Muntakhab Ahadees

عَنْ عُمَرَ ابْنِ الْخَطَّابِ رَضِیَ اللّٰہُ تَعَالٰی عَنْہُ قَالَ: قَالَ: رَسُوْلُ اللّٰہِ صَلَّی اللّٰہُ عَلَیْہِ وَسَلَّمَ اِنَّمَا الْاَعْمَالُ بِالنِّیَّاتِ وَاِنَّمَا لِامْرِیٍٔ مَّا نَویٰ فَمَنْ کَانَتْ ہِجْرَتُہٗ اِلَی اللّٰہِ وَرَسُوْلِہٖ فَھِجْرَتُہٗ اِلَی اللّٰہ وَرَسُوْلِہٖ وَمَنْ کَانَتْ ہِجْرَتُہٗ اِلَی دُنْیَا یُصِیْبُھَا اَوِامْرَأَۃٍ یَّتَزَوَّجُھَا فَھِجْرَتُہٗ اِلٰی مَا ھَاجَرَ اِلَیْہِ۔ (صحیح البخاری،کتاب بدء الوحی، باب کیف کان بدء الوحی الی رسول اللّٰہ صلی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ علیہ وسلم، الحدیث:۱، ج۱، ص۵, وصحیح مسلم،کتاب الامارۃ،باب قولہصلی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ علیہ وسلم:انما الاعمال۔۔۔الخ، الحدیث:۱۹۰۷، ص۱۰۵۶)

It is narrated from Umar ibn al-Khattab رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ that he said: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “Actions are only judged by intentions, and every person shall have only what he intended. Thus, whoever migrated for Allah and His Messenger, his migration is for Allah and His Messenger; and whoever migrated to obtain some worldly benefit or to marry a woman, his migration is for whatever he migrated toward.”

The narrator of this hadith from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ is the Commander of the Believers, Umar ibn al-Khattab رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ. His kunyah was Abu Hafs and his title was al-Faruq. He was among the early Muslims. He accepted Islam after forty men and eleven women, or after thirty-nine men and thirteen women, or after forty-five men and eleven women had accepted Islam. حضرت جبریل عَلَیْہِ السَّلَام came to the Presence of Prophethood and gave the glad tidings: “O Messenger of Allah عزَّوَجَلَّ و ﷺ, the dwellers of the heavens are rejoicing at Umar رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ accepting Islam.” The first Caliph, the Commander of the Believers Abu Bakr al-Siddiq رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ, selected him as his successor. After Abu Bakr's departure from this world, Umar was chosen as Commander of the Believers on 22 Jumada al-Thani, 13 AH. He remained upon the seat of the caliphate for ten years and several months, fought the empires of Persia and Rome, and brought those lands under the Islamic caliphate. After providing countless means for the honour and progress of Islam and the Muslims, he attained martyrdom in Madinah Munawwarah on Thursday, 28 Dhu al-Hijjah, 23 AH, at the age of sixty-three, and was buried in the Blessed Chamber. Five hundred and forty-nine hadiths are narrated from him. His virtues and excellences are numerous; their detailed account may be read in our book Haqqani Taqreerein.

1 This is the very first hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari. Imam Bukhari رَحْمَۃُ اللّٰہ تَعَالٰی عَلَیْہِ also mentioned it in six other places in his book, with several chains and different wordings: the Book of Faith, the Book of Emancipation, the chapter on migration, the Book of Marriage, the Book of Faith again, and the Book of Stratagems.

2 Imam Muslim, Imam Tirmidhi, Imam Nasa'i, Imam Ibn Majah, Imam Ahmad, Imam al-Daraqutni, Imam Ibn Hibban, Imam al-Bayhaqi, and other established and eminent hadith scholars also transmitted this hadith in their books with great distinction.

3 The hadith scholars counted this among the foundational hadiths upon which the religion of Islam rests. Abu Dawud said that, from the treasures of hundreds of thousands of hadiths, only four hadiths are sufficient for acting upon the religion, and one of those four is اِنَّمَا الْاَعْمَالُ بِالنِّیَّاتِ.

Imam al-Shafi'i and Imam Ahmad رَحْمَۃُ اللّٰہ تَعَالٰی عَلَیْہِما said that this hadith contains one-third of religious knowledge. (1) This is because the acts of religion are of three kinds: acts of the heart, acts of the tongue, and acts of the remaining limbs. This hadith mentions the act of the heart, namely intention. (Qastallani, vol. 1, p. 164.)

Shaykh Ahmad Kashmiri قدس سرہٗ narrated among the supplements to Jami al-Usul that Imam Abu Hanifah رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ wrote the following advice to his son Hammad: “O light of my eyes! From five hundred thousand hadiths I selected five hadiths. If you memorise them and act upon them with complete reliance, you will attain the happiness of both worlds.” They are:

First: اِنَّمَا الْاَعْمَالُ بِالنِّیَّاتِ, meaning that the reward of all actions depends upon intentions.

Second: A person's excellence in Islam includes leaving everything useless and futile.

Third: None of you becomes a complete believer until he likes for his believing brother what he likes for himself.

Fourth: The lawful is clear and the unlawful is clear, and between them are doubtful matters that many people do not know. Whoever avoids doubtful matters protects his religion and honour; whoever falls into them will eventually fall into the unlawful, like a shepherd grazing around a protected royal pasture whose animals may enter it. Beware: every king has a protected pasture, and Allah's protected pasture is what He has made unlawful. Listen carefully: there is a piece of flesh in the body which, when sound, makes the whole body sound, and when corrupt, makes the whole body corrupt. It is the heart.

Fifth: The complete Muslim is the one from whose tongue and hand all Muslims remain safe. (2) (Bashir al-Qari, p. 65.)

4 Some hadith scholars called this a mutawatir hadith, but that is not correct. The sound position is that, considering the later part of its chain, it is mashhur, and considering the beginning of its chain, it is gharib. (3) (Qastallani, vol. 1, pp. 164.) والله تعالى اعلم.

5 The Noble Messenger ﷺ delivered this hadith in a sermon from the pulpit. Its narrator, the Commander of the Believers Umar رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ, also narrated it during a sermon from the pulpit.

6 Hadith scholars generally place this hadith at the beginning of their books because they wish to remind themselves to correct their intentions in writing and compiling. The poet says:

If the intention is evil, good deeds are worthless;
Even a thief remains awake all night like a watchman.

Intention: Intention means the heart's purpose and resolve. In this hadith it means intending Allah's pleasure and seeking nearness in His Presence.

Migration: In language, migration means leaving something. Some hadiths use migration with this meaning, as in اَلْمُھَاجِرُ مَنْ ہَجَرَ مَا نَھَی اللّٰہُ عَنْہٗ (4), meaning that the complete emigrant is the one who leaves everything Allah has forbidden. In the terminology of the Sacred Law, migration means leaving one's city or country for the sake of Allah's pleasure and the safety of one's religion and faith, and going to another city or country where one's religion can remain safe.

Migration does not have to be only from the Abode of Disbelief to the Abode of Islam. During the Prophetic era there were two kinds of migration. One was from an abode of fear to an abode of safety, as some Companions رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہم migrated from Makkah to Abyssinia. At that time both Makkah and Abyssinia were abodes of disbelief, but Muslims feared for their lives and faith in Makkah, whereas they were safe in Abyssinia. The second was from an abode of disbelief to an abode of Islam, as the Muslims of Makkah migrated to Madinah after the Messenger of Allah ﷺ settled there; Makkah was then an abode of disbelief and Madinah had become an abode of Islam.

The statements of the various commentators show that migration is not restricted to travelling from an abode of disbelief to an abode of Islam. If the beliefs and policies of rulers and officials in an Islamic country become so corrupt that an orthodox Muslim's Islamic life becomes difficult and remaining firm upon the religion becomes hard, then leaving for any country where Islamic life is not obstructed is also a legal migration. Similarly, if remaining firm upon religion becomes difficult in an abode of disbelief, but a nearby abode of disbelief is less oppressive and does not obstruct a Muslim's Islamic life, moving from the first to the second is also a legal migration. In all these cases, with a sincere intention, the reward of migration will, in شاء اللّٰہ تعالیٰ, be granted. والله تعالى اعلم.

Worldly life: Dunya is the feminine form of the comparative word adna, meaning “that which is nearer.” Linguists say that this world is called dunya because it is nearer to decline, or because it is nearer to us than the Hereafter.

The theologians call every created thing that came into existence before the Hereafter “the world.” The honoured Sufis call everything that makes a person heedless of Allah “the world.” Mawlana Jalal al-Din Rumi رَحْمَۃُ اللّٰہ تَعَالٰی عَلَیْہِ says in his Masnavi:

What is the world? A body heedless of God;
Not cloth, silver, children, or wife.

That is, being heedless of God is the world. Clothing, silver, a wife, and children are not counted as worldly when they do not make a person heedless of God. والله تعالى اعلم.

The event that led to this hadith is strange and full of instruction. Abdullah ibn Mas'ud رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ relates that a Muslim woman named Qaylah, generally called Umm Qays, received a marriage proposal. She replied that she would not marry the man until he migrated from Makkah to Madinah. The man therefore migrated in order to marry her. This became well known among the Companions رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہم, who began calling him “the emigrant for Umm Qays.” He became so famous by this title that people forgot his real name; the real name is not found in any book known to the narrator. (5) (Qastallani, vol. 1, p. 163.)

When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ heard of this event, he said from the pulpit during a sermon, as an admonition and guidance: “اِنَّمَا الْاَعْمَالُ بِالنِّیَّاتِ,” meaning that the reward of actions depends upon intentions; therefore, a person receives from migration only what he intended by it.

Actions are of two kinds: evil actions and good actions. An evil action receives no reward, whether it is done with an evil intention or a good intention, because it remains evil in every case and causes punishment. As for a good action, the Prophetic teaching is that every good action, whether an act of the heart or of another limb, whether obedience to a command or avoidance of a prohibition, and whether an act of worship or a customary act, is rewarded only when it is done with the intention of drawing near to Allah and seeking His pleasure. If, Allah forbid, an action is done not for Allah's pleasure but for showing off, fame, personal gratification, or another corrupt purpose, then even if it is an obligatory, necessary, Sunnah, or recommended act, it receives no reward at all. Rather, it may cause loss of faith, punishment, and ruin and deprivation in both worlds.

Everyone knows that prayer is among the finest good deeds, one of the greatest obligations and the most excellent acts of worship. If prayer is offered with the intention of Allah's pleasure, seeking nearness to His mercy, and fulfilling His obligation, then its reward is beyond description: light upon light. But if someone prays so that people will consider him a worshipper, honour him, and publicise his piety, then the prayer, although among the best acts of worship, has become through this evil intention a grave sin. What could such a worshipper receive from the Court of the Overpowering and Compelling One besides disgrace and the punishment of the Fire?

Thus, one good action becomes worthy of reward through a good intention and a cause of punishment through an evil intention. This is why the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said that the reward of all actions depends upon intentions, and each person receives reward according to his intention.

After stating this universal principle, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ gave the specific example that whoever migrates intending Allah's and His Messenger's pleasure has a migration accepted in the Court of Allah and His Messenger, and Allah, the Most Holy, grants him immeasurable reward from His incomparable grace. Whoever migrates intending a worldly benefit or marriage obtains only that worldly benefit or woman; he receives not even a billionth part of the wealth called reward. He remains caught in the misfortune of loss and deprivation.

The conclusion is that a good deed done with a good intention, however small, certainly receives reward, whereas a good deed done with an evil intention, however great, receives no reward.

It is reported that a saint had two disciples. One drove a stake into the doorway of a mosque, and the other pulled it out and threw it away. The saint was a person of spiritual unveiling. After learning what both disciples had done, he contemplated their inward intentions and said, “سُبْحَانَ اللّٰہ! Both have received reward.” The people were astonished: one had driven in the stake and the other had removed it, so how had both received equal reward?

The saint called the two disciples and asked the first why he had driven the stake into the mosque doorway. He replied, “The mosque was beside the road. Camel drivers, horsemen, and men with oxen came to pray while their minds remained concerned about whether their animals were still standing or had run away. They could not pray with full attention. I drove in the stake so that they could tie their animals there and pray with concentration and tranquillity.” The saint asked the people whether this deserved reward, and they unanimously said that it did.

He then asked the second disciple why he had pulled out the stake. He replied, “Several worshippers of this mosque are blind, and people come to pray even on dark nights. I removed the stake so that no worshipper would trip over it.” The people agreed that this too was a meritorious act and deserved reward.

Consider that the actions of the two disciples were completely opposite, yet both received equal reward because both had good intentions.

Mawlana Rumi عَلَیْہِ الرحمۃ also recorded an effective story on this subject in the Masnavi. A new disciple built a new house and invited his spiritual guide to its opening. The guide inspected the house and asked:

Why did you make a window, my friend?
He replied: “So that light may enter through it.”

The guide was saddened and said:

That is secondary; this is what you should intend:
So that through it you may hear the call to prayer.
The light itself will come along with it;
Intend what truly befits you.

The perfect guide meant: if the disciple had intended, while making the window, that the call to prayer would enter his house through it, the light would have entered as well and he would have received reward for his good intention. From now on, form intentions worthy of a believer: perform every small and great good action with a good intention, because the reward of all actions depends upon good intentions. (6)

Since this hadith establishes that reward depends upon intention, it follows that one good intention in an action brings one reward, while several good intentions bring several rewards. Suppose a poor and needy brother requires financial help. If you help him intending only to help your brother, you receive one reward for good treatment of a relative. If you help him intending only to help a poor person, you receive the reward of helping a poor person. If you intend both to help a relative and to support a needy member of the Messenger's community, you receive two rewards: one for good treatment of a relative and one for helping a poor member of the Messenger's community.

Entering a mosque is one action. If a person enters intending only to pray, he receives one reward. If, together with the intention of prayer, he intends to recite the supplications for entering and leaving the mosque, observe a few minutes of i'tikaf, wait for the congregation, remain protected from worldly distractions while seated in the mosque, meet the righteous worshippers, greet them, recite the Quran or a litany, teach a worshipper a ruling, or learn a ruling, then he receives as many rewards as he has good intentions. If a person makes fifty, five hundred, or fifty thousand good intentions for one action, the Generous Lord may grant fifty thousand rewards for that one action. His treasures do not diminish. His mercy declares: وَاللّٰہُ ذُوالْفَضْلِ الْعَظِیْمِ (7), “And Allah is the possessor of immense bounty.” والله تعالى اعلم.

One action becomes worthy of reward through a good intention and deserving of punishment through an evil intention. For this reason, people who perform excellent actions and superior righteous deeds may, because of corrupt intentions, be dragged face-first into Hell on the Day of Resurrection. A hadith in Sahih Muslim makes every hair of the body tremble.

The Messenger of Allah عزَّوَجَلَّ و ﷺ said that among the first people to be judged on the Day of Resurrection will be a martyr. He will be brought before Allah, who will remind him of His blessings. The man will acknowledge them. Allah will ask what he did in gratitude for them. He will say that he fought in Allah's path until he was martyred. Allah will say, “You have lied. You fought so that people would call you brave, and they did call you brave in the world.” His judgment will then be issued, and he will be dragged face-first into the Fire.

The second will be a scholar who learned and taught knowledge and recited the Quran. Allah will remind him of His blessings. He will acknowledge them and say that he learned knowledge, taught it to others, and recited the Quran for Allah's pleasure. Allah will say, “You have lied. You learned and taught so that people would call you a scholar, and recited the Quran so that they would call you a reciter. They did call you a scholar and reciter in the world.” By Allah's command he too will be dragged face-first into the Fire.

The third will be a man to whom Allah gave abundant provision and every kind of wealth. Allah will remind him of His blessings. He will acknowledge them and say that he spent his wealth in every path that Allah loves. Allah will say, “You have lied. You spent your wealth so that people would call you generous, and they did call you generous in the world.” He too will be dragged face-first into the Fire by Allah's command. (8) (Mishkat, Book of Knowledge; Muslim, vol. 2, p. 140.)

Consider another hadith and see, in its light, the fruits and blessings of acting with a good intention and the degrees Allah grants for it. It is narrated in Mishkat that a man resolved to give charity secretly. He went out at night with his charitable money and, mistaking a thief for a needy person, placed the charity in his hand. In the morning people began talking: “Someone gave charity to a thief last night.” When the man heard, he said, “O Allah, praise belongs to You. My charity has gone into the hand of a thief.”

The next night he took charity and, mistaking an adulterous woman for a needy person, placed it in her hand. In the morning people again said that someone had given charity to an adulterous woman. He said, “O Allah, praise belongs to You. I gave charity to an adulterous woman.” On the third night he took charity and gave it to a wealthy man, thinking him poor. When people criticised him the next morning, he said, “O Allah, praise belongs to You. My charity reached a thief, an adulteress, and a wealthy man.” He went to sleep in grief and reflection. In a dream an angel gave him glad tidings from Allah: every one of his charities had been accepted. His charity to the thief might keep him from stealing that night; his charity to the adulterous woman might keep her from adultery that night; and his charity to the wealthy man might make him take a lesson and begin giving charity himself. (9) (Mishkat, chapter on spending.)

Shaykh Abd al-Haqq Muhaddith Dehlawi رحمۃ اللّٰہ علیہ wrote in his commentary that some hadiths state that when angels carry the record of a servant's deeds to the heavens and present it in the Divine Court, Allah says twice, اَلْقِ تِلْکَ الصَّحِیْفَۃَ, “Throw away that record.” The angels say, “O Lord, this servant performed good actions which we saw and heard and recorded. Why should we throw them away?” Allah says, لَمْ یُرِدْ وَجْھِیْ, “He did not intend My pleasure in this action, so it is not accepted in My Court.”

Allah then commands another angel, اُکْتُبْ لِفُلَانٍ کَذَا وَکَذَا, “Write such-and-such for such-and-such servant.” The angel says, “Lord, this servant did not perform that action.” Allah says, “He did not perform it, but he intended to perform it, so I shall grant him the reward of that action for his intention.”

For this reason some hadiths state: نِیَّۃُ الْمُؤْمِنِ خَیْرٌ مِّنْ عَمَلِہ, “The believer's intention is better than his action.” A good action is rewarded only with a good intention; with an evil intention it receives no reward. A good intention, however, is rewarded whether or not the action is performed. Thus the believer's intention is better than his action. Some honoured Sufis said:

Whoever has no sincerity in his action
Is not among the special servants of God.

Whoever acts for the sake of the Truth
His action remains ever full of splendour.

That is, a person's action remains blessed when it is for Allah's pleasure. (10) (Ashiat al-Lama'at, vol. 1, p. 36.)

Allamah Ayni رحمۃ اللّٰہ علیہ said in his commentary: فِیْہِ الْحَثُّ عَلٰی نِیَّۃِ الْخَیْرِ مُطْلَقًا وَاِنَّہُ یُثَابُ عَلَی النِّیَّۃِ, “This hadith encourages good intention in every situation and shows that a person is rewarded for intention.” (11) (Ayni, vol. 1, p. 328.)

1 You have read that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ delivered this hadith to admonish and guide the “emigrant for Umm Qays,” who migrated intending to marry a woman. He deserved admonition and guidance. The Messenger could have called him before the people and reprimanded him publicly, or summoned him privately and admonished him. Instead, he chose a third method: while preaching to all Muslims in general words, he made him understand the warning without exposing him. The emigrant, who was listening, understood that migrating with the intention of marrying a woman brings no reward and that the Messenger ﷺ was admonishing him. The first two methods would have caused public disgrace or intense private shame. Therefore, on the pulpit, the Messenger ﷺ corrected and guided him while protecting him from humiliation.

سُبْحَانَ اللّٰہ! This is an illustration of اُدْعُ اِلٰی سَبِیْلِ رَبِّکَ بِالْحِکْمَۃِ وَالْمَوْعِظَۃِ الْحَسَنَۃِ (12), “Invite to the path of your Lord with wisdom and good counsel.” Allah commanded His Beloved ﷺ in the Quran to call people to His path with wisdom and good counsel. This was the Prophetic method of calling with wisdom and excellent exhortation.

2 The Messenger's excellent example shows that, when advising a sinful Muslim, special care must be taken not to disgrace, insult, or expose him, and not to advise him in a harsh tone that leaves him overwhelmed by shame. Scholars who habitually use harsh speech, bitter tones, and hurtful words in sermons should learn from this method and make the excellent Prophetic example their model.

3 If an act combines religious and worldly purposes, its cases differ. If worldly benefit alone motivates the act, such as travelling to Makkah and Madinah primarily for trade and performing Hajj only because people would criticise its omission, there is no reward for that Hajj. If worship and benefit in the Hereafter motivate the act, but lawful trade is also intended, the reward decreases in proportion to the worldly intention. If the purpose is purely Allah's pleasure and worship, without any worldly thought, that is the highest form of worship and receives complete reward.

4 [1] Irshad al-Sari, Book of the Beginning of Revelation, chapter on the beginning of revelation, under hadith 1, vol. 1, p. 95.

5 [2] Bashir al-Qari, vol. 1, p. 65, adapted.

6 [3] Irshad al-Sari, same chapter, under hadith 1, vol. 1, pp. 95–96, excerpted.

7 [4] Sunan Abi Dawud, Book of Jihad, chapter on whether migration has ended, hadith 2481, vol. 3, p. 7.

8 [5] Irshad al-Sari, same chapter, under hadith 1, vol. 1, p. 94, summarised.

9 [6] Masnavi of Mawlana Rumi, Book 2, p. 41.

10 [7] Translation of Kanz al-Iman: “And Allah is of immense bounty.” (Part 1, al-Baqarah 105.)

11 [8] Sahih Muslim, Book of Government, chapter on one who fights for showing off and reputation, hadith 1905, p. 1055.

12 [9] Mishkat al-Masabih, Book of Zakat, chapter on spending and dislike of withholding, hadith 1876, vol. 1, p. 356.

13 [10] Ashiat al-Lama'at, introduction to the book, vol. 1, p. 39.

14 [11] Umdat al-Qari, Book of Faith, chapter on actions and intentions, vol. 1, p. 461.

15 [12] Translation of Kanz al-Iman: “Invite to the path of your Lord with sound wisdom and good counsel.” (Part 14, al-Nahl 125.)

عَنْ اَبِیْ ہُرَیْرَۃَ قَالَ:کَانَ النَّبِیُّ صَلَّی اللّٰہ تَعَالٰی عَلَیْہِ وَاٰٰلِہٖ وَسَلَّمَ بَارِزًا یومًا لِلنَّاسِ فَاَتَاہُ رَجُلٌ فَقَالَ:مَا الْاِیْمَانُ؟ قَالَ:اَلْاِیْمَانُ اَنْ تُؤْمِنَ بِاللّٰہ وَمَلٰئِکَتِہٖ وَبِلِقَائِہٖ وَرُسُلِہٖ وَتُؤْمِنَ بِالْبَعْثِ قَالَ:مَا الْاِسْلَامُ؟ قَالَ:اَلْاِسْلَامُ اَنْ تَعْبُدَ اللّٰہ وَلَا تُشْرِکَ بِہٖ وَتُقِیْمَ الصَّلَاۃَ وَتُؤَدِّیَ الزَّکَاۃَ الْمَفْرُوْضَۃَ وَتَصُوْمَ رَمَضَانَ قاَلَ: مَا الْاِحْسَانُ؟ قَالَ: اَنْ تَعْبُدَ اللّٰہ کَاَنَّکَ تَرَاہُ فَاِنْ لَّمْ تَکُنْ تَرَاہُ فَاِنَّہٗ یَرَاکَ قَالَ: مَتٰی السَّاعَۃُ؟ قَالَ:مَا الْمَسْئُوْلُ عَنْہَا بِاَعْلَمَ مِنَ السَّائِلِ وَسَاُخْبِرُکَ عَنْ اَشْرَاطِھَا اِذَا وَلَدَتِ الْاَمَۃُ رَبَّھَا وَاِذَا تَطَاوَلَ رُعَاۃُ الْاِبِلِ الْبُھْمُ فِی الْبُنْیَانِ فِیْ خَمْسٍ لَا یَعْلَمُھُنَّ اِلَّا اللّٰہ ثُمَّ تَلَا النَّبِیُّ صَلَّی اللّٰہ تَعَالٰی عَلَیْہِ وَسَلَّمَ:اِنَّ اللّٰہ عِنْدَہٗ عِلْمُ السَّاعَۃِ اَلْاٰیَۃُ، ثُمَّ اَدْبَرَ فَقَالَ: رُدُّوْہُ فَلَمْ یَرَوْا شَیْئًا فَقَالَ:ھٰذَا جِبْرِیْلُ جَائَ یُعَلِّمُ النَّاسَ دِیْنَھُمْ۔ (صحیح البخاری،کتاب الایمان،باب سؤال جبریل۔۔۔الخ،الحدیث:۵۰،ج۱،ص۳۱)

It is narrated from Abu Hurayrah رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ that he said: One day the Noble Prophet ﷺ was outside among the people when a man came to him and asked, “What is faith?” The Prophet ﷺ replied, “Faith is that you believe in Allah, His angels, meeting Him, His Messengers, and resurrection.” He asked, “What is Islam?” The Prophet ﷺ replied, “Islam is that you worship Allah and associate no partner with Him, establish prayer, pay the obligatory zakat, and fast Ramadan.” He asked, “What is excellence?” The Prophet ﷺ replied, “It is that you worship Allah as though you see Him; and if you do not see Him, then He certainly sees you.” He asked, “When is the Hour?” The Prophet ﷺ replied, “The one being asked about it knows no more than the one asking.” He then said, “I shall tell you some of its signs: when a slave-girl gives birth to her master, and when barefoot, dark-skinned camel herders compete in constructing tall buildings. Its knowledge is among five matters known by none except Allah.” Then the Prophet ﷺ recited: اِنَّ اللّٰہ عِنْدَہٗ عِلْمُ السَّاعَۃِ, and the verse. The man turned away. The Prophet ﷺ said, “Call him back.” The people saw nothing. He then said, “This was جبریل, who came to teach people their religion.”

The narrator, Abu Hurayrah رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ, was a highly devout, humble, and God-fearing Companion. Abu Sa'id said that he offered twelve thousand voluntary prayers daily. He belonged to the Daws tribe of Yemen. In the Age of Ignorance his name was Abd Shams; after accepting Islam in 7 AH, he was named Abd al-Rahman or Abdullah. He loved cats. One day the Messenger of Allah ﷺ saw a cat in his sleeve and called him يَا اَبَاہُرَیْرَۃَ, “O father of the kitten.” This title became so famous that people forgot his original name, which is why there is disagreement about it. He was among the Companions of the Suffah. Once he complained to the Messenger ﷺ that he forgot his hadiths. The Messenger ﷺ told him to spread his cloak on the ground. He did so, and after the Messenger ﷺ narrated some hadiths, he told him to gather the cloak and hold it to his chest. Thereafter Abu Hurayrah's memory became so strong that he never forgot anything he heard from the Messenger ﷺ throughout his life. Eight hundred Companions and Successors were his students in hadith. He narrated 5,374 hadiths, of which 446 are in Sahih al-Bukhari. He was called back from this world in Madinah Munawwarah in 59 AH at the age of seventy-eight and was buried in Jannat al-Baqi. (1)

1 Imam Bukhari also recorded this hadith in the Books of Tafsir and Zakat. Imam Muslim and Imam Nasa'i recorded it in the Book of Faith, Ibn Majah in the Sunan and Trials, Abu Dawud in the Sunnah, and Imam Tirmidhi, Imam Ahmad, and other hadith scholars also recorded it with several chains and wordings. Imam Baghawi began both of his books, Masabih and Sharh al-Sunnah, with a hadith of this meaning. Qadi Iyad said that this hadith encompasses all duties and outward and inward acts of worship. (2)

2 Shaykh Abd al-Haqq Muhaddith Dehlawi said that scholars call this the Hadith of جبریل, the Mother of Hadiths, and the Mother of Comprehensive Teachings. It is called the Hadith of جبریل because جبریل came in human form and asked the Messenger ﷺ questions. It is called the Mother of Hadiths because, like Surah al-Fatihah, called the Mother of the Quran because it comprehensively contains the Quran's meanings, this hadith gathers the meanings of the Prophetic hadiths in summary. (3)

Worship: Worship means venerating and serving. It means a person believes someone to be his God, honours Him with the highest honour, and considers himself utterly lowly before Him. The concept of worship includes believing that the one worshipped is truly worthy of worship and is God. The worshipper is called an abid and the one worshipped is called the ma'bud.

The difference between honour and worship is that worship includes, together with honour, belief in the deity, necessary existence, and right to be worshipped of the one honoured; ordinary honour does not contain this belief. Every worship is honour, but every honour is not worship. Worshipping anyone besides Allah is polytheism, but honouring someone besides Allah is not polytheism. Indeed, honouring certain beings besides Allah is an individual obligation, such as honouring the Ka'bah and the Prophets علیہم السلام. Worshipping them would plainly be polytheism, but honouring them is necessary for faith.

People who do not understand this distinction quickly issue a ruling of polytheism when they see honour shown to someone besides Allah. Remember that honour becomes worship and polytheism only when the person is honoured as God. Other forms of honouring those besides Allah can never be called polytheism.

Polytheism: Shirk means believing someone besides Allah to be God, considering someone worthy of worship, or making someone a partner in Allah's unique attributes. Shaykh Abd al-Haqq wrote that shirk is of three kinds: believing someone to be necessary in existence like Allah عزَّوَجَلَّ; believing someone besides Allah to be the Creator; and worshipping someone besides Allah. (4)

This is a brief hadith, while longer narrations through other chains also mention the revealed Books, destiny, and Hajj. The meaning is clear. One day the Messenger ﷺ sat in an open field among the people rather than inside a house. His public court was open and the Companions were present when جبریل appeared in human form and asked what faith was. The Messenger ﷺ replied that faith is to sincerely believe in Allah, His angels, meeting Him, His Messengers, resurrection, and the establishment of the Day of Judgment.

جبریل then asked about Islam. The Messenger ﷺ replied that Islam is to worship Allah without polytheism, establish prayer, pay zakat, and fast Ramadan. He asked about excellence. The Messenger ﷺ explained that excellence in worship is to worship Allah عزَّوَجَلَّ with such attention and sincerity as though seeing Him; if this degree of attention is not attained, one should at least keep in mind that Allah عزَّوَجَلَّ is seeing him.

جبریل asked when the Day of Judgment would come. The Messenger ﷺ replied that he did not know more about it than the questioner. He then mentioned two signs: a slave-girl giving birth to her master, and dark-skinned camel herders boasting in high palaces and buildings. He said that the knowledge of the Hour is among five matters which no person can know through intellect, reasoning, or insight; if Allah informs someone, that person knows it through Allah's informing him.

As proof, the Messenger ﷺ recited the last verse of Surah Luqman: اِنَّ اللّٰہ عِنْدَہٗ عِلْمُ السَّاعَۃِج وَ یُنَزِّلُ الْغَیْثَج وَیَعْلَمُ مَا فِی الْاَرْحَامِط وَمَا تَدْرِیْ نَفْسٌ مَّاذَا تَکْسِبُ غَدًاط وَمَا تَدْرِیْ نَفَسٌ مبِـاَیِّ اَرْضٍ تَمُوْتُطاِنَّ اللّٰہ عَلِیْمٌ خَبِیْرٌ (5). Its meaning is that Allah alone has knowledge of the Hour, sends down rain, knows what is in the wombs, and no soul knows what it will earn tomorrow or in which land it will die. Allah is All-Knowing and All-Informed.

جبریل left the gathering. The Messenger ﷺ told the Companions رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہم to call the man back, but they could not see anyone anywhere. The Messenger ﷺ told them that the man had been جبریل, who came to teach them matters of their religion.

Faith means affirmation: believing with a truthful heart. The hadith mentions faith in five things: 1 Allah, 2 the angels, 3 meeting Allah, 4 the Messengers, and 5 resurrection after death.

Faith in Allah means believing with a truthful heart that Allah exists, is Necessary in Existence, the One True Being, without partner, and the Creator of the universe. One must believe in His attributes such as life, knowledge, power, will, speech, hearing, sight, and bringing into existence; believe in Him with complete certainty; declare Him free from every defect; and affirm every perfection for Him.

Faith in angels means believing that angels are a luminous creation of Allah and His honoured servants, with no inclination toward sin. They are pure and protected from every minor and major sin. They are neither female nor male, neither eat nor drink; worship of Allah is their life. Allah says: لَا یَعْصُوْنَ اللّٰہ مَآ اَمَرَھُمْ وَیَفْعَلُوْنَ مَا یُؤْمَرُوْنَ (6), meaning that they never disobey Allah in anything or any condition, and they do whatever He commands. Some bring revelation, some send down rain, some guard and protect human beings' deeds, and some pray for mercy and forgiveness for believers. Each performs the task Allah assigned. Denying the existence of angels, attributing a defect to them, or insulting them is disbelief.

Faith in meeting Allah means believing in resurrection and gathering after death, standing before Allah on the Day of Judgment, the presentation of one's deeds and accountability, Paradise, Hell, and all related matters.

Faith in the Messengers means believing that all Prophets and Messengers علیہم الصلوٰۃ والسلام who came into the world were Allah's sacred servants and chosen Prophets. They were all truthful, everything they brought from Allah was true, and they fulfilled their Prophetic duties completely.

It is disbelief to deny any Prophet or Messenger, show the slightest contempt or disrespect toward one, deny their Books or any ruling of their laws, or belittle any of their Sunnahs. It is also disbelief to regard a non-Prophet as a Prophet. From Adam عَلَیْہِ السَّلَام to the Final Prophet ﷺ, honouring every Prophet and Messenger is an individual obligation and necessary for faith. It is the foundation and spirit of all obligations. Believing that the Messenger ﷺ is the Seal of the Prophets is also among the necessities of faith. Whoever believes that a Prophet exists after the Seal of the Prophets ﷺ, or considers the coming of any Prophet after him possible, is a disbeliever.

Islam linguistically means surrendering and becoming obedient. The true religion brought by the Messenger ﷺ is called Islam because whoever accepts it makes himself completely obedient to Allah. The acts mentioned in this hadith, worship, prayer, zakat, and fasting, and in the longer hadith the testimony of faith and Hajj, are the special signs of obedience to Allah. The Messenger ﷺ therefore called them the pillars of Islam and said that Islam is founded on five things: the testimony of faith, prayer, fasting, zakat, and Hajj.

The testimony of faith means testifying with a truthful heart that Allah is One and worthy of worship and that Muhammad ﷺ is the Messenger of Allah, believing it inwardly and saying: اَشْهَدُ اَنْ لَّآ اِلٰہَ اِلَّا اللّٰہ وَحْدَہٗ لَا شَرِیْکَ لَہٗ وَاَشْهَدُ اَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُہٗ وَرَسُوْلُہٗ. It contains all essential Islamic beliefs, because whoever accepts the Messenger ﷺ as Allah's Messenger and testifies to his Messengership affirms everything he brought from Allah.

Prayer became obligatory on the Night of Ascension in the twelfth year after the manifestation of Prophethood. It is an individual obligation upon every Muslim except a minor, an insane person, and a woman experiencing menstruation or postnatal bleeding, and it is not waived in any condition. Whoever cannot pray standing should pray sitting; whoever cannot sit should pray lying down with head movements. If even this is impossible, the prayer is delayed, but it is not forgiven.

Denying the obligation of prayer is disbelief. Whoever deliberately abandons it, even once, is sinful. Imam Abu Hanifah رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ gave the ruling that the Islamic ruler should imprison one who abandons prayer until he repents and begins praying. Imam Malik and Imam al-Shafi'i رَضِیَ اللّٰہ تَعَالٰی عَنْہُما gave the ruling that the Islamic ruler should have the one who abandons prayer executed.

The obligation of zakat and fasting was commanded in Madinah in 2 AH. Denying either is disbelief; abandoning either is sinful and liable to execution, and delaying zakat is sinful and makes a person's testimony unacceptable. Hajj became obligatory in 9 AH. An able person must perform it once in a lifetime. Its obligation is as definitive as that of prayer, fasting, and zakat. Denying it is disbelief; leaving it despite ability is sinful, and delaying it without excuse is sinful and makes a person's testimony unacceptable.

Excellence linguistically means goodness and also means treating someone well. In this hadith it is a technical religious term like faith and Islam. The Messenger ﷺ explained it as worshipping Allah as though the worshipper were seeing Him. Excellence is not restricted to prayer, fasting, zakat, and Hajj; it should animate every act of a believer. A servant should act with such presence of heart and sincerity that he feels as though he is seeing Allah. This produces light of awe, reverence, and hope, makes the action shine with acceptance, and makes the servant deserving of his Lord's mercy and grace in both worlds.

The Messenger ﷺ described hundreds of signs of the Hour, many of which have appeared and the rest will certainly appear. Among them are the tribulation of the Antichrist, the appearance of Imam Mahdi, the descent of حضرت عیسی عَلَیْہِ السَّلَام, the emergence of Gog and Magog, the emergence of the Beast of the Earth, and, after حضرت عیسی عَلَیْہِ السَّلَام is called back from this world, a fragrant cool wind that will pass beneath the arms of believers and cause all believers to depart from this world, leaving only disbelievers upon the earth, upon whom the Hour will be established. These signs are as certain as day following night.

The first sign mentioned here, “a slave-girl gives birth to her master,” has several interpretations. The most evident is that disobedient children will become common: sons will treat their mothers as masters treat slave-girls, so that the mother will seem to have given birth not to her son but to her master.

The second sign, “dark-skinned camel herders will boast in palaces,” means that low and despised peoples who once had not even a thatched shelter will boast in tall mansions and splendid bungalows. This can be seen in Arabia, where former Bedouin camel herders live proudly in grand houses, and elsewhere where people of little ability sit like Pharaohs in their mansions. Seeing unqualified people seated in positions of government often brings to mind the hadith: اِذَاوُسِّدَ الْاَمْرُ اِلٰی غَیْرِ اَھْلِہٖ, “When affairs are entrusted to those unfit for them, await the Hour.” (7)

Some who deny the Messenger's knowledge of the unseen use this hadith as evidence, claiming that when جبریل asked about the Hour, the Messenger ﷺ said that he did not know more than the questioner, then recited the verse saying that five matters are known to none but Allah. This interpretation is astonishing, because the same hadith establishes knowledge of the Hour for the Messenger ﷺ.

If the intended meaning had been that he had no knowledge of the Hour whatsoever, he could have said لَا اَعْلَمُھَا, “I do not know it,” or لَسْتُ بِعَالِمِھَا, “I do not know it,” or مَا لِیْ بِذَالِکَ مِنْ عِلْمٍ, “I have no knowledge of it.” Instead he said مَا الْمَسْئُوْلُ عَنْہَا بِاَعْلَمَ مِنَ السَّائِلِ, “The one being asked about it knows no more than the one asking.” The clear meaning is: “O جبریل, I do not know more about the Hour than you.” The phrase contains the comparative form أَعْلَمُ. Negating superiority does not negate knowledge altogether. If one says that Zayd is not more handsome than Amr, it does not mean that Zayd has no beauty; “not possessing beauty at all” and “not being more handsome” are different.

Therefore this hadith does not prove that the Messenger ﷺ had no knowledge of the Hour. Rather, it proves that he and جبریل had knowledge of it. Shaykh Ahmad al-Sawi wrote in his commentary on وَیَسْئَلُکَ النَّاسُ عَنِ السَّاعَۃِ ط قُلْ اِنَّمَا عِلْمُہَا عِنْدَ اللّٰہ (8): فَلَمْ یَخْرُجْ نَبِیُّنَا صَلَّی اللّٰہ عَلَیْہِ وَسَلَّمَ مِنَ الدُّنْیَا حَتَّی اطَّلَعَہُ اللّٰہ عَلٰی جَمِیْعِ الْمُغِیْبَاتِ وَمِنْ جُمْلَتِہَا السَّاعَۃُ لٰکِنْ اَمَرَ بِکَتْمِ ذٰلِکَ۔ (9) This means that the Prophet ﷺ did not depart from this world until Allah informed him of all unseen matters, including the Hour, but commanded him to conceal that knowledge.

The verse does not mean that Allah alone knows and will never inform anyone. It means that no human, jinn, or angel can know these matters by independent reasoning. If Allah informs someone, that person knows through His informing. The verse ends with اِنَّ اللّٰہ عَلِیْمٌ خَبِیْرٌ (10), showing that Allah is not only All-Knowing but also the One who gives information.

Shaykh Abd al-Haqq wrote that unseen matters cannot be known through intellect without Allah's informing, but whoever Allah informs through revelation or inspiration knows them. (11) Shaykh Mullajiun likewise wrote that, although no one knows these five matters independently besides Allah, Allah may inform whichever of His beloved servants and saints He chooses, because خبیر carries the meaning of One who informs. (12)

The conclusion is that the Messenger's words mean: “O جبریل, I do not know more than you; both of us have been informed of the Hour, but Allah commanded me to conceal this knowledge from the public.” The intended teaching was that intrinsic knowledge of the Hour belongs only to Allah and that a believer need only believe in the Hour, not seek its exact time. No one can acquire that knowledge without Allah's informing.

1 Angels may come in human form, as جبریل came to the Prophetic Court in the form of a man.

2 Asking a person about something does not prove that the questioner is ignorant. جبریل knew the matters about which he asked the Messenger ﷺ, but asked so that the people could hear the answers from the tongue of Prophethood and learn their religion.

The repeated claim that, if the Messenger ﷺ knew something, why would he ask people about it, is a great deception. Questions have many purposes and need not be asked only about what is unknown. Examiners ask students questions despite knowing the answers; no sensible person says that an examiner must be ignorant of the answers because he asked them.

3 If an answer is beyond the understanding of ordinary listeners, or concealing it from the public serves a benefit, scholars are not required to give the full answer in a public gathering. The Messenger ﷺ knew the Hour, but because Allah had commanded him not to disclose that knowledge, he did not give جبریل a clear public answer. Every statement has a point and every point has its proper place. والله تعالى اعلم بالصواب.

4 [1] Ikmal fi Asma al-Rijal, section on the Companions, p. 622; Fuyud al-Bari, first part, Book of Faith, vol. 1, p. 177.

5 [2] Fuyud al-Bari, first part, Book of Faith, vol. 1, p. 258, summarised.

6 [3] Ashiat al-Lama'at, Book of Faith, vol. 1, p. 41, summarised.

7 [4] Ashiat al-Lama'at, Book of Major Sins and Signs of Hypocrisy, vol. 1, p. 78.

8 [5] Translation of Kanz al-Iman: “Indeed Allah has the knowledge of the Hour, sends down rain, knows what is in the wombs, no soul knows what it will earn tomorrow, and no soul knows in which land it will die. Indeed Allah is All-Knowing, All-Informed.” (Part 21, Luqman 34.)

9 [6] Translation of Kanz al-Iman: “They do not disobey Allah's command and do what they are commanded.” (Part 28, al-Tahrim 6.)

10 [7] Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of Knowledge, chapter on one asked about knowledge, hadith 59, vol. 1, p. 36, summarised.

11 [8] Translation of Kanz al-Iman: “People ask you about the Hour; say, ‘Its knowledge is only with Allah.’” (Part 22, al-Ahzab 63.)

12 [9] Hashiyah al-Sawi, Surah al-Ahzab, under verse 63, vol. 5, p. 1658.

13 [10] Translation of Kanz al-Iman: “Indeed Allah is All-Knowing, All-Informed.” (Part 21, Luqman 34.)

14 [11] Ashiat al-Lama'at, Book of Faith, vol. 1, p. 48.

15 [12] al-Tafsirāt al-Ahmadiyyah, Surah Luqman under verse 34, pp. 608–609.

عَنْ اَبِیْ ھُرَیْرَۃَ عَنِ النَّبِیِّ صَلَّی اللّٰہ عَلَیْہِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ:اَلْاِیْمَانُ بِضْعٌ وَّ سِتُّوْنَ شُعْبَۃً وَّالْحَیَائُ شُعْبَۃٌ مِّنَ الْاِیْمَانِ (صحیح البخاری،کتاب الایمان،باب امور الایمان، الحدیث:۹، ج۱،ص۱۵)

Abu Hurayrah رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ narrates that the Noble Prophet ﷺ said: “Faith has more than sixty branches, and modesty is a major branch of faith.” This hadith was also recorded by Muslim, Nasa'i, Abu Dawud, and Ibn Majah.

The word بِضْعٌ is used for a number from three to nine. شُعْبَۃٌ means a branch. حَیَائٌ means modesty or shame, called laj in Hindi. Allamah Baydawi explained حَیَاء as اَلْحَیَائُ اِنْقِبَاضُ النَّفْسِ عَنِ الْقَبِیْحِ مُخَافَۃَ الذَّمِّ, “the soul's shrinking away from evil out of fear of blame.” It is a quality between shamelessness and excessive embarrassment. Shamelessness is having no hesitation before even the worst actions. Excessive embarrassment is being so shy that one hesitates before both good and bad actions. Modesty is hesitating before evil because people will blame it, while not hesitating before good. Shamelessness and excessive embarrassment are blameworthy; modesty is an excellent and praiseworthy quality.

The Messenger ﷺ compared faith to a tree with many small and large branches, making it green, shady, attractive, and beautiful. Faith likewise has many qualities that enhance its beauty and make the believer dignified and trustworthy among creation and worthy of honour in the Divine Court. More than sixty qualities are branches of faith, and modesty is one of its most important and greatest branches.

If all the branches of a beautiful tree were cut away and only a stump remained, it would no longer deserve to be called a tree. If some branches were cut, its beauty, shade, flowers, and fruit would diminish. If a major branch supporting its growth were cut, the entire tree might dry up and become fuel for fire. Faith is similar. If all its qualities disappear, faith is destroyed. As qualities disappear, the light and beauty of faith diminish. If an especially important quality that is a sign and distinction of faith is ruined, faith itself may be endangered. The Messenger ﷺ therefore said: اَلْحَیَائُ شُعْبَۃٌ مِنَ الْاِیْمَانِ, “Modesty is a major branch of faith.”

All the qualities of faith and acts of Islam are confined to two categories: commands and prohibitions, doing good and avoiding evil. A Muslim who possesses modesty naturally refrains from evil and avoids many prohibitions. Through one quality, modesty, many qualities of faith are found. It is therefore one of the greatest branches of the tree of faith.

The narration in Bukhari says that faith has more than sixty branches, while other narrations say بِضْعٌ وَّسَبْعُونَ, more than seventy. There is no contradiction: what is above seventy is also above sixty. Some commentators said that the numbers are not meant as exact limits but as an expression of abundance, just as a person says, “I commanded you fifty times” or “I prohibited you seventy times” to mean “many times,” not that he counted each occasion.

Allamah Ayni and others counted seventy-seven branches. All the rulings of Islam, whether beliefs, words, or actions, such as the testimony of faith, prayer, fasting, Hajj, zakat, the rights of Allah, and the rights of people, are branches and qualities of faith. Each increases the beauty and vitality of the tree of faith, while abandoning each deprives it of beauty and freshness.

1 Muslims are not equal in rank. The Muslim with more qualities of faith is certainly higher in rank than the one with fewer.

2 Faith is the foundation and actions are its branches. Where actions are called faith in the Quran and hadith, this is figurative. The Quran repeatedly says اٰمَنُوْا وَعَمِلُوا الصّٰلِحٰتِ, joining faith and righteous actions; the conjunction shows that they are distinct. Actions are the qualities, signs, effects, and fruits of faith.

3 Modesty is a priceless and precious quality of the believer. When a believer has no modesty, a major branch of his tree of faith has been cut. An ancient Arab proverb, confirmed by Prophethood, says: اِذَا لَمْ تَسْتَحِیْ فَاصْنَعْ مَا شِئْتَ, “When you have no modesty, do whatever you wish.” Its Persian rendering is, “Be shameless; do whatever you wish.” (1)

4 [1] Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of the Hadiths of the Prophets, chapter 56, hadith 3484, vol. 2, p. 470.

عَنْ اَبِیْ مُوْسٰی الْاَشْعَرِیِّ قَالَ:قَالُوْا:یَارَسُوْلَ اللّٰہ اَیُّ الْاِسْلَامِ اَفْضَلُ قَالَ:مَنْ سَلِمَ الْمُسْلِمُوْنَ مِنْ لِّسَانِہٖ وَیَدِہٖ۔ ( صحیح البخاری،کتاب الایمان،باب ایّ الاسلام افضل؟،الحدیث:۱۱،ج۱،ص۱۶)

Abu Musa al-Ashari رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ narrates that the Companions asked, “O Messenger of Allah عزَّوَجَلَّ و ﷺ, which Islam is most excellent?” He replied: “The Islam of the person from whose tongue and hand all Muslims remain safe.”

Abu Musa al-Ashari رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ was a renowned Companion from the Ashar tribe of Yemen. He accepted Islam in Makkah, migrated from Makkah to Abyssinia, and then migrated from Abyssinia to Madinah. The Messenger ﷺ appointed him governor of Zubayd and Aden on the coast of Yemen. During the caliphate of Umar al-Faruq رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ, he was appointed governor of Kufah and Basrah. Three hundred and sixty hadiths are narrated from him, and many Companions and Successors were his students, especially his sons Abu Burdah, Abu Bakr, Ibrahim, and Musa. Fuyud al-Bari states that fifty-four of his narrations are in Bukhari, while Qastallani states that Bukhari contains fifty-seven. (1)

Qastallani says that he was called back from this world in Kufah in 41, 44, or 45 AH, while Ikmal fi Asma al-Rijal states that he departed in Makkah in 52 AH. والله تعالى اعلم. (2) (3)

Muslim and Nasa'i recorded this hadith in the Book of Faith and Tirmidhi in the Book of Asceticism. Another Muslim narration uses “Which of the Muslims is most excellent?” instead of “Which Islam is most excellent?” The meaning is that the best Muslim is one from whose tongue and hand every Muslim remains safe: he neither harms a Muslim by his speech nor troubles one by his hand.

Harm can be caused by limbs other than the tongue and hand, and harming a Muslim with any limb is unlawful. The tongue and hand are mentioned specifically because most human actions are performed by them. The tongue is mentioned first because causing harm through it is more common and easier. Through abuse, false accusations, slander, backbiting, tale-bearing, and commands of injustice, a person can inflict hundreds of injuries in one minute. Tongue wounds are also far more painful than wounds of the hand or other limbs. A poet said:

The wounds of spears can heal,
But what the tongue wounds never heals.

Harm from the tongue can reach those far away as well as those nearby, whereas the hand and feet generally harm only those close by. The Prophetic teaching therefore means that the Islam of the Muslim who never harms another Muslim is superior to that of those who continually cause harm.

2 This hadith is among the جوامعُ الکلم: its brief words contain a sea of meanings, teachings, and commands. If Muslims truly acted upon it, they would fulfil all the details of the rights of people. Oppression, treachery, theft, robbery, immorality, black-marketing, usury, breach of promises, dishonesty, backbiting, tale-bearing, accusations, abuse, murder, bloodshed, and thousands of other faults have entered Muslim society and harm the whole community. There is scarcely a Muslim who does not suffer harm from Muslims, or who is not caught in accountability for violating people's rights.

If Muslims made this command of the Messenger ﷺ their guiding principle and rule of life, then, by Allah, this one hadith would guarantee the peace of the entire Muslim community. When every Muslim made it his duty that no movement of his should cause another Muslim loss, pain, or distress, Muslim society would become a cradle of peace, safety, comfort, and well-being. Police stations and courts would no longer be needed. Yet it is deeply regrettable that Muslims search for cures to their communal diseases in government halls, the laws of disbelievers and polytheists, political party offices, and the hospitals of communism and socialism, while forgetting the effective remedies from the “house of healing” in Madinah. By Allah, the honoured being of the Messenger of Mercy ﷺ is the one about whom it can be proclaimed with complete certainty:

He is the skilled physician whose single prescription is the Furqanic Revelation,
The remedy for every bodily and spiritual illness.

3 [1] Fuyud al-Bari, first part, Book of Faith, chapter “Which Islam is most excellent?”, vol. 1, p. 179.

4 [2] Irshad al-Sari, Book of Faith, chapter “Which Islam is most excellent?”, under hadith 11, vol. 1, p. 160.

5 [3] Ikmal fi Asma al-Rijal, section on the Companions, p. 618.

عَنْ اَنَسٍ عَنِ النَّبِیِّ صَلَّی اللّٰہ عَلَیْہِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ:لَا یُؤْمِنُ اَحَدُکُمْ حَتّٰی یُحِبَّ لِاَخِیْہِ مَا یُحِبُّ لِنَفْسِہٖ۔ ( صحیح البخاری،کتاب الایمان،باب من الایمان ان۔۔۔الخ، الحدیث:۱۳،ج۱،ص۱۶)

Anas رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ narrates that the Noble Prophet ﷺ said: “None of you is a complete believer until he likes for his believing brother what he likes for himself.”

The narrator, Anas ibn Malik رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ, was a great and virtuous Companion. His kunyah was Abu Hamzah, and he was an Ansari from Madinah Munawwarah. From the age of ten he remained in the Prophetic Court as a personal servant and had the honour of serving the Messenger of Mercy ﷺ continuously for ten years during travel and residence. The Messenger ﷺ happily prayed for blessing in his life, wealth, and children. As a blessed effect, his garden bore fruit twice a year and the fruits carried the fragrance of musk. He had one hundred sons from several wives and slave-girls. He lived to the age of one hundred and was called back from this world in Basrah in 93 AH. The renowned blessed hadith scholar Muhammad ibn Sirin رحمۃ اللّٰہ علیہ washed him, and he was buried in Basrah near the palace of Hajjaj ibn Yusuf, the governor.

Many hadiths are narrated from him. The six canonical collections together record 2,286 hadiths narrated by him, and Bukhari contains 251 of his narrations. Qastallani, however, wrote that Bukhari contains 268 hadiths narrated by Anas ibn Malik رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ. والله تعالى اعلم. (1)

This hadith completes the preceding hadith and is the second link in the chain of the rights of people. The first link is that a Muslim must make it his life's rule that no Muslim suffers harm from him. The second is that a Muslim must make it his life's rule to like for another Muslim the treatment and dealings he likes for himself.

Everyone likes for himself that no one harm him, disgrace him, mistreat him, deceive or cheat him, or trouble him, his relatives, or those he loves. Everyone also likes honour, good reputation, wealth, prosperity, health, safety, goodness in all matters, a good life, comfort, and ease.

In the light of this hadith, everyone must like for every Muslim whatever he likes for himself. When a Muslim adopts this way of thinking and living, he will never violate another Muslim's rights. He will become clear as a mirror of greed, envy, hatred, rancour, hypocrisy, discord, conflict, and bloodshed. Muslim society will become a paradise of comfort, peace, and security, attractive to the whole world, and the world that longs for peace and tranquillity will find refuge in the mercy of Islamic society. Then Muslims will be able to proclaim throughout the world:

Tell the lovers of atoms and science:
Hold fast to the garment of Truth; even now you can reform.

If you turn away from obeying Muhammad ﷺ,
You will burn in the fire you yourselves have kindled.

1 Imam Muslim, Tirmidhi, and Nasa'i recorded this hadith in their Books of Faith.

2 The words لَا یُؤْمِنُ appear in this hadith. Their apparent translation is that a person is not a believer until he likes for his Muslim brothers what he likes for himself. All commentators agree, however, that the word “completely” or an equivalent is understood here. The meaning is that a person is not a complete and perfect Muslim until he likes for his Muslim brothers everything he likes for himself.

It is necessary to understand “completely,” because the absence of this quality does not remove a Muslim from Islam. If a person believes in all the necessities of religion, he remains a Muslim even if this quality is missing. His Islam has suffered a deficiency in excellence, and he is deprived of the perfection of Islam, but he is not outside the faith.

Teachers and students of hadith should note that many hadiths describe one particular action as a sign of Islam. One hadith says that a Muslim is one from whose tongue and hand all Muslims are safe; another says that the best Islam belongs to one who feeds people and spreads greetings of peace. These hadiths do not mean that someone who possesses one quality becomes a complete Muslim merely through it while neglecting the other acts and pillars of Islam. Nor do they mean that only this one Islamic action is necessary and all other acts are unnecessary. Allah forbid, this is not their meaning.

Rather, when the Messenger ﷺ identifies one action as a sign of Islam or faith, he intends to show its great importance from a particular perspective. For example, he said: لَا صَلٰوۃَ اِلَّابِحُضُوْرِ الْقَلْبِ, “There is no prayer except with presence of heart.” This does not mean that presence of heart alone makes a prayer valid and that its conditions and pillars are unnecessary. It means that presence of heart is extremely important and is a major quality in prayer.

Likewise, when hadiths say that one who commits certain sins or abandons certain righteous deeds is not a believer, they do not mean that the person has left Islam and become a disbeliever. They mean that the sinner or one who abandons the righteous deed is not a Muslim of the complete degree and is deprived of the high rank of perfect faith.

The purpose of these hadiths is not to state a legal ruling of disbelief. Their purpose is to describe the evil of bad actions with strong emphasis, restrain Muslims from them, and encourage Muslims toward good deeds by describing their excellence. Ignorance of the Prophetic style and of the true meaning of these hadiths led the Mu'tazilites and Kharijites to take the apparent meaning and declare sinful Muslims outside Islam, falling themselves into deep misguidance. Some ignorant preachers today likewise read translations and say, “One who abandons prayer is not a Muslim,” or, “One who does not honour promises and trusts is not a Muslim.” This is completely wrong. A person who abandons prayer is certainly a Muslim, though not a Muslim of the complete degree. Likewise, one who fails to keep promises and trusts is sinful but unquestionably remains a Muslim.

The duty of Sunni scholars is to explain the true position in detail whenever they quote such hadiths, so that uninformed people do not fall into misguidance. The duty of the public is not to allow ignorant preachers onto the pulpit of the Messenger or to listen to their sermons, lest hearing an incorrect meaning from them damage their beliefs and destroy their faith. والمولٰی تعالیٰ ھوالموفق!

I have conveyed what is required for conveying;
Take counsel from my words, or take offence.

3 [1] Irshad al-Sari, Book of Faith, chapter on loving for one's brother, under hadith 13, vol. 1, p. 162; Fuyud al-Bari, first part, Book of Faith, vol. 1, p. 187; Umdat al-Qari, Book of Faith, under hadith 13, vol. 1, p. 217.

عَنْ عَبْدِ اللّٰہ بْنِ عَمْرٍو اَنَّ النَّبِیَّ صَلَّی اللّٰہ عَلَیْہِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ اَرْبَعٌ مَنْ کُنَّ فِیْہِ کَانَ مُنَافِقًا خالِصًا وَمَنْ کَانَتْ فِیْہِ خَصْلَۃٌ مِّنْھُنَّ کَانَتْ فِیْہِ خَصْلَۃٌ مِّنَ النِّفَاقِ حَتّٰی یَدَعَھَا اِذَا اؤْتُمِنَ خَانَ وَاِذَا حَدَّثَ کَذَبَ وَاِذَا عَاھَدَ غَدَرَ وَاِذَا خَاصَمَ فَجَرَ ( صحیح البخاری،کتاب الایمان،باب علامۃ المنافق، الحدیث:۳۴، ج۱، ص۲۵)

Abdullah ibn Amr رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ narrates that the Noble Prophet ﷺ said: “There are four qualities: whoever possesses all four is a complete hypocrite, and whoever possesses one of them has one quality of hypocrisy until he abandons it: 1 when entrusted, he betrays the trust; 2 when he speaks, he lies; 3 when he makes a covenant, he breaks it; and 4 when he quarrels, he uses foul language.”

The narrator of this hadith is Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-As رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ, a highly distinguished Companion, scholar, memoriser of the Quran, and great worshipper and ascetic. He belonged to the Quraysh branch Banu Sahm and was therefore called al-Sahmi al-Qurashi. He accepted Islam and migrated before his father, Amr ibn al-As رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ. He would weep from fear of Allah at night until his eyes developed an eye ailment, for which his mother used to prepare kohl. He asked the Messenger ﷺ for permission to write hadiths. Although the Messenger ﷺ had generally prohibited people from writing hadiths and had commanded that only the Quran be written, so that the Quran and hadith would not become mixed, he granted Abdullah permission because he had complete confidence in his carefulness. Abdullah had a very large number of students in hadith.

It is remarkable that there is great disagreement about the date of death and grave of such a renowned Companion. Some say that he was called back from this world in Makkah in 63 AH, some in 73 AH, some say that he passed away in Taif in 55 AH, and others say that he departed in Egypt in 65 AH. (1) Allah تعالى knows best. (Ikmal wa Irshad al-Sari, vol. 1, p. 251.)

There are two kinds of hypocrites: 1 the hypocrite in belief and 2 the hypocrite in conduct.

A hypocrite in belief is one who outwardly professes Islam but conceals disbelief in his heart. During the time of the Noble Prophet ﷺ, there was a group of hypocrites, including Abdullah ibn Ubayy, who outwardly recited the testimony of faith and observed fasting, prayer, Hajj, and zakat, but rejected Islam inwardly. Hypocrisy was present in their faith and creed. A hypocrite in belief is a disbeliever, indeed worse than a disbeliever. The Quran says: اِنَّ الْمُنٰـفِقِیْنَ فِی الدَّرْکِ الْاَسْفَلِ مِنَ النَّارِ (2), meaning that hypocrites in belief will be placed in the lowest level of Hell.

A hypocrite in conduct is someone whose faith and beliefs contain no defect or hypocrisy, and who is Muslim inwardly and outwardly, but whose particular actions and qualities resemble those of hypocrites.

The hypocrite mentioned in this hadith is the hypocrite in conduct, and the four qualities are hypocritical actions and conduct: 1 betraying a trust, 2 lying when speaking, 3 deceiving someone after making a covenant, and 4 abusing someone during a quarrel.

These four qualities are absolutely not the qualities of a believer. They are the qualities of hypocrites and are major sins. Just as a Muslim must avoid disbelief, polytheism, and every major sin, he must also protect himself from the filth and foulness of hypocritical qualities and conduct, which are certainly vile traits.

All scholars of the Ummah agree that although these four qualities are traits and signs of hypocrites, if all four are found in a sincere believer, it is correct to say that he possesses the habits and signs of hypocrites; it is not correct to say that he has become a hypocrite. Possessing a hypocrite's habit and sign is one matter, while becoming a hypocrite is another.

Consider the example of a Sayyid's son who steals sugarcane from a field, rolls in dust, and returns covered in mud. His father scolds him and says, “You have the qualities and habits of chamars.” The child's possession of chamars' qualities does not make the Sayyid's son a chamar. Similarly, if a Muslim possesses the habits of hypocrites, it does not make that Muslim a hypocrite.

2 Some commentators say that this Prophetic statement concerns the hypocrites who lived during the Prophetic era, all of whom were hypocrites in belief. Abdullah ibn Abbas رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہما and others said that they asked the Messenger ﷺ about this hadith. He smiled and said that the four qualities he had described concerned the hypocrites about whom the surah beginning اِذَا جَآئَ کَ الْمُنٰـفِقُوْنَ (3) was revealed. “Is their condition also yours?” They replied, “No.” He said, “This hadith does not concern you; you are free from it.” (Ayni, vol. 1, p. 259.)

Based on this narration, the hadith describes the signs of the hypocrites of the Prophetic era: betrayal, lying, deception, abusive speech, and filthy qualities. In any case, these four habits are among the worst traits. Every Muslim must therefore avoid them, for the presence of hypocritical signs in a believer is such a filthy stain upon his faith that even the seven seas cannot wash it away without repentance and abandonment of those habits.

The first sign of hypocrisy is betraying a trust. A trust is anything handed to someone by another person for protection. Any use of the trust by its custodian without the owner's permission and against the owner's intention is betrayal.

A trust is not limited to money and possessions. Speech, secrets, and responsibilities are also trusts. If someone tells you a secret and says, “Beware, this is entrusted to you; do not mention it to anyone,” that speech becomes a trust and you become its custodian. If you tell it to someone, you have betrayed the trust.

Allah تعالى has entrusted His servants with wealth, intellect, authority, eyes, ears, hands, feet, bodily organs, and various powers, commanding them to use these trusts according to His command. Failing to fulfil the rights of Allah in these trusts is also betrayal. The Lord of the worlds says: اِنَّ السَّمْعَ وَالْبَصَرَ وَالْفُؤَادَ کُلُّ اُولٰٓئِکَ کَانَ عَنْہُ مَسْئُوْلًاo (5), meaning that the ears, eyes, and heart will all be questioned as to whether any of Allah's trusts were betrayed.

The Messenger ﷺ said: “اَلْمُسْتَشَارُ مُؤْتَمَنٌ” (6), meaning that a person whose advice is sought becomes a trustee. If he knowingly gives wrong advice, he is a betrayer.

The scope of betrayal is very broad. The rights of all entitled people are trusts, so failing to fulfil someone's right is betrayal. The private conversations and matters between husband and wife are also trusts, and each is the other's custodian; revealing such a secret is betrayal. An employee is entrusted with his duty, and a ruler is entrusted with his duties toward his subjects. If an employee fails to perform his duty or a ruler commits oppression, that too is betrayal. There are many forms of betraying a trust, and betrayal of every kind of trust is unlawful and sinful. The Most Forgiving, Most Merciful says: یٰٓـاَیُّھَا الَّذِیْنَ اٰمَنُوْا لَا تَخُوْنُوا اللّٰہ وَالرَّسُوْ لَ وَتَخُوْنُوْآ اَمٰـنٰـتِکُمْ وَاَنْتُمْ تَعْلَمُوْنَo (7), meaning: “O believers, do not betray Allah and the Messenger, and do not knowingly betray your trusts.”

Lying is a cursed habit, strictly unlawful and a major sin. The Quran describes people as liars in different places: اُولٰئِکَ ھُمُ الْکٰذِبُوْنَo (8), sometimes as a quality of polytheists, sometimes of disbelievers, hypocrites, or sinners.

A hadith of Bukhari and Muslim says: “Guard yourselves against lying, for lying leads to immorality, and immorality leads to Hell. A person continues to lie and seeks out lies until he is recorded in the Divine register as a great liar.” (9) (Mishkat, chapter on guarding the tongue.)

Someone asked the Messenger ﷺ, “Can a believer be cowardly?” He said, “Yes.” He asked, “Can a believer be miserly?” He said, “Yes.” He then asked, “Can a believer be a liar?” He said, “No.” (10) (Mishkat, chapter on guarding the tongue.)

To make an agreement or promise and then abandon it without a valid legal excuse is breaking a covenant and deception, which are unlawful and sinful. Allah جلَّ مجدُہٗ says: یٰٓـاَیُّھَا الَّذِیْنَ اٰمَنُوْآ اَوْفُوْا بِالْعُقُوْدِ (11), meaning: “O believers, fulfil your covenants and promises.”

Breaking a covenant with a created being is unlawful and sinful; breaking a covenant with the Creator and Master, Allah تعالى, is even more unlawful and sinful. Allah has taken a covenant from every person to affirm His Oneness, and He has taken a special covenant from scholars never to conceal the truth. Muslims or scholars who, for worldly benefit, seek the pleasure of polytheists by participating in polytheistic acts, conceal the word of truth, or remain silent instead of explaining it are also guilty of breaking a covenant and deceiving Allah.

Abuse, slander, and foul speech, especially toward a Muslim brother, are extremely vile, blameworthy, and disgusting habits. Even joking with a Muslim in a way that hurts him, or calling him by a name that causes him pain, is forbidden by Allah. Consider the following verse of Surah al-Hujurat and repent of hypocritical ways and sinful habits: یٰۤاَیُّهَا الَّذِیْنَ اٰمَنُوا لَا یَسْخَرْ قَوْمٌ مِّنْ قَوْمٍ عَسٰۤى اَنْ یَّكُوْنُوْا خَیْرًا مِّنْهُمْ وَ لَا نِسَآءٌ مِّنْ نِّسَآءٍ عَسٰۤى اَنْ یَّكُنَّ خَیْرًا مِّنْهُنَّۚ-وَ لَا تَلْمِزُوْۤا اَنْفُسَكُمْ وَ لَا تَنَابَزُوْا بِالْاَلْقَابِؕ-بِئْسَ الِاسْمُ الْفُسُوقُ بَعْدَ الْاِیْمَانِۚ-وَ مَنْ لَّمْ یَتُبْ فَاُولٰٓىٕكَ هُمُ الظّٰلِمُوْنَ (12)o. “O believers, let not men mock other men; perhaps those mocked are better than the mockers. Nor let women mock other women; perhaps those mocked are better than the mockers. Do not taunt one another, nor call one another by bad names. How evil is the name of disobedience after faith! Those who do not repent are the wrongdoers.”

Allah is the Greatest! If even joking in a way that hurts a believer is impermissible, and calling a believer by an insulting name is impermissible, how could abusing a believer be permissible? A hadith says: “سَبَابُ الْمُسْلِمِ فُسوقٌ وَقِتاَلُہٗ کُفرٌ” (13), meaning: “Abusing a Muslim is disobedience, and fighting a Muslim is the work of disbelievers.” Hurting a Muslim with abuse or obscene speech is the quality and way of hypocrites. Abusing, speaking nonsense, and using indecent language are never the work or quality of a believer. والله تعالى اعلم.

3 [1] Ikmal fi Asma al-Rijal, letter Ayn, section on the Companions, p. 605.
4 [2] Translation of Kanz al-Iman: “Indeed the hypocrites are in the lowest level of Hell.” (Part 5, al-Nisa 145.)
5 [3] Translation of Kanz al-Iman: “When the hypocrites come to you.” (Part 28, al-Munafiqun 1.)
6 [4] Umdat al-Qari, Book of Faith, chapter on the signs of a hypocrite, under hadith 33, vol. 1, p. 330, abridged.
7 [5] Translation of Kanz al-Iman: “Indeed the ears, the eyes, and the heart, all these shall be questioned.” (Part 15, Bani Isra'il 36.)
8 [6] Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Book of Manners, chapter on the one consulted being entrusted, hadith 2831, vol. 4, p. 375.
9 [7] Translation of Kanz al-Iman: “O believers, do not betray Allah and the Messenger, nor knowingly betray your trusts.” (Part 9, al-Anfal 27.)
10 [8] Translation of Kanz al-Iman: “They are the liars.” (Part 14, al-Nahl 105.)
11 [9] Mishkat al-Masabih, Book of Manners, chapter on guarding the tongue, hadith 4824, vol. 2, p. 191.
12 [10] Mishkat al-Masabih, Book of Manners, chapter on guarding the tongue, hadith 4862, vol. 2, p. 196.
13 [11] Translation of Kanz al-Iman: “O believers, fulfil your words.” (Part 6, al-Maidah 1.)
14 [12] Translation of Kanz al-Iman: “O believers, let not men mock other men; perhaps those mocked are better than the mockers, and nor women mock other women; perhaps those mocked are better than the mockers. Do not taunt one another, nor call one another by bad names. How evil is the name of disobedience after faith! Those who do not repent are the wrongdoers.” (Part 26, al-Hujurat 11.)
15 [13] Mishkat al-Masabih, Book of Manners, chapter on guarding the tongue, hadith 4814, vol. 2, p. 190.

عَنْ عَامِرٍ قَالَ:سَمِعْتُ النُّعْمَانَ بْنَ بَشِیْرٍ یَقُوْلُ:سَمِعْتُ رَسُوْلَ اللّٰہ صَلَّی اللّٰہ عَلَیْہِ وَسَلَّمَ یَقُوْلُ اَلْحَلَالُ بَیِّنٌ وَالْحَرَامُ بَیِّنٌ وَبَیْنَھُمَا مُشْتَبِھَاتٌ لَا یَعْلَمُھَا کَثِیْرٌ مِنَ النَّاسِ فَمَنِ اتَّقَی الْمُشَبَّھَاتِ اِسْتَبْرَأَ لِدِیْنِہٖ وَ عِرْضِہٖ وَمَنْ وَّقَعَ فیِ الشُّبُھَاتِ کَرَاعٍ یَرْعٰی حَوْلَ الْحِمٰی یُوْشِکُ اَنْ یُّوَاقِعَہٗ اَلَا وَاِنَّ لِکُلِّ مَلِکٍ حِمًی اَلَا اِنَّ حِمَی اللّٰہ فِیْ اَرْضِہٖ مَحَارِمُہٗ اَلَا وَاِنَّ فِی الْجَسَدِ مُضْغَۃً اِذَا صَلَحَتْ صَلَحَ الْجَسَدُ کُلُّہٗ وَاِذَا فَسَدَتْ فَسَدَ الْجَسَدُ کُلُّہٗ اَلَا وَھِیَ الْقَلْبُ (صحیح البخاری،کتاب الایمان،باب فضل من استبرأ لدینہ،الحدیث:۵۲،ج۱،ص۳۳)

Amir al-Sha'bi narrates: “I heard al-Numan ibn Bashir رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ say that he heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say: ‘The lawful is clear and the unlawful is clear. Between them are doubtful matters that many people do not know. Whoever avoids doubtful matters protects his religion and honour, while whoever falls into doubtful matters is like a shepherd grazing around a protected pasture, who is close to entering it. Listen carefully: every king has a protected pasture, and Allah's protected pasture on His earth is what He has made unlawful. Listen carefully: there is a piece of flesh in the body which, when sound, makes the whole body sound, and when corrupt, makes the whole body corrupt. Listen carefully: it is the heart.’”

The narrator, al-Numan ibn Bashir al-Ansari رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ, was a famous Companion. Both his parents were Companions. He was the first child born among the Ansar after the Migration. He was eight years and seven months old when the Messenger ﷺ was called back from this world. During the rule of Amir Muawiyah رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ, he was governor of Kufah. One hundred and fourteen hadiths are narrated from him. About thirty Companions were named al-Numan, but this is the only al-Numan ibn Bashir. He was martyred in Homs in 64 or 65 AH. (Ikmal and Fuyud al-Bari, vol. 1, p. 202.)

The lawful and unlawful matters are clear: every scholar knows that what the Quran and hadith declare lawful, such as water, wheat, rice, and fruit, is lawful, and what they declare unlawful, such as wine, carrion, and pork, is unlawful. Some matters, however, are doubtful because conflicting evidence means that many people do not know whether they are lawful or unlawful. Whoever avoids doubtful matters along with unlawful matters protects his religion and honour. Whoever does not avoid doubtful matters will eventually fall into the unlawful. He resembles a shepherd grazing his animals around a king's protected pasture: sooner or later the animals will enter it, and the shepherd will be seized by the punishment of royal anger.

The Messenger ﷺ explains that just as every king has a protected pasture where animals may not graze, the King of kings, Allah تعالى, has declared certain things unlawful and forbidden everyone to approach them. These unlawful things are Allah's protected pasture. A Muslim must therefore avoid both unlawful and doubtful matters.

The Messenger ﷺ then said that there is a piece of flesh in the human body which, although small, is so important that if it is sound, the whole body is sound, and if it is corrupt, the whole body is corrupt. Every good or bad thought and feeling arises in the heart, and every limb acts according to those thoughts and feelings. The heart is therefore the ruler, indeed the king, of all the limbs. If goodness arises in it, every limb engages in good deeds; if evil arises in it, every limb becomes occupied with sinful actions. The soundness or corruption of the entire body depends on the heart. All scholars of Sacred Law and spiritual masters agree that the heart is the noblest limb and the king of the whole body. Every Muslim must therefore reform his heart.

All Islamic beliefs and the remembrance and meditation of the noble Sufis are directed toward reforming the heart. When the heart is reformed and deserves to be called a sound heart, calling it equal to the Divine Throne and comparable to the House of Allah expresses a reality as clear as the sun. Mawlana Asi رحمۃ اللّٰہ علیہ said about this heart:

When the idol of self-conceit departs from it,
This heart surpasses the Ka'bah in rank.

Alas, we did not make it His special house;
We made it a mosque and a temple instead.

Another gnostic beautifully praised the greatness of the believer's heart:

The heart too has a station, O preacher, before the mosque and spiritual retreat!

1 Imam Bukhari, Muslim, and Nasa'i also mentioned this hadith in the Book of Sales, while Ibn Majah recorded it in the Book of Tribulations.

2 Allamah Khattabi said that the words لَا یَعْلَمُھَا کَثِیْرٌ مِنَ النَّاسِ show that most people, meaning ordinary people, do not know the ruling of doubtful matters. Some people, namely the expert mujtahid Imams, examine conflicting evidence through scholarly insight and recognise whether doubtful matters are unlawful or lawful. Doubtful matters are doubtful only for ordinary people deprived of juristic insight. (Ayni, vol. 1, p. 350.) It is nevertheless possible that a mujtahid may fail to recognise the ruling of some doubtful matter despite deep reflection on the evidence. It is well known that Imam Abu Hanifah رحمۃ اللّٰہ علیہ used to say regarding date-wine, “I cannot use it myself, but I cannot issue a ruling that it is unlawful.” He said this because he was uncertain about its ruling; piety therefore required avoiding even doubtful matters. (Fuyud al-Bari, vol. 1, pp. 203–204.)

3 This hadith shows that every matter whose lawfulness or unlawfulness is doubtful should be avoided. والله تعالى اعلم.

4 [1] Ikmal fi Asma al-Rijal, letter Nun, section on the Companions, p. 620; Fuyud al-Bari, first part, Book of Faith, vol. 1, p. 277.
5 [2] Umdat al-Qari, Book of Faith, chapter on protecting one's religion, under hadith 52, vol. 1, p. 440, abridged.
6 [3] Fuyud al-Bari, first part, Book of Faith, vol. 1, pp. 278–279, abridged.

قَالَ حُمَیْدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمٰنِ:سَمِعْتُ مُعَاوِیَۃَ خَطِیْبًا یَقُوْلُ:سَمِعْتُ النَّبِیَّ صَلَّی اللّٰہ عَلَیْہِ وَسَلَّمَ یَقُوْلُ:مَنْ یُّرِدِ اللّٰہ بِہٖ خَیْرًا یُّفَقِّھْہُ فِی الدِّیْنِ وَاِنَّمَا اَنَا قَاسِمٌ وَاللّٰہ یُعْطِیْ وَلَنْ تَزَالَ ھٰذِہِ الْاُمَّۃُ قَائِمَۃً عَلٰی اَمْرِاللّٰہ لَا یَضُرُّھُمْ مَنْ خَالَفَھُمْ حَتّٰی یَأتِیَ اَمْرُ اللّٰہ ( صحیح البخاری،کتاب العلم،باب من یرد اللّٰہ بہ۔۔۔الخ،الحدیث:۷۱،ج۱،ص۴۲)

Humayd ibn Abd al-Rahman says: “I heard Amir Muawiyah رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ say while delivering a sermon that he heard the Noble Prophet ﷺ say: ‘Allah grants understanding of religion to the person for whom He intends goodness. I am only a distributor, and Allah grants. This Ummah will always have a group established upon Allah's command; those who oppose them will not harm them until Allah's command arrives.’”

Among the narrators of this hadith is the distinguished Amir Muawiyah رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ, son of the leader of Makkah, Abu Sufyan رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ. His noble mother was Hind. He accepted Islam in 8 AH, the year of the Conquest of Makkah, and became such a trusted Companion at the Prophetic Court that the Messenger ﷺ appointed him as a scribe of revelation. He served as governor of Syria during the era of the Rightly Guided Caliphs and later became the ruler of the entire Islamic world. He passed away in Rajab 60 AH at the age of seventy-eight. One hundred and thirty-six hadiths are narrated from him. (Fuyud al-Bari, vol. 1, p. 226.)

This hadith has three parts. The first means that when Allah تعالى makes a person a faqih in religion, granting him enough knowledge to understand religion with scholarly insight and knowledge of faith, one should know, indeed be certain, that Allah intends goodness and benefit for him. When Allah intends goodness for someone, He grants him religious knowledge and understanding.

The second part means that the Messenger ﷺ distributes Allah's blessings, while Allah تعالى grants the blessings. Allah has entrusted the distribution of all His blessings to the Messenger ﷺ; therefore no one receives any divine blessing without the Messenger's means and mediation.

The third part conveys news of the unseen: in every era there will certainly remain within the Ummah a group that stands firmly upon religion in every condition. Even if their opponents make every effort to harm them, they will not be able to harm them, and despite thousands of acts of oppression and injustice they will not move this group even a hair's breadth from the straight path.

1 The word fiqh has a linguistic and a technical meaning. Linguistically, it means understanding and knowledge. Technically, the rulings of Sacred Law are of two kinds: beliefs, such as faith in Divine Oneness, Prophethood, and the Hereafter; and practical rulings, such as prayer, fasting, Hajj, and zakat. Knowledge of the first is called theology, and knowledge of the second is called jurisprudence. In this hadith, the linguistic meaning is intended: Allah grants a person understanding of religion.

2 Scholars should reflect on the two sentences اِنَّمَا اَنَا قَاسِمٌ وَاللّٰہ یُعْطِیْ. Their objects are omitted: what does the Messenger distribute, and what does Allah grant? The hadith does not state them explicitly. The object of یُعْطِیْ is certainly کُلَّ شَیْیٍٔ, everything, because Allah تعالى is the Giver of every single thing. Therefore the object of قَاسِمٌ is also every single thing. The clear meaning is that Allah تعالى grants everything, and the Messenger ﷺ distributes everything Allah has granted.

No blessing or wealth granted by Allah تعالى reaches anyone without the means of the Noble Messenger ﷺ. سُبْحَانَ اللّٰہ:

Would God grant anything without his mediation? Never!
Such a desire is the error of the sightless.

3 In the phrase مَنْ یُّرِدِ اللّٰہ بِہٖ خَیْرًا, the word خَیْرًا is indefinite, either to indicate a kind of goodness or to express greatness. If it indicates a kind, the meaning is that Allah grants religious knowledge to the person for whom He intends a special kind of goodness. If it expresses greatness, the meaning is that Allah grants religious knowledge to the person for whom He intends immense and abundant goodness.

In every case, the great virtue of the true scholars is established. This statement of the Mercy to the worlds ﷺ also brings great glad tidings and comfort to them: when Allah عزَّوَجَلَّ intends special or immense goodness for religious scholars, no human or devil can ever overcome Allah's goodness. Whoever treats religious scholars with evil and hostility can never succeed.

Religious knowledge is the lamp of Truth; who can extinguish it?
When Allah is its protector, who can erase it?

Scholars must never suffer from an inferiority complex or be overawed by graduates and wealthy people. They should remember this Prophetic statement and the following hadith: “There are only two people whose lives are worthy of envy: a wealthy person who spends his wealth in Allah's path, and a scholar whom Allah has granted wisdom, meaning religious knowledge, who judges by it and teaches it to others.” (1) (Mishkat, Book of Knowledge.)

Observe that the Messenger ﷺ did not declare the life of any rich person, minister, or king worthy of envy apart from the generous wealthy person and the scholar of religion.

The sacred life of true scholars is therefore worthy of the envy of the whole world. They are shining lamps of guidance on Allah's earth. Allah has favoured them with His “immense goodness.” Predators, animals, birds, ants in their holes, and fish in the rivers make supplication for them. The sacred company of angels spreads its wings to please those seeking religious knowledge. سُبْحَانَ اللّٰہ! When the grace of the Creator, the prayers of creation, and the wings of angels honour religious scholars, there is no reason to grieve if a few worldly people of corrupt character look down upon the scholars of the Lord. Those who look down upon scholars today are the same people who have turned away from the commands of Allah's sacred Messengers, become arrogant because of worldly wealth, and are ruining their Hereafter by humiliating Allah's righteous servants.

True scholars must patiently endure the harm caused by arrogant and ill-natured ignorant people and must never become disheartened or leave the noble position of exalting the word of truth. Allah, the Holy, commanded His Beloved ﷺ: خُذِ الْعَفْوَ وَاْمُرْ بِالْعُرْفِ وَ اَعْرِضْ عَنِ الْجٰھِلِیْنَ (2)o, meaning: “O Beloved, adopt forgiveness, command goodness, and turn away from the ignorant.”

4 [1] Mishkat al-Masabih, Book of Knowledge, first section, hadith 202, vol. 1, p. 59.
5 [2] Translation of Kanz al-Iman: “O Beloved, adopt forgiveness, command goodness, and turn away from the ignorant.” (Part 9, al-Araf 199.)

سَمِعْتُ رِبْعِیَّ بْنَ حِرَاشٍ یَقُوْلُ:سَمِعْتُ عَلِیًّا یَّقُوْلُ: قَالَ النَّبِیُّ صَلَّی اللّٰہ عَلَیْہِ وَسَلَّمَ: لاَ تَکْذِبُوْا عَلَیَّ فَاِنَّہٗ مَنْ کَذَبَ عَلَیَّ فَلْیَلِجِ النَّارَ (صحیح البخاری،کتاب العلم،باب اثم من کذب علی النبی صلی اللّٰہ علیہ وسلم، الحدیث:۱۰۶،ج۱،ص۵۶)

Rib'i ibn Hirash says: “I heard Ali رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ say that the Noble Prophet ﷺ said: ‘Do not attribute lies to me, for whoever attributes a lie to me must enter Hell.’”

The two narrators of this hadith who deserve special mention are Rib'i ibn Hirash and Amir al-Muminin Ali رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہما. Read about these two sacred elders before studying the commentary, so that your insight may be illumined.

Rib'i ibn Hirash was a highly distinguished Successor and hadith scholar from Kufah. He was a devoted student of Umar, Ali, Abdullah ibn Masud, and other Companions رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہم. He was exceptionally pious and distinguished in worship and spiritual discipline, and no lie ever came from his tongue throughout his life. A famous miracle is related about him and his brother Rabi' ibn Hirash: both brothers swore that they would not laugh until they knew that they were destined for Paradise. They therefore never laughed throughout their lives. After their departure, however, those who washed them and others present reported that both continued smiling and laughing throughout the washing. Rib'i ibn Hirash رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ passed away in 101 or 104 AH. (Nawawi and Tahdhib al-Tahdhib.)

Ali ibn Abi Talib رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ was a glorious Companion and the fourth successor of the Messenger ﷺ. Among children, he was the first to accept Islam. He migrated to Madinah and took part in every military expedition with the Messenger ﷺ except the Battle of Tabuk. On the day of the Battle of Khaybar, the Messenger ﷺ gave the banner to him, and he conquered Khaybar. After the martyrdom of Amir al-Muminin Uthman al-Ghani رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ, Ali became Caliph and fulfilled the duties of the caliphate for approximately five years. He was martyred in Kufah at the age of sixty-three on 19 Ramadan 40 AH by the poisoned sword of the Kharijite Ibn Muljam. He narrated 586 hadiths from the Messenger ﷺ. His virtues are numerous; a detailed account may be read in Haqqani Taqreerein.

Lying oneself, or falsely attributing a statement to another person who did not say it, is unlawful and a major sin for everyone in every place and circumstance. But attributing a false statement to the Noble Prophet ﷺ, claiming that he said something he did not say, is the greatest of all major sins. Without doubt, the person who commits this is deserving of the wrath of the All-Compelling, the anger of the Almighty, Hell, and the punishment of the Fire.

The reason is that anything attributed to the Messenger ﷺ becomes part of the Sacred Law and the religion of Allah. Lying against the Messenger therefore becomes a false accusation against Allah as well. It is obvious how grave and terrifying it is to fabricate against Allah and His Messenger. That is why the destination of such a rejected and vile person can only be Hell. The Messenger ﷺ said that whoever lies about him, attributing to him a statement he never made, will enter Hell.

1 Muslim mentioned this hadith in the introduction to his book; Tirmidhi mentioned it in the Books of Knowledge and Virtues; and Ibn Majah mentioned it in the Book of Purity of Intention.

2 Some narrations contain the word مُتَعَّمِدًا, meaning deliberately and knowingly. This shows that whoever deliberately lies about the Messenger ﷺ is destined for Hell; if someone does so accidentally through forgetfulness or error, he does not deserve this specific warning.

3 Lying against the Noble Prophet ﷺ is many times graver than lying against another person. The Companions feared it so much that they never narrated a hadith until they had certain and definite knowledge of it. In Bukhari, immediately after this hadith, Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ asked his father, al-Zubayr ibn al-Awwam رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ, “Father, I do not see you narrating hadiths as frequently as such-and-such Companions do.” Al-Zubayr replied, “I was never separated from the Messenger ﷺ, but I heard him say: ‘Whoever lies about me should prepare his abode in Hell.’” (2)

Al-Zubayr meant that fear of this warning made him extremely careful in narrating hadith. He narrated only those hadiths he remembered well and knew with complete confidence to be the Messenger's words. Other Companions narrated more because they had memorised more hadiths.

Anas ibn Malik رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ also said that what prevented him from narrating a large number of hadiths was that the Messenger ﷺ had said: “Whoever lies about me should prepare his abode in Hell.” (3) (Bukhari.)

Amir al-Muminin Umar رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ would ask anyone who narrated a hadith unknown to him to bring a witness proving that it was a hadith of the Messenger. Some Companions even required narrators to swear that a narration was from the Messenger ﷺ.

This was all due to their care that no one fabricate a hadith. The Successors, the generation after them, and all reliable hadith scholars followed the same method, exercising the greatest caution in narration. They would not tolerate even changing one word, because of the immense sin and punishment of fabricating hadith, and they trembled constantly out of fear.

Present-day scholars and preachers must likewise exercise complete care in narrating hadith, convey the actual subject of the hadith in sermons, and never add or remove a word from the hadith themselves. After presenting a hadith, it is permissible, indeed highly commendable and the sacred way of the pious predecessors, to explain it and derive rulings, knowledge, and insights from its words.

4 False and fabricated hadiths are called hadith mawdu in the terminology of hadith scholars, and the person who fabricates them is called a fabricator of hadith. The Islamic ruler shall punish such a fabricator as a disciplinary measure with lashes, imprisonment, or execution. والله تعالى اعلم.

4 [1] Tahdhib al-Tahdhib, letter Ra, Rib'i, vol. 3, pp. 62–63.
5 [2] Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of Knowledge, chapter on the sin of lying against the Prophet, hadith 107, vol. 1, p. 57.
6 [3] Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of Knowledge, chapter on the sin of lying against the Prophet, hadith 108, vol. 1, p. 57.
7 [4] Tadhkirat al-Huffaz, first class, Amir al-Muminin Umar ibn al-Khattab, vol. 1, p. 11.

عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ قَالَ:مَرَّ النَّبِیُّ صَلَّی اللّٰہ عَلَیْہِ وَسَلَّمَ بِقَبْرَیْنِ فَقَالَ: اِنَّھُمَا لَیُعَذَّبَانِ وَمَا یُعَذَّبَانِ فِیْ کَبِیْرٍ اَمَّا اَحَدُھُمَا فَکَانَ لاَ یَسْتَتِرُ مِنَ الْبَوْلِ وَاَمَّا الاٰخَرُ فَکَانَ یَمْشِیْ بِالنَّمِیْمَۃِ ثُمَّ اَخَذَ جَرِیْدَۃً رَطَبَۃً فَشَقَّھَا بِنِصْفَیْنِ ثُمَّ غَرَزَ فِیْ کُلِّ قَبْرٍ وَاحِدَۃً قَالُوْا: یَارَسُوْلَ اللّٰہ لِمَ صَنَعْتَ ھٰذَا؟فَقَالَ:لَعَلَّہٗ اَن یُّخَفَّفَ عَنْھُمَا مَا لَمْ یَیْبِسَا ( مشکاۃ المصابیح،کتاب الطھارۃ،باب آداب الخلائ، الحدیث:۳۳۸، ج۱، ص۸۱)

Ibn Abbas رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہما narrates that the Noble Prophet ﷺ passed by two graves and said: “Indeed, both are being punished, and they are not being punished for something that is extremely difficult to avoid. One of them did not protect himself from urine, and the other used to carry tales.” He then took a fresh date-palm branch, split it into two, and planted one piece in each grave. The Companions asked, “O Messenger of Allah ﷺ, why did you do this?” He replied, “Perhaps their punishment will be lightened as long as these remain fresh.”

Among the narrators is Ibn Abbas رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہما, a distinguished and virtuous Companion. He was the noble son of Abbas رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ, the paternal uncle of the Messenger ﷺ. His name was Abdullah. He was the youngest exegete among the Companions. The Messenger ﷺ prayed: “O Allah, grant him wisdom and knowledge of Quranic interpretation.” Through the effect of this Prophetic prayer, great Companions acknowledged his knowledge and excellence, and Amir al-Muminin Umar رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ consulted him about difficult matters. Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal رحمۃ اللّٰہ علیہ said that six Companions narrated a very large number of hadiths: Aishah, Abdullah ibn Abbas, Abdullah ibn Umar, Abu Hurayrah, Jabir, and Anas رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہم. 1,660 hadiths are narrated from Abdullah ibn Abbas. He was thirteen or fourteen when the Messenger ﷺ was called back from this world. He passed away at the age of seventy in Taif in 68 AH. Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ led his funeral prayer and said sorrowfully before the people, “Alas! Today the exegete of this Ummah has departed from the world.” (1) (Fuyud al-Bari, vol. 1, p. 81.)

Imam Bukhari placed this hadith under the heading بَابٌ مِنَ الْکَبَائِرِ اَنْ لَا یَسْتَتِرَ مِنْ بَوْلِہٖ. His purpose was to show that failing to conceal oneself while urinating and exposing one's private parts before people is a major sin. Some narrations use لَا یَسْتَنْزِہُ instead of لَا یَسْتَتِرُ, meaning that failing to protect one's body and clothes from urine is a major sin. Since this hadith states that one who did not protect himself from urine is punished in the grave, it proves that allowing urine to soil the body or clothes is a major sin and a cause of punishment.

There is disagreement about the number and identity of major sins. A narration from Abu Hurayrah recorded by Bukhari indicates seven: polytheism, magic, unlawful killing, consuming usury, consuming an orphan's property, fleeing from the battle against disbelievers, and accusing chaste believing women of adultery. (2) These are the seven destructive sins mentioned by the Messenger ﷺ. A narration of al-Hakim gives nine, while some narrations give more. When someone asked Ibn Abbas whether major sins were only seven, he said that they could number up to seven hundred. He meant that just as a small good deed performed sincerely receives greatly increased reward, a minor sin performed boldly and without fear can become a major sin, because persistence in any minor sin makes it major. (3)

Shaykh Abu Talib al-Makki listed seventeen major sins: four of the heart, namely 1 polytheism, 2 persisting in sins, 3 losing hope in Allah's mercy, and 4 feeling safe from Allah's punishment; four of the tongue, namely 1 false testimony, 2 accusing a chaste person, 3 practising magic, and 4 sinning in the Sacred Sanctuary; three of the stomach, namely 1 drinking wine, 2 consuming an orphan's wealth, and 3 consuming usury; two of the private parts, namely 1 adultery and 2 sodomy; one of the feet, namely 1 fleeing from jihad; two of the hands, namely 1 unlawful killing and 2 theft; and one concerning the whole body, namely 1 disobedience to parents. (4) (Sharh al-Aqaid and its marginalia, p. 82.)

The numbers in different narrations are not meant to restrict major sins to seven, nine, or seventeen. They are examples: one narration mentions seven, another nine, and another seventeen, while many other major sins clearly exist, such as abandoning prayer, fasting, Hajj, or zakat, oppression, highway robbery, lying, tale-bearing, causing two Muslims to fight, watching dancing, women going out unveiled, giving short measure, gambling, intercourse with a wife during menstruation or postnatal bleeding, hurting one's parents, and hundreds of others.

A major sin is every sin from which Allah has promised forgiveness to those who avoid it. (5) Some scholars say that every sin for which Allah and His Messenger have issued a warning, curse, punishment, or mention of anger is a major sin. (6) والله تعالى اعلم.

The hadith uses the word نَمِیْمَۃ, translated as tale-bearing. Allamah Ayni said that carrying someone's words to another person with the intention of causing harm is tale-bearing. (7) It is a major sin because it causes disagreement, division, fighting, and conflict among Muslims.

Although the hadith mentions urine and tale-bearing as the causes of punishment for the two people in the graves, it shows that urine itself is not uniquely intended. Failing to avoid every kind of impurity, such as dung, excrement, blood, and other filth, can also cause punishment in the grave. (8) Every Muslim must therefore remain clean and pure from every impurity at all times.

Likewise, tale-bearing is not the only sin that can cause punishment in the grave. Other major sins, such as backbiting, lying, and oppression, can also cause it. Muslims must therefore avoid every kind of major sin.

This hadith proves that the Messenger ﷺ saw, heard, and knew the events of the intermediate realm, because punishment in the grave is one of its conditions. A narration in Bukhari says فَسَمِعَ صَوْتَ اِنْسَانَیْنِ یُعَذَّبَانِ, meaning that the Messenger ﷺ heard the sound of two people being punished. He did not learn their punishment through revelation; he learned of it by hearing and seeing it.

This shows that the sight, hearing, and other powers of the Noble Prophets علیہم الصلوۃ والسلام cannot be compared with the physical powers of ordinary people. Ordinary people see and hear through outward senses such as the eyes and ears, while the Prophets علیہم السلام see and hear through inward powers. Allah is the Greatest! What comparison is there between our outward senses and the inward powers of the Prophets? “What relation has dust with the pure world?”

The gnostic Rumi alluded to this reality:

The philosopher who denies the moaning pillar
Is a stranger to the senses of the Prophets.

That is, the philosopher who denies the miracle of the Pillar of Hananah crying and being heard does so because he does not know the immense inward powers of the Prophets. In reality:

The speech of earth, water, and mud
Is perceived by the senses of those with living hearts.

People of the heart perceive and understand even the speech of earth, water, and mud.

The Messenger ﷺ explained the wisdom of placing fresh branches on the graves with the words لَعَلَّہٗ اَنْ یُّخَفَّفَ: the glorification of these moist green branches would lighten the punishment. This proves that placing fresh flowers and green leaves on graves is not an innovation; it follows this hadith and is therefore Sunnah. Bukhari records that the Companion Buraydah al-Aslami رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ instructed that two moist branches be placed in his grave. (9) (Bukhari, chapter on branches over the grave.)

Allamah Khattabi رحمۃ اللّٰہ علیہ said that if the glorification of green branches lightens a deceased person's punishment, then Quran recitation near a grave will even more certainly lighten it, because Quran recitation has far greater blessing and excellence than the glorification of branches and twigs. (10) (Ayni, vol. 1, p. 870.)

Imam Abu Hanifah رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ and Imam Ahmad رحمۃ اللّٰہ علیہ held that the reward of Quran recitation reaches the deceased. Numerous hadiths support this. For example, Abu Bakr al-Najjar narrated in al-Sunan from Ali رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ that whoever passes through a graveyard and recites Surah al-Ikhlas eleven times, then gifts its reward to the deceased, receives reward from Allah equal to the number of deceased people in that graveyard. (11)

Anas رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ narrated from the Messenger ﷺ that whoever visits a graveyard, recites Surah Yasin, and conveys its reward to a deceased person will have that person's punishment lightened by Allah. (12)

It is also narrated from Amir al-Muminin Abu Bakr al-Siddiq رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ that the Messenger ﷺ said: “Whoever visits his parents' grave and recites Surah Yasin there, Allah will forgive them.” (13) (Fuyud al-Bari, citing Ayni, vol. 1, p. 876.)

Someone may ask: the Messenger ﷺ knew that the occupants of these two graves were being punished, so he planted moist green branches to lighten their punishment. But we do not know which graves contain punishment and which do not. Why should we place moist branches, fresh flowers, or green leaves on any grave?

The answer is that the hadith establishes that the glorification of green leaves and fresh flowers lightens punishment in the grave. Their glorification will certainly also bring companionship, peace, and comfort to a deceased person. If flowers and leaves are placed on a grave whose occupant is not being punished, that person will still receive the blessing of companionship, peace, and comfort. In every case, placing flowers and leaves on graves is a source of goodness, blessing, and mercy. The occupant benefits, and visitors benefit from their fragrance. Benefit is hoped for in every case, and there is no fear of harm. Therefore people who place flowers and leaves on graves must not be called innovators or prevented from this good deed without reason. As explained, it is established by hadith, and anything whose basis is established by the Quran and hadith can never be forbidden, nor is it correct to call it an innovation. In reality, it is a great injustice of the Wahhabis that they needlessly label Muslims polytheists and innovators at every turn, declare things Allah has made lawful to be unlawful without evidence, and continue fabricating against Allah and His Messenger. May Allah protect us from this. والله تعالى اعلم.

4 [1] Fuyud al-Bari, first part, Book of the Beginning of Revelation, chapter on the beginning of revelation, vol. 1, p. 128.
5 [2] Mishkat al-Masabih, Book of Faith, chapter on major sins and signs of hypocrisy, hadith 52, vol. 1, p. 31.
6 [3] Fuyud al-Bari, first part, Book of Ablution, chapter on the major sin of not protecting oneself from urine, vol. 1, p. 495.
7 [4] Hashiyah Sharh al-Aqaid al-Nasafiyyah, discussion of major sins, p. 108.
8 [5] Irshad al-Sari, Book of Ablution, chapter on the major sin of not protecting oneself from urine, vol. 1, p. 514.
9 [6] Fuyud al-Bari, first part, Book of Ablution, chapter on the major sin of not protecting oneself from urine, vol. 1, p. 495.
10 [7] Umdat al-Qari, Book of Ablution, chapter on the major sin of not protecting oneself from urine, under hadith 216, vol. 2, p. 594.
11 [8] Fuyud al-Bari, first part, Book of Ablution, chapter on the major sin of not protecting oneself from urine, vol. 1, p. 496.
12 [9] Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of Funerals, chapter on branches over the grave, vol. 1, p. 458.
13 [10] Umdat al-Qari, Book of Ablution, chapter on the major sin of not protecting oneself from urine, under hadith 216, vol. 2, p. 598.
14 [11] Kashf al-Khafa, hadith 2629, vol. 2, p. 252.
15 [12] Mirqat al-Mafatih, Book of Funerals, chapter on burying the deceased, under hadith 7171, vol. 4, p. 198.
16 [13] Fuyud al-Bari, Book of Ablution, chapter on the major sin of not protecting oneself from urine, vol. 1, p. 498.

عَنْ اَنَسٍ عَنِ النَّبِیِّ صَلَّی اللّٰہ عَلَیْہِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ:ثَلٰثٌ مَنْ کُنَّ فِیْہِ وَجَدَ حَلَاوَۃَ الاِْیْمَانِ اَنْ یَّکُوْنَ اللّٰہ وَرَسُوْلُہٗ اَحَبَّ اِلَیْہِ مِمَّا سِوَاھُمَا وَاَنْ یُّحِبَّ الْمَرْئَ لَا یُحِبُّہٗ اِلَّا لِلّٰہِ وَاَنْ یَّکْرَہَ اَنْ یَّعُوْدَ فِی الْکُفْرِکَمَا یَکْرَہُ اَنْ یُّقْذَفَ فِی النَّارِ ( صحیح البخاری،کتاب الایمان،باب حلاوۃ الایمان، الحدیث:۱۶، ج۱،ص۱۷)

Anas رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہ narrates that the Noble Prophet ﷺ said: “There are three qualities; whoever possesses them will taste the sweetness of faith: 1 that Allah and His Messenger ﷺ are dearer to him than everything besides them; 2 that he loves a person only for Allah's sake; and 3 that he hates returning to disbelief after accepting Islam just as he hates being thrown into the Fire.”

The meaning of this hadith is that sugar and the sweetness of sugar are two different things, just as faith and the delight of faith are two different things. A person whose sense of taste is sound will enjoy the sweetness of sugar when he eats it. But if someone is ill with a fever that has made his taste bitter, he will not feel the sweetness even when he eats sugar. The first person may be called both one who eats sugar and one who tastes its sweetness. The second may be called one who eats sugar, but he is deprived of the pleasure of its sweetness.

Faith is exactly like this. A person becomes a believer by reciting the testimony of faith. If the three qualities mentioned in this hadith then develop within him, he will also taste the sweetness of faith, meaning its special spiritual delight. If these qualities do not develop within him, he will still be a believer, but he will remain deprived of that special pleasure.

The three qualities upon which the sweetness and delight of faith depend are explained below. Strive with the utmost sincerity and complete effort to develop all three within yourselves, so that you may enjoy the special delight of faith.

For the love of Allah and His Messenger ﷺ to be greater than the love of the whole world means that this love becomes firmly established in the depths of a believer's heart. It becomes so strong that he develops a true willingness to sacrifice his parents and ancestors, wives and children, homes and businesses, wealth and possessions, body and life, and indeed the entire world in the path of Allah and His Messenger ﷺ.

Allamah Qadi Iyad رحمۃ اللّٰہ علیہ said that loving the Messenger ﷺ means showing such steadfastness in obeying Allah Almighty and His Messenger ﷺ, and such commitment to fulfilling their commands and avoiding their prohibitions, that the resolve to remain steadfast and the eagerness to obey never waver in any circumstance. (1)

The noble Sufis have said that “love for Allah” and “hatred for Allah,” meaning friendship for Allah's sake and enmity for Allah's sake, are the spirit of Sufism. A major sign of complete faith is that when a believer befriends someone, he does not do so for a selfish purpose; he befriends him purely for the pleasure of Allah. If he holds enmity toward someone, he does so solely for Allah's pleasure and approval.

For example, we love the Prophets, the truthful, the martyrs, and the righteous. We do not love them because they are our relatives or because they have given us financial assistance. We love these noble people only because they are beloved servants of Allah.

If we hate Abu Jahl, Abu Lahab, other disbelievers, hypocrites, or people of misguided beliefs, it is not because they beat us or seized our wealth and possessions. We oppose these oppressors only because they are enemies of Allah.

Friendship for Allah's sake and enmity for Allah's sake are another name for sincerity. A believer must have sincerity and devotion to Allah in every action; this is the second condition for attaining the delight of faith. Remember that the power of a believer's sincerity is such that, before its spiritual strength, the satanic forces of thousands of devils tremble.

Satan himself was expelled from the Divine Court after saying: اِلَّا عِبَادَکَ مِنْھُمُ الْمُخْلَصِیْنَ (2), meaning: “O Allah! I shall continue misleading the children of Adam until the Day of Judgment, but my power will not prevail over Your sincere servants.”

Allah is the Greatest! What can be said about the power of sincerity? The elders have related that an ascetic learned that people worshipped a certain tree in a forest. He became intensely angry at their polytheism. Filled with the zeal of striving in Allah's path, he took an axe and set out, resolved to cut down the tree from its roots and thereby cut off the root of that polytheism.

After he had walked only a short distance, Satan appeared before him in the form of a strong wrestler and asked, “Where are you going?” The ascetic replied, “I am going to the forest to cut down a certain tree.” Satan said, “I am the guardian of that tree. Do you think you have the power to cut it down?” The ascetic fought him with the zeal of striving in Allah's path, threw him to the ground, and sat upon his chest. Satan became completely helpless.

When Satan had been defeated, he said to the ascetic, “Brother, I beg you not to cut down this tree. What benefit will you gain from cutting it? You will merely tire yourself and will not be able to perform the night prayer. Abandon the idea of cutting it, and I will give you one gold coin every day instead. Eat and drink comfortably, give some of it in charity to the poor and needy, and devote yourself to worshipping Allah with complete peace of heart.”

Satan's temptation affected the ascetic. When he heard about receiving one gold coin every day, greed overcame him, and he agreed not to cut down the tree. For several days Satan delivered one gold coin to him each day, but then suddenly stopped. When no coin came for several days, the ascetic became furious and said, “The accursed Satan deceived me!” He picked up his axe and set out to cut down the tree.

As soon as he left his home, Satan appeared in the form of the wrestler, blocked his path, and said, “Beware! You can never cut down this tree.” The ascetic angrily replied, “I certainly will,” and the two wrestled. This time Satan threw the ascetic to the ground with such force that all his limbs became weak, and Satan sat upon his chest.

The helpless ascetic said, “I do not understand. On the first day I defeated you with very little effort, but today, despite using all my strength, I could not even put you on your back; instead, you have defeated me. What is the reason?” Satan replied, “My friend, regain your senses. The first time you set out to cut down the tree solely to seek Allah's pleasure and with sincere intention, so I could not overpower you. I always remain helpless before Allah's sincere servants. But this time you did not set out with sincerity; you came because you were angry that I had not given you the gold coin. Understand this: while the power of sincerity operated within you, I was helpless before you. Now that you have been deprived of the power of sincerity, you will never overcome me again, even until the Day of Judgment.” (3)

The third quality upon which the delight and sweetness of faith depend is that a person is as repelled by and disgusted with disbelief as he is by being thrown into blazing flames. Just as no person could ever tolerate being cast into a burning fire, a true believer can never tolerate disbelief under any circumstance. Disbelief and entering the Fire are equal in his sight. When a believer develops such hatred and aversion toward disbelief, he is granted the taste of the sweetness of faith.

May Allah Almighty allow every believer to enjoy the delight of the sweetness of faith. Amin.

1 This hadith is also recorded in Sahih Muslim, Jami al-Tirmidhi, and Sunan al-Nasa'i.

2 If disbelievers compel a Muslim to utter words of disbelief in such a way that he becomes certain that his life is in danger, the Quranic command اِلَّا مَنْ اُکْرِہَ وَقَلْبُہٗ مُطْمَئِنٌّمبِالْاِیْمَانِ (4) grants him permission to utter words of disbelief, provided that his heart remains tranquil in faith. But if, even in that condition, he refuses to utter words of disbelief and gives his life, he will undoubtedly receive the honour of martyrdom at a very high and excellent degree.

This was the exemplary practice of the noble Companions and many martyrs of Islam رضی اللّٰہ تعالیٰ عنہم. When disbelievers forced these beloved servants of Allah to utter disbelief and placed swords against their necks, they sacrificed their lives but did not bring words of disbelief to their tongues. They stood firm like mountains upon Islam, sacrificing the last drop of their blood and the final breath of their lives in Allah's path and attaining the honour of martyrdom. Subhan Allah!

بناکردند خوش رسمی بخاک و خون غلطیدن خدا رحمت کند این عاشقان پاک طینت را

They established a beautiful custom: to roll in dust and blood. May Allah have mercy upon these pure-hearted lovers.

3 [1] al-Shifa bi Ta'rif Huquq al-Mustafa, part 2, section 2, chapter 2 on the obligation of loving him, p. 24, adapted.

4 [2] Translation of Kanz al-Iman: “But those among them who are Your chosen servants.” (Part 23, Sad 83.)

5 [3] Ihya Ulum al-Din, Book of Intention, Sincerity, and Truthfulness, vol. 5, pp. 104–105.

6 [4] Translation of Kanz al-Iman: “Except the one who is compelled while his heart is firmly established upon faith.” (Part 14, al-Nahl 106.)