Quran
Hadith
Islamic Text
No, it is not true that sleeping after Asr makes you mad (insane). Some people do say this and base it upon a Hadith. However, the Hadith is not authentic. Therefore, there is no sound evidence for this claim.
حَدَّثَنَا عَمْرُو بْنُ حَصِينٍ، حَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ عُلَاثَةَ، حَدَّثَنِي الْأَوْزَاعِيُّ، عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ، عَنْ عُرْوَةَ، عَنْ عَائِشَةَ، أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ: مَنْ نَامَ بَعْدَ الْعَصْرِ فَاخْتُلِسَ عَقْلُهُ فَلَا يَلُومَنَّ إِلَّا نَفْسَهُ
We were informed by Amr bin Husayn, (who said) we were informed by Ibn Ulathah, (who said) I was informed by al-Owzai, from al-Zuhri, from (Sayidah) Aishah (May Allah Most High be pleased with her), that the Prophet ﷺ said, ‘Whoever sleeps after Asr, and finds that he has lost his mind, should not blame anyone but himself.’ (Abu Ya’la, 4918).
This Hadith has been narrated in numerous books. Amongst the strongest of the narrations is in Abu Ya’la. However, even this narration is very weak. Thus, cannot be attributed to the Holy Prophet ﷺ.
عَنْ عَائِشَةَ أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ – صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ – قَالَ: ” «مَنْ نَامَ بَعْدَ الْعَصْرِ فَاخْتُلِسَ عَقْلُهُ فَلَا يَلُومَنَّ إِلَّا نَفْسَهُ» “. رَوَاهُ أَبُو يَعْلَى عَنْ شَيْخِهِ عَمْرِو بْنِ الْحُصَيْنِ، وَهُوَ مَتْرُوكٌ
From (Sayidah) Aishah (May Allah Most High be pleased with her), that the Prophet ﷺ said, ‘Whoever sleeps after Asr, and finds that he has lost his mind, should not blame anyone but himself.’ It was narrated by Abu Ya’la from his Shaykh Amr bin al-Husayn, and he is a rejected (Matrook, very weak) narrator. (Imam Noorud-deen al-Haythami, Majma al-Zawaid).
There are other chains (Sanad) for this Hadith. Imam Ibn al-Jowzi commented on the Hadith itself and also a particular Sanad in his book of Hadith fabrications:
هَذَا حَدِيث لَا يَصح. قَالَ ابْن رَاهَوَيْه والسعدني: خَالِد بْن الْقَاسِم كَذَّاب. وَقَالَ الْبُخَارِي وَالنَّسَائِيّ: مَتْرُوك. وَقَالَ ابْنُ حِبَّانَ: لَا يَحِلُّ كَتْبُ حَدِيثه. قَالَ المُصَنّف قُلْت: إِنَّمَا هَذَا حَدِيث ابْن لَهِيعَة فَأَخذه خَالِد فنسبه إِلَى اللَّيْث. (الموضوعات)
This Hadith is not authentic. Ibn Rahawayhi and al-Sadani both said that Khalid bin al-Qasim is a liar (fabricator). (Imam) al-Bukhari and (Imam) al-Nasai both said he is rejected (Matrook). (Imam) Ibn Hibban said it is not permitted to write his Hadith (narrations). And the author said, this is a narration from Ibn Lahi’ah, Khalid took it and attributed it to al-Layth. (Imam Abd al-Rahman Ibn al-Jowzi, al-Mowdo’aat).
The fact that Imam Ibn Jowzi included this Hadith in his Mowdo’aat (collection) of fabrications. And the fact that other leading Hadith scholars quoted from it is significant. It strengthens the argument that there is no authentic narration connecting the above statement to the Holy Prophet ﷺ.
Therefore, it is not true that sleeping after Asr makes you mad (insane). Such a claim would need to be substantiated through Quran and Hadith. Thus, anyone saying sleeping after Asr makes you mad (insane), should be tasked with providing evidence form Quran and authentic Hadith. If they cannot do so then they must refrain from making such claims. And they certainly must refrain from connecting such statements to the Holy Prophet ﷺ.
Unfortunately, too many Muslims are extremely careless when attributing statements or actions to our beloved Prophet ﷺ. This is not only a violation against the Sharia (sacred law). But it also contradicts the claim to loving the Prophet ﷺ. If one truly loved the blessed Prophet ﷺ then he would be incredibly protective regarding his ﷺ words and not allow anyone to attribute dubious narrations to him ﷺ.
And Allah Most High Knows Best.
-Answered by Shaykh Noorud-deen Rashid (21.04.2022)
See also:
Referencing Hadith correctly
What do the Hadith classifications mean
See also (video):
