Abu Bakr Shaybani says: The owner of this house narrated a hadith to me, and he pointed towards the house of Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him), that he (Sayyiduna Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him) asked the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): Which deed is the best or most beloved to Allah? He replied: To perform the prayer at its (earliest) appointed time.

Sayyiduna Ka'b bin Ujrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) came to us in the mosque. We were seven people: three were Arabs and four were Mawali (freed slaves), or four were Arabs and three were Mawali. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) came from his chamber and sat with us. He said: "For what reason are you sitting here?" We replied: "We are waiting for the prayer." The narrator said: The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) lowered his head and began to scratch the ground for a while, then he raised his blessed head and said: "Do you know what your Lord says?" We replied: "Allah and His Messenger know best." He said: "Allah the Exalted says: Whoever performs the prayer at its (appointed) time and fulfills its conditions and pillars properly, then My promise is that I will admit him to Paradise. And whoever does not perform the prayer at its time nor fulfills its conditions and pillars, I have no covenant or promise with him; if I wish, I will admit him to Hell, or if I wish, I will admit him to Paradise."