Gems from Salaf 📚

قيل للإمام أحمدَ بنِ حنبل:

It was said to al-Imam Ahmad b. Hanbal رحمه الله :

الرجلُ يدخل المسجدَ فيرى قومًا فيُحسِّن صلاتَه، أيكون رياءً ؟


A man enters the masjid, and sees people around so he beautifies his salah, is this Riya'?

قال: لا، تلك بركةُ المسلم على المسلم!

He said: No, that is the blessing of a Muslim upon another Muslim

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Al-Furu' by Ibn Muflih

Ibn Taymiyyah رحمه الله said:

‎"Among the greatest righteous deeds that bring one closer to Allah is helping and supporting a fellow Muslim in what he needs."

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‎Majmoo' al-Fatawa by Ibn Taymiyyah 11/95

Ibn al-Qayyim رحمه الله:

“Abstaining from lowering one’s gaze engraves the images (of the one who is seen) in the heart, and the heart is like the Ka'bah, and surely it will not be satisfied with idols.”

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A Collection of Wise Sayings | Pg. 106

The Prophet ‎[ﷺ] said,

“No one who enters Paradise would like to return to the world, even if he could have everything on earth, except for the martyr. He will wish to return to the world and be killed ten more times due to the generous reward he sees.”

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Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 2817

Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 1877

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said,

"Do good deeds properly, sincerely and moderately and know that your deeds will not make you enter Paradise, and that the most beloved deed to Allah is the most regular and constant even if it were little."

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Sahih Al-Bukhari 6464

Allah ﷻ said:

وَأَمَّا مَنْ خَافَ مَقَامَ رَبِّهِ وَنَهَى النَّفْسَ عَنِ الْهَوَىٰ فَإِنَّ الْجَنَّةَ هِيَ الْمَأْوَىٰ

As for him who feared to stand before his Lord and he restrained himself from his desires, then Paradise will be his refuge.

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Surah An-Naziat 79:40

An-Nawawi commented on this tradition, writing:

It is said that it means the Prophet [ﷺ] had intervals of distraction from the remembrance of Allah, as remembrance was his normal state of affairs. When he had a period of inattention or distraction, he would consider that a sin and seek forgiveness for it.

قِيلَ الْمُرَادُ الْفَتَرَاتُ وَالْغَفَلَاتُ عَنِ الذِّكْرِ الَّذِي كَانَ شَأْنُهُ الدَّوَامَ عَلَيْهِ فَإِذَا فتَرَ عَنْهُ أَوْ غَفَلَ عَدَّ ذَلِكَ ذَنْبًا وَاسْتَغْفَرَ مِنْهُ

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Sharḥ al-Nawawī ‘alá Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 2702

The Messenger of Allah ‎[ﷺ] said:

Verily, at times there is fog over my heart, so I seek the forgiveness of Allah one hundred times in a day.

إِنَّهُ لَيُغَانُ عَلَى قَلْبِي وَإِنِّي لَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ فِي
الْيَوْمِ مِائَةَ مَرَّةٍ

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Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 2702

And that each person will only have what they endeavoured towards

وَأَن لَّيْسَ لِلْإِنسَـٰنِ إِلَّا مَا سَعَىٰ

and that ˹the outcome of˺ their endeavours will be seen ˹in their record˺

وَأَنَّ سَعْيَهُۥ سَوْفَ يُرَىٰ


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Surah An-Najm Ayah 39-40

Ibn Rajab رحمه الله said:

“He who spreads his knowledge to the people and speaks to them must be very careful of not asking things from them. He must not be covetous for any of their wealth or provisions nor wish to win their hearts. He should just spread his knowledge and be content with not hoping anything from them through careful godliness. This is because greed of worldly matters and yearning them are ugly traits especially when found in a scholar.”

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Quoted in his explanation of the hadeeth of Abu Dardaa, P.150-151

Al-Tabari reported: Hasan al-Basri, (‎رضي الله عنه) said,

“Your enemy is not the one you are relieved from if you killed him. Rather, your true enemy is your own soul, between your two sides.”

Al-Tabari said,

“It is the jihad against the greatest of enemies to a man. There is no doubt that it is greater in reward to Allah than the jihad against the people of idolatry.”

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Tahdhīb al-Āthār Musnad ‘Umar 2/812

Speech is your prisoner…

Ibn al-Qayyim رحمه الله said:

"Speech is your prisoner. But once it leaves your mouth, you become it's prisoner."

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Al-Jawāb al-Kāfī, p. 200

The Messenger ‎[ﷺ] said:

“O Allah, bless my people in their early mornings.” When he sent out a detachment or an army, he sent them at the beginning of the day. Sakhr was a merchant,

and he would send off his merchandise at the beginning of the day; and he became rich and had much wealth.” [1]

A few benefits to extract from this Hadith:

This shows the importance of this time period.

The greatness of the blessings and goodness with it.  

The Salaf used to dislike sleeping during this time, in order not to waste it in laziness and weakness.

Ibn Qayyim (رَحِمَهُ ٱللَّٰهُ) said,

The Salaf disliked sleeping between after Fajr prayer and Sunrise because it is a time in which great benefit is obtained. And even when they stayed up late at night [i.e. in worship], they still stayed up until after sunrise, for indeed it is the early part of the day and its beginning time- the time in which provision descends, the time in which one receives his portion of provision and the time in which blessings are obtained.

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Sunnan Abu Dawud [1]

An Excerpt from Fiqhul Ad’iyah wal-Adkaar’ pages 48-50′ parts 3&4 [2]

The character of Islam is modesty.

Yahya related to me from Malik from Salama ibn Safwan ibn Salama az-Zuraqi that Zayd ibn Talha ibn Rukana, who attributed it to the Prophet ‎[ﷺ] said,

"The Messenger of Allah ‎[ﷺ] said,

'Every deen has an innate character. The character of Islam is modesty.' "

[Muwatta Malik]

اَللّٰهُمَّ أَعِنِّيْ عَلَىٰ ذِكْرِكَ وَشُكْرِكَ وَحُسْنِ عِبَادَتِكَ.

Allāhumma aʿinnī ʿalā dhikrika wa shukrika wa ḥusni ʿibādatik.

O Allah, help me in remembering You, in being grateful to You, and in worshipping You in an excellent manner.



Muʿādh b. Jabal (‎رضي الله عنه) reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ took him by the hand and he said,

“O Muʿādh, I swear by Allah that I love you. I swear by Allah that I love you. O Muʿādh, I advise you:

Never miss out on saying [the above] after every salah.

[Abu Dawud 1522]

Imām Ibn al-Qayyim (رحمه الله) said:

“Thinking about what does not matter to you is the door of every evil.”

[Al-Fawā’id, 1/175]

Abu Huraira reported Nabi (ﷺ) as saying:

”Allah is more pleased with the repentance of His servant when he turns penitently towards Him than one of you would be on finding the lost camel.“

[Sahih Muslim]

Fudayl Ibn ‘Iyyadh (one of the greats from the Salaf) رحمه الله said:

“The greatest form of Jihad is perseverance upon prayers, and the greatest form of steadfastness is waiting for the Salah (straight) after (praying) the Salah.”

‏تاريخ دمشق ٤٢٩/٤٨

The Prophet (ﷺ) said:

"There is no day on which Allah sets free more slaves from Hell than He does on the Day of 'Arafah."

[Sahih Muslim,1277]

'Abdullah Ibn Mubarak (‎رحمه الله):

"I entered upon Sufyan ath-Thawri on the evening of 'Arafah whilst he was kneeling on his knees and his eyes shedding tears, so he turned towards me and I said to him:

'Do you know who the loser is today?'

He replied:

'The one who thinks Allāh shall not forgive him!'"

[لطائف المعارف ابن الجوزى ص ٣١٠]

‘Amr Ibn Al-‘As رضي الله عنه said:

"If any of you knew the reality of the hellfire, he would scream until his voice broke, and he would pray until his spine fractures."

[Kitāb az-Zuhd wa Al-raqā'iq, pg. 1007]

Ibn al-Qayyim رحمه الله said:

‎"A person should walk a number of steps after eating at night even if it is merely a hundred steps, and he should not sleep right after eating as it causes great harm (to one's body)."

‎ [زاد المعاد في هدي خير العباد ٤/٢٠٥]