfuʿ, others stop it with Ibn Masʿud.” I add: through this very line al-Darimi (2/429) relates it via Sufyan from ʿAtaʾ ibn