Hadithcore
Sahih al-Bukhari, 1102
sahih

Narrated Ibn `Umar:

I accompanied Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) and he never offered more than two rak`at during the journey. Abu Bakr, `Umar and `Uthman used to do the same.

حَدَّثَنَا مُسَدَّدٌ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى، عَنْ عِيسَى بْنِ حَفْصِ بْنِ عَاصِمٍ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي أَبِي أَنَّهُ، سَمِعَ ابْنَ عُمَرَ، يَقُولُ صَحِبْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَكَانَ لاَ يَزِيدُ فِي السَّفَرِ عَلَى رَكْعَتَيْنِ، وَأَبَا بَكْرٍ وَعُمَرَ وَعُثْمَانَ كَذَلِكَ ـ رضى الله عنهم‏.‏

References2 variants
In-Book Reference
Book 18, Hadith 22
USC-MSA web (English) reference
Vol. 2, Book 20, Hadith 206 (deprecated numbering scheme)
Sharh · explanationclick to expand
Since Islam is a magnanimous religion that embraces tolerance, it is not isolated from alleviating and making ease for the people over matters of the religion and world. One of the many examples of its easiness and accommodation is the dispensation; [which] is a gift from Allah, The Mighty and Majestic - for the purpose of facilitating the performance of the obligatory that Allah has made incumbent upon His servants. In this hadeeth, ʿAbdullah ibn ʿUmar (may Allah be pleased with them) reports that he had accompanied the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. During his time in his company, he observed that he ﷺ would offer no more than a two-units prayer on the journey. That is to say, heﷺ would shorten the prayers that consist of four units- [which are] Dhuhr, ʿAsr, and ʿIshaa’ - and perform a two-unit prayer [instead]. As for Maghrib, he would perform it like it [always] is done: three units; and did not perform the sunnah prayers that are tied and performed either before or after the five obligatory prayers. Likewise, so did: Abu Bakr, ʿUmar, and ʿUthmaan(may Allah be pleased with them) - each during the time of their caliphate - [all] following the sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ while shortening the prayers during [their] travels - and did no more than that. In a narration in Saheehal-Bukhaaree and SaheehMuslim, Ibn ʿUmar mentioned [the following] about ʿUthmaan(may Allah be pleased with them): ‘[that] he prayed two unitsat the beginning of his caliphate, then performed the full prayers of four prayer units later.’ It has been said that: perhaps Ibn ʿUmar (may Allah be pleased with f them) intended in this narration [that it was] the rest of ʿUthmaan’s travels (may Allah be pleased with him), other than at Minaa, because he completed the prayers with four prayer units in their entirety at Minaa. And it has [also] been said that: he completed the prayers in their entirety if he was lodgingat a place, and if he was traveling, he would shorten them. Excluded from this generalisation are the two-units prayer that precedes Fajr. The Messenger of Allah ﷺdid not leave them during his travels and would even make them up when they had slept until the sun rose upon them during one of his travels; like what is mentioned in Saheeh Muslim, from a hadeeth narrated by Abu Hurayrah(may Allah be pleased with him). As well as the Witr prayer, [where] The Messenger of Allah ﷺ would perform the Witr prayer atop [his] camel while traveling - like what is mentioned in Saheeh al-Bukhaaree and SaheehMusim, from a hadeeth narrated byʿAbdullah ibn ʿUmar (May Allah have pleased with them). From the benefits that we can conclude from this hadeeth is the eagerness of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) to emulate the Prophet ﷺ. .