I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say, "There are no three people in a village or in the desert among whom the prayer is not established but that Satan has gained mastery over them. So hold fast to the congregation, for the wolf only devours the stray sheep."
سمعت رسول الله ﷺ يقول: ما من ثلاثة في قرية ولا بدو لا تقام فيهم الصلاة إلا قد استحوذ عليهم الشيطان، فعليك بالجماعة، فإنما يأكل الذئب القاصية.
Reported by Abu Dawud (547) and Nasai (848), both through the route of Zaida bin Qudama, who said, Saaib bin Habish Kalai narrated to us, from Madan bin Abu Talha Yamuri, who said, Abu Darda said to me, "Where is your dwelling?" I said, "In a village near Hims." Abu Darda then went on to mention the hadith. Zaida said, Saaib said, meaning by "the congregation," prayer in congregation.It was also reported by Ibn Khuzayma (1486) and Hakim (1/246), both through the route of Zaida. Hakim said, its isnad is sahih. Nawawi said in Khulasa (2261), reported by Abu Dawud and Nasai with a sahih isnad. Its isnad is hasan because of Saaib bin Habish Kalai Himsi, for he is "hasan al-hadith." Ajli and Ibn Hibban confirmed his reliability, and Daraqutni said, his hadith is acceptable. The detailed sourcing of this has already been given in the chapter on emphasizing the adhan.On this subject there is also a report from Usama bin Zayd, who said, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "Men will surely stop abandoning the congregation, or I will burn down their houses." Reported by Ibn Majah (795) from Uthman bin Ismail Hudhali Dimashqi, who said, Walid bin Muslim narrated to us, from Ibn Abu Dhib, from Zubarqan bin Amr Damri, from Usama bin Zayd, who said, and then mentioned it. Its isnad is daif because of Walid bin Muslim, for he practices the deceptive form of tadlis known as tadlis al-taswiya, and because Zubarqan bin Amr Damri never met Usama bin Zayd.The jurisprudence of this chapter, Ahmad, Bukhari, Uzai, Abu Thawr, Ibn Khuzayma, Dawud Zahiri, and others among the scholars held that congregational prayer is obligatory, though Ahmad explicitly stated that the congregation is not a condition for the validity of the prayer. They said, whoever abandons the congregation and prays alone without an excuse, his prayer is valid, but he is sinful for neglecting an obligation. Abu Hanifa, Malik, Shafii, and others held that congregational prayer is an emphasized sunnah, and that it exceeds the prayer of one praying alone by twenty five or twenty seven degrees, as reported in the sahih hadith.