Prayer Section · 4 – The Time for Dhuhr (Midday) Prayer
Jabir ibn Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated:
I used to pray the midday prayer with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings upon him), and I would take a handful of pebbles in my hand to cool myself, and I would prostrate upon them in the place where I would rest my forehead during prostration, protecting it from the heat. [278]
400 – From ‘Abdullah ibn Mas’ud, may Allah be pleased with him, who said: The Messenger of Allah, ﷺ, stated regarding the standing for prayer on hot days: “The measure [of the shadow] would extend from three feet to five feet, and in winter days, from five feet to seven feet.” [279]
EXPLANATION
In the hadith, the term "foot" refers to a unit of measurement. In summer days, as the sun is directly overhead and ascends high, a person’s shadow will be short. In winter days, as the sun is inclined, the shadow will be very long. The Messenger of Allah, ﷺ, would delay the noon prayer slightly on hot days so that the heat of midday would diminish somewhat, and he would pray when the shadow was three feet long.
Sometimes he would begin a little later. However, the final time of midday for some people would end when the person’s shadow reached three feet, while for others it would reach five feet in length. Because in summer days, when a person's shadow reaches the measure of five feet, the time for afternoon prayer enters. In winter days, just as he used to pray noon until the person’s shadow reached a length of five feet, so too he would pray until it reached seven feet. Because when a person’s shadow is seven feet long in winter days, the time for afternoon prayer has arrived.
Abu Zarr (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated: We were in the company of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). The muadhdhin wanted to recite the adhan for the noon prayer. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said to him, "Recite it when it cools down." He wanted to recite it again. The Prophet (ﷺ) said: “You shall recite it when it cools down, two or three times.” So much so that we saw the shadows of the hills. Then the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “When the heat intensifies, postpone the prayer until it cools down. For the intensity of the heat is the spread of the heat of Hell.” (Maalim-us-Sunnah, vol. 1, p. 338) [280]
Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings upon him, said: "When the heat intensifies, postpone the prayer. Indeed, the intensity of the heat is the spread of the heat of Hell."
Ibn al-Mawhib said (instead of *anissalat*), “bissalat.” [281]
Jabir ibn Samura (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Bilal (may Allah be pleased with him) would recite the noon adhan when the sun began to decline towards the west.