Hudhaifa reported God’s messenger as saying, "Recite the Qur’ān with the modulations and tones of the Arabs, but avoid the modulations of those who recite love poetry and the modulations of the people of the two Books. After my death people will come who will trill when they recite the Qur’ān as is done in singing and wailing, but it will go no farther than their throats, and they and those who are charmed by their performance will be led into error.” Baihaqī in Shu'ab al-īmān and Razīn in his book transmitted it.

Al-Barā’ b. ‘Āzib told that he heard God's messenger say, "Beautify the Qur’ān with your voices, for the beautiful voice increases the beauty of the Qur’ān.” Dārimī transmitted it.

Tāwūs told in mursal form that when the Prophet was asked who had the most beautiful voice for the Qur’ān and whose recitation was most beautiful he replied, "The one of whom you think when you hear him recite that he fears God.” Tāwūs added that Talq* was like that. * A companion of the Prophet who belonged to al-Yamāma. Dārimī transmitted it.

‘Abīda al-Mulaikī who was a Companion reported God’s messenger as saying, "Do not make the Qur’ān a pillow,* but recite it as it deserves to be recited during the night and the day. Recite it aloud, chant it and consider its contents, perhaps you may prosper; but do not seek to get reward for it in this world, for it provides rewards.”(i.e., in the next world) *A figure of speech warning against laziness or neglect. Baihaqi trans­mitted it in Shu'ab' al-īmān.

I heard Hishām b. Hakīm b. Hizām reciting sūra al-Furqān (Qur’ān, 25) in a different manner from my way of reciting it, and God’s messenger had taught me to recite it. I nearly spoke sharply to him, but I delayed till he had finished, and then catching his cloak at the neck I brought him to God’s messenger and said, “Messen­ger of God, I heard this man reciting sūra al-Furqān in a manner different from that in which you taught me to recite it.” He told me to let him go and told him to recite. When he recited it in the manner in which I had heard him recite it God's messenger said, “Thus was it sent down.” He then told me to recite it and when I had done so he said, “Thus was it sent down. The Qur’ān was sent down in seven modes of reading, so recite according to what comes most easily.” (Bukhārī and Muslim, the wording being Muslim’s.)

I heard a man who recited, and as I had heard the Prophet reciting differently I took him to the Prophet and told him and noticed that he gave a disapproving look. He then said, “Both of you are doing it well, so do not disagree, for your predecessors disagreed and perished.” Bukhārī transmitted it.

When I was in the mosque a man entered and prayed and recited in a manner to which I objected. Afterwards a man entered and recited in a manner different from the other. When we had finished the prayer we all went to visit God’s messenger, and I said, “This man recited in a manner to which I objected and the other entered and recited in a manner different from his.” The Prophet then commanded them to recite, and when they had done so he expressed approval of both of them. This made me inclined to tell him he was wrong, even to an extent I had never reached in the pre-Islamic period; and when God’s messenger noticed how I was affected he gave me a pat on the chest, whereupon I broke into a sweat and was filled with fear as though I were looking at God. He then said to me, “A message was sent to me, Ubayy, to recite the Qur’ān in one mode, but when I replied that I wished matters to be made easy for my people, a second message instructed me to recite it in two modes. Again I replied that I wished matters to be made easy for my people, and a third message instructed me to recite it in seven modes, I being told at the same time that I might ask something for each reply I had received. I therefore said, ‘O God, forgive my people. O God, forgive my people;’ and I have delayed the third request till the day when all creatures, even including Abraham, seek my intercession." Muslim transmitted it.

Ibn ‘Abbās reported God’s messenger as saying, “Gabriel taught me to recite in one mode, and when I replied to him and kept asking him to give me more he did so till he reached seven modes." Ibn Shihāb said he had heard that those seven modes are essentially one, not differing about what is permitted and what is prohibited. (Bukhārī and Muslim.)

Ubayy b. Ka‘b told of God’s messenger meeting Gabriel and saying, “I have been sent, Gabriel, to a people who are unlettered, among whom are old women and old men, boys and girls, and men who have never read a book.” He replied, “The Qur’ān, Muhammad, has been sent down in seven modes." In a version by Ahmad and Abū Dāwūd he said, “They include only what is sufficiently health-giving.” In a version by Nasā’i the Prophet is quoted as saying that Gabriel and Michael came to him, and when Gabriel had sat down at his right and Michael at his left, Gabriel told him to recite the Qur’ān in one mode, and Michael told him to ask more, till he reached seven modes, each mode being sufficiently health-giving. Tirmidhī transmitted it.

‘Imran b. Husain said that when he came upon a story-teller who was reciting the Qur’ān and then asking for payment he first uttered the words, “We belong to God and to Him do we return” and then told that he had heard God’s messenger say, “When anyone recites the Qur’ān, let him ask a reward for it from God, for people will arise who will recite the Qur’ān and ask a reward for it from men.” Ahmad and Tirmidhī transmitted it.

Buraida reported God’s messenger as saying, “If anyone recites the Qur’ān seeking thereby to get a living from people, he will come on the day of resurrection with his face as a fleshless bone.” Baihaqi trans­mitted it in Shu’ab al-īmān.

Ibn ‘Abbās said that God's messenger did not know where sūras were to be separated till “In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful,” was sent down. Abū Dāwūd transmitted it.

When we were in Hims Ibn Mas’ūd recited sūra Yūsuf (Quran, 12) and a man declared that it was not sent down like that. To this ‘Abdallāh replied, “I swear by God that I recited it in the time of God’s messenger and he told me I had done it well.” While speaking to him he noticed the smell of wine on him, so he said, “Do you drink wine and declare the Book false?” and then gave him the prescribed beating. (Bukhārī and Muslim.)

Abū Bakr sent for me after the slaughter of those who fought at al-Yamāma and ‘Umar b. al-Khattāb was with him. Abū Bakr told me that ‘Umar had come to him and drawn attention to the extensive slaughter among Qur’ān readers at the battle of al- Yamāma, saying he was afraid that if readers continued to be killed in large numbers at other battles a large amount of the Qur’ān would be lost, and that he therefore thought he should give command that the Qur’ān be collected. He had asked. ‘Umar how he could do a thing which God’s messenger had not done, and ‘Umar, swearing by God that this was best, had kept at him till God made him inclined to do that, and he came to hold ‘Umar’s opinion about the matter. Zaid told how Abū Bakr said to him, “You are an intelligent young man whom we do not suspect and you have been writing down the revelation which came to God’s messenger, so search for the Qur’ān and collect it,” adding: I swear by God that if they had imposed on me the transportation of a mountain it would not have been a heavier load for me than the collecting of the Qur’ān which he ordered me to undertake. I asked how they could do a thing which God’s messenger had not done and Abū Bakr, swearing by God that this was best, kept at me till God made me in­clined to do what He had made Abū Bakr and ‘Umar inclined to do. I therefore searched for the Qur’ān and collected it from leafless palm branches, white stones and the breasts of men till I found the end of sūra at-Tauba (Qur’ān, 9) with Abū Khuzaima al-Ansārī, not having found it with anyone else: "A messenger from among yourselves has come to you . . .” to the end of Barā'a* (Qur’ān, 9 128-129). The sheets were deposited with Abū Bakr till God took him, then with ‘Umar during his lifetime, then with Hafsa, ‘Umar’s daughter. *Tauba and Barā’a are alternative titles of sūra 9. Bukhārī transmitted it.

Being alarmed at their difference in reading the Qur’ān he said to ‘Uthmān, “Commander of the faithful, set this people right before they disagree about the Book in the manner of the Jews and the Christians.” ‘Uthmān therefore sent a message to Hafsa asking her to send the sheets to him so that they might make copies of them, after which he would return them to her. Hafsa sent them to ‘Uthmān and he commanded Zaid b. Thābit, ‘Abdallāh b. az-Zubair, Sa'īd b. al-‘Ās and ‘Abdallāh b. al-Hārith b. Hishām who made copies of them. ‘Uthmān gave instructions to the three members of Quraish that when they and Zaid b. Thābit disagreed about anything in the Qur’ān they were to write in the dialect of Quraish, for it came down only in their dialect. They did so, and when they had made several copies of the sheets ‘Uthmān returned the sheets to Hafsa. He then sent a copy of those which they had transcribed to every region, giving orders that every sheet or volume which contained a part of the Qur’ān in different form should be burned. Ibn Shihāb said he was told by Khārija b. Zaid b. Thābit that he heard Zaid b. Thābit say that when they transcribed the Qur’ān he failed to find a verse in al-Ahzāb which he had heard God’s messenger reciting. He therefore sought it and found it with Khuzaima b. Thābit al-Ansārī, “Among the believers are men who have been true to the covenant they made with God” (Qur’ān, 33:23). They then added it to its sūra in the copy of the Qur’ān. Bukhārī transmit­ted it.

Ibn 'Abbas said he asked ‘Uthmān what had induced them to deal with al-Anfāl (Qur’ān, 8) which is one of the Mathānī* and with Barā'a which is one with a hundred verses, joining them without writing the line contain­ing "In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful,” and putting it among the seven long ones. When he asked again what had induced them to do that, ‘Uthmān replied, "Over a period sūras with numerous verses would come down to God’s messenger, and when some­thing came down to him he would call one of those who wrote and tell him to put these verses in the sūra in which such and such is mentioned, and when a verse came down he would tell them to put it in the sūra in which such and such is mentioned. Now al-Anfāl was one of the first to come down in Medina and Barā’a was among the last of the Qur’ān to come down, and the subject-matter of the one resembled that of the other, so because God’s messenger was taken without having explained to us whether it belonged to it, for that reason I joined them without writing the line containing ‘In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful, and put it among the long sūras.'’ *Sūras with less than a hundred verses, but more than those in al mufassal. Ahmad, Tirmidhī and Abū Dāwūd transmitted it.

He reported the Prophet as saying, “If anyone who is about to sleep on his bed lies on his right side, then recites ‘Say, He is God, One’ a hundred times, the Lord will say to him on the day of resurrection, ‘My servant, enter paradise to your right’.” Tirmidhī transmitted it, saying this is a hasan gharīb tradition.

The Prophet, on hearing a man reciting “Say, He is God, One” remarked, “It is certain.” I asked him what was certain, and he replied that it was paradise. Mālik, Tirmidhī and Nasā’i transmitted it.

Farwa b. Naufal quoted his father as saying that he had asked God's messenger to teach him something to say when he went to bed, and was told to recite, “Say, O infidels”, for it is a declaration of freedom from polytheism. Tirmidhī, Abū Dāwūd and Dārimī transmitted it.

Abū Huraira reported God’s messenger as saying, “Expound the Qur’ān and take as guide its unusual expressions, they being the things made obligatory in it and the limits set in it.” Transmitted by Baihaqī in Shu'ab al-īmān.

‘Ā’isha reported the Prophet as saying, “Reciting the Qur’ān during prayer is more excellent than reciting it at other times, and reciting the Qur’ān at a time other than during prayer is more excellent than extolling God and declaring His greatness. Extolling God is more excellent than sadaqa, sadaqa is more excellent than fasting, and fasting is a protection from hell.” Transmitted by Baihaqī in Shu'ab al-īmān.

‘Uthmān b. ‘ Abdallāh b. Aus ath-Thaqafī, on his grandfather’s authority, reported God’s messenger as saying, “A man’s recitation of the Qur’ān without using a copy of it produces a thousand degrees of reward, but his recitation while using a copy is double that, reaching two thousand degrees.” Transmitted by Baihaqī in Shu'ab al-īmān.

Ibn ‘Umar reported God’s messenger as saying, “These hearts be­come rusty just as iron does when water gets to it.” On being asked what could clear them he replied, “A great amount of remembrance of death and recitation of the Qur’ān.” Transmitted by Baihaqī in Shu'ab al-īmān.

‘Uthmān b. ‘Affān said, “If anyone recites the end of Āl ‘Imrān (Qur’ān, 3) on a night, the reward for a night spent in prayer will be recorded for him.” Transmitted by Dārimī.

Makhūl said, “If anyone recites Āl ‘Imrān on a Friday, the angels will invoke blessings on him till night comes.” Transmitted by Dārimī.

‘Alī told that he heard God’s messenger say, “Everything has an adornment, and the adornment of the Qur’ān is ar-Rahmān” (Qur’ān, 57) Transmitted by Baihaqī in Shu'ab al-īmān.

Ibn Mas’ūd reported God’s messenger as saying, “He who recites sūra al-Waqi'a (Qur’ān, 56) every night will never be afflicted by want.” Ibn Mas’ūd used to order his daughters to recite it every night. Transmitted by Baihaqī in Shu'ab al-īmān.

Al-Miqdam b. Ma'dikarib reported God's Messenger as saying, “No one has ever eaten better food than what he eats as a result of the labour of his hands. God’s prophet David used to eat from what he had worked for with his hands.” Bukhari transmitted it.

God is good and accepts only what is good, and He has given the same command to the believers as He has given to the Messengers, saying, “0 Messengers, eat of what is good and act righteously” (Al-Qur’an 23:51) and also, “You who believe, eat of the good things which We have provided for you” (Al-Qur’an 2:172). Then he mentioned a man who makes a long journey in a dishevelled and dusty state, who stretches out his hands to heaven saying, “My Lord, my Lord,” when his food, drink and clothing are of an unlawful nature, and he is nourished by what is unlawful, and asked how such a one could be given an answer. Muslim transmitted it.

He reported God's Messenger as saying, “A time will come to mankind when a man will not care whether what he gets comes from a lawful or an unlawful source.” Bukhari transmitted it.

An-Nu'man b. Bashir reported God's Messenger as saying, “What is lawful is clear and what is unlawful is clear, but between them are certain doubtful things which many people do not recognize. He who guards against doubtful things keeps his religion and his honour blameless, but he who falls into doubtful things falls into what is unlawful, just as a shepherd who pastures his animals round a preserve will soon pasture them in it. Every king has a preserve, and God’s preserve is the things He has declared unlawful. In the body there is a piece of flesh, and the whole body is sound if it is sound, but the whole body is corrupt if it is corrupt. It is the heart.” (Bukhari and Muslim.)

Rafi' b. Khadij reported God’s Messenger as saying, "The price paid for a dog is impure, the hire paid to a prostitute is impure, and the earnings of a cupper are impure.” Muslim transmitted it.

Abu Mas'ud al-Ansari said that God’s Messenger forbade the price paid for a dog, the hire paid to a prostitute, and the gift given to a soothsayer. (Bukhari and Muslim.)

Aba Juhaifa said that the Prophet forbade the price paid for blood¹, the price paid for a dog, and the earnings of a prostitute, and cursed him who accepted and him who paid usury, him who tattooed and him who had himself tattooed, and the sculptor². Bukhari transmitted it. 1. This refers to the blood of an animal. 2. Musawwir. The meaning is more comprehensive than any English word. It also means “painter”, or anyone who produces representations of living beings.

Jabir said he heard God’s Messenger say in the year of the Conquest when he was in Mecca, "God and His Messenger have declared forbidden the sale of wine, animals which have died a natural death, swine and idols.” He was asked what he thought of the fat of animals which had died a natural death, for it was used for caulking ships, greasing skins, and making oil for lamps, and after saying that it was unlawful he added, "God curse the Jews! When He declared the fat of such animals unlawful they melted it, then sold it and enjoyed the price they received. “ (Bukhari and Muslim.)

‘Umar reported God’s Messenger as saying, "God curse the Jews! Fats were declared unlawful for them, but they melted them and sold them.” (Bukhari and Muslim.)

Jabir said the God’s Messenger forbade payment for dogs and cats. Muslim transmitted it.

Anas said that Abu Taiba cupped God’s Messenger and he ordered that sa’ of dates be given him, also ordering his people to remit some of his dues.* * Abu Taiba was a client of the B. Haritha. It was the custom for a slave to hand over to his master part of what he earned. Here the Prophet suggests that the masters of Abu Taiba should reduce the amount they took from him. (Bukhari and Muslim.)

the children are the result of marriage, and parents who are in need may receive support from their children.

‘Abdallah b. Mas'ud reported God’s Messenger as saying, “No man who acquires unlawful property and gives some of it in alms will have it accepted from him; neither will he receive a blessing for it if he con-tributes some of it; and if he leaves some of it behind him (i.e. when he dies) it will be his provision for hell. God does not obliterate an evil deed by an evil one, but He obliterates an evil deed by a good one. What is impure does not obliterate what is impure.” Ahmad transmitted it, and the same is given in Sharh as-sunna.

Jabir reported God’s Messenger as saying, “Flesh which has grown out of what is unlawful will not enter paradise*, but hell is more fitting for all flesh which has grown out of what is unlawful.” Ahmad, Darimi, and Baihaqi, in Shu'ab al-iman, transmitted it. *The reference here is to people who live on unlawful source of income.

I have retained in my memory these words of God's Messenger, “Leave what causes you doubt and turn to what does not cause you doubt. Truth is tranquility, but falsehood is doubt.” Ahmad, Tirmidhi and Nasa’i transmitted it, and Darimi transmitted the first part.

Wabisa b. Ma'bad reported God’s Messenger as saying, “Have you come to ask about righteousness and sin, Wabisa?” When he replied that he had, he joined his fingers and striking his breast with them said, “Ask yourself for a decision, ask your heart for a decision (saying it three times). Righteousness is that with which the soul is tranquil and the heart is tranquil, but sin is that which rouses suspicion in the soul and is perplexing in the breast, even if people give you a decision in its favour.” Ahmad and Darimi transmitted it.

'Atiya as-Sa'di reported God's Messenger as saying, "No one will attain to being one of the pious till he abandons things which are harmless through being on his guard against what is harmful." Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah transmitted it.

the wine-presser, the one who has it pressed, the one who drinks it, the one who conveys it, the one to whom it is conveyed, the one who serves it, the one who sells it, the one who benefits from the price paid for it, the one who buys it, and the one for whom it is bought. Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah transmitted it.

Ibn 'Umar reported God's Messenger as saying, "God has cursed* wine, its drinker, its server, its seller, its buyer, its presser, the one for whom it is pressed, the one who conveys it and the one to whom it is conveyed." Abu Dawud and Ibn Majah transmitted it. * This might equally well be translated "God curse ...” as the perfect expresses both past time and a wish.

Muhayyisa said he asked permission of God's Messenger regarding the hire of the cupper, but he forbade him. He kept on asking his permission, and at last he said, "Feed your watering-camel with it and feed your slaves with it."* Malik, Tirmidhi, Abu Dawud and Ibn Majah transmitted it. * Ibn Abd al-Barr (Isti'ab, p. 286) says Muhayyisa had a slave called Nafi' Abu Taiba who was a cupper. On p. 654 he says the name of Abu Taiba was Dinar, or Nafi', or Maisara, but God knows best. In this tradition Muhayyisa is told that he may not apply to his private use anything earned by his slave for cupping.

Abu Huraira said God's Messenger prohibited payment for a dog and the earnings of the prostitute*. * Zammara. This word is said by a number of authorities to mean a prostitute, but it can also mean a woman who plays the oboe (mizmar). It is transmitted in Sharh as-sunna.

"Do not sell, buy or teach singing-girls, and the price paid for them is unlawful. To similar effect has been sent down, 'Among men are those who purchase frivolous talk' (Al-Qur'an 31:6). Ahmad, Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah transmitted it, Tirmidhi saying that this is a gharib tradition and that ‘Ali b. Yazid the transmitter is declared to be a weak traditionist.

‘Abdallah b. Mas'ud reported God's Messenger as saying, “Trying to earn a lawful livelihood is an obligatory duty in addition to the duties which are obligatory.” Baihaqi transmitted it in Shu’ab al-iman.