Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) reports that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was asked: "Which prayer is the most virtuous after the obligatory prayers?" He (peace and blessings be upon him) replied: "Praying in the last third of the night." Then it was asked: "Which fast is the most virtuous after the fast of Ramadan?" He (peace and blessings be upon him) replied: "The month of Allah which you call Muharram."

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah and Sayyiduna Abu Sa'id (may Allah be pleased with them both) bore witness that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Indeed, Allah delays until a third of the night has passed, then He descends and says: Is there anyone who supplicates so that his supplication may be accepted? Is there anyone seeking forgiveness so that he may be forgiven?

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: May Allah have mercy on the man who gets up at night and prays, and then wakes up his wife and she also prays, and if she refuses, he sprinkles water on her face. Likewise, may Allah have mercy on the woman who gets up at night and prays, and then wakes up her husband and he also prays, and if he refuses, she sprinkles water on his face to wake him up.

It is also narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah, may Allah be pleased with him, who says: I said, "O Messenger of Allah! Tell me of an action which, if I do it, I will enter Paradise." He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Spread peace, feed (others), maintain ties of kinship, and pray at night when people are asleep, then enter Paradise in peace."

Abu Muslim says: I asked Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him): Which part of the night is the best for standing in prayer? Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) replied: Just as you have asked me, I asked the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) the same question. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Stand in prayer during the last third of the night or in the middle of the night; in any case, those who do such deeds are few.

Sayyiduna Amr bin Abasah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: The night prayer is in sets of two rak‘ahs, and in the last (third) part of the night, supplication is most readily accepted. I asked: Is it obligatory to supplicate in that part? He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: No, no, (I am saying that) supplication is most readily accepted. His (peace and blessings be upon him) intent was acceptance.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Sa'id Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Allah Almighty looks at three types of people and laughs: (1) the person who gets up at night to pray, (2) when people form rows for prayer, and (3) when people form rows for battle.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr bin Aas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: The most beloved fast to Allah Almighty is the fast of Dawood (peace be upon him), and he used to fast half of the time, and the most beloved prayer at night to Allah is also that of Dawood (peace be upon him). He would sleep for the first half of the night, then stand (in prayer), then sleep in the last part of it, then after half the night, he would stand for one third of the night.

The wife of the Messenger, Sayyida Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), narrates: She says, "Be diligent in standing for prayer at night, because the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) never abandoned it. If he was ill, he would perform this prayer while sitting. I know that you say, 'We will only pray as much as has been decreed for us,' but then how will it attain its status?"

It is narrated from Sayyida Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), she says that when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to pray at night, he would stand for so long that his feet would become swollen. So one day she said: O Messenger of Allah! Why do you stand for so long, when all your past and future sins have been forgiven? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) replied: O Aisha! Should I not be a most grateful servant?