Hadithcore
Sahih Muslim, 179 a
sahih

Abu Musa reported:

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was standing amongst us and he told us five things. He said: Verily the Exalted and Mighty God does not sleep, and it does not befit Him to sleep. He lowers the scale and lifts it. The deeds in the night are taken up to Him before the deeds of the day, and the deeds of the day before the deeds of the night. His veil is the light. In the hadith narrated by Abu Bakr (instead of the word "light" ) it is fire. If he withdraws it (the veil), the splendour of His countenance would consume His creation so far as His sight reaches.

حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو بَكْرِ بْنُ أَبِي شَيْبَةَ، وَأَبُو كُرَيْبٍ قَالاَ حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو مُعَاوِيَةَ، حَدَّثَنَا الأَعْمَشُ، عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ مُرَّةَ، عَنْ أَبِي عُبَيْدَةَ، عَنْ أَبِي مُوسَى، قَالَ قَامَ فِينَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم بِخَمْسِ كَلِمَاتٍ فَقَالَ ‏

‏ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ لاَ يَنَامُ وَلاَ يَنْبَغِي لَهُ أَنْ يَنَامَ يَخْفِضُ الْقِسْطَ وَيَرْفَعُهُ يُرْفَعُ إِلَيْهِ عَمَلُ اللَّيْلِ قَبْلَ عَمَلِ النَّهَارِ وَعَمَلُ النَّهَارِ قَبْلَ عَمَلِ اللَّيْلِ حِجَابُهُ النُّورُ - وَفِي رِوَايَةِ أَبِي بَكْرٍ النَّارُ - لَوْ كَشَفَهُ لأَحْرَقَتْ سُبُحَاتُ وَجْهِهِ مَا انْتَهَى إِلَيْهِ بَصَرُهُ مِنْ خَلْقِهِ ‏

‏ ‏.‏ - وَفِي رِوَايَةِ أَبِي بَكْرٍ عَنِ الأَعْمَشِ وَلَمْ يَقُلْ حَدَّثَنَا ‏.‏

Isnad

7 transmitters
  1. 1Abu Bakr bin Abi ShaybaKufa · d. ~235 AH
  2. 2Abu Karayb, Muhammad bin al-'Ala'Hamadan,al-Kufa · d. 247 AH
  3. 3Muhammad bin Khazim al-Dariral-Kufa · d. 195 AH
  4. 4Sulaiman al-A'mashal-Kufa · d. 147 AH
  5. 5'Amr bin Murrah bin 'Abdullahal-Kufa · d. 112 AH or before
  6. 6Abu 'Ubaidah ibn al-JarrahMakkah/Medina/Syria · d. 18 AH/640 CE
  7. 7Abu Musa al-Asha'ariYemen/Makkah/Medina/Basra/Kufa · d. ~43 or 52 AH /662 or 672 CE
References2 variants
In-Book Reference
Book 1, Hadith 350
USC-MSA web (English) reference
Book 1, Hadith 343 (deprecated numbering scheme)
Sharh · explanationclick to expand
The Prophet ﷺ used to choose suitable times to preach to his companions, remind them about Allah periodically, and teach them Allah’s unmatchable attributes. In this hadith, the companion Abu Musa Al-Ash’ary narrated that the Prophet ﷺ once delivered his companions five Islamic teachings. He told them that Allah never slept, for it was not appropriate for Him to sleep. Sleeping is an attribute of deficiency, which is impossible to be his attribute. Allah said, “Neither slumber nor sleep overtakes Him.” (Al-Baqarah: 255). Additionally, how does the Manager of the heavens and the earth sleep?! The Prophet ﷺ also told them that Allah possessed the scale of justice and provisions, so he restricted or expanded his bliss to his servants, out of his comprehensive wisdom. Also, the Prophet ﷺ informed them that his servant’s righteous or evil deeds done during the night were taken up to Him before those done during the day and vice versa. This indicates that all deeds are immediately raised to Him by His angels, without waiting for the day or night to be completed. There is no doubt that he knows all of these deeds before they are even taken up to Him. As a result, if a servant realizes this, he has to fear and take much care of Allah’s observation during the day and night. Also, the Prophet ﷺ informed them that there was a barrier between Allah and His creation which was the light or fire as in the other narration. There is no contradiction between the two words, for Allah called the lamp’s fire as light as in Surat An-Nour, unlike the dark fire of Hell, Allah forbid, which was not called a light. If Allah were to remove that veil, His face’s glory would burn everything of His creation as far as His gaze reaches. Allah’s sight is endless. Finally, this hadith contains the following benefits: (1) The humans cannot see Allah in this world, but Allah will honor whomever He wishes with this bliss in the Hereafter, (2) It proves the veil between Allah and his creation, in the way that befits him, without negating its meaning or comparing it with his creation’s attributes, (3) It proves some of Allah’s attributes such as: the face, sight, raising and lowering of the scale of justice, in the way that befits him, (4) It is impossible for Allah to sleep, for it is an attribute of deficiency, and (5) It proves that the servants’ deeds are submitted to Allah every day and every night..
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