A hasan (good) sahih (authentic) hadith. Imam Ahmad (3) recorded through his chain of narration from Abu Sa'id, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "The suhur is a blessing, so do not leave it, even if one of you only gulps a gulp of water, for Allah and His angels pray upon those who take the suhur." The second matter is regarding its time. Ahmad said: "I prefer delaying the suhur," based on what Zayd ibn Thabit reported, saying: "We partook in the suhur with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), then we stood up for the prayer." I (the narrator) asked: "How much time was there between the two?" He said: "Fifty verses." Agreed upon (4). Al-Irbad ibn Sariyah reported that he said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) called me to the suhur and said: "Come to the blessed morning meal (ghada')." Recorded by Abu Dawud and al-Nasa'i (5). He called it a morning meal because of its proximity to that time. This is also because the intended purpose of the suhur is to gain strength for fasting, and the closer it is to the dawn, the more helpful it is for the fast. Abu Dawud said: Abu 'Abd Allah (Ahmad) said: "If one is in doubt regarding the dawn, he may continue to eat until he is certain of its rise." This is the opinion of Ibn Abbas, 'Ata', and al-Awza'i. Ahmad said: Allah the Exalted says: {And eat and drink until the white thread of dawn becomes distinct to you from the black thread} (6). And the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "Do not let the suhur of any of you be prevented by..."
4/120. And al-Darimi, in: The Chapter on the Merit of the Suhur, from the Book of Fasting. Sunan al-Darimi 2/6. And Imam Ahmad, in: Al-Musnad 4/197, 202. (3) In: Al-Musnad 3/12, 44. (4) Recorded by al-Bukhari, in: The Chapter on the Amount of Time Between the Suhur and the Dawn Prayer, from the Book of Fasting. Sahih al-Bukhari 3/37. And Muslim, in: The Chapter on the Merit of the Suhur..., from the Book of Fasting. Sahih Muslim 2/771. It was also recorded by al-Tirmidhi, in: The Chapter on What Has Been Reported Regarding Delaying the Suhur, from the Chapters of Fasting. 'Aridat al-Ahwadhi 3/221. And al-Nasa'i, in: The Chapter on the Amount of Time Between the Suhur and the Morning Prayer, from the Book of Fasting. Al-Mujtaba 4/117. And Ibn Majah, in: The Chapter on What Has Been Reported Regarding Delaying the Suhur, from the Book of Fasting. Sunan Ibn Majah 1/540. And al-Darimi, in: The Chapter on What Is Recommended Regarding Delaying the Suhur, from the Book of Fasting. Sunan al-Darimi 2/6. And Imam Ahmad, in: Al-Musnad 5/182, 185, 186, 188. (5) Recorded by Abu Dawud, in: The Chapter on Those Who Named the Suhur the Morning Meal, from the Book of Fasting. Sunan Abi Dawud. And al-Nasa'i, in: The Chapter on the Invitation to the Suhur, from the Book of Fasting. Al-Mujtaba 4/119. It was also recorded by Imam Ahmad, in: Al-Musnad 4/126, 127. (6) Surah al-Baqarah 187.
