Hadithcore
Sahih al-Bukhari, 2998
sahih

Narrated Ibn' `Umar:

from the Prophet (ﷺ) the following Hadith (No. 242). Narrated Ibn `Umar: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If the people knew what I know about traveling alone, then nobody would travel alone at night."

حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو الْوَلِيدِ، حَدَّثَنَا عَاصِمُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي أَبِي، عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم‏.‏ حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو نُعَيْمٍ، حَدَّثَنَا عَاصِمُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ زَيْدِ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عُمَرَ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ، عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ ‏

‏ لَوْ يَعْلَمُ النَّاسُ مَا فِي الْوَحْدَةِ مَا أَعْلَمُ مَا سَارَ رَاكِبٌ بِلَيْلٍ وَحْدَهُ ‏

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References2 variants
In-Book Reference
Book 56, Hadith 207
USC-MSA web (English) reference
Vol. 4, Book 52, Hadith 241 (deprecated numbering scheme)
Sharh · explanationclick to expand
In this hadeeth, the Prophet ﷺ warns against travelling and walking alone at night. He ﷺ stated that if people knew what he ﷺ knew about the risks and harms that may befall a person when traveling or riding his mount alone at night, nobody would travel alone at night. This statement aims to discourage Muslims from traveling or walking alone at night.It imperils a person to the danger of being robbed, and were he to die during such a time, there would be no one to wash and shroud his dead body and perform the funeral prayer over him. It is also possible that the Prophet ﷺ said so out of his fear and compassion for the one traveling or walking alone at night lest he should be harmed by the devils, for they come out at night and may harm people by taking human form, scaring them, or targeting them with their whisperings. .
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