أَخْبَرَنَا أَحْمَدُ بْنُ سُلَيْمَانَ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا عَفَّانُ بْنُ مُسْلِمٍ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا وُهَيْبٌ قَالَ سَمِعْتُ مُوسَی بْنَ عُقْبَةَ قَالَ سَمِعْتُ أَبَا النَّضْرِ يُحَدِّثُ عَنْ بُسْرِ بْنِ سَعِيدٍ عَنْ زَيْدِ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّی اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ اتَّخَذَ حُجْرَةً فِي الْمَسْجِدِ مِنْ حَصِيرٍ فَصَلَّی رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّی اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فِيهَا لَيَالِيَ حَتَّی اجْتَمَعَ إِلَيْهِ النَّاسُ ثُمَّ فَقَدُوا صَوْتَهُ لَيْلَةً فَظَنُّوا أَنَّهُ نَائِمٌ فَجَعَلَ بَعْضُهُمْ يَتَنَحْنَحُ لِيَخْرُجَ إِلَيْهِمْ فَقَالَ مَا زَالَ بِکُمْ الَّذِي رَأَيْتُ مِنْ صُنْعِکُمْ حَتَّی خَشِيتُ أَنْ يُکْتَبَ عَلَيْکُمْ وَلَوْ کُتِبَ عَلَيْکُمْ مَا قُمْتُمْ بِهِ فَصَلُّوا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ فِي بُيُوتِکُمْ فَإِنَّ أَفْضَلَ صَلَاةِ الْمَرْئِ فِي بَيْتِهِ إِلَّا الصَّلَاةَ الْمَکْتُوبَةَ
سنن نسائی · Hadith 1604
It was narrated from Zaid bin Thabit that the Prophet صلی اللہ علیہ وآلہ وسلم used some palm-fiber mats to section off a small area in the Masjid. And the Messenger of Allah prayed in it for several nights until the people gathered around him. Then, one night they did not hear his voice, and they thought that he was sleeping, so they cleared their throats to make him come out to them. He said: ‘you kept doing that until I feared that it would be made obligatory for you, and if it were made obligatory, you would not be able to do it. people, pray in your houses, for the best prayer a person offers is in his house, apart from the prescribed (obligatory) prayers.” (Sahih).
Translated by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan · Reviewed by Islamic University of Madinah · Published March 2020