The Creed

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: We were sitting around the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him), and among us were Abu Bakr and ‘Umar, along with a group of people. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) stood up and left. When he delayed returning, we feared that he would be taken away from us. We felt terrified and got up, and I was the first to feel terrified. I went out searching for the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) until I came upon an orchard belonging to the Ansār, from Banu An-Najjār. I looked around for an entrance but could not find one. Then I noticed a streamlet entering the orchard through a well outside the orchard. I crouched down and entered upon the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him). He said: "Abu Hurayrah." I said: Yes, O Messenger of Allah. He said: "What is the matter with you?" I said: You were among us, then you left and delayed in returning. We feared that you would be taken away from us, and we felt terrified. I was the first to feel terrified, so I came to this orchard. I crouched down as a fox would crouch down, and those people are behind me. So he said: "O Abu Hurayrah," and gave me his two sandals, saying: "Take these two sandals of mine and go. Whoever you meet beyond this orchard who bears witness that there is no god but Allah, with full certainty in his heart, give him the glad tidings of Paradise." The first one I met was ‘Umar. He said: What are these sandals, O Abu Hurayrah? I said: These are the sandals of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him). He sent me with them to give glad tidings of Paradise to anyone I meet who bears witness that there is no god but Allah, with full certainty in his heart. ‘Umar struck me on my chest with his hand, causing me to fall on my backside. He said: Go back, O Abu Hurayrah. I returned to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him), and I was about to weep, and ‘Umar was following close behind me. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "What is the matter, O Abu Hurayrah?" I said: I met ‘Umar and told him about what you sent me with. He struck me on my chest with such a strike that it caused me to fall on my back, and he told me to go back.The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O ‘Umar, what caused you to do that?" ‘Umar said: O Messenger of Allah, may my father and mother be sacrificed for you! Did you send Abu Hurayrah with your sandals to give glad tidings of Paradise to anyone who bears witness that there is no god but Allah, with full certainty in his heart? He said: "Yes." ‘Umar said: Then do not do that, for I fear that people may rely on this. Let them continue to work. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Then let them."

‘Umar ibn al-Khattāb (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: Some captives were brought to the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him). Then a woman from among the captives was seen pressing milk from her breast to feed [a child], and whenever she found a baby among the captives, she would take him, press him to her chest, and nurse him. The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) then said to us: "Do you think this (woman) would throw her child into the fire?" We said: No, not if she can prevent throwing it. He (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, Allah is more merciful to His servants than this is to her child."

Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: As the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) was riding a mount with Mu‘ādh behind him, he said: "O Mu‘ādh ibn Jabal!" He replied: "Here I am at your service, O Messenger of Allah." He again said: "O Mu‘ādh!" Mu‘ādh replied: "Here I am at your service, O Messenger of Allah." This was said three times. Then, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "There is no one who bears witness that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger, sincerely from his heart, except that Allah will make him forbidden to Hellfire." He said: "O Messenger of Allah, should I not inform the people of that so that they may rejoice?" He replied: "Then they would rely on this alone." Mu‘ādh narrated this Hadīth at the time of his death to avoid the sin of concealing knowledge.

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "While a man was walking on a road, he became very thirsty. He found a well and went down in it and drank. When he came out, there was a dog panting and eating moist earth out of thirst. The man said: 'This dog is so thirsty just as I was.' So, he went down into the well, filled his shoe with water and held it in his mouth until he climbed out. Then, he gave the dog water to drink. Allah accepted his deed and, thus, forgave him." They said: "O Messenger of Allah, are we rewarded for taking care of animals?" He said: "There is a reward for (quenching the thirst of) every living creature." Another narration reads: "Allah accepted his deed and, thus, forgave him and admitted him into Paradise." Another narration reads: "Once a dog was moving around a well, and it was about to die from thirst. When a prostitute from Children of Israel saw it, she removed her shoe, filled it with water, and gave it to the dog to drink. She was forgiven for that."

‘Abdullah ibn ‘Amr (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "A Muslim is the one from whose tongue and hand Muslims are safe, and a Muhājir (emigrant) is the one who abandons what Allah has forbidden."

Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When a disbeliever does a good deed, he is rewarded for it in this world. As to the believer, Allah, the Almighty, saves his good deeds to reward him in the Hereafter and provides him with sustenance in this life as a reward for his obedience." Another narration reads: "Allah does not deal unjustly with a believer regarding a single good deed. He is given blessings for it in this world and will be rewarded for it in the Hereafter. As to the disbeliever, he is given sustenance as a reward for his good deeds in this world, so when he comes to the Hereafter, there are no more good deeds for him for which he can be rewarded.”

Mu‘āwiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I heard the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) say: "The muezzins will have the longest necks among the people on the Day of Judgment."

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: Two cups of wine and milk were presented to the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) on the Night of Isrā' (the night journey to the Aqsa Mosque). He looked at them and took the milk. Jibrīl said: "Praise be to Allah, Who guided you to the Fitrah. Had you taken the wine, your Ummah would have gone astray.”

Al-Mughīrah ibn Shu‘bah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Mūsa (peace be upon him) asked his Lord: 'Who amongst the inhabitants of Paradise will be the lowest in rank?' He (Allah) said: 'The one who will come after the people of Paradise have already been admitted to it. It will be said to him: 'Enter Paradise.' He will then respond: 'O Lord, how (may I enter) while the people have settled in their homes and taken their shares?' It will be said to him: 'Will you be pleased if you have a kingdom like that of a king of the world?' He will say: 'I will be pleased (with this) my Lord.' He (Allah) will say: 'You will be given fivefold like it.' He will say at the fifth (repetition): 'I am pleased, My Lord.' He (Allah) will say: 'It is yours, and ten times that, and you will receive whatever you desire and whatever your eyes yearn for.' He will say: 'I am pleased, my Lord.' Mūsa said: 'Who then amongst the inhabitants of Paradise will be the highest in rank?' He (Allah) said: 'They are those whom I chose. I have sowed their honor with My Own Hand, and then set a seal over it. They will receive that which no eye has ever seen, no ear has ever heard, and no human mind has ever perceived.'" Ibn Mas‘ūd (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I know the last of the inhabitants of Hell to come out of it, and the last of the inhabitants of Paradise to enter it. He is a man who will emerge from Hellfire crawling, and Allah, the Almighty, will say to him: ‘Go and enter Paradise.’ When he arrives, it will appear to him that it is full. He will say: ‘O Lord, I have found it full.’ Allah, the Almighty, will say: ‘Go and enter Paradise, for you will have the like of the world and ten times more - or you will have ten times the like of the world.’ He will say: ‘Are You mocking me - or are You laughing at me - while You are the King?’” Ibn Mas‘ūd said: "I saw the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) smiling so broadly that his molar teeth could be seen. He then said: "That is the lowest in rank among the people of Paradise!”

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When Allah created Adam, He wiped his back and every person that He created among his offspring until the Day of Judgment fell out of his back. He placed a ray of light between the eyes of every person. Then, He showed them to Adam and he said: 'O Lord, who are these?' He said: 'These are your offspring.' Adam saw one of them whose ray between his eyes amazed him, so he said: 'O Lord, who is this?' He said: 'This is a man from the latter generations of your offspring called Dawūd.' He said: 'O Lord, how long did You make his lifespan?' He said: 'Sixty years.' He said: 'O Lord, add forty years from my life to his.' At the end of Adam's life, when the angel of death came to him, Adam said: 'Do I not have forty years remaining?' He said: 'Did you not give them to your son Dawūd?' He said: 'Adam denied, so his offspring denied; Adam forgot, so his offspring forgot; and Adam sinned, so his offspring sinned.'"

‘Iyād ibn Himār al-Mujāshi‘i (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said while delivering his sermon one day: "Verily, my Lord has commanded me to teach you that which you do not know of what He has taught me today: 'Whatever wealth which I have conferred upon my slave is lawful for him. And I have created all My slaves with a natural predisposition to worship Allah alone, but the devils came to them and turned them away from their religion. They made unlawful for them what I have made lawful for them and commanded them to associate with Me in worship that for which I did not send down any authority.' And verily, Allah looked at the people of the earth and He hated them, both the Arabs and the non-Arabs among them, with the exception of some remnants from the People of the Book. And He said: 'I have sent you (Muhammad) in order to test you, and to test (others) through you. And I revealed to you a Book that cannot be washed away by water, to recite it while you are asleep or awake.' Indeed, Allah commanded me to burn down the Quraysh, to which I said: 'O My Lord, they would break my head like (breaking dry) bread.' Allah said: 'Turn them out as they turned you out, fight against them and We shall give you victory, spend and you shall be spent upon, and send an army and We shall send an army five times its size. Fight with those who obey you those who disobey you.' And He said: 'The inhabitants of Paradise are three (categories of people): He who possesses authority yet is just, charitable, and guided (to doing good), he who is merciful and tender-hearted towards his kin and every Muslim, and he who does not ask others despite having dependents to provide for.' He also said: 'The inhabitants of Hellfire are five (categories of people): The weak who lacks intellect (to prevent him from evil), who is subordinate to you, who does not seek to have family or wealth; and the dishonest whose greed cannot be concealed even in the case of minor things; and one who spends his entire day deceiving you with regards to your family and wealth; and (he mentioned) the miser or the liar and the ill-mannered who uses obscene and foul language."

Ibn ‘Abbās (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) used to supplicate: "My Lord, support me and do not support others against me; grant me victory and do not grant others victory over me; plan for me and do not plan against me; guide me and make my guidance easy for me; grant me victory against whoever wronged me. O Allah, make me grateful to You, remembering You, fearful of You, obedient to You, and humble to You or returning to You in repentance. O Lord, accept my repentance, wash away my sins, answer my supplication, establish my proof (words), guide my heart, make my tongue speak the truth, and take resentment (hatred) away from my heart."

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Our Lord, Glorified and Exalted, descends every night to the lowest heaven when the last third of the night remains and says: ‘Who supplicates Me so that I may answer him? Who asks Me so that I may give him? Who seeks forgiveness from Me so that I may forgive him?'"

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that they (the Companions) asked the Messenger of Allah: "Will we see our Lord on the Day of Judgment?" He said: "Do you find any difficulty in seeing the sun at noon when there are no clouds?" They said: 'No.' He again said: "Do you find any difficulty in seeing the moon during the fourteenth night when there are no clouds?" They said: 'No.' Thereupon, he said: "By the One in Whose Hand my life is! You will not face any difficulty in seeing your Lord, only as much as you find difficulty in seeing one of them (the sun and moon). Then Allah will meet a slave (on the Day of Judgment) and say: 'O so-and-so, did I not honor you and give you authority and provide you with a spouse and subdue for you horses and camels and afford you an opportunity to rule over your subjects?' He will say: 'Yes.' Allah will say to him: 'Did you not think that you would meet Me?' And he will say: 'No.' Thereupon, He (Allah) will say: 'Well, We forget you as you had forgotten Me.' Then the second person will be brought to meet Allah, and He will say: 'O so-and-so, did I not honor you and give you authority and provide you with a spouse and subdue for you horses and camels and afford you an opportunity to rule over your subjects?' He will say: 'Yes, my Lord.' And He will say: 'Did you not think that you would be meeting Me?' And he will say: 'No.' And then He will say: 'Well, I forget you today as you had forgotten Me.' Then the third one will be brought, and He will say to him as He said before. And he (the third person) will say: 'O my Lord, I believed in You, Your Book, and Your Messenger, and I observed the prayer and fasted and gave charity.' He will speak in good terms like this as he will be able to do so. And He will say: 'Then stay in your place.' It will be said to him: 'Now We will send forth our witnesses to you.' The man will think 'who will bear witness against me?' Then his mouth will be sealed, and his thighs, flesh, and bones will be told to speak. So they will give account of his deeds. This will be done so that he should not be able to make any excuse for himself. That is the hypocrite, who will incur Allah's displeasure."

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Faith is Yamān and wisdom is Yamāniyyah; and I find the breath of the Most Merciful from the direction of Yemen. Indeed disbelief, wrongdoing, and harsh hearts are found amongst those with loud obnoxious voices who raise goats and camels."

‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I heard the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) saying: "Indeed Allah, the Almighty, created His creation in darkness, then He cast His Light upon them, so whoever is touched by that light is guided, and whoever is not goes astray. It is for this reason that I say that the (ink of) the pen has dried upon the knowledge 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: “Allah has ninety-nine names – one hundred minus one – and no one memorizes them but that they will enter Paradise. He is One, and He loves odd numbers.”

Ibn Mas‘ūd (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I saw Jibrīl at the Lote Tree and he had six hundred wings." He said: "I asked ‘Āsim about the wings, but he refused to tell me. Then some of his companions said to me: "A single wing covered the distance between the east and west."

Ibn Mas‘ūd (may Allah be pleased with him) reported, in relation to the verse: {And he certainly saw him in another descent} [Sūrat An-Najm: 13], that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I saw Jibrīl at the Lote Tree having six hundred wings, and there were multi-colored pearls and rubies falling from his wings.”

Masrūq reported: I was reclining in the house of ‘Ā’ishah when she said: "O Abu ‘Ā’ishah, there are three things, whoever speaks of one of them has fabricated a tremendous lie against Allah; whoever claims that Muhammad (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) saw his Lord, then he has fabricated a tremendous lie against Allah." I was reclining, so I sat up an said: "O Mother of the Believers, give me enough time and do not be hasty! Did not Allah, Glorified and Exalted, say: {And truly he saw him on the clear horizon} [Sūrat At-Takwīr: 23] and: {He saw Him in another descent.} [Sūrat An-Najm: 13]?" She said: "I am the first of this Ummah who asked the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) about it; and he said: ‘Verily it is Jibrīl. I have never seen him in his original form in which he was created except on those two occasions (to which these verses refer); I saw him descending from the heaven and filling (the space) from the sky to the earth with the greatness of his bodily structure.’ Have you not heard that Allah says: {Eyes comprehend Him not, but He comprehends (all) vision. and He is Subtle, and All-Aware} [Sūrat al-An‘ām: 103]? Have you not heard that Allah says: {And it is not for any human being that Allah should speak to him except by revelation or from behind a partition or that He sends a messenger to reveal, by His permission, what He wills. Indeed, He is Most High and Wise.} [Sūrat Ash-Shūra: 51]. The one who presumes that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace be upon him) concealed anything from the Book of Allah has fabricated the greatest lie against Allah. Allah says: {O Messenger, announce that which has been revealed to you from your Lord, and if you do not, then you have not conveyed His message} [Sūrat al-Mā’idah: 67]. The one who presumes that he would foretell what will happen tomorrow has fabricated the greatest lie against Allah. Allah, the Almighty says: {Say: None in the heavens and earth knows the unseen except Allah.} [Sūrat An-Naml: 65]"