It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub al-Ansari (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) stayed with me for a month. I observed his (peace and blessings be upon him) routine closely and saw that when the sun passed its zenith, he (peace and blessings be upon him) would leave whatever worldly work was in his hand; and if he (peace and blessings be upon him) was asleep, it was as if he were woken up for that time. Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) would get up, take a bath or perform ablution, and then pray four rak'ahs, which he (peace and blessings be upon him) would complete with great excellence and composure. When the time of his (peace and blessings be upon him) departure drew near, I said: O Messenger of Allah! You stayed with me for a month, and I wished that you had stayed even longer than that. I reflected on all your (peace and blessings be upon him) routines and saw that when the sun passed its zenith, you (peace and blessings be upon him) would leave worldly work and occupy yourself with prayer. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, at that hour the gates of the heavens are opened, and the gates of the heavens and of Paradise are not closed until this prayer has been performed. So I love that at those moments a good deed of mine should rise up to my Lord, and that my deed should be presented first among the deeds of the worshippers."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub Khalid bin Zayd (may Allah be pleased with him), in whose house the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) stayed at the time of the emigration to Madinah, set out on a campaign in the land of the Romans. Then he passed by Sayyiduna Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him), who treated him coldly. When he returned from the campaign, he again showed him indifference and paid him no attention. Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) informed me that after him we would witness others being preferred over us (and our rights being denied)." Sayyiduna Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) asked: "Then what did he (peace and blessings be upon him) command you?" He replied: "He (peace and blessings be upon him) commanded us to be patient." He said: "Then be patient." After that he came to Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) in Basrah, whom Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) had appointed as its governor. Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: "O Abu Ayyub! I want to move out of my house for you just as you moved out of your house for the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)." So he ordered his family, and they came out of the house, and he gave him everything that was in the house. When the time of his departure came, Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) asked: "What is your need?" He said: "My need is my stipend and eight slaves to work on my land." His stipend was four thousand, so Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) multiplied it five times, making it twenty thousand, and gave him forty slaves. This hadith has already passed with a connected, authentic chain; I have mentioned it again with this chain because of the additional details in it.