Al-Kafi · Hadith 3

The Book of Prayer · Required Length of Distance of a Journey for Shortened Salah (Prayer) · Volume 3, book 4, chapter 77, Hadith 3

Original Arabic text

3ـ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ يَحْيَى عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ الْحُسَيْنِ عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ يَحْيَى الْخَزَّازِ عَنْ بَعْضِ أَصْحَابِنَا عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ الله (عَلَيْهِ الْسَّلام) قَالَ بَيْنَا نَحْنُ جُلُوسٌ وَأَبِي عِنْدَ وَالٍ لِبَنِي أُمَيَّةَ عَلَى الْمَدِينَةِ إِذْ جَاءَ أَبِي فَجَلَسَ فَقَالَ كُنْتُ عِنْدَ هَذَا قُبَيْلُ فَسَأَلَهُمْ عَنِ التَّقْصِيرِ فَقَالَ قَائِلٌ مِنْهُمْ فِي ثَلاَثٍ وَقَالَ قَائِلٌ مِنْهُمْ يَوْمٍ وَلَيْلَةٍ وَقَالَ قَائِلٌ مِنْهُمْ رَوْحَةٍ فَسَأَلَنِي فَقُلْتُ لَهُ إِنَّ رَسُولَ الله (صلّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِه) لَمَّا نَزَلَ عَلَيْهِ جَبْرَئِيلُ (عَلَيْهِم الْسَّلام) بِالتَّقْصِيرِ قَالَ لَهُ النَّبِيُّ (صلّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِه) فِي كَمْ ذَاكَ فَقَالَ فِي بَرِيدٍ قَالَ وَأَيُّ شَيْ‏ءٍ الْبَرِيدُ قَالَ مَا بَيْنَ ظِلِّ عَيْرٍ إِلَى فَيْ‏ءِ وُعَيْرٍ قَالَ ثُمَّ عَبَرْنَا زَمَاناً ثُمَّ رَأَى [رُؤِيَ‏] بَنُو أُمَيَّةَ يَعْمَلُونَ أَعْلاَماً عَلَى الطَّرِيقِ وَأَنَّهُمْ ذَكَرُوا مَا تَكَلَّمَ بِهِ أَبُو جَعْفَرٍ (عَلَيْهِ الْسَّلام) فَذَرَعُوا مَا بَيْنَ ظِلِّ عَيْرٍ إِلَى فَيْ‏ءِ وُعَيْرٍ ثُمَّ جَزَّءُوهُ إِلَى اثْنَيْ عَشَرَ مِيلاً فَكَانَ ثَلاَثَةَ آلاَفٍ وَخَمْسَمِائَةِ ذِرَاعٍ كُلُّ مِيلٍ فَوَضَعُوا الأعْلاَمَ فَلَمَّا ظَهَرَ بَنُو هَاشِمٍ غَيَّرُوا أَمْرَ بَنِي أُمَيَّةَ غَيْرَةً لأَنَّ الْحَدِيثَ هَاشِمِيٌّ فَوَضَعُوا إِلَى جَنْبِ كُلِّ عَلَمٍ عَلَماً.

Published English translation

3. Muhammad ibn Yahya has narrated from Muhammad ibn al-Husayn from Muhammad ibn Yahya al-Khazzaz from certain persons of our people who has said the following: “Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said, ‘Once we were sitting and my father was with the governor of banu ‘Umayyah over the people of al-Madinah. My father came back and sat down and said, “I was in the court of this (governor) a little while ago and people asked about Taqsir (reducing Salah (prayer) on a journey after traveling a certain distance). Someone said that it is at three. Another one said that it is after traveling one day and one night. Yet another said that it is one rawhah. He (the Governor) then asked me and I said, ‘When Jibril came with Taqsir (reducing Salah (prayer) on a journey after traveling a certain distance) to the Messenger of Allah, the Holy prophet asked him, “At what distance is this?” He (Jibril) said, “It is at one barid.” He (the Messenger of Allah) asked, “What is that?” Jibril replied, “It is between the shadow of ‘Ayr (a certain mountain) to the shadow of 0‘Ayr.”’ He (the Imam) said that time passed, then it was seen that banu ‘Umayyah had placed marks on the road and mentioned what Abu Ja‘far (a.s.), had spoken of. They placed signs on the shadow of ‘Ayr and the outline of 0‘Ayr. They then divided it into twelve miles and it was three thousand and five hundred yards for each mile. They had placed signs on them. When banu Hashim appeared they changed the affairs of banu ‘Umayyah in a certain way because Hadith is from banu Hashim, thus they placed a sign next to each sign.’” (the Arabic word for yard is Dhira‘ (from the elbow to the tip of the fingers which is about eighteen inches)).

Narrator and transmission

See the transmission information preserved in the original source text.

Attributed scholarly assessments

Allamah Baqir al-Majlisi: مرسل

Mirʾāt al-ʿUqūl fī Sharḥ Akhbār Āl al-Rasūl (5/375)

Assessment transcribed from the source's named scholar and reference. No new grading or consensus is asserted; differing entries remain separate.

Shaykh Baqir al-Behbudi: Catalogue non-inclusion note (not an authenticity grade)

Ṣaḥīḥ al-Kāfī

Source records non-inclusion in this scholar's selection; this is not itself a weak or authentic grade.

Source, rights, and attribution

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translator: Muhammad Sarwar
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