How do we respond to the evidence of those who claim there is a pre-Friday prayer sunnah?

The questioner : We were on the phone with you, and one person brought us evidence regarding matters that we had not looked into, and we asked some people about them, and they said that these matters are weak. So we want to...

The Shaykh : Evidence of what, my brother?

The questioner : He says: In the chapter of evidence for the Friday sunnah.

The Shaykh : Evidence of what?

The questioner : Evidence for the pre-Friday prayer sunnah. He mentioned about five hadiths that there is a sunnah before the Friday prayer.

The Shaykh : May Allah guide you. This is not a scholar.

The questioner : Okay, Shaykh, regarding the hadiths he brought, are they...?

The Shaykh : Ask him if these hadiths are authentic, and then you will be at ease.

The questioner : He claims their authenticity, saying: It was narrated by Ibn Majah with a sound chain from Abu Hurayrah from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "That he was delivering the sermon, so Salik (may Allah be pleased with him) came, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: . He said: No. He said: .

The Shaykh : Yes, please.

The questioner : A question, if you please, Shaykh.

Another questioner : A question, if you please, Shaykh.

Another questioner : But the Shaykh is responding to my question about the hadith...

The Shaykh : Excuse me, hold on a moment, yes.

The questioner : The hadith of Salik, Shaykh.

The Shaykh : No, no, listen, there is something here. The hadith of Salik is in "al-Sahihayn," but he quoted it from Ibn Majah because it contains a denunciation (munkar) addition.

The questioner : Okay, our Shaykh, if the hadith is authentic...

The Shaykh : Listen, listen, read the hadith from the beginning.

The questioner : Ibn Majah narrated with a sound chain from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: From the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "Salik came while the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was delivering the sermon, so the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: . He said: No. He said: . Al-Mujaddid Ibn Taymiyyah said in "al-Ahkam": "The men of its chain are trustworthy, and al-Hafiz al-Iraqi approved it in his 'Sharh al-Tirmidhi,' saying its chain is sound. Al-Hafiz Wali al-Din al-Iraqi transmitted this in 'Tartib al-Tathrib.'"

The Shaykh : Where is this pre-Friday sunnah? This is about a man who entered the mosque. Where is the pre-Friday sunnah that they perform while sitting in the mosque, and then they stand up as soon as the mu'adhdhin finishes the adhan? Where is this in this hadith?

The questioner : He says he argues with another hadith.

The Shaykh : Listen, my brother, may Allah guide you. Finish with the first hadith. Understand that this hadith contains no evidence, because it speaks of a man who entered the mosque, not of men sitting in the mosque. Do you understand the difference?

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : This is one thing, and the other is that "before you sit" is distorted from "before you come." Do you understand?

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : Because this hadith is in "Sunan Ibn Majah." This is a matter related to the science of hadith, and few know it. The hadith in "al-Sahihayn" is that when Salik entered, he sat, and he (peace be upon him) said to him: . He said: No. He said: Get up and pray two rak'ahs , then he turned to the Companions and said: . So here, "before you come" is distorted from "before you sit." And the hadith in "al-Sahihayn" is undoubtedly more authentic than the hadith of Ibn Majah, even if the men of its chain are trustworthy. Not every chain with trustworthy men is a sound chain, because one of the conditions of a sound hadith is that it not be anomalous (shadh) and that it not have a defect ('illah). Its defect is the deviation of this word from "before you sit" to "before you come." So, first, this hadith is not sound; rather, it is among the categories of anomalous hadiths. And even if it were sound, it does not mean what people do today. It only speaks of a person who entered the mosque, and he is told: Did you pray before you came? This is assuming the authenticity of the narration, meaning before you come and sit here in the mosque, perhaps he prayed outside the mosque. So he answered: No. But the definitive answer is that the hadith with this wording is anomalous and not sound. Do you understand?

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : And the rest of the hadiths, does he say they are authentic?

The questioner : He brought the chains of all the hadiths.

The Shaykh : Listen, my brother, may Allah guide you. Do not prolong this journey for me. I am asking you: does he say they are authentic?

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : The other hadiths.

The questioner : Yes, he mentions their authenticity.

The Shaykh : Here he says they are authentic.

The questioner : Yes, he says the hadith is with a sound chain.

The Shaykh : Which hadith?

The questioner : The first one? No, not the first one.

The Shaykh : May Allah guide you, may Allah guide you.

The questioner : The second and the third.

The Shaykh: May Allah guide you.

The questioner : The Shaykh says, and Ibn Hibban in his "Sahih."

The Shaykh : Which hadith?

The questioner : The one that is the hadith after that, meaning.

The Shaykh : The second one. Read it.

The questioner : It says: "Ibn 'Umar used to lengthen the prayer before Friday and pray two rak'ahs ."

The Shaykh : That is enough, it is finished. He used to lengthen it. We do this when we enter the mosque: we pray two, four, six, and so on, until the imam ascends the minbar. What does this mean? And this is, first, an answer. Second: this is not a hadith, but rather an athar (report) from the action of Ibn 'Umar. And these are a group of ignorant and malicious people who do not love the Sunnah.