Life of Muhammad — Page 212
sa 212 was made of dried palm branches and leaves, leaked whenever it rained. On such occasions the Holy Prophet sa and members of the congregation would be drenched with rain and mud but he would continue with the prayers till the end and on no occasion did he give any indication that he would postpone the service or remove to more weather-tight shelter ( Bukh a r i , Kit a bu s S aum ). He was also watchful regarding his Companions. ‘ Abdull a h bin ‘ Umar ra was a man of extreme piety and purity of life. Concerning him the Holy Prophet sa once said: " ‘ Abdull a h bin ‘ Umar ra would be an even better man if he were to be more regular with regard to his Ta hajj ud prayers. " 1 When this was communicated to ‘ Abdull a h bin ‘ Umar ra he never thereafter missed these prayers. It is recorded that the Holy Prophet sa , happening to be in the house of his daughter F at ima ra , inquired of her and his son-in-law, ‘ A li ra , whether they were regular with regard to their Ta hajj ud prayers. ‘ A li ra replied: "O Messenger of Allah sa ! We try to get up for Ta hajj ud prayers but on occasion when God so wills that we are unable to wake up in time we miss them. " He went back and, on the way, repeated several times a verse of the Qur’an which means that a man is often reluctant to admit his fault and tries to cover it up with excuses ( Bukh a r i , Kit a bul Kus u f ). The Prophet sa meant that ‘ A li ra should not have attributed his default to God by saying that when God willed that they should not wake up they were unable to wake up in time, but should have admitted his own weakness in the matter. DISAPPROVAL OF PENANCE The Holy Prophet sa , however, strongly disapproved of formality in the matter of worship and condemned the imposition of any penance upon oneself as a form of 1 This is a voluntary prayer which is said in the latter part of the night and is not one of the daily prayers. — Ed.