(87) Chapter: Safeguarding and Perpetuating Good Habits

Allah, the Exalted, says: "Verily, Allah will not change the (good) condition of a people as long as they do not change their state (of goodness) themselves (by committing sins and by being ungrateful and disobedient to Allah).'' (13:11) "And be not like her who undoes the thread which she has spun, after it has become strong.'' (16:92) "... lest they become as those who received the Scripture [the Taurat (Torah) and the Injeel (Gospel)] before (i.e., Jews and Christians), and the term was prolonged for them and so their hearts were hardened?'' (57:16) "But that they did not observe it with the right observance.'' (57:27) 'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'as (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said to me, "O 'Abdullah! Do not be like so-and-so; he used to get up at night for optional prayer but abandoned it later." [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]. Commentary: This Hadith also stresses the same point, that is, man should be steadfast in his good doings. There should be no cessation in this respect, otherwise, he will unconsciously begin to incline to evil and, therefore, to the erosion of moral foundations of his character. Steadfastness in the observance of good ensures man's security against pitfalls and has Divine approval, too.

(131) Chapter: The Excellence of Promoting Greetings

Allah, the Exalted, says: "O you who believe! Enter not houses other than your own, until you have asked permission and greeted those in them.'' (24:27) "But when you enter the houses, greet one another with a greeting from Allah (i.e., say: As-Salamu `alaikum - peace be on you), blessed and good.'' (24:61) "When you are greeted with a greeting, greet in return with what is better than it, or (at least) return it equally.'' (4:86) "Has the story reached you, of the honoured guests [three angels; Jibril (Gabriel) along with another two] of Ibrahim (Abraham)? When they came in to him, and said, `Salam (peace be upon you)!' He answered: `Salam (peace be upon you).''' (51:24,25) Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'as (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: A man asked the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ): "Which act in Islam is the best?" He (ﷺ) replied, "To give food, and to greet everyone, whether you know or you do not." [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]. Commentary: Feeding poor and destitute is an act of goodness, and so is fulfilling the needs of the indigent. Greeting everybody (saying `As-Salamu `Alaikum'), whether an acquaintance or a stranger, is a good manner too. Both of these acts generate mutual love and remove hatred and ill will from hearts. All other forms of greetings do not no substitute for Islamic greeting.

(180) Chapter: The Excellence of Reciting the Qur'an

'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'As (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "The one who was devoted to the the Qur'an will be told on the Day of Resurrection: 'Recite and ascend (in ranks) as you used to recite when you were in the world. Your rank will be at the last Ayah you recite."' [Abu Dawud and At- Tirmidhi]. Commentary: This Hadith mentions the merit of those who commit the Qur'an (whole or part thereof) to memory (Huffaz). The word `ascend' here means to rise in ranks in the Jannah. The more one remembers the Qur'an, the more clear and distinct is his recitation of it, the higher would be the status that he will go on attaining through its blessings. Thus, this Hadith provides inducement for the remembrance of the Qur'an and tells us that its frequent recitation is a means to attain higher ranks in Jannah.

(186) Chapter: The Excellence of Adhan

'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'As (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) saying, "When you hear the Adhan, repeat what the Mu'adhdhin says. Then ask Allah to exalt my mention because everyone who does so will receive in return ten rewards from Allah. Then beseech Allah to grant me Al-Wasilah, which is a high rank in Jannah, fitting for only one of Allah's slaves; and I hope that I will be that man. If any one asks Al-Wasilah for me, it becomes incumbent upon me to intercede for him." [Muslim] Commentary: To invoke blessings upon the Prophet (PBUH) means to recite "Allahumma salli `ala Muhammadin, wa `ala ali Muhammadin, kama sallaita `ala Ibrahima wa `ala ali Ibrahima, innaka Hamidun Majid.'' Wasilah literally means that mode or method by which one attains his goal, but here it stands for that high rank in Jannah which will be awarded to the Prophet (PBUH). The word Shafa`ah means to beg someone to pardon somebody's faults and shortcomings or to request someone for doing a virtuous deed. In the context of this Hadith, it refers to the privilege of intercession of the Prophet (PBUH) due to which he will request for the forgiveness of such people for whom he will be given permission by Allah.

(212) Chapter: Excellence of Standing in Prayer at Night

'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'As (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said to me, "Do not be like so-and-so O 'Abdullah! He used to pray during the night, then stopped the practice." [Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

(212) Chapter: Excellence of Standing in Prayer at Night

'Abdullah bin 'Amr (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "The Salat which is dearest to Allah is that of (Prophet) Dawud; and As-Saum (the fasting) which is dearest to Allah is that of (Prophet) Dawud. He used to sleep half the night, get up to perform Salat for one-third of it, then sleep through the remaining one-sixth of it; and he used to observe Saum on alternative days." [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]. Commentary: Since Islam has strictly forbidden self-affliction to the extent that it has forbidden hardship even in worship, compulsory awakening for Salat at midnight and observing Saum (fasting) for the whole month (except of the month of Ramadan) is disapproved. The model set by the Prophet (PBUH) is the ideal pattern of moderation in this respect. In this Hadith the fasting and the prayer of Prophet Dawud have been regarded most pleasing to Allah, because their conduct had a moderation which is enjoined by Islam.

(230) Chapter: The Desirability of Observing Three Days of Fasting in Every Month

'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'As (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Observing Saum (fasting) on three days of every month is equivalent to a full month's fasting." [Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

(234) Chapter: Obligation of Jihad

'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'As (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Allah forgives every sin of a martyr, except his debt." [Muslim]. Another narration in Muslim is: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Being martyred in the Cause of Allah expiates for everything, except debt." Commentary: We learn from this Hadith that the rights of people will not be forgiven even by martyrdom, nor would major sins be pardoned. For the forgiveness of major sins one has to make sincere repentance.

(234) Chapter: Obligation of Jihad

'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'As (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "A detachment of soldiers, large or small, who fights in the way of Allah, gets its share of booty and returns safe and sound, receives in advance two- thirds of its reward (only one-third remaining to its credit will be received in the Hereafter). And a troop of soldiers, large or small, that returns disappointed and is afflicted by misery, will receive its full reward (in the Hereafter)." [Muslim]. Commentary: This Hadith means that the Mujahidun who return safe and sound from the battlefield and get their share of booty are inferior in reward to those who are martyred or wounded in Jihad and do not get any share from the booty. We have a saying of the Companions of the Prophet (PBUH) that "Many of us passed away and were martyred in such a situation that they did not get in this world any share from their reward, but there are many others whose fruits have ripened and they are picking them.

(234) Chapter: Obligation of Jihad

'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'As (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "The return from an expedition is an act as meritorious as fighting." [Abu Dawud]. Commentary: When a Mujahid returns from the battlefield, he gets reward at that also, because there he attends the duties which are devolved on him by his family. Moreover, after his return, he again starts full preparation for going to Jihad again, collects arms for this purpose and recuperates his energy. Thus, so far his intention and readiness are concerned, he is in a state of Jihad even when he is at home and he will be entitled to reward which is due on Jihad.

(235) Chapter: Martyrdom without Fighting

'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'As (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "He who is killed while defending his property is a martyr." [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]. Commentary: The Hadith highlights the fact that whoever gets killed in an effort to protect his property is a martyr.

(241) Chapter: Virtues of Knowledge which is Learnt and Taught for the sake of Allah

'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'As (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Convey from me even an Ayah of the Qur'an; relate traditions from Banu Israel, and there is no restriction on that; but he who deliberately forges a lie against me let him have his abode in the Hell." [Al- Bukhari]. Commentary: This Hadith contains the following three important points: 1. It stresses the importance of acquiring knowledge of the Qur'an and Hadith and imparting it to others. No matter whether one has more or less knowledge, he must communicate it to others. There is no justification to presume that preaching or inviting to the Message of Allah is the duty of religious scholars and those who are well-versed in this sphere. In fact, it is a duty upon every Muslim, so much so that if a person knows even a single Verse of the Qur'an, that is to say if he knows only one injunction of Allah, he is duty bound to communicate it to other people. 2. It allows the communication of Jewish Traditions but this permission is subject to the condition that such Traditions are not against the elucidations of the Qur'an and Hadith. 3. There is a stern warning on attributing any false saying to the Prophet (PBUH). This demands strict scrutiny of Ahadith. If a Hadith does not have a reliable authority or whose chain of narrators has a false link or a person of doubtful integrity, that is to say if it is weak, then it is a serious offense to quote it as a Hadith of the Prophet (PBUH). There are various grades of weakness, and this requires deep knowledge of the narrators and principles of Hadith to know them since scholars who are expert in this discipline are few and far. The safest course for ordinary scholars is to refrain from stating such Ahadith which are weak, no matter whether the weakness is serious or slight. The reason is that although the majority of Muhaddithun consider the slightly weak Ahadith acceptable but they cannot be identified by everybody. Thus, every Hadith which is marked as weak should not be mentioned. In the present age Sheikh Nasiruddin Al-Albani has done a very remarkable work in this field. He has separated the weak Ahadith found in the four famous volumes of Ahadith (Sunnan Abu Dawud, At-Tirmidhi, An-Nasa'i and Ibn Majah) from the authentic and prepared separate volumes of authentic and weak Ahadith. This work of Al-Albani has made it easy for the ordinary `Ulama' to identify the weak Ahadith. Only a man of Sheikh Al-Albani's calibre can do research on it. The ordinary `Ulama' and religious scholars of the Muslims are heavily indebted to him for this great work and they should keep it in view before mentioning any Hadith. They should mention only the authentic Ahadith and refrain from quoting the weak ones. It is wrong to ignore this work on the ground that Sheikh Al-Albani is not the last word on the subject. There can be a possibility of error in his work because it is after all a human effort, but it will be very unfair to regard his effort of no account merely because of a possible error. It is regrettable indeed that only because of this possible error many people refuse to accept even the correctness of the Sahihain. (i.e., Sahih Al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim). Should we then accept their view? No, certainly not. So there is no sense in not making use of Sheikh Al-Albani's matchless contribution. As Muhaddithun have done a great service to the Muslim Ummah by collecting and compiling the Ahadith, similarly in the style of Muhaddithun, and in keeping with the principles laid down by them, the research carried out to separate the authentic Ahadith from the weak is in fact an effort to complete their mission. In this age, Almighty Allah has bestowed this honour on Sheikh Al-Albani. May Allah protect him, give him the best of the reward and give him a long life. We now revert to the subject under discussion and say that no such saying and practice should be attributed to the Prophet (PBUH) the authenticity of which is doubtful. On this principle, weak Ahadith, should not be mentioned. It is very unfortunate indeed that in spite of such a stern warning, many of our `Ulama' are not careful in this matter. Not to speak of weak Ahadith, they do not hesitate to mention even Ahadith Maudu`ah forged Ahadith) only to adorn their speech. May Allah guide them to the Right Path. In fact, there is a class of religious scholars who try to refute the authentic Ahadith and validate the weak ones only to add credence to their own juristic school. May Allah save us from such evils.

(241) Chapter: Virtues of Knowledge which is Learnt and Taught for the sake of Allah

'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'As (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) saying: "Verily, Allah does not take away knowledge by snatching it from the people, but He takes it away by taking away (the lives of) the religious scholars till none of the scholars stays alive. Then the people will take ignorant ones as their leaders, who, when asked to deliver religious verdicts, will issue them without knowledge, the result being that they will go astray and will lead others astray." [Al- Bukhari and Muslim]. Commentary: It is a sign of the nearness of the Day of Judgement that the world will be deprived of genuine religious scholars, and illiterate people will become leaders who will have neither the knowledge of the Qur'an nor that of the Hadith. Despite their ignorance of the Qur'an and the Hadith, they will be called Mujtahid (jurist entitled to independent reasoning) and Imam (leader) and will mislead people with their legal opinions and self-created problems. Besides urging us to acquire religious knowledge with a view to producing more scholars in the society, this Hadith also warns us against the ignorant self-styled `Ulama'. It also warns us against entrusting religious leadership to them.

(243) Chapter: The Obligation of Supplicating Allah to Exalt His Mention and its Excellence, and its Manner

Allah, the Exalted, says: "Allah exalts the mention of His Messenger (PBUH) and His angels supplicate Him to do so. O you who believe! supplicate Allah to exalt his mention and to grant him safety and security. 'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'As (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) saying: "Whoever supplicates Allah to exalt my mention, Allah will exalt his mention ten times." [Muslim]. Commentary: Recitation of Salat upon the Prophet (PBUH) means the recitation of benediction. Such as the one recited in Salat "O Allah, have mercy on Muhammad...)'' It is a prayer for mercy and exaltation of the Prophet (PBUH) which is highly meritorious. (At-Tirmidhi, Hadith Hasan).

(250) Chapter: Issues regarding Supplications, their Virtues and Supplications of the Prophet (pbuh)

'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'As (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) supplicated: "Allahumma musarrifal-qulubi, sarrif qulubana 'ala ta'atika (O Allah! Controller of the hearts, direct our hearts to Your obedience)." [Muslim]. Commentary: This is a very important prayer because through it one seeks steadfastness in virtue. Everybody's heart is always open to troubles, turmoil and ordeals and he is drifting from one situation to the other. If he is not supported by Allah, he can deviate from the Right Path at any moment. For this reason, he has been required to pray to Allah to save his heart from turning towards evils and keep it towards Allah, because it is He Alone Who is Capable of controlling hearts.

(260) Chapter: Condemnation and Prohibition of Falsehood

'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'As (May Allah be pleased with them) said: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Whosoever possesses these four characteristics, is a sheer hypocrite; and anyone who possesses one of them, possesses a characteristic of hypocrisy till he gives it up. (These are:) When he is entrusted with something, he proves dishonest; when he talks, he tells a lie; when he makes a covenant, he acts treacherously; and when he quarrels, he utters foul language." [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]. Commentary: Nowadays we do not find hypocrisy of Belief among Muslims generally, but practical hypocrisy is very common. The reason is that their majority has most of the signs of hypocrisy which this Hadith makes clear. See Hadith No. 690.

(268) Chapter: Prohibition of Maligning

Allah, the Exalted, says: "And those who annoy believing men and women undeservedly, bear on themselves the crime of slander and plain sin.'' (33:58) 'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'As (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "A (true) Muslim is one from whose tongue and hand the Muslims are safe; and a Muhajir (Emigrant) is he who leaves the deeds which Allah has prohibited." [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]. Commentary: Everyone who professes Tauhid and acknowledges the Prophethood of Muhammad (PBUH), is a Muslim, but a perfect Muslim is one who has attained that high level where he does not harm any Muslim with his hand and tongue (speech). Similarly, an Emigrant is the one who abandons his homeland and relatives and goes to a place where he can easily practise the religion of Allah. But such a person is also an Emigrant who renounces all such things which are forbidden by Allah, because emigration means abandoning, whether it is abandoning of homeland or sins.

(268) Chapter: Prohibition of Maligning

'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'As (May Allah be pleased with them) said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "He who desires to be rescued from the fire of Hell and to enter Jannah, should die in a state of complete belief in Allah and the Last Day, and should do unto others what he wishes to be done unto him." [Muslim]. Commentary: This Hadith is part of a long Hadith which has already been mentioned. See Hadith No. 668. It stresses steadfastness in Faith and virtuous deeds because the time of death is not known to anyone. Since one can die at any moment, one should never be unmindful of the obligations of Faith and good deeds so that he embraces death in a state of perfect Faith. This Hadith has the same meanings which are contained in the Verse 102 of the Surat Al-`Imran exhorting the Muslims thus: "And die not except in a state of Islam [(as Muslim) with complete submission to Allah].'' Every Muslim should treat people as nicely as he himself desires to be treated by others.

(277) Chapter: Prohibition of the Treachery and Breaking one's Covenant

Allah, the Exalted, says: "O you who believe! Fulfill (your) obligations.'' (5:1) "And fulfill (every) covenant. Verily! The covenant will be questioned about.'' (17:34) 'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'As (May Allah be pleased with them) said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Whosoever possesses these four characteristics is a sheer hypocrite; and anyone who possesses one of them possesses a characteristic of hypocrisy till he gives it up. These are: when he is entrusted with something, he proves dishonest; when he speaks, he tells a lie; when he makes a covenant, he proves treacherous; and when he quarrels, he behaves in very imprudent, evil, insulting manner." [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]. Commentary: This Hadith has already been mentioned (Hadith No. 1544). The traits mentioned in this Hadith are peculiar to hypocrites and every Muslim is required to abstain from them. Excellence of character is riveted with Faith. The nobility of character is invariably reflected in Faith, and where there is no Faith there will be little excellence of character.

(315) Chapter: Illegality of Swearing Falsely

'Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-As (May Allah be pleased with them) said: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Of the major sins are: Associating anything in worship with Allah, disobedience to the parents, killing without justification and taking a false oath (intentionally)." [Al- Bukhari]. Another narration is: A bedouin came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and asked him: "O Messenger of Allah, what are the cardinal sins?" He (ﷺ) replied, "Associating anything with Allah in worship." The man asked: "(What is) next?" The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) replied, "Al-Yamin Al-Ghamus." He asked: "What do you mean by Al-Yamin Al-Ghamus?" The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) replied, "Swearing falsely to usurp the property of a Muslim."