Salman bin Sakhr Al-Ansari - from Banu Bayadah - said that his wife was like the back of his mother to him until Ramadan passed. After half of Ramadan had passed he had intercourse with his wife during the night. So he went to the Messenger of Allah to mention that to him. The Messenger of Allah said to him: "Free a slave." He said: "I don't have one." So he said: "Then fast two consecutive months." He said: "I am unable." He said: "Feed sixty needy people." He said: "I can not." So the Messenger of Allah said to Farwah bin Amr: "Give him that Araq - and it is a large basket that holds fifteen or sixteen Sa - to feed sixty needy people."

The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, "When the inhabitants of Jannah enter Jannah, Allah, the Glorious and Exalted, will say to them: 'Do you wish me to give you anything more?' They will reply: 'Have You not made our faces bright? Have You not brought us into Jannah and delivered us from the Hell?' And Allah will remove the Veil. The (dwellers of Jannah) will feel that they have not been awarded anything dearer to them than looking at their Rubb."

[Muslim].

Allah, the Exalted, says:

"Verily, those who believe and do deeds of righteousness, their Rubb will guide them through their Faith; under them will flow rivers in the Gardens of Delight (Jannah). Their way of request therein will be Subhanaka Allahumma (Glory to You, O Allah!) and Salam (peace, safety from evil) will be their greetings therein (Jannah)! and the close of their request will be: Al-hamdu lillahi Rabbil-'Alamin [All the praises and thanks are to Allah, the Rubb of 'Alamin (mankind, jinn and all that exists)]." (10:9,10)

"Allah’s Messenger (Allah bless him and give him peace) used to fast three days at the beginning of every month, and he would seldom break fast on Friday, the Day of the Congregation [jumuah].”

The Messenger of Allah (saws) said to al-Abbas ibn AbdulMuttalib: Abbas, my uncle, shall I not give you, shall I not present to you, shall I not donate to you, shall I not produce for you ten things? If you act upon them, Allah will forgive you your sins, first and last, old and new, involuntary and voluntary, small and great, secret and open.

These are the ten things: you should pray four rak'ahs, reciting in each one Fatihat al-Kitab and a surah. When you finish the recitation of the first rak'ah you should say fifteen times while standing: "Glory be to Allah", "Praise be to Allah", "There is no god but Allah", "Allah is most great". Then you should bow and say it ten times while bowing. Then you should raise your head after bowing and say it ten times. Then you should kneel down in prostration and say it ten times while prostrating yourself. Then you should raise your head after prostration and say it ten times. Then you should prostrate yourself and say it ten times. Then you should raise your head after prostrating and say it ten times in every rak'ah. You should do that in four rak'ahs.

If you can observe it once daily, do so; if not, then once weekly; if not, then once a month; if not, then once a year; if not, then once in your lifetime.

A man came to the Prophet (saws) and said: How do you fast, Messenger of Allah? The Messenger of Allah (saws) became angry at what he said.

When Umar observed this (his anger), he said: We are satisfied with Allah as Lord, with Islam as religion, and with Muhammad as Prophet. We seek refuge in Allah from the anger of Allah, and from the anger of His Apostle. Umar continued to repeat these words till his anger cooled down. He then asked: Messenger of Allah, what is the position of one who observes a perpetual fast?

He replied: May he not fast or break his fast. Musaddad said in his version: He has neither fasted nor broken his fast. The narrator, Ghaylan, doubted the actual wordings.

He asked: What is the position of one who fasts two days and does not fast one day?

He said: Is anyone able to do that? He asked: What is the position of one who fasts every second day (i.e. fasts one day and does not fasts the next day)?

He (the Prophet) said: This is the fast that David observed.

He asked: Messenger of Allah, what is the position of one who fasts one day and breaks it for two days? He replied: I wish I were given the power to observe that. Then the Messenger of Allah (saws) said: The observance of three days' fast every month and of one Ramadan to the other (i.e. the fast of Ramadan every year) is (equivalent to) a perpetual fast. I seek from Allah that fasting on the day of Arafah may atone for the sins of the preceding and the coming year, and I seek from Allah that fasting on the day of Ashura' may atone for the sins of the preceding year.