حَدَّثَنَا هَارُونُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، حَدَّثَنَا يَزِيدُ بْنُ هَارُونَ، أَخْبَرَنَا بَهْزُ بْنُ حَكِيمٍ، فَذَكَرَ هَذَا الْحَدِيثَ بِإِسْنَادِهِ قَالَ : يُصَلِّي الْعِشَاءَ ثُمَّ يَأْوِي إِلَى فِرَاشِهِ، لَمْ يَذْكُرِ الأَرْبَعَ رَكَعَاتٍ، وَسَاقَ الْحَدِيثَ قَالَ فِيهِ : فَيُصَلِّي ثَمَانِيَ رَكَعَاتٍ يُسَوِّي بَيْنَهُنَّ فِي الْقِرَاءَةِ وَالرُّكُوعِ وَالسُّجُودِ، وَلاَ يَجْلِسُ فِي شَىْءٍ مِنْهُنَّ إِلاَّ فِي الثَّامِنَةِ، فَإِنَّهُ كَانَ يَجْلِسُ ثُمَّ يَقُومُ وَلاَ يُسَلِّمُ، فَيُصَلِّي رَكْعَةً يُوتِرُ بِهَا، ثُمَّ يُسَلِّمُ تَسْلِيمَةً يَرْفَعُ بِهَا صَوْتَهُ حَتَّى يُوقِظَنَا، ثُمَّ سَاقَ مَعْنَاهُ .
The above-mentioned tradition has also been narrated by Banu al-Hakim through a different chain of narrators. This version adds:
He (the Prophet) would offer the night prayer and go to his bed. In this version there is no mention of praying four rak'ahs. The narrator then transmitted the rest of the tradition. This version further says: He would pray eight rak'ahs during which his recitation of the Qur'an, bowing and prostration were all equal. He would sit only after the eight rak'ah, and then stand up without uttering the salutation, and pray one rak'ah observing witr prayer and then give the salutation raising his voice so much so that we were about to awake. The narrator then transmitted the tradition to the same effect.
Reported by Abu Dawud (No. 1347).