QUESTION:
Would it be correct to say that it is a Sunnah to sleep on a bed? I know it’s Sunnah to sleep directly on the floor, but which is the preferred method of Nabi صلى الله عليه وسلم?
ANSWER:
Ibn Qayyim Rahimahullah has mentioned in his Kitaab, Zaadul Ma’aad that Nabi Sallallahu Alaihi Wasllam used to sleep on the following items:
كَانَ يَنَامُ عَلَى الْفِرَاشِ تَارَةً، وَعَلَى النِّطْعِ تَارَةً، وَعَلَى الْحَصِيرِ تَارَةً، وَعَلَى الْأَرْضِ تَارَةً، وَعَلَى السَّرِيرِ تَارَةً بَيْنَ رِمَالِهِ وَتَارَةً عَلَى كِسَاءٍ أَسْوَدَ… وَكَانَ فِرَاشُهُ أُدُمًا حَشْوُهُ لِيفٌ. وَكَانَ لَهُ مِسْحٌ يَنَامُ عَلَيْهِ يُثْنَى بِثَنْيَتَيْنِ، وَثُنِيَ لَهُ يَوْمًا أَرْبَعُ ثَنَيَاتٍ فَنَهَاهُمْ عَنْ ذَلِكَ وَقَالَ: «رُدُّوهُ إِلَى حَالِهِ الْأَوَّلِ فَإِنَّهُ مَنَعَنِي صَلَاتِي اللَّيْلَةَ» (زاد المعاد 1/149)
1. On a mat made from palm leaves
2. On a mat made from leather
3. On a straw mat
4. On the ground
5. On a wooden bed
6. On a black cloth
7. His bedding was of leather which was filled with fibre
8. He had a coarse woollen fabric which he slept upon with a double fold
However, we could not locate any narration specifically mentioning whether he slept more often on the floor or bed. In conclusion, to sleep on the bed is established from Nabi Sallallahu Alaihi Wasllam as mentioned above.
ALLAH TA’ALA IN HIS INFINTE KNOWELDGE KNOWS BEST!
ANSWERED BY:
Maulana Abdul Kader Fazlani
Date: 18 Muharram 1446 / 25 July 2024
CHECKED AND APPROVED BY:
Mufti Mohammed Desai
