Dought & clear - The virtue of reciting some verses of Qur’aan just before going to sleep

I heard a hadeeth from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him), the meaning of which is, Whoever recites ten verses of
Qur'aan at night before going to sleep, will not be recorded as one of
the heedless.
Is this hadeeth saheeh? If it is saheeh, then is it correct to recite
Aayat al-Kursiy and Soorat al-Ikhlaas and al-Mi'wadhatayn by heart?
Thus I will have recited my wird, and I will have recited more than
ten verses. Or must it be ten verses read from the Mus-haf?.
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
The text of the hadeeth referred to by the questioner is:
It was narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him)
said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) said: "Whoever recites ten verses at night will not be recorded
as one of the heedless." Narrated by al-Haakim inal-Mustadrak (1/742),
and he said: This hadeeth is saheeh according to the conditions of
Muslim although they (al-Bukhaari and Muslim)did not narrate it. It
was also narrated by al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Targheeb (2/81)
It was also narrated that this was the view of a number of the
Sahaabah(may Allaah be pleased with them):
It was narrated that Ibn 'Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him) said:
Whoever recites ten verses at night will not be recorded as one of the
heedless. A similar report was narrated from Tameem al-Daari (may
Allaah be pleased with him). Both were narrated by al-Daarimi in his
Musnad (2/554-555).
Secondly:
Is what is meant in the hadeeth reciting these verses in one's prayer
at night, or can this virtue be attained simply by reciting these
verses at night, whether during prayer or otherwise?
Both are possible. The former is supported by the report narrated by
Abu Dawood (1398) from'Abd-Allaah ibn 'Amr ibn al-'Aas (may Allaah be
pleased with him), who said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "Whoever prays qiyaam reciting
ten verses will not be recorded as one of the heedless. Whoever prays
qiyaam reciting one hundred verses will be recorded as one of the
devout. Whoever prays qiyaam reciting one thousand verses will be
recorded as one of those who collected a great deal of reward."
Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood (1264).
It says in 'Awn al-Ma'bood: What is meant here is qiyaam al-layl.
Hence Ibn Hibbaan narrated this hadeeth in the chapters on qiyaam
al-layl in his Saheeh (4/120), and gave it the title: "Statement that
the one who prays qiyaam reciting ten verses is not heedless."
This is also supported by the hadeeth of Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be
pleased with him) whichsays: "Whoever prays at night reciting one
hundred verses will not be recorded as one of the heedless, and
whoever prays at night with two hundred verseswill be recorded as one
of the sincere and devout." Narrated by al-Haakim (1/452) and classed
as saheeh according to the conditions of Muslim. But al-Albaani was of
theview that it is da'eef, as it says in al-Saheehah (2/243) and
Da'eef al-Targheeb (1/190).
In the report narrated byIbn Khuzaymah (2/180) it says: "The one who
offers these prescribed prayers regularly will not be recorded as one
of the heedless, and whoever recites one hundred verses at night will
not be recorded as one of the heedless."
Al-Albaani said in al-Saheehah (643): Its isnaad is saheeh according
to the conditions of the two Shaykhs (al-Bukhaari and Muslim).
The fact that recitation ismentioned alongside the prescribed prayer
suggests that the command is to recite it during the prayer, i.e., the
night prayer.
Hence Ibn Khuzaymah narrated that hadeeth ofAbu Hurayrah (may Allaah
be pleased with him) in a chapter called "The virtue of reciting one
hundred verses in the night prayer, because the one who recites one
hundred verses in the night prayer will not be recorded as being among
the heedless." It was also narrated by Muhammad ibn Nasr al-Marwazi in
his book Qiyaam al-Layl (164) in the chapters that speak of reciting
in the night prayer.
And this virtue may also be attained by the one who recites this
number of verses at night in general, whether that is during prayer or
otherwise, before going to sleep or after waking up, if he wakes
during the night. This general meaning was understood by many of the
scholars when they narrated the hadeeth in their collections of
hadeeth. Al-Daarimi (may Allaah have mercy on him) included it in a
chapter called "The virtue of one who recites ten verses" (2/554).
Al-Haakim included it in his Mustadrak (1/738) in a chapter called
"Reportsconcerning the virtue of the Qur'aan in general."
Al-Mundhiri included it in al-Targheeb wa'l-Tarheeb (2/76) in a
chapter called "Encouragement to recite Qur'aan in prayer and at other
times, and the virtue of learning it and teaching it."
He mentioned it a second time in a chapterentitled "Encouragementto
recite adhkaar to be said by night and by day,not just in the morning
and in the evening" (2/116).
Al-Nawawi (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in al-Adhkaar (1/255):
Reciting Qur'aan is the most important of adhkaar, which should be
done regularly. No day or night should be without it and it may be
attained by reciting a few verses.
Then he mentioned a number of ahaadeeth including the hadeeth ofAbu
Hurayrah that we have quoted above. End quote.
It is hoped that the one who recites ten verses atnight will not be
recorded among the heedless, whether he recites them during his night
prayer or otherwise, for the bounty of Allaah is great indeed.
In Saheeh Muslim (789) itis narrated from Ibn 'Umar (may Allaah be
pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) said: "If the companion of the Qur'aan persists in reciting
it by night and by day, he will remember it, but if he does not do
that he will forget it."
The apparent meaning of the hadeeth is that what is meant by
qiyaamhere (idha qaama = if [he] persists) is broader in meaning than
the idea of praying qiyaam. Al-Manaawi (may Allaah have mercy on him)
said:i.e., if he commits himself to reading Qur'aan at night and
during the day, and doesnot neglect that… This is a recommendation to
read Qur'aan constantly, without singling out a specific time or
place. End quote.
Thirdly:
In the Sunnah it is recommended for the Muslim to recite certain
verses when he goes to bed.
Among the soorahs and verses which we are recommended to recite are
the following:
1 – Aayat al-Kursiy (al-Baqarah 2:255)
It says in a mu'allaq report narrated in Saheeh al-Bukhaari (2311)
that Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger
of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) appointed me to
guard the zakaah of Ramadaan, then someone came and started rummaging
in the foodstuff … and at the end of the hadeeth he said: "When you go
to your bed, recite Aayat al-Kursiy, for there will remain with you a
guardian from Allaah, and no devil will approach you, until morning
comes." The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:
"He told you the truth although he is a liar. That was a devil."
2 – The last two verses ofSoorat al-Baqarah
It was narrated from AbuMas'ood al-Ansaari (may Allaah be pleased with
him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
said: "Whoever recites the last two verses of Soorat al-Baqarah at
night, they will suffice him." Narrated by al-Bukhaari (5009) and
Muslim (2714). Ibn al-Qayyim said in al-Waabil al-Sayyib (132): They
will suffice him against any evil thatmay harm him.
It was narrated that 'Ali (may Allaah be pleased with him) said:
"I did not think that any sane person could sleep without reciting the
last three verses of Soorat al-Baqarah."
In al-Adhkaar (220), al-Nawawi attributed it to the report of Abu
Bakribn Abi Dawood, then hesaid: It is saheeh according to the
conditions of al-Bukhaari and Muslim.
3, 4 – Soorat al-Isra' and Soorat al-Zumar
It was narrated that 'Aa'ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) said:
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) would not go
to sleep until he had recited Bani Israa'eel (Soorat al-Isra') and
al-Zumar.
Narrated by al-Tirmidhi (3402) who said: it is a hasan hadeeth. It was
also classed as hasan by al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar in Nataa'ij al-Afkaar
(3/65), and it was classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh
al-Tirmidhi.
5 – Soorat al-Kaafiroon
It was narrated that Nawfal al-Ashja'i (may Allaah be pleased with
him) said: The Messengerof Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) said to me: "Recite Qul yaa ayyuha'l-kaafiroon then go to
sleep at the end of it, forit is a disavowal of shirk."
Narrated by Abu Dawood (5055) and al-Tirmidhi (3400); classed as hasan
by Ibn Hajar in Nataa'ij al-Afkaar (3/6); classed as saheeh by
al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood.
6, 7, 8 – al-Ikhlaas and al-Mi'wadhatayn [i.e., the last three soorahs
of the Qur'aan]
It was narrated from 'Aa'ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) that
when the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) went to
bed every night,he would hold his hands together and blow into them,
and recite into them Qul Huwa Allaahu Ahad, Qul a'oodhu bi rabb
il-falaq and Qul a'oodhu bi rabb il-naas. Then he would wipe them over
whatever he could of his body, starting with his head and face and the
front ofhis body, and he would do that three times. Narrated by
al-Bukhaari (5017).
It was narrated that Ibraaheem al-Nakha'i said:
They regarded it as mustahabb to recite these soorahs every night
three times: Qul Huwa Allaahu Ahad and al-Mi'wadhatayn. Al-Nawawi said
in al-Adhkaar (221): its isnaad is saheeh according to the conditions
of Muslim.
Fourthly:
Al-Nawawi (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in al-Adhkaar (221):
It is better for a person to do all that has been narrated of this
matter, but if he cannot do that he should do whatever he is able to
do. End quote.
It is not essential to read from the Mus-haf. It is sufficient for the
Muslim to recite whatever he can from memory of the passages mentioned
above, and Allaah will decree for him what He has promised.
And Allaah knows best.