Ahadith al-Qiraah fi Salat al-Fajr Jaman wa Dirasah
- Author died
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- Editions
- Islamic University of Madinah
Ahadith al-Qiraah fi Salat al-Fajr Jaman wa Dirasah (Hadiths of Recitation in the Dawn Prayer: A Compilation and Study) is a specialized hadith study authored by Ibrahim al-Ubayd (Ibrahim ibn Ali al-Ubayd), an associate professor in the College of Hadith and Islamic Studies at the Islamic University of Madinah. The work compiles and evaluates prophetic narrations concerning the Quranic recitation practiced in the dawn prayer (Fajr).
Structure and Scope
The book is structured into an introduction, three principal thematic chapters (mabahith), and a conclusion:
- First Chapter: Narrations regarding Quranic recitation in the dawn prayer (Ahadith al-qira'ah fi salat al-fajr).
- Second Chapter: Narrations regarding Quranic recitation in the dawn prayer on Fridays (Ahadith al-qira'ah fi salat al-fajr yawm al-jum'ah).
- Third Chapter: Narrations regarding Quranic recitation in prayer generally, unrestricted to Fajr or any specific prayer (Ahadith al-qira'ah fi al-salat ghayr muqayyadah bi-l-fajr wa-la ghayriha).
The monograph concludes with an overview of principal findings and indices of sources and subject matter.
Methodology
Al-Ubayd gathers narrations directly from primary hadith collections, documents their transmission paths (takhrij), and assesses their authenticity according to the methodological rules of hadith critics (qawa'id al-muhaddithin). If a hadith is recorded in Sahih al-Bukhari or Sahih Muslim, he restricts referencing to the Six Books; otherwise, he traces it across broader hadith compendia, including sunan, masanid, mu'jam collections, and zawa'id works.
Within each chapter, narrations are organized hierarchically by status—authentic (sahih), acceptable (hasan), and weak (da'if)—placing supporting and corroborating reports (shawahid) next to corresponding transmissions. The author evaluates key narrators using al-Dhahabi's al-Kashif and Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani's Taqrib al-tahdhib, noting other biographical authorities when necessary, and clarifies obscure vocabulary (gharib) using specialized lexical sources.
Key Findings
In his conclusion, al-Ubayd summarizes the main analytical results of his investigation:
- A total of 26 hadiths directly address recitation in the Fajr prayer, of which 16 are authenticated or established (thabit).
- A total of 13 hadiths address recitation in prayer without specific restriction to Fajr, of which 7 are authenticated or established.
- The majority of sound narrations establish that the Prophet ﷺ typically recited the longer surahs of the Mufassal section (tiwal al-mufassal) during the Fajr prayer, whereas reports mentioning shorter surahs (qisar al-mufassal) are explained as having occurred due to circumstantial factors or to demonstrate permissibility.
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