Opening chapters

The Commander of the Believers, Abu Hafs ‘Umar ibn al-Khattāb (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: "Verily, the reward of deeds depends on intentions, and each person will be rewarded according to what he intended. So, he whose emigration is for the sake of Allah and His Messenger, his emigration will be for the sake of Allah and His Messenger, and he whose emigration is to achieve some worldly gain or take some woman in marriage, his migration will be for what he has migrated for."

‘Ā'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "An army will invade the Ka‘bah and when it reaches a desert, all of them will be swallowed up by the earth." She asked: "O Messenger of Allah, how will they be swallowed up by the earth while amongst them will be their marketeers and people not belonging to them?" He replied: "All of them will be swallowed up by the earth, then they will be resurrected for judgment according to their intentions."

Ma‘in ibn Yazīd ibn al-Akhnas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: My father, Yazīd, took out some dinars for charity and kept them with a man in the mosque. I went and took them and brought them to him, and he said: "By Allah! It was not you whom I intended (to give these dinars to)." So I took the case to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) who said: "For you, Yazīd, is (the reward for) what you intended, and for you, Ma‘in, is what you took."

Sa‘d ibn Abi Waqqās (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) came to visit me for an illness which became so hard to bear in the year of the Farewell Hajj. I said: "O Messenger of Allah, you can see the severity of the illness which I am experiencing. I have property and none will inherit me except a daughter. Shall I give two thirds of my property in charity?" The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: 'No.' I said: "Then shall I give one half, O Messenger of Allah?" He said: 'No.' Then I said: "So, (shall I give) one third?" The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "(Give) one third, and one third is too much. Indeed, leaving your heirs rich is better than leaving them poor and begging from people. You never spend anything seeking thereby the pleasure of Allah but that you are rewarded for it, even what you place in the mouth of your wife." I said: "O Messenger of Allah, will I be left here in Makkah after my companions have departed for Madīnah?" He said: "If you are left behind and do good deeds whereby you seek Allah's pleasure, you will be raised a degree and your status will be elevated on account of them. Perhaps you will be left behind so that some people may benefit by you and others may be harmed by you. O Allah, complete for my Companions their Hijrah (immigration to Madīnah), and do not turn them back on their heels. The unfortunate one, however, is Sa‘d ibn Khawlah." The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) felt sorry for him, as he had died at Makkah.

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, Allah does not look at your appearance and wealth, but He looks at your hearts and deeds.”

Abu Mūsa (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) was asked about a man who fights out of valor, fights out of chauvinism, and fights out of ostentation. Which one of them is in the cause of Allah? The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever fights so that the word of Allah be supreme is indeed in the cause of Allah."

Abu Bakrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I heard the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) say: "When two Muslims meet to fight each other with their swords, both the killer and the killed are doomed to Hellfire." I said: "O Messenger of Allah, that is the case with the killer, but what about the killed one?" He said: "Indeed, he was keen to kill his companion."

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "A man's prayer in congregation is twenty-something degrees higher than his prayer in his house and market. When one performs ablution and perfects it, then goes out to the mosque, nothing motivates him except prayer and seeking nothing but prayer. For every step he takes, he is raised one degree and one sin is erased for him until he enters the mosque. When he enters the mosque, he remains in prayer as long as prayer is what keeps him therein. The angels will keep invoking the blessings of Allah on you as long as you are in the place where you performed prayer, saying: 'O Allah, have mercy on him! O Allah, forgive him! O Allah, accept his repentance!' as long as you do not harm anyone therein and do not break your ablution."

Ibn ‘Abbās (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) reported that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, reporting from his Almighty Lord: "Allah has written the good deeds and bad deeds, then clarified that. If someone intends to do a good deed but does not do it, Allah writes it as a complete good deed for him, and if he does it, Allah writes it as ten good deeds, multiplied up to seven-hundred times and plenty more times. If someone intends to do a sin but does not do it, Allah writes it as a complete good deed. If he intends to do a sin and does it, Allah writes it as one sin."

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that he heard the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) say: "By Allah! I ask Allah for forgiveness and repent to Him more than seventy times a day."

Abu Mūsa (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Verily, Allah Almighty extends His Hand during the night so the sinner of the day may repent, and He extends His Hand during the day so the sinner of the night may repent until the sun rises from its west."

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever repents before the sun rises from the west, Allah will accept his repentance."

Zirr ibn Hubaysh reported: I went to Safwān ibn ‘Assāl al-Murādi to ask him about wiping over leather socks. He said: What brought you here, O Zirr? I said: Pursuit of knowledge. He said: Indeed, the angels lower their wings for the seeker of knowledge out of pleasure for what he seeks. I said: I entertain some doubts regarding wiping over leather socks after defecation or urination. Now since you are one of the Prophet's Companions, I have come to ask you whether you heard him say anything about this. He replied: Yes. He used to command us, when we were on a journey or were travellers, not to remove our leather socks for three days and nights—except in the case of Janābah (major ritual impurity). In other cases such as defecation, urination, or sleep, it is sufficient to wipe over leather socks. Then I asked him: "Did you hear him say anything about love?" He replied: Yes. While we were with the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) on a journey, a Bedouin called out in a loud voice: O Muhammad! The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) replied in the same tone: "Here I am!" We said to him (the Bedouin): Woe to you! Lower your voice, for you are in the Prophet's presence, where you are not allowed to do so. He said: By Allah, I will not lower my voice. The Bedouin said: What about a person who loves some people but cannot catch up with them? The Prophet (ﷺ) replied: "A person shall be with those whom he loves on the Day of Judgment." He kept speaking to us, and during his speech he mentioned a gate in the direction of the west, the width of which a rider crosses its width in forty or seventy years.

Abu Sa‘īd al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Among those who lived before you, there was a man who had killed ninety-nine people. He asked about the most knowledgeable person on earth and was guided to a monk. When he went to him, he informed him that he had killed ninety-nine people and asked if his repentance could be accepted. The monk replied in the negative, so the man killed him and made him the hundredth. After that, the man once again asked about the most knowledgeable person on earth and was guided to a scholar. He informed him of his hundred murders and asked if there was a chance for his repentance to be accepted. The scholar replied in the affirmative and said: 'Who can place a barrier between him and the repentance?' He advised him to travel to a certain land where people were worshiping Allah, the Almighty, and asked him to join them in their worship and not to return to his land, which was an evil land. The man listened to the scholar’s advice and set out from his land, when he reached the middle of the way death approached him. The angels of mercy and the angels of torment disputed over the man. The angels of mercy said: 'He came with a repenting heart to Allah, the Almighty.' The angels of torment said: 'He has never done anything good in his life.' Another angel then came in the form of a human being and they agreed to take him as an arbitrator. He said: 'Measure the distance between the man and the two lands and see to which one he is closer.' They did that and found him closer to the land he was traveling to, so the angels of mercy took his soul.” Another authentic narration reads: “He was one span closer to the land of piety, so he was considered one of its people.” The wording of another authentic narration reads: “Allah, the Almighty, ordered this land (evil place) to go far away and the other land (good place) to get closer and on measuring the distances, he was found one span closer to the village to which he intended to go and so he was forgiven.” Another narration reads: “He directed his chest towards it (the village he intended to go to).”

Ka‘b ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I said: "O Messenger of Allah, I would like to give all of my wealth as a charity for the sake of Allah and His Messenger to make my repentance fully approved." The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Keep some of your wealth, for this is better for you."

Abu Nujayd ‘Imrān ibn Husayn al-Khuza‘i (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that a woman from Juhaynah came to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) when she was pregnant from adultery. She said: ''O Messenger of Allah, I have committed something that entails a prescribed punishment on me, so apply it to me.'' The Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) called her guardian and said to him: ''Be kind to her, and when she has given birth, come to me.'' He did accordingly. So the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) commanded that her clothes be tied around her, and should be stoned to death. Then he offered the funeral prayer for her. However, ‘Umar said to him: ''O Messenger of Allah, you pray over her although she had committed adultery?'' He said: ''Indeed she has made such a repentance that if it were to be divided among seventy from the people of Madīnah, it would be enough for them all. Has she found something better than offering her own soul to Allah, Glorified and Exalted?''

Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "If the son of Adam were to possess two valleys full of wealth, he would seek the third. Nothing can fill his belly except dust, and Allah accepts the repentance of whoever repents."

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated directly from the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) that he said: "Allah, Glorified and Exalted, laughs at two men, one of them kills the other, yet both enter Paradise. This one fights in the cause of Allah, so he gets killed. Then Allah forgives the killer, and becomes a Muslim and dies as a martyr."

Abu Mālik al-Ash‘ari (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Purity is half of faith, al-hamdulillāh (praise be to Allah) fills the Scale, and subhān Allah wa al-hamdulillāh (glory and praise be to Allah) fills what is between the heavens and the earth. Prayer is light, charity is proof, patience is radiance, and the Qur’an is an argument either for you or against you. Every person goes out in the morning and sells his soul; he either saves it from doom or throws it into destruction."

Abu Sa‘īd al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: Some people from the Ansār asked the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) for charity and he gave them. They asked him again, and he gave them until there was nothing left. Thereupon, he said to them: "Whatever good I have, I will not withhold from you. Whoever tries to be chaste, Allah will make him chaste; whoever tries to be self-sufficient, Allah will make him self-sufficient; whoever tries to be patient, Allah will make him patient. No one is granted a gift better and ampler than patience."

Sohaib (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "How astonishing the believer's affair is! Indeed, all of his affairs are good, and this is for none but the believer. If something good happens to him, he is grateful, which is good for him; and if something bad happens to him, he shows patience, which is good for him."

Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: When the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) suffered the agony of death, Fātimah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: "O father, what a severe agony!" The Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Your father will suffer no more agony after this day." When he passed away, she said: "Father, Allah has called you back and you have responded to His call. Father, the Garden of Firdaus (the highest level of Paradise) is your abode. Father, we announce your death to Jibrīl." When he was buried, she said: "Did you feel comfortable to put dust over the Messenger of Allah!"

Usāmah ibn Zayd (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The son of the daughter of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) was brought to him while breathing his last. The eyes of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) overflowed with tears. Thereupon, Sa‘d said to him: "O Messenger of Allah, what is this!" He said: "This is mercy that Allah, the Exalted, has placed in the hearts of His slaves. Verily, Allah shows mercy to those of His slaves who are merciful."

Sohaib (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Among the people who came before you, there was a king who had a magician, and when that magician became old, he said to the king: I have become old, so send to me a boy whom I can teach magic. So, the king sent him a boy, who on his way met a monk, listened to him, and admired his words. Whenever the boy went to the magician, he used to sit with the monk, and then, on reaching the magician, the latter would beat him. So, the boy complained about this to the monk. The monk said to him: Whenever you are afraid of the magician, tell him that your family detained you. And whenever you are afraid of your family, tell them that the magician detained you. So the boy carried on like that (for some time). Then a huge, terrible beast once appeared on the road, and the people were unable to pass. The boy said: Today I shall know whether the magician is better or the monk. So, he took a stone and said: O Allah, if the affair of the monk is better in Your Sight than that of the magician, then kill this beast so that the people can cross (the road). Then he struck it with a stone and killed it, and the people passed the road. The boy came to the monk and informed him about it. The monk said to him: O my son, today you are better than me, and you have achieved what I see! You will be put to trial. And in case you are put to trial, do not inform (them) about me. The boy used to treat the people who suffered from congenital blindness, leprosy, and other diseases. There was a courtier of the king who had become blind and heard about the boy. He came and brought many gifts for the boy and said: All these gifts are for you on the condition that you cure me. The boy said: I do not cure anybody; it is only Allah who cures people. So, if you believe in Allah, I shall supplicate Him and He will cure you. So, he believed in Allah, and Allah cured him. Later, the courtier came to the king and sat in the place where he used to sit before. The king said: Who gave you back your sight? The courtier replied: My Lord. The king then said: Do you have another Lord besides me?! The courtier said: Your Lord and mine is Allah. The king took him and kept on torturing him until he told him about the boy. So, the boy was brought to the king, who said to him: O boy, your magic reached the extent that you cure congenital blindness, leprosy, and other diseases. He said: Indeed, I do not cure anyone. Only Allah can cure. So, he tortured him extensively until he told him about the monk. Then the monk was brought to the king, who said to him: Give up your religion. The monk refused. So, the king ordered a saw to be brought and placed on the middle of his head and he fell, sawn in two halves. Then it was said to the courtier of the king: Give up your religion. He refused to do so, and so a saw was brought and placed on the middle of his head and he fell, sawn in two halves. Then the boy was brought and it was said to him: Give up your religion. He refused, and so the king sent him to the top of such-and-such mountain with some of his followers. He said to them: Ascend the mountain with him till you reach its top, then see if he abandons his religion; otherwise, throw him from the top. They took him and when they ascended to the top, he said: O Allah, save me from them by any means that You wish. So, the mountain shook and they all fell down and the boy came back walking to the king. The king said: What did your companions (the people I sent with you) do? The boy said: Allah saved me from them. So, the king ordered some people to take the boy on a boat to the middle of the sea, saying: If he renounces his religion (well and good), but if he refuses, throw him. So, they took him out to sea, and he said: O Allah, save me from them by any means You wish. So they all drowned in the sea. Then the boy returned to the king, and the king said: What did your companions do? The boy replied: Allah saved me from them. Then he said to the king: You will not be able to kill me until you do as I order you. The king asked: And what is that? The boy said: Gather the people in an elevated place and tie me to the trunk of a tree; then take an arrow from my quiver and say: In the Name of Allah, the Lord of the boy! If you do this, you will kill me. So the king did accordingly, and placing an arrow in the bow, he shot it, saying: In the Name of Allah, the Lord of the boy. The arrow hit the boy in his temple, and the boy placed his hand over the arrow wound and died. The people proclaimed: We believe in the Lord of the boy! We believe in the Lord of the boy! We believe in the Lord of the boy! Then it was said to the king: Do you see what happened? That which you feared has taken place. By Allah, all the people have believed (in the Lord of the boy). So he ordered that ditches be dug at the entrances to the roads, and it was done, and fires were kindled therein. Then the king said: Whoever does not abandon this religion, throw them into the fire or order them to throw themselves. They did. Then, a woman and her little boy came, and it was as if she was being somewhat hesitant of falling into the fire, so her baby said to her: Be patient, mother, for verily, you are following the truth.''

Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) passed by a woman who was weeping beside a grave. He said to her: "Fear Allah and be patient." She said to him: "Leave me alone, for you have not been afflicted with a calamity like mine." She did not recognize him. She was later informed that he was the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him). So, she went to his house and there she did not find any doormen. Then she said to him: "I did not recognize you." He said: "Indeed, patience is at the first shock." According to another narration: "She was crying over a son of hers.”

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Allah, the Exalted, said: 'My reward shall be nothing less than Paradise for My faithful servant who, if I take the life of his beloved one from the inhabitants of the world, he bears it patiently in expectation of My reward.'"

‘Ā’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported that she asked the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) about the plague. He told her that it was a torment that Allah would send upon whom He willed. Then Allah made it a mercy for the believers, so anyone in an area afflicted with plague who stays therein patiently hoping for Allah's reward and believing that nothing will befall him except what Allah has foreordained for him will get a reward similar to that of a martyr.

Ibn ‘Abbās (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) reported that he said to ‘Atā’ ibn Abi Rabāh: Shall I show you a woman of the people of Paradise? ‘Atā’ said: Yes. He said: This black woman came to the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and said: I suffer from epilepsy and, as a result, my body becomes uncovered. So supplicate Allah for me. He said: "If you wish, be patient and you will enter Paradise; or, if you wish, I will supplicate Allah to cure you." She said: I will remain patient. She then said: But I become uncovered, so invoke Allah that I do not become uncovered. So he supplicated for her.

Abu ‘Abdur-Rahmān ‘Abdullāh ibn Mas‘ūd (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "It is as though I am looking at Allah's Messenger as he tells the story of one of the prophets (peace be upon them) as his people struck him and caused him to bleed, and he wiped the blood from his face, saying: 'Allah, forgive my people for they do not know.'"

Abu Sa‘īd al-Khudri and Abu Hurayah (may Allah be pleased with both of them) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "No fatigue, disease, sorrow, sadness, harm, or distress befalls a Muslim, even if it were a prick of a thorn, but Allah will expiate some of his sins thereby."

Ibn Mas‘ūd (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I visited the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) while he was in pain because of fever, so I touched him and said: "You are in great pain from raging fever." He said: "Indeed, the pain I feel from fever is like the pain that two men from among you might get."

Abu ‘Abdullāh Khabbāb ibn al-Aratt (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: We complained to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) while he was lying in the shade of the Ka‘bah, placing his cloak under his head. We said: "Will you not supplicate for our victory (over our opponents)? Will you not invoke Allah for us?" He replied: "Among those who came before you, a man would be seized and held in a pit dug for him in the ground, and he would be sawed into two halves from his head, and his flesh would be torn away from his bones with iron combs, and none of this would turn him away from his religion. By Allah, Allah will bring this matter (Islam) to its completion until the traveler will walk from Sana'a to Hadramaut fearing none except Allah and the wolf for his sheep, but you are rushing things." In another narration: "Having made a pillow from his cloak, and we had faced much persecution from the polytheists."

‘Abdullāh ibn Mas‘ūd (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: On the day of Hunayn, the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) favored some people in the distribution of spoils. He gave Al-Aqra‘ ibn Hābis one hundred camels and gave ‘Uyaynah ibn Hisn the same. On that day, he gave to some of the nobles of the Arabs, favoring them over others in the distribution of spoils. A man said: "By Allah! This is distribution in which justice is not observed, and it is not intended for pleasing Allah." I said to myself: "By Allah! I will inform the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) of this." I went to him and informed him of what the man had said. The color of his face changed as if it was dyed in red, and he said: "Who will observe justice if Allah and His Messenger do not?" Then he said: "May Allah have mercy upon Mūsa! He was hurt more than this but he remained patient." Having heard this I said to myself: "Surely, I shall never convey any speech of this kind to him any more."

Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: “The greater the tribulation, the greater the reward. When Allah loves people, He tests them. So whoever is content, for him is pleasure; and whoever is discontent, for him is displeasure.”

Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: One of the sons of Abu Talha was ailing. Abu Talha went out and the boy died in his absence. When he came back, he inquired: "How is the boy?" Umm Sulaym, the boy’s mother, replied: "He could not be more tranquil than he is now." She served him supper, and he ate it and then they had sexual intercourse. Afterwards, she said to him: "Arrange for the burial of the boy." In the morning, Abu Talha went to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and informed him of what had happened. He asked: "Did you sleep together last night?" Abu Talha said: ‘Yes.’ So the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) supplicated: "O Allah, bless them." Later, she gave birth to a baby boy. Abu Talha said to me: "Pick up the boy and take him to the Prophet." He sent some dates with him. The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) asked: "Is there anything with him?" He said: "Yes, some dates." The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) took a date, chewed it, and put it in the mouth of the baby, rubbing the chewed date around the baby's gum. He named him ‘Abdullāh. In another version: Ibn ‘Uyaynah reported: “A man from the Ansār said: ‘I saw nine sons (of this boy), all of whom were reciters of the Qur’an.’” Another version reads: “Abu Talha’s son from Umm Sulaym died. She asked family members not to tell Abu Talha about his son, as she would inform him herself. Abu Talha came home and she gave him supper. He ate and drank. She then beautified herself in the best way she had ever done, and he slept with her. Noticing that he was gratified, she said: ‘O Abu Talha. If some people borrow something from another family and then the lenders ask for their item, would they refuse to give it back to them?’ He said: ‘No.’ She said: ‘Then, seek divine reward for the loss of your son.’ Abu Talha got angry and said: ‘You did not tell me this until I stained myself (with sexual intercourse), and now you tell me about my son!’ He went to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and told him about the matter, and he said: ‘May Allah bless the night you spent together!’ And she conceived a child. One day the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) was on a journey and she was with him. Whenever he came back from a journey to Madīnah, he would not enter it at night. As they approached Madīnah, she felt labor pains. Abu Talha remained with her and the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) carried on. Abu Talha said: ‘O Lord, You know that I love to go out with the Messenger of Allah when he goes out and enter with him when he enters, and I have been detained as You see.’ Umm Sulaym said: ‘O Abu Talha, I do not feel as much pain as I was feeling earlier, so we had better move on.’ We carried on and she felt the birth pangs as they reached Madīnah and gave birth to a baby boy. My mother said to me: ‘O Anas, no one should suckle him until you take him to the Messenger of Allah in the early morning. Next morning, I carried the baby to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him… and he narrated the rest of the story.

Sulaymān ibn Surad (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I was sitting with the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) when two men started to insult each other, and the face of one of them turned red and his jugular veins got swollen. The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Verily, I know a word; if he said it, his rage would go away. If he said: I seek refuge with Allah from the devil, his rage would go away." They said to him: The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Seek refuge with Allah from the devil." Thereupon he said: Am I mad?

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: A man came to the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and said: "Advise me." He said: "Do not get angry." He repeated that several times, and every time, he would say: "Do not get angry."

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The believer, man or woman, will continue to be tested concerning his or her self, children, and property until they meet Allah without any sins in their record."

‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Abbās (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: ‘Uyaynah ibn Hisn came to Madīnah and stayed with his nephew Al-Hurr ibn Qays who was among the people close to ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him). The Qur’anic reciters, old or young, had the privilege of joining ‘Umar's council and he used to consult them. ‘Uyaynah said to Al-Hurr: "My nephew, you are privileged in the sight of the Commander of the Believers. So, seek permission for me to sit with him?" Al-Hurr asked ‘Umar and he granted permission. When ‘Uyaynah came into the presence of ‘Umar, he addressed him thus: "O son of Al-Khattāb, By Allah, you neither bestow much on us nor deal with us justly." ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) got so angry that he was about to beat him. Thereupon, Al-Hurr said: ''O Commander of the Believers! Allah said to His Prophet: {Show forgiveness, enjoin what is good, and turn away from the ignorants} [Al-A‘rāf: 199]. Indeed, this one is from the ignorants." By Allah! ‘Umar stood committed to the verse when Al-Hurr recited it, as he always adhered strictly to the Book of Allah.

‘Abdullāh ibn Abu Awfa (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) during one of the days wherein he met the enemy, waited until the sun had declined. Thereafter, he stood up among them and said: "O people, do not wish to meet the enemy, and ask Allah for safety. And if you meet them, have patience and know that Paradise lies under the shadows of swords." Then, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Allah, Revealer of the Book, Mover of the Clouds, Defeater of the Armies, Defeat them and help us against them!"

‘Abdullah ibn Mas‘ūd (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Adhere to truthfulness, for truthfulness leads to righteousness, and righteousness leads to Paradise. A man will keep telling the truth and strive to tell the truth until he is recorded with Allah as the most truthful. Beware of lying, for lying leads to wickedness and wickedness leads to Hellfire. A man will keep telling lies and strive to tell lies until he is recorded with Allah as a persistent liar."

Sahl ibn Hunayf (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever sincerely asks Allah for martyrdom, Allah will make him reach the status of martyrs even if he dies on his bed."

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "One of the prophets (peace be upon them) set out on a military expedition. He said to his people: 'Let not anyone accompany me who has married a woman and wishes to consummate his marriage with her but has not yet done so, or one who has built a house but has not yet erected its roof, or one who has bought sheep or pregnant she-camels and is waiting for their offspring.' Then he marched on and approached a village at the time of the afternoon prayer or close to that, so he said to the sun: 'You are commanded and so am I. O Allah, hold it back (from setting) for us,' and it was held back until Allah granted him victory. He gathered the spoils of war, and the fire came down to devour them but it did not devour them. He said: 'Some of you misappropriated the spoils of war, so one man from each tribe should give me his pledge of allegiance.' They all did so and the hand of one man stuck to his hand, so he said: 'Your tribe is guilty of misappropriation of the spoils of war. Let all the members of your tribe give their pledge of allegiance to me.' They did so and the hands of two or three men stuck to his hand. He said: 'You have taken something from the spoils of war illegally.' So they brought an amount of gold equal in size to the head of a cow. They placed it among the spoils so the fire approached and devoured them. The spoils of war were not made lawful for any people before us, then Allah made the spoils of war lawful for us when He saw our weakness and helplessness, so He made them lawful for us."

‘Umar ibn al-Khattāb (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: One day, we were sitting with the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) when there appeared before us a man dressed in extremely white clothes and had very black hair. No traces of travel were visible on him, and none of us knew him. He came in and sat down opposite the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him), rested his knees against his, and placed the palms of his hands on his (the Prophet's) thighs. He said: "O Muhammad, tell me about Islam." The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Islam is to testify that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, to establish prayer, to pay Zakah, to fast Ramadan, and to perform Hajj to the House if you are able to find a way thereto." He said: "You have spoken the truth." We wondered how he asked him and affirmed his truthfulness. Then, he said: "Tell me about Imān (faith)." He said: "It is to believe in Allah, His angels, His books, His messengers, and the Last Day, and believe in the divine decree, the pleasant and unpleasant aspects thereof." Then, he said: "You have spoken the truth." Then, he said: "Tell me about ihsān." He said: "It is to worship Allah as if you see Him, for if you do not see Him, He sees you." He said: "Tell me about the Hour." He said: "The one questioned about it knows no more than the questioner." He said: "Then, tell me about its signs." He said: "The slave girl will give birth to her mistress, and you will see the barefoot, naked, and destitute herdsmen competing in constructing lofty buildings." Then, he departed. I stayed for a while, and then he said to me: "O 'Umar, do you know who the questioner was?" I said: "Allah and His Messenger know best." He said: "He was Jibrīl (Gabriel). He came to teach you your religion."

Abu Dharr, Jundub ibn Junādah, and Abu ‘Abdur-Rahmān, Mu‘ādh ibn Jabal (may Allah be pleased with both of them) reported that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: "Fear Allah wherever you are; follow a bad deed with a good deed and it will erase it; and treat people with good morals."

Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “You indulge in such actions that are less significant in your eyes than a hair, while we used to consider them destructive sins during the Prophet’s lifetime.”

Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “You indulge in such actions that are less significant in your eyes than a hair, while we used to consider them destructive sins during the Prophet’s lifetime.”

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: "Part of a person's excellence in Islam is his leaving what does not concern him."

Abu Sa‘īd al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Life in this world is sweet and green, and indeed, Allah has made you successors there to see how you will behave. So, be cautious of this world and be cautious of women, for indeed, the first temptation of the children of Israel was due to women."

‘Abdullah ibn Mas‘ūd (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) used to say: "Allāhumma inni as’aluka al-huda wa at-tuqa wa al-‘afāf wa al-ghina (O Allah, I ask You for guidance, piety, chastity, and self-sufficiency)."

Abu ’Umāmah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that he heard the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) delivering a sermon in the Farewell Hajj saying: "Fear Allah your Lord, pray your five, fast your month, give the Zakah due on your wealth, obey your rulers, and you will enter your Lord's Paradise."

Husayn ibn ‘Abdur-Rahmān reported: I was with Sa‘īd ibn Jubayr when he said: "Who among you saw a shooting star last night?" I said: "It was I." Then I said: "In fact, I was not (busy) in prayer, but I was stung by a scorpion (and that is the reason why I was awake and had a glimpse of the shooting star)." He said: "Then what did you do?" I said: "I performed Ruqyah (healing through Qur’an recitation and supplication)." He said: "What urged you to do this?" I said: "I did it in compliance with a Hadīth which Ash-Sha‘bi narrated to us." Sa‘īd said: "What did Ash-Sha‘bi narrate to you?" I said: "He narrated that Buraydah ibn al-Husayb al-Aslami said: ‘Ruqyah is of no avail except in case of the (evil influence) of an eye or the sting of a scorpion.'" He said: "The one who acted according to what he heard (from the Prophet) acted rightly, but Ibn ‘Abbās narrated to us from the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) that he said: 'The nations were presented before me, and I saw a prophet and a small group (of his followers) along with him, another (prophet) and one or two persons (along with him), and (yet another) prophet having no one with him. When a very large group was brought to me, I thought it to be my Ummah (nation). Then it was said to me: 'It is Moses and his nation. You should look at the horizon,' and I saw a very huge group. It was again said to me: 'See the other side of the horizon,' and there was (also) a very huge group. It was said to me: 'This is your Ummah,' and among them, there were seventy thousand people who will enter Paradise without being called to account and without (suffering) any torment.’ He then stood up and went to his house. Then the people began to talk about the people who would be admitted to Paradise without Judgment and without (suffering) any torment. Some of them said: ‘They may be those who (have had the good fortune of living) in the company of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him).’ And some of them said: ‘Perhaps they are those who were born in Islam and did not associate anything with Allah.’ Some people mentioned other things. Thereupon the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) came out before them and said: ‘What was that which you were talking about?’ They informed him of it. He said: ‘They are those persons who neither ask others to do Ruqyah for them, nor do they cauterize, and they rely upon their Lord.’ Upon this, ‘Ukkāshah ibn Mihsan stood up and said: ‘Supplicate Allah for me that He should make me one among them.’ Upon this, he said: ‘You are one among them.’ Then another man stood up and said: ‘Supplicate Allah that He should make me one among them.’ Upon this, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: 'Ukkāshah has preceded you.'"

Ibn ‘Abbās (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) used to say: "Allāhumma laka aslamt, wa bika āmant, wa ‘alayka tawakkalt, wa ’ilayka anabt, wa bika khāsamt. Allāhumma inni a‘ūdhu bi‘izzatika, la ilāha illa ant, an tudillani. Anta al-hayyu alladhi la yamūt, wal-jinnu wal-insu yamūtūn. (O Allah, I surrender to You, I believe in You, I rely upon You, to You I repent, and with Your help I dispute. I seek refuge in Your Might. There is no god but You, that You do not lead me astray. You are the Ever-Living Who never dies, but the Jinn and humans die)."

Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: There were two brothers during the time of the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him). One of them used to come to the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and the other used to work to earn a living. Once, the working brother complained to the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) about his brother. Thereupon, he replied: "Perhaps you are granted sustenance because of him."

Abu ‘Amr—and it was said: Abu ‘Amrah—Sufyān ibn ‘Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I said: O Messenger of Allah, tell me something about Islam regarding which I can ask none but you. He (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Say: I believe in Allah, then remain steadfast."

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Hasten to deeds before being overtaken by tribulations that are like patches of the darkest night; a man would be a believer in the morning and become a disbeliever in the evening, or he would be a believer in the evening and become a disbeliever in the morning. He sells his religion for a worldly gain."

‘Uqbah ibn al-Hārith (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I offered the ‘Asr prayer behind the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) in Madīnah. When he finished the prayer with Taslīm, he got up hurriedly and went out by crossing the rows of people to one of his wives' rooms. The people were astonished at his speed. The Prophet came back and saw the people surprised at his haste and said to them: "I remembered a gold nugget in my house which I didn't want to distract me, so I ordered it to be distributed (in charity). In another version: "I left a piece of gold in my house from the charity which I did not want to let it remain with us overnight."

Jābir ibn ‘Abdullāh (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: A man asked the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) during the Battle of Uhud: "If I am killed, where do you think I would be?" He replied: "In Paradise." So the man threw some dates that were in his hand and fought until he was killed.

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that a man came to the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and said: "O Messenger of Allah, which charity earns the greatest reward?" He said: "That you give charity when you are healthy and miserly, fearing poverty and hoping to become rich. Do not delay (charity) until your soul reaches up to the throat and you then say: 'This is for so-and-so, and this is for so-and-so.' Lo, it has already come into the possession of so-and-so."

Az-Zubayr ibn ‘Adiyy reported: We went to Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) and complained to him about the oppression we were suffering at the hands of Al-Hajjāj. So, Anas said: "Be patient, for no time will come but will be followed by a worse one until you meet your Lord. I heard it from your Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him)."

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said on the Day of Khaybar: "Verily, I shall give this banner to a man who loves Allah and His Messenger, and Allah will grant victory at his hands." ‘Umar ibn al-Khattāb said: I never liked leadership except on that day. He said: I kept showing myself in the hope that I might be called for it. He said: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) called ‘Ali ibn Abi Tālib and gave it to him and said: "Proceed and do not look back until Allah grants you victory." He said: ‘Ali walked for a while and then stopped without looking back and shouted: O Messenger of Allah, on what should I fight the people? He said: "Fight them until they testify that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. If they do so, their blood and properties become inviolable for you, except what is rightly justified, and their reckoning is with Allah."

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: "Allah Almighty says: I will declare war against one who shows hostility to a close ally of Mine. And the most beloved thing with which My slave comes nearer to Me is what I have enjoined upon him; and My slave keeps on coming closer to Me through performing supererogatory acts of worship till I love him. When I love him, I become his hearing with which he hears, his sight with which he sees, his hand with which he seizes, and his leg with which he walks; and if he asks (something) from Me, I will surely give it to him, and if he asks My Protection (refuge), I will surely protect him."

Anas ibn Mālik and Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with both of them) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said that Allah, the Almighty, said: "If the slave draws closer to Me by a hand-span, I shall draw closer to him by a cubit; and if he draws closer to Me by a cubit, I shall draw closer to him by the span of two outstretched arms. If he comes to Me walking, I shall come to him running."

Ibn ‘Abbās (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) reported: The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "There are two blessings in which many people incur loss: health and free time."

‘Ā'ishah and Al-Mughīrah ibn Shu‘bah (may Allah be pleased with both of them) reported: The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) used to stand in prayer at night until the skin of his feet would crack. I (‘Ā'ishah) asked him: "O Messenger of Allah, why are you doing this while your past and future sins have been forgiven for you?" He said: "Should I not like to be a grateful slave (of Allah)?"

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The strong believer is better and dearer to Allah than the weak believer, and there is good in both. Adhere to whatever brings you benefit, seek the help of Allah, and do not feel helpless. If something befalls you, do not say: 'Had I done such-and-such, it would have been such-and-such;' rather, say: 'Allah has decreed, and whatever He wills, He does.' Indeed, 'if' opens the way before the devil to act."