English Translation

Hadrat Abu Hadrat Mu'awiyah narrated from al-A'mash, who narrated from Ibrahim, who narrated from al-Aswad and 'Alqamah, who both said: We came to the house of Hadrat 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be well pleased with him). He asked: Have those behind you (i.e., the rulers who delay prayers and their followers) prayed? We said: No. He said: Stand up and pray. He did not order us to call the adhan or iqamah. When we went to stand behind him, he took our hands and placed one on his right and the other on his left. When he bowed in ruku', we placed our hands on our knees. He tapped our hands and clasped his palms together and placed them between his thighs. When he finished the prayer, he said: There will soon come rulers over you who will delay the prayers from their appointed times and will constrict their times until they are like the last flickering of a dying person. When you see them doing this, offer every prayer at its proper time and make your prayer with them a voluntary (nafl) prayer. When you are three, stand together in prayer, and when you are more than three, let one of you lead as imam. And when any one of you bows, he should place his arms on his thighs and bend down and clasp his palms together. It is as if I am still seeing the interlocked fingers of the Beloved Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) — and he demonstrated.