—“he does not comprehend it.” The same wording is reported by al-Tayalisi (no. 300) through Hammam, and by Abu Dawud (1/221) through Saʿid—namely, Ibn Abi ʿArubah—both on the authority of Qatadah. Al-Tirmidhi judged the report “hasan sahih.” I add: all its transmitters are those relied upon by the two Shaykhs (al-Bukhari and Muslim). Ibn Hajar notes (9/78): “A corroborating chain is found in Saʿid b. Mansur’s Musannaf with a sound isnad from another route, on the authority of Ibn Masʿud: ‘Complete the Qur’an in seven (nights) and do not complete it in fewer than three.’” The variance among these narrations strongly suggests that the incident between the Prophet ﷺ and Ibn ʿAmr occurred more than once; the Prophet ﷺ did not lower the limit to three nights in a single sitting but across several meetings. This is the view Ibn Hajar adopts in Fath al-Bari. It remains possible that there was only one incident and that some narrators preserved details missed by others, yet that is precluded by versions in which he forbade completion in fewer than five nights and others in fewer than seven. We are therefore obliged to accept multiple occurrences; otherwise, we would have to reject some sound reports or set them against one another—both unacceptable when reconciliation is possible. Ibn Hajar remarks: “There is nothing to prevent the Prophet ﷺ from repeating this directive to ʿAbd Allah b. ʿAmr for emphasis, and the varied wording supports this. The prohibition against exceeding the limit appears not to denote strict unlawfulness, just as the command itself is not strictly obligatory; this is inferred from contextual indicators, namely the Companion’s immediate or eventual capacity.” Some literalists nevertheless maintained that finishing the Qur’an in less than three nights is forbidden, whereas al-Nawawi records that the majority of scholars hold no fixed limit: it depends upon each person’s energy and strength, and therefore varies according to circumstances and individuals.