Worship
Worshipping God and not
harming others
Abdullah ibn Masud says that when he asked the Prophet what the best of all actions was, the latter replied: “Prayer at the proper time.” “And what is the next best,” asked Ibn Masud, “Sparing people the harm your tongue can do,” was the Prophet’s reply.
(AL TABARANI)
Knowing God is the
greatest worship
A man came to the Prophet one day and asked him what the best of all actions was. “The realization of God,” replied the Prophet. The man repeated his question, but the Prophet gave him the same answer. “Prophet of God,” the man said, “I am asking you about actions, whereas you speak of knowledge.” “With knowledge, the smallest action brings greater benefit,” the Prophet told him, “while the greatest of actions brings no benefit, if it is carried out in ignorance.”
(JAMI‘ BAYAN AL-‘ILM)
Good Character-the very
essence of religion
Abdur Rehman ibn Harith ibn Abi Mirdas As Sulami recounts what happened one day when he was in the presence of the Prophet, along with a group of people. The Prophet asked for some water to be brought, then dipping his hands into it, he performed his ablutions. Whatever water was left was drunk by the people present. “What made you do this?” enquired the Prophet. “Love of God and the Prophet,” they replied. “If you wish to be loved by God and His Prophet,” God’s messenger told them, “be faithful when trusted and honest in your speech; and be a good neighbour to others.”
(AL- TABARANI)
It is the spirit of worship
that is important
According to Ibn Umar, the Prophet once said that a man might pray, pay the poor due and go on pilgrimage—and he went on to mention all the virtuous actions-but that he would be rewarded only according to the degree of his intellectual awareness of what he did.
(AHMAD, MUSNAD)
Lodge God in one’s heart:
that is the best of states
When Abu Darda was told that Abu Saad ibn Munabbih had freed a hundred slaves, his comment was: “Certainly, this is a great act. But let me tell you one that is even greater: faith which encompasses night and day, and, on one’s tongue, the constant remembrance of God.”
(HILYAT AL-AULIYA)
Remembering God is a
constant state of prayer
Abdullah ibn Maud once observed that a man of knowledge was always at his prayers. His listeners asked him to explain this. “Thoughts of God are always in his heart and on his tongue,” said lbn Masud.
(JAMI‘ BAYAN AL-‘ILM)
God looks after one
who prays to Him
Salman Farsi once went to Abu Bakr to ask for advice. The latter’s advice to him was to fear God. “You know, Salman, there will soon be conquests, and your share will be whatever you need for your food and clothing. You should also know that if you pray five times a day, you will be under God’s protection night and day. Kill not any of God’s servants, for, to do so would be to cut oneself off from the protection of God, thus causing oneself to be cast into hell.”
(IBN SA‘D, TABAQAT)
To help a Muslim in need
is a great act of worship
Abdullah ibn Abbas was in retreat (i’tikaf)4 in the Prophet’s mosque in Madinah, when a man came and greeted him and sat down beside him. “You appear sad and downcast,” remarked Ibn Abbas. “True,” replied the man, explaining that he owed a sum of money to someone. “By the one who lies buried here, I do not have the means to repay it.” “Shall I speak to them on your behalf?” enquired Ibn Abbas. “If you would please,” replied the other. Abdullah ibn Abbas put on his shoes and was on the point of setting off when his companion said, “Perhaps you have forgotten that you are in retreat.” “No, I have not forgotten,” replied Ibn Abbas,” but I heard the words of the Prophet-that one who goes out to do his brother a good turn, and accomplishes it, is better than one who sits in retreat for ten years.”
(AL-TARGHEEB WA AL-TAHEEEB)
Truly destitute are those bereft of God’s grace in the Hereafter
Abu Hurayrah relates how one day he and some Companions were sitting in the presence of the Prophet when he asked them if they knew who the destitute ones were. “Those who have neither cash nor capital to their credit,” suggested the Companions. But the Prophet corrected them: “The destitute one among my followers is he who comes on the Day of Judgement with prayer, fasting and charity to his credit, but having at the same time abused others, taken possession of their property, shed their blood and inflicted cruelty upon them. His good deeds will be measured up against his wrong-doing until, finally, there is nothing good left to his credit, and many debts still to be repaid. The bad deeds of others will then be heaped up upon him and he will be cast into fire.”
(MUSLIM, SAHIH)
Hastening to pray in times of difficulty
It was the time of the Battle of Trench, and, according to Hudhayfah, there were three hundred Muslims under siege. Recalling what a hard night it was, he recounts how they were surrounded by Abu Sufyan’s army on one side and the Banu Qurayzah on the other, both posing a threat to the safety of the Muslim families. “The cold was already quite intense and, when a storm blew up, there was thunder and lightning everywhere and stones hurtling and crashing in the wind. It was almost impossible to see anything. Just then the Prophet came and asked me to cross the trench and penetrate the enemy camp to collect information. It was essential to know if they were planning to prolong the siege or return to Makkah. I was the most timid of men and was extremely sensitive to the cold. Still, on receiving the Prophet’s command, I immediately arose, he prayed for my safety, and I set off. I went hither and thither in Abu Sufyan’s camp and was able to bring back the news that they were discussing plans to leave. On my return, I found the Prophet covered in his sheet, praying. Whenever the Prophet was confronted with some arduous task, he would begin to pray.”
(AL-BIDAYAH WA AL-NIHAYAH)
Letting one’s heart be moved
by the Quran
Abu Hamzah once told Abdullah ibn Abbas that he was quick at recitation. “I have sometimes completed the whole Quran once or twice in a single night.” “I prefer to read just one chapter,” said Ibn Abbas. “Would you recite, you should do so in such a way that your ear hears and your heart assimilates what you are reciting. You should pause at its places and wonderment to let your heart be moved by it. Your aim should not be just to reach the final chapter.
Prayer places one under
divine protection
Part of a long tradition by Muadh ibn Jabal goes like this: “Do not omit to offer an obligatory (farz) prayer, for one who makes this omission renders himself unfit for God’s protection.”
(AL- TABARANI)
Congregational prayer brings
one closer to God
Before the emigration to Madinah, the Prophet sent written instructions to Musab ibn Umair concerning congregational acts of worship. One of the clauses ran as follows: “When, on Fridays, the midday sun begins to decline, seek proximity to God by praying two rakahs.”
(AL DARAQUTNI)
Self-seeking places one far from God
Self-seeking religious scholars are the subject of one tradition in which the Prophet records these words of God: “The least I will do to them is extinguish the joy of prayer in their hearts.”
(JAMI‘ BAYAN AL-‘ILM)
A show of piety is not reverence
One day Aishah noticed a man walking along in a manner that very obviously suggested he was bowed down in submission to God. “Why is he walking in that feeble manner?” she enquired. She was told that he read extensively from the Quran and was constantly worshipping and imparting knowledge. On hearing this, Aishah said: “Umar used to read the Quran more than anyone, but he had a strong gait, talked in a forceful tone and would beat forcefully too.”
Keeping within the bounds of
propriety when fasting
Anas ibn Malik relates how two women sat together, ostensibly on a fast, but indulging in slander and giving vent to their grudges. When the Prophet heard of this, he said: “They cannot be said to have fasted. How can they have fasted when they have been eating the flesh of their fellows?”
(ABU DAWUD, SUNAN)
Another account records the Prophet as saying: “They have abstained from that which God has made lawful. What broke their fast was indulgence in that which God has prohibited. One sat with the other and they started biting into the skins of others.”
(AL-TARGHEEB WA AL-TARHEEB)
The state induced by prayer
should be abiding
Abu Ramtha recounts how, when he was praying along with the Prophet, and the latter had just pronounced the salutations marking the end of the prayer, a man who had participated in the prayer from the start, arose, and began offering voluntary prayers.
Umar sprang to his feet and seizing the man by the shoulders, said, “Don’t you know that the People of the Book did not have a gap between their prayers and that was their undoing?” The Prophet looked up, and addressing Umar, said: “Ibn Khattab, through you God has communicated what is true an correct.
(ABU DAWUD, SUNAN)
God can hear even
the smallest whisper
Certain individuals once asked the Prophet whether God was close enough for them to make whispered supplications to Him, or whether he was so far away that they should call His name out loud. This verse of the Quran was revealed in reply to their question: “When my servants question you concerning Me, tell them that I am near. I answer the prayer of the suppliant when he calls Me ...” (Quran, 2:186)
Abu Musa Al-Ashari relates how on certain journeys there were a few people who raised their voices in prayer. “Do not strain yourselves,” the Prophet told them. You are not calling upon a Being who is deaf or absent. You are calling upon One who hears and is close to you, closer to anyone of you than the neck of his mount.”
(AL-BUKHARI, MUSLIM)
Religion is worthless if its
end is material gain
Abu Hurayrah records the Prophet as saying: “A person who, for the sake of worldly aggrandizement, seeks that knowledge which should be sought with the sole aim of seeking God’s good pleasure, will not savour the fragrance of Paradise on the day of Judgement.”
(ABU DAWUD, SUNAN)
True worship entails meekness
and humility before God
During the days of ignorance that preceded Islam, there was an extremely generous and hospitable man called Abdullah ibn Judaan. A cousin of the Prophet’s wife Aishah, he died before the commencement of the Prophet’s mission. Aishah once mentioned to the Prophet that Abdullah ibn Judaan had rendered immense services to humanity and had always been a generous host. She wondered whether these acts would benefit him on the Day of Judgement. The Prophet replied in the negative: “For never once did he pray: Lord, forgive my sins on the day of Retribution.”
(MUSLIM, SAHIH)
God loves the humble cry of
His servant
When a servant of God calls upon his Lord, and his call is pleasing to God, He orders Gabriel not to hasten the fulfillment of His servant’s prayer, for He likes to hear the voice of one making supplication to Him.”
(JAMI‘ AL-ULUM WA AL-HIKAM)
How to be prudent
Caliph Umar ibn Abdul Aziz maintained that in matters where the path of right guidance is clear, one should follow it. Where it was clear that advancing along a certain path would be to one’s detriment, one should avoid doing so. “As for matters about which one is in two minds, they should be left to God.”
Mention what is good:
pass over what is evil
Abu Harun tells of how he once went to Abu Hazim, and after invoking God’s mercy upon him, asked him how one could offer thanks for one’s two eyes. “When you behold good, make mention of it and when you behold evil, pass over it,” replied Abu Hazim. Then Abu Harun asked him how one could offer thanks for one’s ears. “When you hear something good, pass it on,” said Abu Hazim, “and when you hear something evil, make no mention of it.”
Three all-embracing duties
The mother of Anas once asked the Prophet to give her good counsel. “Forsake sin, for that is the best emigration; and observe your obligatory duties, for that is the best crusade; and remember God frequently, for there is nothing more pleasing to God than that one should remember Him much,” said the Prophet.
(AL-TABARANI)
True knowledge is that which
induces fear of God
Once, when some of the Prophet’s companions were sitting with him, he looked up to the heavens and said: “The time is coming when knowledge will be taken away.” One of the Ansar, who went by the name of Ziyad ibn Labeed, asked the Prophet how knowledge would be taken away from them, when they were in possession of the Book of God, and taught it to their wives and children. “I always thought of you as the most intelligent man in Madinah,” the Prophet told him, “don’t you see how the Jews went astray, even though they were in possession of the Book of God?” The narrator of this tradition, one Jubayr ibn Nufayr, went to Shaddad ibn Aus and went into the details of the tradition with him. “Do you know how knowledge will be taken away?” Shaddad asked him. Jubair replied that he did not. “By its vessel taken away,” said Shaddad, and he went on to ask; “Do you know which knowledge will be taken away?” When Jubayr once again replied in the negative, Shaddad explained that it was the fear of God that would be taken away. “There will not be a God-fearing man to be seen.”
(JAMI‘ BAYAN AL-‘ILM)
No one is exempt from danger
of going astray
Abu Hurayrah records the Prophet as saying: “For a time this community will practice the teachings of the Book of God. Then for some time they will adhere to the path of the Prophet. Then they will start acting on the strength of their own opinions. And when they do this, they will go astray.”
(JAMI‘ BAYAN AL-‘ILM)
How saint-worship gradually
turns into idol-worship
Several idols which were worshipped by Noah’s people— Wud, Suwa, Yaghuth, Yauq and Nasr—are mentioned in the Quran. Ibn Jareer al Tabari has related a tradition on the authority of Muhammad Ibn Qays to the effect that these idols were named after certain saints of ancient times. These were pious men who had lived in the period between Adam and Noah. They had many followers in their lifetime, and when they died these followers said if they were to construct images of their heroes, it would inspire them in their worship of God. They then proceeded to do so. When the next generation made its appearance, Satan introduced another idea: that their forefathers had not just been using these statues as a focus of worship-they had actually been worshipping them as idols. It was these idols who made the rain fall and, in fact, accomplished everything. That was how idol worship started.
(IBN KATHIR, TAFSIR)
The law of God is applicable
to everyone
It is written in the chapter of the Quran entitled, “The Table Spread,” that those who do not judge in accordance with God’s revelations are unbelievers, transgressors and evil, doers, the reference being to the Children of Israel. Someone suggested to Hudhaifah, a companion of the Prophet, that as these verses had been revealed with regard to the Children of Israel, they did not apply to Muslims, and that what they meant was that those of the Jews who did not judge in accordance with God’s revelations were unbelievers, transgressors and evildoers. “What good brothers you have in the Children of Israel that they should accept all that is sour, leaving all that is sweet for you in life,” replied Hudhaifah. “It cannot be as you say, “God knows, you are bound to follow in their footsteps.”
When those bound for
Paradise find their way barred
Jabir ibn Abdullah tells of how, when he learnt of a companion of the Prophet who had actually heard the Prophet’s words of wisdom, he bought a camel, saddled it, and set off for Damascus. It took him a whole month to reach this city, where he betook himself to the house of Abdullah Ibn Unays. There he told the gate-keeper to inform the master of the house that Jabir was at the door. “Is that Jabir the son of Abdullah?” enquired the gate-keeper. On hearing that this was so, he summoned his master, who appeared at the doorway and embraced him. “It came to my knowledge,” said Jabir “that you had heard one of the sayings of the Prophet, and I was afraid that I might die before hearing it.” Abdullah ibn Unays then told him that what he had heard the Prophet say was that, on the Day of Judgement, people would make their appearance naked, uncircumcised and destitute. God would proclaim in a voice audible to the far and near alike that He was the Sovereign Lord; that it was He who would mete out justice on this day. “No one bound for Paradise will be able to take up his abode there if he has wronged one in Hell who seeks redress for the wrong done to him. Even if, in any case, one is bound for the Fire, one shall first have to make amends for any wrong one has inflicted on another of its inmates who seeks redress for the wrong done to him.” “How will it come to pass”, asked Jabir, “as God will raise us up in a naked and destitute state?” “The redressal will be made on the basis of our good and evil deeds,” replied Abdullah ibn Unays.
(AL-BUKHARI, SAHIH)
Only disinterested action is
of moral value
Abu Umamah relates how a man came to the Prophet to ask him about one who did battle with material rewards and fame as his objectives. He wanted to know what his reward would be. “Nothing,” replied the Prophet. The man repeated his question three times and each time the Prophet gave him the same reply. “The only actions acceptable to God are those carried out in absolute sincerity and solely for the sake of God,” added the Prophet.
(ABU DAWUD, NASAI)
Between hope and fear
Umar once said that if a voice from heaven announced that everyone would enter heaven except for one single person, he would be afraid of being that person, “And if a voice from heaven were to announce that everyone, except for one single person, would enter hell, I would be hopeful of being that person.
(HILYAT AL-AULIYA)
There is charity in forgiveness
Abu Abbas ibn Hibr relates that one day the Prophet exhorted people to donate something towards the struggle for God’s cause, and people gave according to their means. One of the Prophet’s Companions Ulbah ibn Zayd ibn Haritha, did not, however, have anything to give. He arose that night and, weeping before God, prayed to Him: “Lord I have nothing to give to charity. Instead Lord, I forgive whoever has brought me dishonour.” In the morning when the Companions had gathered, the Prophet asked them, “where is the one who gave something to charity last night?” When no one arose, the Prophet repeated his question. Still no one answered. Then, when the Prophet had repeated his question for the third time, Ulbah ibn Zayd Haritha arose. “Rejoice,” said the Prophet, “for your gift to charity has been accepted.”
(AL-BIDAYAH WA AL-NIHAYAH)
The corrupting influence of power
The Prophet once sent Miqdad ibn Aswad off on a mission. When he returned a few days later, the Prophet asked him how things had gone. “People kept on putting me on a pedestal, to the point where I began to think of myself as superior to them,” replied Miqdad. “That is the way with leadership. You can either take it or leave it.” said the Prophet. “By the one who has sent you with the truth,” replied Miqdad, “I will never again accept leadership—not even of two people.”
(AL-BAZZAR)
Those who do not fear God
cannot understand the state
of mind of those who do
The expedition of Tabuk was conducted under extremely difficult conditions. Abdullah ibn Abbas tells of how the Prophet exhorted the Muslims to make contributions towards it, and people started giving what they could. It was Abdul Rahman ibn Auf, with his donation of 200 ounces of silver, who made the largest contribution. When the Prophet asked him if he had left anything for his family, he said that he had. The Prophet then asked him what he had left for them and he said, “Something of greater value and more excellent than what I have donated.” The Prophet then enquired as to the exact value. “Whatever provision and good fortune God and His Prophet have promised” was Abdul Rahman ibn Auf’s reply. Abu Aqeel Ansari, however, had brought only one sa‘as of dates. He told of how he had spent the whole night hauling water for a Jew, for which he earned two sa’as of dates. One sa‘a he had left for his household. The other he had brought with him. He felt ashamed of his paltry contribution and excused himself on the grounds that he had nothing else to give. Such was the open-hearted sincerity of the true Muslims. There were hypocrites of Madinah, however, who used to decry the contributors of substantial sums as being ostentatious. They scoffed likewise at those who donated small amounts: “They are more in need of their sa ‘as than anybody.”
(KANZ AL-UMMAL)
Sometimes the obscure are more amply rewarded than the famous
One day when Umar was sitting with a group of people, he asked them, “Who will gain the greatest reward?” Some said it would be those who fasted, while others thought it would be those who prayed. Some said that the reward of the Commander of the Faithful would be the greatest. Everyone made different suggestions, but Umar dismissed them all. “Shall I tell you who will have the greater even than that of the Commander of the Faithful?” They all asked him to explain who he meant. “It is one who, clinging on to the reins of his horse, and watching over the Muslim army in the far off land of Syria, has no idea whether he will be devoured by some wild beast, bitten by some poisonous insect or attacked by some foe. Such a man will receive a greater reward than any of those you mentioned, greater even than the Commander of the Faithful.
(IBN ‘ASAKIR)
Preferring to be unostentatious
At the end of a long journey on camel back, Umar arrived in Palestine along with a group of emigrants and helpers. The long garment, which he had been wearing for so many days, had torn at the back, and he gave it to the Bishop to be washed and mended. The Bishop did as he was told and when he brought the garment back mended, he brought along another one made out of fine cloth. Umar looked at it and asked him what this was that he had brought. “Your garment,” replied the Bishop. “I have washed and patched it. The other one is a gift from me.” Umar examined it, running his hand over it. Then he put on his own garment and gave the other one back to the Bishop. He explained that the old one absorbed sweat better.
(AL-TABARI)
Living in fear of Doomsday
Abu Bakr, seeing a bird sitting on a tree, exclaimed, “Oh bird, how fortunate you are. If only I could be like you—sitting on trees eating their fruit, then flying away. No reckoning or doom awaits you. By God, I would like to be a tree by the wayside, and have a passing camel take in its mouth, chew me, swallow me and then dispose me as dung.”
(AL-BAIHAQI, AL-SUNAN AL-KUBRA)
Setting no special value upon
one sown actions
Umar once asked Abu Musa al-Ashari if he would like to have only those actions attributed to him which he had performed in the presence of the Prophet, with everything else that he had done to be completely nullified, so that neither his good nor his bad deeds were of any account and he would be neither punished nor rewarded. Abu Musa said that he would not. “When I came to Basra,” he explained, “oppression was rife among the people. I taught them the Quran and acquainted them with the teachings of the Prophet. I undertook campaigns for the cause of God along with them. This being so, I hope for the grace of God.” “For my part,” said Umar, “I should like my actions to be disassociated from me in such a way that neither good nor evil deeds were of any importance. Neither sin nor good deed would then stand to my account. All that would stand to my credit would be what I had done in the presence of the Prophet.”
(IBN ‘ASAKIR)
The worth of honest earnings
According to Hasan, a certain individual once said to Uthman: You rich people far surpass others in righteousness. You are able to give charity, go on pilgrimages and spend for God’s cause.” “Are you envious of us?” enquired Uthman. “Indeed, we are,” said the man. “By God,” Uthman told him, “One dirham spent from money made through honest endeavour is better than ten thousand dirhams spent out of a great mass of wealth.”
(AL-BAIKHAQI, AL-SUNAN AL-KUBRA)
