HADITH 2
Also on the authority of Umar (may Allah be
pleased with him), who said:
One day while we were sitting with the Messenger of
Allah (may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) there appeared before
us a man whose clothes were exceedingly white and whose hair was exceedingly
black; no signs of journeying were to be seen on him and none of us knew him. He
walked up and sat down by the Prophet (may the blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him). Resting his knees against his and placing the palms of his hands on
his thighs, he said: O Muhammad, tell me about Islam. The Messenger of Allah
(may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: Islam is to testify
that there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, to
perform the prayers, to pay the zakat, to fast in Ramadan, and to make
the pilgrimage to the House if you are able to do so. He said: You have spoken
rightly, and we were amazed at him asking him and saying that he had spoken
rightly. He said: Then tell me about iman. He said: It is to believe in
Allah, His angels, His books, His messengers, and the Last Day, and to believe
in divine destiny, both the good and the evil thereof. He said: You have spoken
rightly. He said: Then tell me about ihsan. He said: It is to worship
Allah as though you are seeing Him, and while you see Him not yet truly He sees
you. He said: Then tell me about the Hour . He said: The one questioned about it
knows no better than the questioner. He said: Then tell me about its signs. He
said: That the slave-girl will give birth to her mistress and that you will see
the barefooted, naked, destitute herdsmen competing in constructing lofty
buildings. Then he took himself off and stayed for a time. Then he said: O Umar,
do you know who the questioner was? I said: Allah and His Messenger know best.
He said: It was Gabriel, who came to you to teach you your religion.
It was related by Muslim.
HADITH 19
On the authority of Abu Abbas Abdullah the son of Abbas (may Allah be pleased
with them both), who said:
One day I was behind the Prophet (may the blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) and he said to me: Young man, I shall teach you some
words [of advice ]: Be mindful of Allah, and Allah will protect you. Be mindful
of Allah, and you will find Him in front of you. If you ask, ask of Allah; if
you seek help, seek help of Allah. Know that if the Nation were to gather
together to benefit you with anything, it would benefit you only with something
that Allah had already prescribed for you, and that if they gather together to
harm you with anything, they would harm you only with something Allah had
already prescribed for you. The pens have been lifted and the pages have dried.
It was related by at-Tirmidhi, who said it was a good and sound Hadith. In a
version other than that of at-Tirmidhi it reads:
Be mindful of Allah, you will find Him before you. Get to know Allah in prosperity and He will know you in adversity. Know that what has passed you by was not going to befall you and that what has befallen you was not going to pass you by. And know that victory comes with patience, relief with affliction, and case with hardship.
HADITH 29
On the authority of Mu’adh ibn Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him), who
said:
I said: O Messenger of Allah, tell me of an act which
will take me into Paradise and will keep me away from Hell-fire. He said: You
have asked me about a major matter, yet it is easy for him for whom Allah
Almighty makes it easy. You should worship Allah, associating nothing with Him;
you should perform the prayers; you should pay the zakat; you should
fast in Ramadan; and you should make the pilgrimage to the House. Then he said:
Shall I not show you the gates of goodness? Fasting [which] is a shield; charity
[which] extinguishes sin as water extinguishes fire; and the praying of a man in
the depths of night. Then he recited: “Who forsake their beds to cry unto
their Lord in fear and hope, and spend of that We have bestowed on them. No soul
knoweth what is kept hid for them of joy as a reward for what they used to
do.” Then he said: Shall I not tell you of the peak of the matter, its pillar,
and its topmost part? I said: Yes, O Messenger of Allah. He said: The peak of
the matter is Islam; the pillar is prayer; and its topmost part is jihad.
Then he said: Shall I not tell you of the controlling of all that? I said: Yes,
O Messenger of Allah, and he took hold of his tongue and said: Restrain this. I
said: O Prophet of Allah, will what we say be held against us? He said: May your
mother be bereaved of you, Mu’adh! Is there anything that topples people on
their faces—or he said on their noses—into Hell-fire other than the harvests
of their tongues?
It was related by at-Tirmidhi, who said it was a good and sound Hadith.