Sayyiduna Sa’d bin Hisham narrates that Sayyidah Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) states that when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) performed any voluntary prayer, he liked to perform it regularly. And I do not know that the Prophet of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) ever recited the entire Qur’an in one night, nor did he ever perform Tahajjud until morning, nor did he ever fast an entire month except for Ramadan. Then I went to Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) and related to him the hadith of Sayyidah Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), so he said that she has spoken the truth. Beware, if I had the opportunity to visit her, I would have gone to her and listened to this hadith directly from her.

Lady Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) narrates that when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) performed any deed, he would do it consistently. She says that she never saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) pray the night prayer (tahajjud) for the entire night until morning, nor did he fast for an entire month continuously except for the month of Ramadan.

Sayyiduna Buraidah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that one day I left my house to relieve myself, when suddenly I saw that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was also going. I thought that you (peace and blessings be upon him) were going to relieve yourself, so I started to move away from you (peace and blessings be upon him). I was doing this when you (peace and blessings be upon him) saw me and gestured for me (to come to you). When I came to you (peace and blessings be upon him), you (peace and blessings be upon him) took my hand, then we started walking together. Suddenly, we saw a man in front of us who was praying and bowing and prostrating excessively. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "What do you think, is he showing off?" I replied, "Allah and His Messenger know best." He says that you (peace and blessings be upon him) let go of my hand and gestured three times in front of you with both hands, raising your hands and then lowering them, and said: "Adopt the middle path, choose the path of moderation, you should adopt moderation, because whoever tries to be harsh with this religion, this religion overcomes him (overpowers him)." These are the words of Mu’ammal’s narration. Janab Duraqi did not narrate these words. Indeed, whoever is harsh in the matter of this religion, the religion overcomes him.

Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) entered the mosque while a rope was tied between two pillars. The Prophet (peace be upon him) asked: "What is this?" The people present replied that it was the rope of Sayyidah Zaynab (may Allah be pleased with her). She prays, and when she becomes tired or sluggish, she holds onto it. The Prophet (peace be upon him) ordered: "Untie it." Then he said: "Any one of you should pray with energy and alertness, and when he becomes tired or sluggish, he should sit down (and rest)."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) similar to the above-mentioned narration. The only difference in wording is that those present said, "(This rope) belongs to Sayyidah Maymunah bint Harith (may Allah be pleased with her)." The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) asked, "What does she do with this rope?" They replied that she stands and prays with it, and when she becomes tired, she takes support from it. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) untied it and said, "Any one of you should pray as long as he has energy, and when he becomes tired, he should sit down."

Sayyiduna Mughirah bin Shu’bah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) performed (so many voluntary) prayers that his blessed feet became swollen. It was said to him,“O Messenger of Allah, you are enduring this hardship and difficulty even though your past and future sins have been forgiven?”He (peace and blessings be upon him) replied:“Should I not be a grateful servant?”

Sayyiduna Mughirah bin Shu’bah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) performed (so many voluntary) prayers that his blessed feet became swollen. It was said to him that indeed Allah Almighty has forgiven your past and future sins (then why do you undergo so much hardship?). He (peace and blessings be upon him) replied:“Should I not be a grateful servant (to my Lord)?”

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to stand (in prayer) for such a long time that his blessed feet would swell. It was said to him, "O Messenger of Allah, you undertake such a strenuous task, while Allah has already revealed to you that He has forgiven all your past and future mistakes?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) replied: "Should I not be a grateful servant?" These are the words of Muharibi’s narration. Imam Abu Bakr (may Allah have mercy on him) says that this hadith is evidence that gratitude to Allah is sometimes expressed through action, because all gratitude is for Allah alone. And sometimes gratitude is expressed verbally. The statement of Allah, the Exalted, is: «‏‏‏‏اعْمَلُوا آلَ دَاوُودَ شُكْرًا» ‏‏‏‏ [ سورة سبإ: 13 ] "O family of Dawud, work deeds of gratitude." Therefore, Allah has commanded them to perform righteous deeds as a form of gratitude to Him. Thus, gratitude is sometimes expressed through both speech and action. It is not as common people think, that gratitude is only expressed verbally. The words of the hadith, "Allah has forgiven all your past and future sins," are of the type about which I say that, linguistically, it is permissible to say "yakūn" (will be) in the meaning of "kāna" (has been). Because Allah, the Exalted, said to His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): «‏‏‏‏إِنَّا فَتَحْنَا لَكَ فَتْحًا مُّبِينًا» ‏‏‏‏ "Indeed, We have given you a clear conquest." And it was said to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that Allah has forgiven all your past and future sins, so the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did not reject the statement, nor did he say that "My Lord has promised to forgive my sins," because He has already forgiven them.