We were with `Abdullah and he said, "When the Prophet saw the refusal of the people to accept Islam he said, "O Allah! Send (famine) years on them for (seven years) like the seven years (of famine during the time) of (Prophet) Joseph." So famine overtook them for one year and destroyed every kind of life to such an extent that the people started eating hides, carcasses and rotten dead animals. Whenever one of them looked towards the sky, he would (imagine himself to) see smoke because of hunger. So Abu Sufyan went to the Prophet and said, "O Muhammad! You order people to obey Allah and to keep good relations with kith and kin. No doubt the people of your tribe are dying, so please pray to Allah for them." So Allah revealed: "Then watch you For the day that The sky will bring forth a kind Of smoke Plainly visible ... Verily! You will return (to disbelief) On the day when We shall seize You with a mighty grasp. (44.10-16) Ibn Mas`ud added, "Al-Batsha (i.e. grasp) happened in the battle of Badr and no doubt smoke, Al-Batsha, Al-Lizam, and the verse of Surat Ar-Rum have all passed .

It is a sign of having knowledge that, when you do not know something, you say: 'Allah knows better.' Allah said to his Prophet: 'Say: No wage do I ask of you for this (Qur'an), nor am I one of the pretenders (a person who pretends things which do not exist)' (38.86) When the Quraish troubled and stood against the Prophet he said, "O Allah! Help me against them by afflicting them with seven years of famine like the seven years of Joseph." So they were stricken with a year of famine during which they ate bones and dead animals because of too much suffering, and one of them would see something like smoke between him and the sky because of hunger. Then they said: Our Lord! Remove the torment from us, really we are believers. (44.12) And then it was said to the Prophet (by Allah), "If we remove it from them. they will revert to their ways (of heathenism)." So the Prophet invoked his Lord, who removed the punishment from them, but later they reverted (to heathenism), whereupon Allah punished them on the day of the Battle of Badr, and that is what Allah's Statement indicates: 'Then watch for the day that the sky will bring forth a kind of smoke plainly visible...we will indeed (then) exact retribution.' (44.10).

One of the daughters of the Prophet expired and he came to us and said, "Wash her with Sidr (water) for odd number of times, i.e. three, five or more, if you think it necessary, and in the last, put camphor or (some camphor on her), and when you finish, notify me." So when we finished we informed him. He gave his waist-sheet to us (to shroud her). We entwined the hair (of the deceased girl) in three braids and made them fall at her back.

The Prophet (saws) sent Mu`adh to Yemen and said, "Invite the people to testify that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah and I am Allah's Apostle, and if they obey you to do so, then teach them that Allah has enjoined on them five prayers in every day and night (in twenty-four hours), and if they obey you to do so, then teach them that Allah has made it obligatory for them to pay the Zakat from their property and it is to be taken from the wealthy among them and given to the poor."

I heard Abu Ash-sha'tha' Jabir saying, "I heard Ibn `Abbas saying, 'I offered with Allah's Apostle eight rak`at (of Zuhr and `Asr prayers) together and seven rak`at (the Maghrib and the `Isha' prayers) together.' " I said, "O Abu Ash-shatha! I think he must have prayed the Zuhr late and the `Asr early; the `Isha early and the Maghrib late." Abu Ash-sha'tha' said, "I also think so." (See Hadith No. 518 Vol. 1).

Allah's Apostle ordered us to do seven (things): to visit the sick, to follow the funeral processions, to say Tashmit to a sneezer, to help the weak, to help the oppressed ones, to propagate As-Salam (greeting), and to help others to fulfill their oaths (if it is not sinful). He forbade us to drink from silver utensils, to wear gold rings, to ride on silken saddles, to wear silk clothes, Dibaj (thick silk cloth), Qassiy and Istabraq (two kinds of silk). (See Hadith No. 539, Vol. 7)

Allah's Apostle said, "Allah says, 'If My slave intends to do a bad deed then (O Angels) do not write it unless he does it; if he does it, then write it as it is, but if he refrains from doing it for My Sake, then write it as a good deed (in his account). (On the other hand) if he intends to do a good deed, but does not do it, then write a good deed (in his account), and if he does it, then write it for him (in his account) as ten good deeds up to seven-hundred times.' "

Abu Dawud said: What is correct is that the tradition reported by Ibn ‘Umar does not go back to the Prophet (may peace beupon him). Abu Dawud said: The narrator Baqiyyah reported the first part of this tradition from ‘Ubaid Allah and traced it back to the Prophet (saws); and the narrator al-Thaqafi reported it from ‘Ubaid Allah as a statement of Ibn ‘Umar himself(not from the Porphet). In this version he said: When he stood at the end of two rak’ahs he raised them up to his breasts. And this is the correct version.

Abu Dawud said: This tradition has been transmitted as a statement of Ibn ‘Umar (and not of the Prophet) by al-Laith b. Sa’d, Malik, Ayyub, and Ibn Juraij; and this has been narrated as a statement of the Prophet (saws) by Hammad b. Salamah alone on the authority of Ayyub. Ayyub and Malik did not mention his raising of hands when he stood after two prostrations, but al-Laith mentioned it in his version. Ibn Juraij said in this version: I asked Nafi’: Did Ibn ‘Umar raise (his hands) higher for the first time? He said: No, I said: Point out to me. He then pointed to the breasts or lower than that.

Allah sent (the Prophet) Muhammad and said:-- 'Say, No wage do I ask of you for this (Qur'an) nor am I one of the pretenders (i.e. a person who pretends things which do not exist). (38.68) When Allah's Apostle saw Quraish standing against him, he said, "O Allah! Help me against them by afflicting them with seven years of famine similar to the seven years (of famine) of Joseph. So they were afflicted with a year of drought that destroyed everything, and they ate bones and hides. (One of them said), "And they ate hides and dead animals, and (it seemed to them that) something like smoke was coming out of the earth. So Abu Sufyan came to the Prophet and said, "O Muhammad! Your people are on the verge of destruction! Please invoke Allah to relieve them." So the Prophet invoked Allah for them (and the famine disappeared). He said to them. "You will revert (to heathenism) after that." `Abdullah then recited: 'Then watch you for the Day that the sky will bring forth a kind of smoke plainly visible.......but truly you will revert (to disbelief).' He added, "Will the punishment be removed from them in the Hereafter? The smoke and the grasp and the Al-Lizam have all passed." One of the sub-narrater said, "The splitting of the moon." And another said, "The defeat of the Romans (has passed).

I heard `Aisha saying, "We set out (from Medina) along with Allah's Apostle five days before the end of Dhul-Qa'da with the intention of performing Hajj only. When we approached Mecca, Allah's Apostle ordered those who had no Hadi along with them to finish the lhram after performing Tawaf of the Ka`ba, (Safa and Marwa). `Aisha added, "Beef was brought to us on the Day of Nahr and I said, 'What is this?' Somebody said, 'The Prophet has slaughtered (cows) on behalf of his wives.' "

There was an Ansari man called Abu Shu'aib who had a slave butcher. Abu Shu'aib said to him, "Prepare a meal sufficient for five persons so that I might invite the Prophet besides other four persons." Abu Shu'aib had seen the signs of hunger on the face of the Prophet and so he invited him. Another man who was not invited, followed the Prophet. The Prophet said to Abu Shu'aib, "This man has followed us. Do you allow him to share the meal?" Abu Shu'aib said, "Yes."

We set out in the company of Allah's Apostle five days before the end of Dhul Qa'da intending to perform Hajj only. When we approached Mecca Allah's Apostle ordered those who did not have the Hadi (i.e. an animal for sacrifice) with them, to perform the Tawaf around the Ka`ba, and between Safa and Marwa and then finish their Ihram. Beef was brought to us on the day of (i.e. the days of slaughtering) and I asked, "What is this?" Somebody said, Allah's Apostle has slaughtered (a cow) on behalf of his wives."

Once `Umar bin `Abdul `Aziz delayed the `Asr prayer a little. `Urwa said to him, "Gabriel descended and led the prayer in front of the Prophet " On that `Umar said, "O `Urwa! Be sure of what you say." "Urwa, "I heard Bashir bin Abi Masud narrating from Ibn Masud who heard Allah's Apostle saying, 'Gabriel descended and led me in prayer; and then prayed with him again, and then prayed with him again, and then prayed with him again, and then prayed with him again, counting with his fingers five prayers."

When the Prophet sent Mu`adh to Yemen, he said to him, "You are going to a nation from the people of the Scripture, so let the first thing to which you will invite them, be the Tauhid of Allah. If they learn that, tell them that Allah has enjoined on them, five prayers to be offered in one day and one night. And if they pray, tell them that Allah has enjoined on them Zakat of their properties and it is to be taken from the rich among them and given to the poor. And if they agree to that, then take from them Zakat but avoid the best property of the people."

The Prophet said, "Avoid the seven great destructive sins." The people enquire, "O Allah's Apostle! What are they? "He said, "To join others in worship along with Allah, to practice sorcery, to kill the life which Allah has forbidden except for a just cause, (according to Islamic law), to eat up Riba (usury), to eat up an orphan's wealth, to give back to the enemy and fleeing from the battlefield at the time of fighting, and to accuse, chaste women, who never even think of anything touching chastity and are good believers.

The Prophet said, "Avoid the seven great destructive sins." They (the people!) asked, "O Allah's Apostle! What are they?" He said, "To join partners in worship with Allah; to practice sorcery; to kill the life which Allah has forbidden except for a just cause (according to Islamic law); to eat up usury (Riba), to eat up the property of an orphan; to give one's back to the enemy and fleeing from the battle-field at the time of fighting and to accuse chaste women who never even think of anything touching chastity and are good believers."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Amr ibn Yahya al-Mazini that his father said that he had heard Abu Said al-Khudri say that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "There is no zakat on less than five camels, there is no zakat on less than five awaq (two hundred dirhams of pure silver) and there is no zakat on less than five awsuq (three hundred sa)."