8/14. Chapter:
Sunan Abi Dawud 1456 — Two Verses Better Than Camels
Regarding The Rewards For Reciting The Qur'an
Learning Two Quran Verses: Better Than Valuable Camels
Sunan Abi Dawud : 1456
Sunan Abi DawudHadith Number 1456
حَدَّثَنَا سُلَيْمَانُ بْنُ دَاوُدَ الْمَهْرِيُّ، حَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ وَهْبٍ، حَدَّثَنَا مُوسَى بْنُ عُلَىِّ بْنِ رَبَاحٍ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، عَنْ عُقْبَةَ بْنِ عَامِرٍ الْجُهَنِيِّ، قَالَ خَرَجَ عَلَيْنَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم وَنَحْنُ فِي الصُّفَّةِ فَقَالَ " أَيُّكُمْ يُحِبُّ أَنْ يَغْدُوَ إِلَى بُطْحَانَ أَوِ الْعَقِيقِ فَيَأْخُذَ نَاقَتَيْنِ كَوْمَاوَيْنِ زَهْرَاوَيْنِ بِغَيْرِ إِثْمٍ بِاللَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ وَلاَ قَطْعِ رَحِمٍ " . قَالُوا كُلُّنَا يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ . قَالَ " فَلأَنْ يَغْدُوَ أَحَدُكُمْ كُلَّ يَوْمٍ إِلَى الْمَسْجِدِ فَيَتَعَلَّمَ آيَتَيْنِ مِنْ كِتَابِ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ خَيْرٌ لَهُ مِنْ نَاقَتَيْنِ وَإِنْ ثَلاَثٌ فَثَلاَثٌ مِثْلُ أَعْدَادِهِنَّ مِنَ الإِبِلِ " .
'Uqbah b. 'Amir al-Juhani said: When we were in the Suffah, the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) asked: Which of you would like to go out every morning to Buthan or Al-'Aqiq and bring two large humped and fat she-camels without being guilty of sin and severing ties of relationship ? They (the people) said: Messenger of Allah, we would all like that. He said: If any one of you goes out in the morning to the mosque and learns two verses of the Book of Allah, the Exalted, it is better for him than two she-camels, and three verses are better for him than three she-camels, and so on than their numbers in camels.
[1] It is explained after the narration.[2] It appears that this definition was added by one of the copyists to one of the manuscripts. Abū 'Ubayd is Al-Qāsim Ibn Sallām, and he compiled a dictionary of odd words in Hādīth called: " Gharīb Al-Hādīth ."Reference : Sunan Abi Dawud 1456In-book reference : Book 8, Hadith 41English translation : Book 8, Hadith 1451
Summary of Sunan Abi Dawud Hadith 1456
This Hadith about learning Quran verses uses a comparison that the listeners could understand. Uqbah b. Amir said they were in the Suffah when the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم asked who would like to go every morning to Buthan or Al-'Aqiq and bring two large, fat she-camels without sin or cutting family ties. They all wanted that. He then said that going to the mosque and learning two verses from the Book of Allah is better than two she-camels, three verses better than three, and so on. The point is clear: learning even a small number of Quran verses is valuable, and the Hadith uses worldly value to help people see it.
What we learn from this hadith
- Learning two verses of the Qur'an is praised highly.
- The comparison uses valuable she-camels to make the lesson clear.
- The Hadith says more verses bring more value in the same pattern.
- The learning mentioned is connected to going to the mosque in the morning.
