I was in the mosque when a man entered and prayed and recited (the Qur'in) in a style to which I objected. Then another man entered (the mosque) and recited in a style different from that of his companion. When we had finished the prayer, we all went to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and said to him: This man recited in a style to which I objected, and the other entered and recited in a style different from that of his companion. The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) asked them to recite and so they recited, and the Apostle of Allah (may peace be upon him) expressed approval of their affairs (their modes of recitation). and there occurred In my mind a sort of denial which did not occur even during the Days of Ignorance. When the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) saw how I was affected (by a wrong idea), he struck my chest, whereupon I broke into sweating and felt as though I were looking at Allah with fear. He (the Holy Prophet) said to me: Ubayy. a message was sent to me to recite the Qur'an in one dialect, and I replied: Make (things) easy for my people. It was conveyed to me for the second time that it should be recited in two dialects. I again replied to him: Make affairs easy for my people. It was again conveyed to me for the third time to recite in seven dialects And (I was further told): You have got a seeking for every reply that I sent you, which you should seek from Me. I said: O Allah! forgive my people, forgive my people, and I have deferred the third one for the day on which the entire creation will turn to me, including even Ibrahim (peace be upon him) (for intercession).

One day we went to 'Abdullah b. Mas'ud after we had observed the dawn prayer and we paid salutation at the door. He permitted us to enter, but we stayed for a while at the door, when the slave-girl came out and said: Why don't you come in? So we went in and (we found 'Abdullah b. Mas'ud) sitting and glorifying Allah (i. e. he was busy in dhikr) and he said: What obstructed you from coming in though you had been granted permission for it? We said: There was nothing (behind it) but we entertained the idea that some inmate of the house might be sleeping. He said: Do you presume any idleness on the part of the family of Ibn Umm 'Abd (the mother of Abdullah b. Mas'ud)? He was again busy with the glorification of Allah till he thought that the sun had risen. He said: Girl, see whether (the sun) has arisen. She glanced but it had not risen (by that time). He was again busy with the glorification (of Allah) and he (again) thought that the sun had arisen. She glanced (and confirmed) that, it had risen. Upon this he ('Abdullah b. Mas'ud) said: Praise be to Allah Who did not call us to account for our sins today. Mahdi said: I think that he said, He did not destroy us for our sins. One among the people said: I recited all the mufassal surahs during the night. 'Abdullah said: (You must have recited them) like the (recitation) of poetry. I heard (the Holy Prophet) combining (the sarahs) and I remember the combinations which the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) made In the recitation (of surahs). These were constituted of eighteen mufassal surahs and two surahs (commencing with) Ha-Mim.

Messenger of Allah, the camels died and the passages were blocked; so supplicate Allah to send down rain upon us. The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) raised his hands and then said: (O Allah, send down rain upon us; O Allah, send dowp rain upon us; O Allah, send down rain upon us. Anas said: By Allah, we did not see any cloud or any patch of it, and there was neither any house or building standing between us and the (hillock) Sal'a. There appeared a cloud in the shape of a shield from behind it, and as it (came high) in the sky it spread and then there was a downpour of rain. By Allah, we did not see the sun throughout the week. Then (that very man) came on the coming Friday through the same door when the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) was standing and delivering the sermon. He stood in front of him and said: Messenger of Allah, our animals died and the passages blocked. Supplicate Allah to stop the rain for us. The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) again raised his hands and said: O Allah, let it (rain) fall in our suburbs and not on us, O Allah (send it down) on the hillocks and small mountains and the river-beds and at places where trees grow. The rain stopped, and as we stepped out we were walking in sun- shine. He (the narrator) said to Sharik: I asked Anas b. Malik if he was the same man. He said: I do not know.

I went out before the Adhan for the morning prayer had been delivered. The milch she-camels of the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) were grazing at Dhu Qarad. 'Abd al-Rahman b. Auf's slave met me and said: The milch she-camels of the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) had been taken away. I said: Who has taken them away? He said: (the people belonging to the tribe of) Ghatafan. I cried thrice: Help! I made the whole city between the two lavas hear my cry. Then I ran straight in their pursuit until I overtook them at Dhu Qarad where they were just going to water their animals. I, being an archer, began to shoot them with my arrows and was saying: I am the son of al-Akwa'. And today is the day when the cowards will meet their doom. I continued to chant until I rescued the milch she-camels from them, and snatched from them thirty mantles. Now, the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) and some other people came along. I said: Prophet of Allah, I have prevented them from water while they were thirsty. So you should send a force (to punish them). He (the Holy Prophet) said: Ibn al-Akwa', you have taken (what, you have taken). Now let them go. Then we returned and the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) made me mount behind him on his she-camel until we entered Medina.

Abu Bakr met me. He said: How are you, O Hanzala? He (Hanzala) said: Hanzala has become a hypocrite. He (Abu Bakr) said: Hallowed be Allah, what are you saying? Thereupon he said: I say that when we are in the company of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) we ponder over Hell-Fire and Paradise as if we are seeing them with our very eyes and when we are away from Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) we attend to our wives, our children, our business; most of these things (pertaining to After-life) slip out of our minds. Abu Bakr said: By Allah, I also experience the same. So I and Abu Bakr went to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and said to him: Allah's Messenger, Hanzala has turned to be a hypocrite. Thereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: What has happened to you? I said: Allah's Messenger, when we are in your company, we are reminded of Hell-Fire and Paradise as if we are seeing them with our own eyes, but whenever we go away from you and attend to our wives, children and business, much of these things go out of our minds. Thereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: By Him in Whose Hand is my life, if your state of mind remains the same as it is in my presence and you are always busy in remembrance (of Allah), the Angels will shake hands with you in your beds and in your paths but, Hanzala, time should be devoted (to the worldly affairs) and time (should be devoted to prayer and meditation). He (the Holy Prophet) said this thrice.

There was a person before you who had killed ninety-nine persons and then made an inquiry about the learned persons of the world (who could show him the way to salvation). He was directed to a monk. He came to him and told him that he had killed ninety-nine persons and asked him whether there was any scope for his repentance to be accepted. He said: No. He killed him also and thus completed one hundred. He then asked about the learned persons of the earth and he was directed to a scholar, and he told him that he had killed one hundred persons and asked him whether there was any scope for his repentance to be accepted. He said: Yes; what stands between you and the repentance? You better go to such and such land; there are people devoted to prayer and worship and you also worship along with them and do not come to the land of yours since it was an evil land (for you). So he went away and he had hardly covered half the distance when death came to him and there was a dispute between the angels of mercy and the angels of punishment. The angels of mercy said: This man has come as a penitant and remorseful to Allah and the angels of punishment said: He has done no good at all. Then there came another angel in the form of a human being in order to decide between them. He said: You measure the land to which he has drawn near. They measured it and found him nearer to the land where he intended to go (the land of piety), and so the angels of mercy took possession of it. Qatada said that Hasan told him that it was said to them that as death approached him, he crawled upon his chest (and managed) to slip in the land of mercy.

Yes. He said: By Lat and `Uzza. If I were to see him do that, I would trample his neck, or I would smear his face with dust. He came to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as he was engaged in prayer and thought of trampling his neck (and the people say) that he came near him but turned upon his heels and tried to repulse something with his hands. It was said to him: What is the matter with you? He said: There is between me and him a ditch of fire and terror and wings. Thereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace he upon him) said: If he were to come near me the angels would have torn him to pieces. Then Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, revealed this verse- (the narrator) said: We do not know whether it is the hadith transmitted by Abu Huraira or something conveyed to him from another source: "Nay, man is surely inordinate, because he looks upon himself as self-sufficient. Surely to thy Lord is the return. Hast thou seen him who forbids a servant when he prays? Seest thou if he is on the right way, or enjoins observance of piety? Seest thou if he [Abu Jahl] denies and turns away? Knowest he not that Allah sees? Nay, if he desists not, We will seize him by the forelock-a lying, sinful forelock. Then let him summon his council. We will summon the guards of the Hell. Nay! Obey not thou him" (lcvi, 6-19). (Rather prostrate thyself.) Ubaidullah made this addition: It was after this that (prostration) was enjoined upon and Ibn Abd al-Ala made this addition that by "Nadiyah" he meant his people.

The Last Hour would not come until the Romans would land at al-A'maq or in Dabiq. An army consisting of the best (soldiers) of the people of the earth at that time will come from Medina (to counteract them). When they will arrange themselves in ranks, the Romans would say: Do not stand between us and those (Muslims) who took prisoners from amongst us. Let us fight with them; and the Muslims would say: Nay, by Allah, we would never get aside from you and from our brethren that you may fight them. They will then fight and a third (part) of the army would run away, whom Allah will never forgive. A third (part of the army) which would be constituted of excellent martyrs in Allah's eye, would be killed and the third who would never be put to trial would win and they would be conquerors of Constantinople. And as they would be busy in distributing the spoils of war (amongst themselves) after hanging their swords by the olive trees, the Satan would cry: The Dajjal has taken your place among your family. They would then come out, but it would be of no avail. And when they would come to Syria, he would come out while they would be still preparing themselves for battle drawing up the ranks. Certainly, the time of prayer shall come and then Jesus (peace be upon him) son of Mary would descend and would lead them. When the enemy of Allah would see him, it would (disappear) just as the salt dissolves itself in water and if he (Jesus) were not to confront them at all, even then it would dissolve completely, but Allah would kill them by his hand and he would show them their blood on his lance (the lance of Jesus Christ).

Narrate to me a hadith which you had heard directly from Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and there is no extra link in between them. She said: Very well, if you like, I am prepared to do that, and he said to her: Well, do It and narrate that to me. She said: I married the son of Mughira and he was a chosen young man of Quraish at that time, but he fell as a martyr in the first Jihad (fighting) on the side of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him). When I became a widow, 'Abd al-Rahman b. Auf, one amongst the group of the Companions of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him), sent me the proposal of marriage. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) also sent me such a message for his freed slave Usama b. Zaid. And it had been conveyed to me that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) had said (about Usama): He who loves me should also love Usama. When Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) talked to me (about this matter), I said: My affairs are in your hand. You may marry me to anyone whom you like. He said: You better shift now to the house of Umm Sharik, and Umm Sharik was a rich lady from amongst the Ansar. She spent generously for the cause of Allah and entertained guests very hospitably. I said: Well, I will do as you like. He said: Do not do that for Umm Sharik is a woman who is very frequently visited by guests and I do not like that your head may be uncovered or the cloth may be removed from your shank and the strangers may catch sight of them which you abhor. You better shift to the house of your cousin 'Abdullah b. 'Amr b. Umm Maktum and he is a person of the Bani Fihr branch of the Quraish, and he belonged to that tribe (to which Fatima) belonged. So I shifted to that house, and when my period of waiting was over, I heard the voice of an announcer making an announcement that the prayer would be observed in the mosque (where) congregational prayer (is observed). So I set out towards that mosque and observed prayer along with Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and I was in the row of the women which was near the row of men. When Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) had finished his prayer, he sat on the pulpit smiling and said: Every worshipper should keep sitting at his place. He then said: Do you know why I had asked you to assemble? They said: Allah and His Messenger know best. He said: By Allah. I have not made you assemble for exhortation or for a warning, but I have detained you here, for Tamim Dari, a Christian, who came and accepted Islam, told me something, which agrees with what I was telling, you about the Dajjal. He narrated to me that he had sailed in a ship along with thirty men of Bani Lakhm and Bani Judham and had been tossed by waves in the ocean for a month. Then these (waves) took them (near) the land within the ocean (island) at the time of sunset. They sat in a small side-boat and entered that island. There was a beast with long thick hair (and because of these) they could not distinguish his face from his back. They said: Woe to you, who can you be? Thereupon it said: I am al-Jassasa. They said: What is al-Jassasa? And it said: O people, go to this person in the monastery as he is very much eager to know about you. He (the narrator) said: When it named a person for us we were afraid of it lest it should be a devil. Then we hurriedly went on till we came to that monastery and found a well-built person there with his hands tied to his neck and having iron shackles between his two legs up to the ankles. We said: Woe be upon thee, who are you? And he said: You would soon come to know about me. but tell me who are you. We said: We are people from Arabia and we embarked upon a boat but the sea-waves had been driving us for one month and they brought as near this island. We got Into the side-boats and entered this island and here a beast met us with profusely thick hair and because of the thickness of his hair his face could not be distinguished from his back. We said: Woe be to thee, who are you? It said: I am al- Jassasa. We said: What is al-Jassasa? And it said: You go to this very person in the monastery for he is eagerly waiting for you to know about you. So we came to you in hot haste fearing that that might be the Devil. He (that chained person) said: Tell me about the date-palm trees of Baisan. We said: About what aspect of theirs do you seek information? He said: I ask you whether these trees bear fruit or not. We said: yes. Thereupon he said: I think these would not bear fruits. He said: Inform me about the lake of Tabariyya? We said: Which aspect of it do you want to know? He said: Is there water in it? They said: There is abundance of water in it. Thereupon he said: I think it would soon become dry. He again said: Inform me about the spring of Zughar. They said: Which aspect of it you want to know? He (the chained person) said: Is there water in it and does it irrigate (the land)? We said to him: Yes, there is abundance of water in it and the inhabitants (of Medina) irrigate (land) with the help of it, He said: Inform me about the unlettered Prophet; what has he done? We said: He has come out from Mecca and has settled In Yathrib (Medina). He said: Do the Arabs fight against him? We said: Yes. He said: How did he deal with them? We informed him that he had overcome those in his neighbourhood and they had submitted themselves before him. Thereupon he said to us: Has it actually happened? We said: Yes. Thereupon he said: If it is so that is better for them that they should show obedience to him. I am going to tell you about myself and I am Dajjal and would be soon permitted to get out and so I shall get out and travel in the land, and will not spare any town where I would not stay for forty nights except Mecca and Medina as these two (places) are prohibited (areas) for me and I would not make an attempt to enter any one of these two. An angel with a sword in his hand would confront me and would bar my way and there would be angels to guard every passage leading to it; then Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) striking the pulpit with the help of the end of his staff said: This implies Taiba meaning Medina. Have I not, told you an account (of the Dajjal) like this? 'The people said: Yes, and this account narrated by Tamim Dari was liked by me for it corroborates the account which I gave to you in regard to him (Dajjal) at Medina and Mecca. Behold he (Dajjal) is in the Syrian sea (Mediterranean) or the Yemen sea (Arabian sea). Nay, on the contrary, he is in the east, he is in the east, he is in the east, and he pointed with his hand towards the east. I (Fatima bint Qais) said: I preserved it in my mind (this narration from Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him).

One day the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) appeared before the public so a man came to him and then said: Prophet of Allah, what is Iman? Upon this he (the Holy Prophet) replied: That you affirm your faith in Allah, His angels, His Books, His meeting, His Messengers and that you affirm your faith in the Resurrection hereafter. He said: Messenger of Allah, what is al-Islam? He replied: Al-Islam is that you worship Allah and do not associate anything with Him and you establish obligatory prayer and you pay the obligatory alms (Zakat) and you observe the fast of Ramadan. He said: Messenger of Allah, what is al-Ihsan? He replied: That you worship Allah as if you are seeing Him, and for if you fail to see Him. He said: Messenger of Allah, when is the Hour (of Doom)? He replied: The one who is asked about it is no better informed than the inquirer, however I will narrate some of its signs to you. When the slave-girl will give birth to her master, then that is from its signs. When the naked, barefooted would become the chiefs of the people, then that is from its signs. When the shepherds of the black (camels) would exult themselves in buildings, then that is from its signs. (The Hour is) Among one of the five which no one knows but Allah. Then he recited (the verse): "Verily Allah! with Him alone is the knowledge of the Hour and He it is Who sends down the rain and knows that which is in the wombs. And no soul knows what it shall earn tomorrow, and a soul knows not in what land it shall die. Verily Allah is Knowing, Aware."

He (Abu Huraira) said: Then the person turned back and went away. The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: Bring that man back to me. They went to bring him back, but they saw nothing there. Upon this the Messenger of Allah remarked: he was Gabriel, who came to teach the people their religion.

The poor amongst the emigrants came to the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) and said: The possessors of great wealth have obtained the highest ranks and the lasting bliss. He (the Holy Prophet) said: How is that? They said: They pray as we pray, and they observe fast as we observe fast, and they give charity but we do not give charity, and they set slaves free but we do not set slaves free. Upon this the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: Shall I not teach you something by which you will catch upon those who have preceded you, and get ahead of those who come after you, only those who do as you do being more excellent than you? They said: Yes, Messenger of Allah. He (the Holy Prophet) said: Extol Allah, declare His Greatness, and Praise Him thirty-three times after every prayer. Abu Salih said: The poor amongst the emigrants returned to the Messenger of Allah (may peace upon him) saying: Our brethren, the possessors, of property have heard what we have done and they did the same. So the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: This is Allah's Grace which He gives to whom He wishes. Sumayy reported: I made a mention of this hadith to some members of my family (and one of them) said: You have forgotten; he (the Holy Prophet) had said (like this): "Extol Allah thirty-three time, praise Allah thirty-three times and declare His Greatness thirty-three times." Ibn `Ajlan said: I made a mention of this hadith to Raja' b. Haiwa and he narrated to me a hadith like this from Abu Salih from the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) on the authority of Abu Huraira.

The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said:" We (prophets) do not have any heirs; what we leave behind is (to be given in) charity." The household of the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) will live on the income from these properties, but, by Allah, I will not change the charity of the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) from the condition in which it was in his own time. I will do the same with it as the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upun him) himself used to do. So Abu Bakr refused to hand over anything from it to Fatima who got angry with Abu Bakr for this reason. She forsook him and did not talk to him until the end of her life. She lived for six months after the death of the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him). When she died, her husband. 'Ali b. Abu Talib, buried her at night. He did not inform Abu Bakr about her death and offered the funeral prayer over her himself. During the lifetime of Fatima, 'All received (special) regard from the people. After she had died, he felt estrangement in the faces of the people towards him. So he sought to make peace with Abu Bakr and offer his allegiance to him. He had not yet owed allegiance to him as Caliph during these months. He sent a person to Abu Bakr requesting him to visit him unaccompanied by anyone (disapproving the presence of Umar). 'Umar said to Abu Bakr: BY Allah, you will not visit them alone. Abu Bakr said: What will they do to me? By Allah, I will visit them. And he did pay them a visit alone. 'All recited Tashahhud (as it is done in the beginning of a religious sermon) ; then said: We recognise your moral excellence and what Allah has bestowed upon you. We do not envy the favour (i. e. the Catiphate) which Allah nas conferred upon you; but you have done it (assumed the position of Caliph) alone (without consulting us), and we thought we had a right (to be consulted) on account of our kinship with the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him). He continued to talk to Abu Bakr (in this vein) until the latter's eyes welled up with tears. Then Abd Bakr spoke and said: By Allah, in Whose Hand is my life, the kinship of the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) is dearer to me than the kinship of my own people. As regards the dispute that has arisen between you and me about these properties, I have not deviated from the right course and I have not given up doing about them what the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) used to do. So 'Ali said to Abu Bakr: This aftetnoon is (fixed) for (swearing) allegiance (to you). So when Abu Bakr had finished his Zuhr prayer, he ascended the pulpit and recited Tashahhud, and described the status of 'Ali, his delay in swearing allegiance and the excuse which lie had offered to him (for this delay). (After this) he asked for God's forgiveness. Then 'Ali b. Abu Talib recited the Tashahhud. extolled the merits of Abu Bakr and (said that) his action was nott prompted by any jealousy of Abu Bakr on his part or his refusal to accept the high position which Allah had conferred upon him, (adding: ) But we were of the opinion that we should have a share in the government, but the matter had been decided without taking us into confidence, and this displeased us. (Hence the delay in offering allegiance. The Muslims were pleased with this (explanation) and they said: You have done the right thing. The Muslims were (again) favourably inclined to 'Ali since he adopted the proper course of action.

Abu Hurayra reported that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, forbade people to sit in courtyards and roads. The Muslims said, "We will not be able to avoid it. We cannot undertake it." He said, "If not, then give it its due." They said, "What is it due?" He said, "Lower the eye, guide the traveller, wish for mercy on the person who sneezes when he praises Allah and return the greeting."

While we were in the company of the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) in the early hours of the morning, some people came there (who) were barefooted, naked, wearing striped woollen clothes, or cloaks, with their swords hung (around their necks). Most of them, nay, all of them, belonged to the tribe of Mudar. The colour of the face of the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) underwent a change when he saw them in poverty. He then entered (his house) and came out and commanded Bilal (to pronounce Adhan). He pronounced Adhan and Iqima, and he (the Holy Prophet) observed prayer (along with his Companion) and then addressed (them reciting verses of the Holy Qur'an): '" 0 people, fear your Lord, Who created you from a single being" to the end of the verse," Allah is ever a Watcher over you" (iv. 1). (He then recited) a verse of Sura Hashr:" Fear Allah. and let every soul consider that which it sends forth for the morrow and fear Allah" (lix. 18). (Then the audience began to vie with one another in giving charity.) Some donated a dinar, others a dirham, still others clothes, some donated a sa' of wheat, some a sa' of dates; till he (the Holy Prophet) said: (Bring) even if it is half a date. Then a person from among the Ansar came there with a money bag which his hands could scarcely lift; in fact, they could not (lift). Then the people followed continuously, till I saw two heaps of eatables and clothes, and I saw the face of the Messenger (may peace be upon him) glistening, like gold (on account of joy). The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: He who sets a good precedent in Islam, there is a reward for him for this (act of goodness) and reward of that also who acted according to it subsequently, without any deduction from their rewards; and he who sets in Islam an evil precedent, there is upon him the burden of that, and the burden of him also who acted upon it subsequently, without any deduction from their burden.

I was in the company of some persons, amongst whom some were the Companions of Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) in Medina, that there came a person whose face depicted the fear (of Allah). Some people said: He is a person from amongst the people of Paradise; he is a person from amongst the people of Paradise. He observed two short rak'ahs of prayer and then went out. I followed him and he got into his house and I also got in and we began to converse with each other. And when he became familiar (with me) I said to Him: When you entered (the mosque) before (your entrance in the house) a person said so and so (that you are amongst the people of Paradise), whereupon he said: It is not meet for anyone to say anything which he does not know. I shall (now) tell you why they (say) this. I saw a dream during the lifetime of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and narrated it to him. I seemed to be in a garden [he described its vastness, its rich fructification and its verdure]; in the midst of it, there stood an iron pillar, with its base in the earth and its summit in the sky: and upon its summit there was a handhold. It was said to me: Climb up this (pillar). I said to him (visitant in the dream): I am unable to do it. Thereupon a helper came to me, and he (supported) me (by catching hold of my) garment from behind and thus helped me with his hand and so I climbed up till I was at the summit of the pillar, and grasped the handhold. It was said to me: Hold it tightly. It was at this that I woke up when (the handhold) was in the grip) of my hand. I narrated it (the dream) to Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him), whereupon he said: That garden implies al-Islam and that pillar implies the pillar of Islam. And that handhold is the firmest faith (as referred to in the Qur'an). And you will remain attached to Islam until you shall die. And that man was 'Abdullah b. Salim.

I and two of my companions were so much afflicted by hunger that we had lost our power of seeing and hearing. We presented ourselves (as guests) to the Companions of the Holy Prophet (may peace be upon him), but none amongst them would entertain us. So we came to Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him), and he took us to his residence and there were three goats. Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) said: Milk these for us. So we milked them and every person amongst us drank his share and we set aside the share of Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him). (It was his habit) to come during the night and greet (the people present there) in a manner that would not wake up one in sleep but make one who was awake hear it. He would then go to the mosque and say prayer, then go to the milk and drink it. Miqdad added: One night the Satan came to me when I had taken my share, and he said: Muhammad has gone to the Ansar, who would offer him hospitality and he would get what is with them, and he has no need for this draught (of milk). So I took (that milk) and drank it, and when it had penetrated deeply in my stomach and I was certain that there was no way out (but to digest it), the Satan aroused (my sense of) remorse and said: Woe be to thee! what have you done? You have taken the drink reserved for Muhammad! When he would come and he would not find it, he would curse you, and you would be ruined, and thus there would go (waste) this world and the Hereafter (for) you. There was a sheet over me; as I placed (pulled) it upon my feet, my head was uncovered and as I placed it upon my head, my feet were uncovered, and I could not sleep, but my two companions had gone to sleep for they had not done what I had done. There came Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him), and he greeted as he used to greet (by saying as-Salamu 'Alaikum). He then came to the mosque and observed prayer and then came to his drink (milk) and uncovered it, but did not find anything in it. He raised his head towards the sky, and I said (to myself) that he (the Holy Prophet) was going to invoke curse upon me and I would be thus ruined; but he (the Holy Prophet) said: Allah, feed him who fed me and give drink to him who provided me drink. I held tight the sheet upon myself (and when he had supplicated), I took hold of the knife and went to the goats (possessed by the Holy Prophet) so that I may slauhter one for Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) which was the fattest amongst them, and in fact all of them were milch goats; then I took hold of the vessel which belonged to the family of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) in which they used to milk and drink therefrom, and milked them in that until it swelled up with foam. I came to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and he said: Have you taken your share of the milk during the night? I said: Drink it. and he drank it; he then handed over (the vessel) to me and I said: Allah's Messenger, drink it, and he drank it and handed over (the vessel) to me again, I then perceived that Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) had been satiated and I had got his blessings. I burst into laughter (so much) so that I fell upon the ground, whereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: Miqdad, it must be one of your mischiefs. I said: Allah's Messenger, this affair of mind is like this and this. and I have done so. Thereupon. Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) said: This is nothing but a mercy from Allah. Why is it that you did not give me an opportunity so that we should have awakened our two friends and they would have got their share (of the milk)? I said: By Him Who has sent you with Truth. I do not mind whatever you give (to them), and whatever the (other) people happen to get, when I had got it along with you from among the people.

We set out with the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) on the Tabuk expedition, and he observed the noon and afternoon prayers together and the sunset and 'Isha' prayers together.

The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) observed the noon and afternoon prayers together, and the sunset and Isha' prayers together without being in a state of fear or in a state of journey.

We were sitting in the company of Umar and he said: Who amongst you has heard the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) talking about the turmoil? Some people said: It is we who heard it. Upon this be remarked: Perhaps by turmoil you presume the unrest of man in regard to his household or neighbour, they replied: Yes. He ('Umar) observed: Such (an unrest) would be done away with by prayer, fasting and charity. But who amongst you has heard from the Apostle (may peace be upon him) describing that turmoil which would come like the wave of the ocean. Hudhaifa said: The people hushed into silence, I replied: It is I. He ('Umar) said: Ye, well, your father was also very pious. Hudhaifa said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (may peace be, upon him ) observing: Temptations will be presented to men's hearts as reed mat is woven stick by stick and any heart which is impregnated by them will have a black mark put into it, but any heart which rejects them will have a white mark put in it. The result is that there will become two types of hearts: one white like a white stone which will not be harmed by any turmoil or temptation, so long as the heavens and the earth endure; and the other black and dust-coloured like a vessel which is upset, not recognizing what is good or rejecting what is abominable, but being impregnated with passion. Hudhaifa said: I narrated to him ('Umar): There is between you and that (turmoil) a closed door, but there is every likelihood of its being broken. 'Umar said: Would it be broken? You have, been rendered fatherless. Had it been opened, it would have been perhaps closed also. I said: No, it would be broken, and I narrated to him: Verily that door implies a person who would be killed or die. There is no mistake in this hadith. Abu Khalid narrated: I said to Sa'd, O Abu Malik, what do you mean by the term" Aswad Murbadda"? He replied: High degree of whiteness in blackness. I said: What is meant by" Alkoozu Mujakhiyyan"? He replied: A vessel turned upside down.

I turn my face in complete devotion to One Who is the Originator of the heaven and the earth and I am not of the polytheists. Verily my prayer, my sacrifice, my living and my dying are for Allah, the Lord of the worlds; There is no partner with Him and this is what I have been commanded (to profess and believe) and I am of the believers. O Allah, Thou art the King, there is no god but Thee, Thou art my Lord, and I am Thy bondman. I wronged myself and make a confession of my Sin. Forgive all my sins, for no one forgives the sins but Thee, and guide me in the best of conduct for none but Thee guideth anyone (in) good conduct. Remove sins from me, for none else but Thou can remove sins from me. Here I am at Thy service, and Grace is to Thee and the whole of good is in Thine hand, and one cannot get nearneststo Thee through evil. My (power as well as existence) is due to Thee (Thine grace) and I turn to Thee (for supplication). Thou art blessed and Thou art exalted. I seek forgiveness from Thee and turn to Thee in repentance: and when he would bow, he would say: O Allah, it is for Thee that I bowed. I affirm my faith in Thee and I submit to Thee, and submit humbly before Thee my hearing, my eyesight, my marrow, my bone, my sinew; and when he would raise his head, he would say: O Allah, our Lord, praise is due to Thee, (the praise) with which is filled the heavens and the earth, and with which is filled that (space) which exists between them, and filled with anything that Thou desireth afterward. And when he prostrated himself, he (the Holy Prophet) would say: O Allah, it is to Thee that I prostrate myself and it is in Thee that I affirm my faith, and I submit to Thee. My face is submitted before One Who created it, and shaped it, and opened his faculties of hearing and seeing. Blessed is Allah, the best of Creators; and he would then say between Tashahhud and the pronouncing of salutation: Forgive me of the earlier and later open and secret (sins) and that where I made transgression and that Thou knowest better than I. Thou art the First and the Last. There is no god, but Thee.

Abu Hurairah (RAA) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (P.B.U.H.) said, “When one of you sneezes, he should say, ‘Alhamdulillah (Praise is to Allah) and his (Muslim) brother should say to him, ‘Yarhamuka Allah (May Allah have mercy on you). When he says this to him (the last phrase), he should reply, ‘Yahdikum Allah (May Allah guide you) and grant you well being.” Related by Al-Bukhari.

The Prophet gave us seven commands and seven prohibitions. He commanded us to visit the sick, to follow funerals, to say ‘God have mercy on you’ when someone sneezes, to return salutations, to accept invitations, to help people to fulfil their oaths, and to help the wronged; and he forbade us gold rings, silk, thick brocade, embroidered silk, red stuffing placed on a saddle, Qassi garments (said to be cloth made of flax and raw silk which came from a place in Egypt called Qass between al-'Arish and al-Farama. Another suggestion is that the name is changed from qazzi and means silk.) and silver vessels. A version says drinking from silver vessels, for he who drinks out of them in this world will not drink out of them in the next. (Bukhari and Muslim.)

Ask me (about religious matters), but they (the Companions) were in awe of asking him. Then came a man, and sat near his knees and said: O Messenger of Allah, what is al-Islam? So he (the Holy Prophet) replied: [That] you do not associate anything with Allah, and establish the prayer, pay the alms (Zakat) and fast Ramadan. He said: You (have) told the truth. He said: Messenger of Allah, what is al-Iman (Faith)? He said: That you affirm your faith in Allah, His angels, His Books, His meeting, His Apostles, and that you believe in Resurrection and that you believe in Qadr (Divine Decree) in all its entirety. He (the inquirer) said: You have told the truth. He said: Messenger of Allah, what is al-Ihsan? Upon this he said: that you fear Allah as if you are seeing Him, and though you see Him not, verily He is seeing you. He (the inquirer) said: You (have) told the truth. He (the inquirer) said: When will the Hour (of Doom) occur? He said: The one who is being asked about it is no better informed than the inquirer and I will narrate some of its signs to you. When you see a [slave] woman giving birth to her master - then that is [one] of its signs. And when you see barefooted, naked, deaf and dumb (ignorant and foolish persons) as the rulers of the earth - then that is [one] of its signs. And when you see the shepherds of black (camels) exult in buildings - then that is [one] of its signs. The (Hour) is one of the five things of the unseen. No one knows them except Allah. Then (the Holy Prophet) recited (the folowing verse):" Verily Allah! with Him alone is the knowledge of the Hour and He it is Who sends down the rain and knows that which is in the wombs. And no soul knows what it shall earn on the morrow and a soul knows not in what land it shall die. Verily Allah is Knowing, Aware."

He (Abu Huraira) said: Then the person stood up (and made his way). Then the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: Bring him back to me. He was searched for, but they could not find him. The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) thereupon said: He was Gabriel and he wanted to teach you when you did not ask.

Zaid. you have been able to acquire a great virtue that you saw Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) listened to his talk, fought by his side in (different) battles, offered prayer behind me. Zaid, you have in fact earned a great virtue. Zaid, narrate to us what you heard from Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him). He said: I have grown old and have almost spent my age and I have forgotten some of the things which I remembered in connection with Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him), so accept whatever I narrate to you, and which I do not narrate do not compel me to do that. He then said: One day Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) stood up to deliver sermon at a watering place known as Khumm situated between Mecca and Medina. He praised Allah, extolled Him and delivered the sermon and. exhorted (us) and said: Now to our purpose. O people, I am a human being. I am about to receive a messenger (the angel of death) from my Lord and I, in response to Allah's call, (would bid good-bye to you), but I am leaving among you two weighty things: the one being the Book of Allah in which there is right guidance and light, so hold fast to the Book of Allah and adhere to it. He exhorted (us) (to hold fast) to the Book of Allah and then said: The second are the members of my household I remind you (of your duties) to the members of my family. He (Husain) said to Zaid: Who are the members of his household? Aren't his wives the members of his family? Thereupon he said: His wives are the members of his family (but here) the members of his family are those for whom acceptance of Zakat is forbidden. And he said: Who are they? Thereupon he said: 'Ali and the offspring of 'Ali, 'Aqil and the offspring of 'Aqil and the offspring of Ja'far and the offspring of 'Abbas. Husain said: These are those for whom the acceptance of Zakat is forbidden. Zaid said: Yes.

I invited my mother, who was a polytlieist, to Islam. I invited her one day and she said to me something about Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) which I hated. I came to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) weeping and said: Allah's Messenger, I invited my mother to Islam but she did not accept (my invitation). I invited her today but she said to me something which I did not like. (Kindly) supplicate Allah that He may set the mother of Abu Huraira right. Thereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: O Allah, set the mother of Abu Huraira on the right path. I came out quite pleased with the supplication of Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) and when I came near the door it was closed from within. My mother heard the noise of my footsteps and she said: Abu Huraira, just wait. And I heard the noise of falling of water. She took a bath and put on the shirt and quickly covered her head with a headdress and opened the door and then said: Abu Huraira, I bear witness to the fact that there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is His bondsman and His Messenger. He (Abu Huraira) said: I went back to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and (this time) I was shedding the tears of joy. I said: Allah's Messenger, be happy, for Allah has responded to your supplication and He has set on the right path the mother of Abu Huraira. He (the Holy Prophet) praised Allah, and extolled Him and uttered good words. I said: Allah's Messenger, supplicate to Allah so that He may instill love of mine and that of my mother too in the believing servants and let our hearts be filled with their love, whereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: O Allah, let there be love of these servants of yours, i.e. Abu Huraira and his mother, in the hearts of the believing servants and let their hearts be filled with the love of the believing servants. (Abu Huraira said: This prayer) was so well granted by Allah that no believer was ever born who heard of me and who saw me but did not love me.

A woman of her family had sent her a small vessel of honey as a gift, and she gave to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) from that a drink. I said: By Allah, we would also contrive a device for him. I mentioned that to Sauda, and said: When he (Allah's Apostle) would visit you and draw close to you, say to him: Allah's Messenger, have you taken maghafir? And he would'say to you: No. Then say to him: What is this odour? And Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) felt it very much that unpleasant odour should emit from him. So he would say to you: Hafsa has given me a drink of honey. Then you should say to him: The honey-bees might have sucked 'Urfut, and I would also say the same to him and. Safiyya, you should also say this. So when he (the Holy Prophet) came to Sauda, she said: By Him besides whom there is no god, it was under compulsion that I had decided to state that which you told me when he would be at a little distance at the door. So when Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) came near, she said: Messenger of Allah, did you eat Maghafir? He said: No. She (again) said: Then what is this odour? He said: Hafsa gave me honey to drink. She said: The honey-bee might have sucked 'Urfut. When he came to me I told him like this. He then visited Safiyya and she also said to him like this. When he (again) visited Hafsa, she said: Messenger of Allah, should I not give you that (drink)? He said: I do not need that. Sauda said: Hallowed be Allah, by Him we have (contrived) to make that (honey) unlawful for him. I said to her: Keep quiet.

That people from the- tribe of 'Abdul-Qais came to the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) and said: Messenger of Allah, we belong to the tribe of Rabi'a and there live between you and us the unbelievers of the Mudar tribe and we find it impossible to come to you except in the sacred months; direct us to a deed which we must communicate to those who have been left behind us and by doing which we may enter heaven. Upon this the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: I enjoin upon you four (things) and forbid you to do four (things): worship Allah and associate none with Him, establish prayer, pay Zakat, and observe the fast of Ramadan, and pay the fifth part out of the booty. And I prohibit you from four (things): dry gourds, green-coloured jars, hollowed stumps of palm-trees, and receptacles. They (the members of the delegation) said: Do you know what al-naqir is? He replied: Yes, it is a stump which you hollow out and in which you throw small dates. Sa'id said: He (the Holy Prophet) used the word tamar (dates). (The Holy Prophet then added): Then you sprinkle water over it and when its ebullition subsides, you drink it (and you are so intoxicated) that one amongst you, or one amongst them (the other members of your tribe, who were not present there) strikes his cousin with the sword. He (the narrator) said: There was a man amongst us who had sustained injury on this very account due to (intoxication), and he told that he tried to conceal it out of shame from the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him). I, however, inquired from the Messenger of Allah (it we discard those utensils which you have forbidden us to use), then what type of vessels should be used for drink? He (the Holy Prophet) replied: In the waterskin the mouths of which are tied (with a string). They (again) said: Prophet of Allah, our land abounds in rats and water-skins cannot remain preserved. The holy Prophet of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: (Drink in water-skins) even if these arenibbled by rats. And then (addressing) al-Ashajj of 'Abdul-Qais he said: Verily, you possess two such qualities which Allah loves: insight and deliberateness.

To Allah belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth and whether you disclose that which is in your mind or conceal it, Allah will call you to account according to it. Then He forgives whom He pleases and chastises whom He Pleases; and Allah is over everything Potent" (ii. 284). the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) felt it hard and severe and they came to the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) and sat down on their knees and said: Messenger of Allah, we were assigned some duties which were within our power to perform, such as prayer, fasting, struggling (in the cause of Allah), charity. Then this (the above-mentioned) verse was revealed unto you and it is beyond our power to live up to it. The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: Do you intend to say what the people of two books (Jews and Christians) said before you:" We hear and disobey"? You should rather say:" We hear and we obey, (we seek) Thy forgiveness, our Lord! and unto Thee is the return." And they said:" We hear and we obey, (we seek) Thy forgiveness, Our Lord! and unto Thee is the return." When the people recited it and it smoothly flowed on their tongues, then Allah revealed immediately afterwards:" The Apostle believes in that which is sent down unto him from his Lord, and so do the believers. Each one believes in Allah and His Angels and His Books and His Apostles, saying: We differentiate not between any of His Apostles and they say: We hearken and we obey: (we seek) Thy forgiveness, our Lord! and unto Thee is the return" (ii. 285). When they did that, Allah abrogated this (verse) and the Great, Majestic Allah revealed:" Allah burdens not a soul beyond its capacity. It gets every good that it earns and it suffers every ill that it earns. Our Lord, punish us not if we forget or make a mistake." (The Prophet said: ) Yes, our Lord! do not lay on us a burden as Thou didst lay on those before us. (The Prophet said: ) Yes, our Lord, impose not on us (burdens) which we have not the strength to bear (The Prophet said: ) Yes, and pardon us and grant us protection! and have mercy on us. Thou art our Patron, so grant us victory over the disbelieving people" (ii. 286). He (the Lord) said: Yes.

Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) observed Tamattu' in Hajjat-ul-Wada'. He first put on Ihram for 'Umra and then for Hajj. and then offered animal sacrifice. So he drove the sacrificial animals with him from Dhu'l-Hulaifa. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) commenced Ihram of Umra and thus pronounced Talbiya for 'Umra. and then (put on Ihram for Hajj) and pronounced Talbiya for Hajj. And the people performed Tamattu' in the company of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him). They put on Ihram for Umra (first) and then for Hajj. Some of them had sacrificial animals which they had brought with them, whereas some of them had none to sacrifice. So when Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) came to Mecca, he said to the people: He who amongst you has brought sacrificial animals along with him must not treat as lawful anything which has become unlawful for him till he has completed the Hajj; and he, who amongst you has not brought the sacrificial animals should circumambulate the House, and run between al-Safa' and al-Marwa and clip (his hair) and put off the Ihram, and then again put on the Ihram for Hajj and offer sacrifice of animals. But he who does not find the sacrificial animal, he should observe fast for three days during the Hajj and for seven days when he returns to his family. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) circumambulated (the House) when he came to Mecca: he first kissed the corner (of the Ka'ba containing the Black Stone), then ran in three circuits out of seven and walked in four circuits. And then when he had finished the circumambulation of the House he observed two rak'ahs of prayer at the Station (of Ibrahim), and then pronounced Salaam (for concluding the rak'ahs), and departed and came to al-Safa' and ran seven times between al-Safa' and al-Marwa. After that he did not treat anything as lawful which had become unlawful till he had completed his Hajj and sacrificed his animal on the day of sacrifice (10th of Dhu'l-Hijja). and then went back quickly (to Mecca) and performed circumambulation of the House (known as tawaf ifada) after which all that was unlawful for him became lawful; and those who had brought the sacrificial animals along with them did as Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) had done

I went out with Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) on an expedition, but my camel delayed me. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) came to me and said to me: Jabir, I said: Yes. Allah's Messenger, (here I am at your beck and call) He said: What is the matter with you? I said: My camel has delayed me and is tired, so I have lagged behind. He (the Holy Prophet) got down and goaded it with a crooked stick and then said: Mount it. So I mounted and (to my great surprise) I saw it (moving so quickly that) I had to restrain it (from going ahead of) Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him). He (the Holy Prophet) (in the course of journey said to me): Have you married? I said: Yes. He (again) said: Is it with a virgin or one previously married? I said. With one previously married, whereupon he (again) said: Why not with a young girl with whom you could sport and she could have sported with you? I said: I have sisters, so I preferred to marry a woman who could keep them together (as one family). who could comb them and look after them. He said: You are about to go (to your house), and there you have the enjoyment (of the wife's company). He again said: Do you want to sell your camel? I said: Yes. So he bought it from me for one u'qiya (of silver), Then Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) arrived (at Medina) and I arrived in the evening. I went to the mosque and found him at the door of the mosque, and said: Is it now that you have arrived? I said: Yes, He said: Leave your camel, and enter (the mosque) and offer two rak'ahs. So I entered and offered two rak'ahs of prayer, and then returned. He (the Holy Prophet) then commanded Bilal to weigh out one 'uqiya (of silver) tor me. Bilal weighed that out for me (lowering the scale of) balance. So I proceeded and as I turned my back he said: Call for me, Jabir. So I was called back, and I said (to myself): He would return me the camel, and nothing was more displeasing to me than this (that after having received the price I should also get the camel). He said: Take your camel and keep its price with you, (also).

I went on an expedition with Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him). He overtook me and I was on a water-carrying camel who had grown tired and did not walk (trot). He (the Holy Prophet) said to me: What is the matter with your camel? I said: It is sick. He (the Holy Prophet) stepped behind and drove it and prayed for it, and then it always moved ahead of other camels. He (then) said: How do you find your camel? I said: It is, by the grace of your prayer, all right. He said: Would you sell this (camel) to me? I felt shy (to say him," No" ) as we had no other camel for carrying water, but (later on) I said: Yes, and to I sold it to him on the condition that (I would be permitted) to ride it until I reached Madina. I said to him: Allah's Messenger, I am newly married, so I asked his permission (to go ahead of the caravan). He permitted me, and I reached Medina well in advance of other people, until I reached my destination. There my maternal uncle met me and asked me about the camel, and I told him what I had done with regard to it. He reproved me in this connection. He (Jabir) said: When I asked his permission (to go ahead of the caravan) Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) inquired of me whether I had married a virgin or a non-virgin. I said to him: I have married a non-virgin. He said: Why did you not marry a virgin who would have played with you and you would have played with her? I said to him: Allah's Messenger, my father died (or he fell as a martyr), and I have small sisters to (look after), so I did not like the idea that I should marry a woman who is like them and thus be not able to teach them manners and look after them properly. So I have married a non-virgin so that she should be able to look after them and teach them manners, When Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) came to Medina, I went to him in the morning with the camel. He paid me its price and returned that (the camel) to me.

Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) never told a lie but only thrice: two times for the sake of Allah (for example, his words): "I am sick," and his words: "But it was the big one amongst them which has done that" and because of Sara (his wife). He had come in a land inhabited by haughty and cruel men along with Sara. She was very good-looking amongst the people, so he said to her: If these people were to know that you are my wife they would snatch you away from me, so if they ask you tell them that you are my sister and in fact you are my sister in Islam, and I do not know of any other Muslim in this land besides I and you. And when they entered that land the tyrants came to see her and said to him (the king): 'There comes to your land a woman, whom you alone deserve to possess', so he (the king) sent someone (towards her) and she was brought to him, and Ibrahim (peace be upon him) stood in prayer. When she visited him (the tyrant king came) he could help but stretch his hand towards her and his hand was tied up. He said: 'Supplicate to Allah so that He may release my hand and I will do no harm to you.' She did that and the man repeated (the same highhandedness) and his hand was again tied up more tightly than on the first occasion. He said the same thing to her again, and she again did that (supplicated), but he repeated (the same highhandedness and his hands were tied up more tightly than on the previous occasion). He then again said: 'Supplicate your Lord so that He may set my hand free; by Allah I shall do no harm to you.' She did and his hand was freed. Then he called the person who had brought her and said to him: 'You have brought to me the satan and you have not brought to me a human being, so turn them out from my land,' and he gave Hajar as a gift to her. She returned (along with Hajar) and when Ibrahim (peace be upon him) saw her, he said: 'How have you returned?' She said: 'With full safety (have I returned). Allah held the hand of that debauch and he gave me a maid-servant.' Abu Huraira said: 'O sons of the rain of the sky, she is your mother.'

Allah's Messenger, will we be able to see our Lord on the Day of Judgment? He said: Do you feel any difficulty in seeing the sun in the noon when there is no cloud over it? They said: No. He again said: Do you feel any difficulty in seeing the moon on the fourteenth night when there is no cloud over it? They said: No. Thereupon he said: By Allah Who is One in Whose Hand is my life. you will not face any difficulty in seeing your Lord but only so much as you feel in seeing one of them. Then Allah would sit in judgment upon the servant and would say: O, so and so, did I not honour you and make you the chief and provide you the spouse and subdue for you horses, camels, and afforded you an opportunity to rule over your subjects? He would say: Yes. And then it would be said: Did you not think that you would meet Us? And he would say: No. Thereupon He (Allah) would say: Well, We forget you as you forgot Us. Then the second person would be brought for judgment. (And Allah would) say: 0, so and so. did We not honour you and make you the chief and make you pair and subdue for you horses and camels and afford you an opportunity to rule over your subjects? He would say: Yes, my Lord. And He (the Lord) would say: Did you not think that you would be meeting Us? And he would say: No. And then He (Allah) would say: Well, I forget you today as you forgot Us. Then the third -one would be brought and He (Allah) would say to him as He said before. And he (the third person) would say: O, my Lord, I affirmed my faith in Thee and in Thy Book and in Thy Messenger and I observed prayer and fasts and gave charity, and he would speak in good terms like this as he would be able to do. And He (Allah) would say: Well, We will bring our witnesses to you. And the man would think in his mind who would bear witness upon him and then his mouth would be sealed and it would be said to his thighs, to his flesh and to his bones to speak and his thighs. flesh and bones would bear witness to his deeds and it would be done so that he should not be able to make any excuse for himself and he would be a hypocrite and Allah would be annoyed with him.

I and my father set out in search of knowledge to a tribe of the Ansar before their death (i. e. before the Companions of the Holy Prophet left the world) and I was the first to meet Abu Yasar, a Companion of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and there was a young man with him who carried the record of letters with him and there was a mantle prepared by the tribe of Ma'afiri upon him. And his servant too had a Ma'afiri mantle over him. My father said to him: My uncle, I see the signs of anger or that of agony on your face. He said: Yes, such and such person, the son of so and so, of the tribe of Harami owed me a debt. I went to his family, extended salutations and said: Where is he? They said: He is not here. Then came out to me his son who was at the threshold of his youth. I said to him: Where is your father? He said: No sooner did he hear your sound than he hid himself behind my mother's bedstead. I said to him: Walk out to me, for I know where you are. He came out. I said to him: What prompted you to hide yourself from me? He said: By God, whatever I would say to you would not be a lie. By Allah, I fear that I should tell a lie to you and in case of making promise with you I should break it, as you are the Companion of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him). The fact is that I was hard up in regard to money. I said: Do you adjure by Allah? He said: I adjure by Allah. I said: Do you adjure by Allah? He said: I adjure by Allah. I said: Do you adjure by Allah? He said: I adjure by Allah. Then he brought his promissory note and he wrote off (the debt) with his hand and said: Make payment when you find yourself solvent enough to pay me back; if you are not, then there is no liability upon you. These two eyes of mine saw, and he (Abu'I-Yasar) placed his fingers upon his eyes and these two ears of mine heard and my heart retained, and he pointed towards his heart that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: He who gives time to one who is financially hard up (in the payment of debt) or writes off his debt, Allah will provide him His shadow. I said to him: My uncle, if you get the cloak of your servant and you give him your two clothes, or take his two clothes of Ma'afir and give him your cloak, then there would be one dress for you and one for him. He wiped my head and said: O Allah, bless the son of my brother. O, son of my brother, these two very eyes of mine saw and these two ears of mine listened to and this heart of mine retained this, and he pointed towards the heart that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: Feed them (the servants) and clothe them (the servants) what you wear, and if I give him the goods of the world, it is easy for me than this that he should take my virtues on the Day of Resurrection. We went on till we came to Jabir b. Abdullah in the mosque and he was busy in observing prayer in one cloth which he had joined at its opposite ends. I made my way through the people till I sat between him and the Qibla and I said: May Allah have mercy upon you. Do you observe prayer with one cloth on your body whereas your mantle is lying at your side? He pointed me with his hand towards my breast just like this and he separated his fingers and bent them in the shape of a bow. And (he said): I thought that a fool like you should come to me so that he should see me as I do and he should then also do like it. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) came to us in this very mosque and he had in his hand the twig of the palm-tree and he saw mucus towards the Qibla of the mosque and he erased it with the help of the twig. He then came to us and said: Who amongst you likes that Allah should turn His face away from him? We were afraid. He then again said: Who amongst you likes that Allah should turn His face away from him? We were afraid. He again said: Who amongst you likes that Allah should turn His face away from him? We said: Allah's Messenger, none of us likes it. And he said: If one amongst you stands for prayer, Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, is before him he should not spit in front of him, or on his right side, but should spit on his left side beneath his left foot and if he is impelled to do so all of a sudden (in spite of himself) he should then spit in his cloth and fold it in some part of it. (and he further said: ) Bring some sweet-smelling thing. A young man who belonged to our tribe stood up, went and brought scent in his palm. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) took that and applied it to the end of that twig and then touched the place where there had been mucus. Jabir said: This is why you should apply scent to your mosques. It is reported on the same authority: We set out along with Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) on an expedition of Batn Buwat. He (the Holy Prophet) was in search of al-Majdi b. 'Amr al-Juhani. (We had so meagre equipment) that five. six or seven of us had one camel to ride and so we mounted it turn by turn. Once there wan. the turn of an Ansari to ride upon the camel. He made it kneel down to ride over it (and after having. mounted it), he tried to raise it up but it hesitated. So he said. May there be curse of Allah upon you! Thereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: Who is there to curse his camel? He said: Allah's Messenger, it' is I. Thereupon he said: Get down from the camel and let us not have in our company the cursed one. Don't curse your own selves, nor your children. nor your belongings. There is the possibility that your curse may synchronies with the time when Allah is about to confer upon you what you demand and thus your prayer may be readily responded. It is reported on the same authority: We set out on an expedition along with Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) until it was evening, and we had been near a. water reservoir of Arabia. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: Who would be the person who would go ahead and set right the reservoir and drink water himself and serve us with it? Jabir said: I stood up and said: Allah's Messenger, it is I who am ready to do that. Thereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: Who is the person to accompany Jabir? And then Jabbar b. Sakhr stood up. So we went to that well and poured in that tank a bucket or two of water and plastered it with clay and then began to fill it (with water) until it was filled to the brim. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) was the first who appeared before us, and he said: Do you (both) permit me to drink water out of it? We said: Yea, Allah's Messenger. He led his camel to drink water and it drank. He then pulled its rein and it stretched its legs and began to urinate. He then took it aside and made it kneel down at another place and then came to the tank and performed ablution. I then got up and performed ablution like the ablution of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him), and Jabbar b. Sakhr went in order to relieve himself and Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) got up to observe prayer and there was a mantle over me. I tried to invert its ends but it was too short (to cover my body easily). It had its borders. I then inverted it (the mantle) and drew its opposite ends and then tied them at my neck. I then came and stood upon the left side of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him). He caught hold of me and made me go round behind him, until he made me stand on his right side. Then Jabbar b. Sakhr came. He performed ablution and then came and stood on the left side of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him). Then Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) caught hold of our hands together, pushed us back and made us stand behind him. Then Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) began to look upon me with darting looks, but I did not perceive that. After that I became aware of it and he pointed with the gesture of his hand that I should wrap my loin-cloth. When Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) had finished the prayer, he said: Jabir! I said: Allah's Messenger, at thy beck and call. He said: When the cloth around you is inadequate, then tie the opposite ends but when it is small, tie it over the lower body. Jabir reported: We set out on an expedition with Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and the only means of sustenance for every person amongst us was only one date for a day and we used to chew it. And we struck the leaves with the help of our bow and ate them until the sides of our mouths were injured. It so happened one day that a person was overlooked and not given a date. We carried that person and bore witness to the fact that he had not been given that date so he was offered that and he got up and received that. Jabir reported: We set out on an expedition along with Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) until we got down at a spacious valley and Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) went to relieve himself. I followed him with a bucket full of water and Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) looked about and he found no privacy but two trees at the end of the valley and Allah's Messenger (may. peace be upon him) went to one of them and took hold of one of its twigs and said: Be thou under my control by the permission of Allah, and so it came under his control like the camel who has its nosestring in the hand of its rider, and then he came to the second tree and took hold of a twig and said: Be thou under my control with the permission of Allah, and it came under his control, and when he came in the middle of the two trees he joined together the two twigs and said: join with the permission of Allah. Jabir said: I was afraid lest Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) should be aware of my nearness and go still farther. And Muhammad b. Abbad has used the word" faitab'd" and I began to talk to myself. And as I saw, I suddenly found Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) before me and the two trees were separated and each one of them was standing at its place. I saw Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) standing for a short time, nodding his head towards right and left. Isma'il pointed towards the right and left with the help of his head (in order to demonstrate how the Holy Prophet had pointed). Then he (the Holy Prophet) came to me and said: Jabir did you see my place where I was standing? I said: Allah's Messenger, yes. He then said: Then you should go to those two trees and cut a twig from each of them and go to that place with them where I was standing and stand there where I was standing and place a twig on the right and a twig on the left. Jabir said: I set out and took hold of a stone and broke it and sharpened it and then I came to those trees and cut a twig from each one of them. I then came dragging them until I stood at the place where Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) had been standing and placed a twig on the right and a twig on the left. Then I met him and said: Allah's Messenger, I have done that, but (kindly) explain to me the reason for it. Thereupon he said: I passed by two graves the occupants of which had been undergoing torment. I liked to make intercession for them so that the might be relieved of this torment y as long as these twigs remain fresh. Jabir said: We came back to the (camp of the) army and Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: Jabir, call people for per- forming wudu. I cried: Come and perform wudu, come and perform wudu, come and perform wudu. I said: Allah's Messenger, there is not even a drop of water in the army camp, and there. was a person who used to cool the water for Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) in the old water-skin which kept hanging by the twig. He asked me to go to such and such Ansari and ask him to see if there was any water in that skin. I went to him and cast a glance in it but did not find anything but a drop in the mouth of that water-skin and if I were to draw that, the water-skin's,. dried part would suck it up. I came to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and said: Allah's Messenger, I have not found anything in it but a drop of water in the mouth of the water-skin and now if I were to draw that, it would be absorbed. He said: Go and bring that to me. I brought that to him. He took hold of it -and began to utter something which I could not understand and then pressed it with his hand and gave that to me and said: Jabir, announce for the tub to be brought. So I announced that the tub of the army (be brought). It was brought accordingly and I placed it before him (the Holy Prophet). Thereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) placed his hands in the tub like this: with his fingers stretched out, and then he placed his fingers at the bottom of the tub and said: Jabir, take it (that waters-skin) and pour water over me, by reciting Bismillah, and I poured water and I said: Bismillah, and found water sprouting out between the fingers of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him). Then that tub gushed forth until it was filled up and the Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: Jabir, make an announcement to the effect: He who needs water should take that. Jabir said: The people came and got water until they were all satiated. I said: Is there anyone left who wants to get it? And Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) then lifted up his hand from that tub and it was still full. Then the people made a complaint to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) about hunger and he said: May Allah provide you food! We came to the bank of the ocean and the ocean was tossing and it threw out a big animal and we lit fire and cooked it and took it until we had eaten to our heart's content. Jabir said: I and such and such five persons entered Its socket and nobody could see us until we had come out, and we took hold of one of its ribs and twisted it into a sort of arch, then we called the tallest of the persons of the army and the hugest of the camels of the army and it had the big saddle over it, and it could easily pass through it without the rider having need to bend down.

A man stood up and said. Messenger of Allah, how is the night prayer? The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: The night prayer consists of pair, but if you apprehend the rise of dawn, make it odd number by observing one rak'ah.