Riyad as-Salihin

I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying: "None of you should observe fast on Friday except that he should observe fast either one day before it or one day after it.".

I asked Jabir (May Allah be pleased with him). Did the Prophet (ﷺ) prohibit fasting on Friday?" He said, "Yes.".

Juwairiyah bint Al-Harith (May Allah be pleased with her), the Mother of the Believers, said that the Prophet (ﷺ) visited her on a Friday and she was observing fast. He asked, "Did you observe fast yesterday?" She said, "No." He asked, "Do you intend to observe fast tomorrow?" She said, "No." He said, "In that case, give up your fast today.".

The Prophet (ﷺ) prohibited observing continuous voluntary fasts beyond one day..

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) prohibited observing continuous fasts beyond one day. The Companions submitted: "But you do it." He replied, "I am not like you. I am given to eat and to drink (from Allah).".

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "It is much better for one of you to sit on a live coal, which will burn his clothes and get to his skin than to sit on a grave.".

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) forbade that the graves should be plastered (made into permanent structures), used as sitting places (for the people) or building over them..

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "If a slave runs away from his master, his responsibility to him is absolved.".

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "When the slave runs away from his master, his Salat (prayer) will not be accepted.".Another narration is: "He is guilty of disbelief (i.e., in case he believes in the lawfulness of doing so)."

The Quraish were anxious about a woman from Banu Makhzum who had committed theft and asked : "Who will speak to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) about her?" Then they said: "No one will be bold enough to do so except Usamah bin Zaid, the (Companion who was) dearly loved by the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)." So Usamah (May Allah be pleased with him) spoke to him and the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) (angrily) said, "Are you interceding regarding one of the punishments prescribed by Allah?" He then got up and delivered an address in which he said, "Indeed what destroyed the people before you was just that when a person of high rank among them committed a theft, they spared him; but if the same crime was done by a poor person they inflicted the prescribed punishment on him. I swear by Allah that if Fatimah daughter of Muhammad should steal, I would have her hand cut off.".In another narration 'Aishah (May Allah be pleased with her) said: (Upon hearing the intercession of Usamah), the face of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) changed color (because of anger) and he said, "Do you dare to intercede in matters prescribed by Allah?" Usamah pleaded: "O Messenger of Allah! Pray for my forgiveness." 'Aishah (May Allah be pleased with her) added: Thereafter the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) gave orders to have that woman's hand cut off.

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Avoid two habits which provoke cursing." The Companions said: "What are those things which provoke cursing?" He said, "Relieving on the thoroughfares or under the shades where people take shelter and rest.".

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) forbade urinating into stagnant water..

My father took me to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and said to him: "I have gifted one of my slaves to this son of mine." The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Have you given such gift to every son of yours?" He replied, "No." Thereupon he said, "Take this gift back."Another narration is: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Be mindful of your obligation to Allah and do justice in respect of your children." My father came back and revoked his gift.Another narration is: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) asked, "Have you other children besides this one?" He said, "Yes." The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) asked, "Have you awarded a gift like this to all of them." He said, "No." The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "I am not going to bear witness to this act of injustice."Another narration is: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) asked, "Do you not except goodness from all of them as you except from him?" He said, "Yes, of course." The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Then don't do this (i.e., do not give a gift to one son only).".

I went to Umm Habibah (May Allah be pleased with her) the wife of the Prophet (ﷺ), when her father Abu Sufyan bin Harb (May Allah be pleased with him) died. Umm Habibah (May Allah be pleased with her) sent for a yellow coloured perfume or something else like it, and she applied it to a slave-girl and then rubbed it on her own cheeks and said: "By Allah, I have no need for perfume, I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) saying from the pulpit, 'It is not permissible for a woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day to mourn for the dead beyond three days, except for the death of her husband; in which case the period of mourning is of four months and ten days."' Zainab said: I then visited Zainab, daughter of Jahsh (May Allah be pleased with her) when her brother died; she sent for perfume and applied it and then said: "Beware! By Allah, I don't feel any need of perfume but I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) saying from the pulpit, 'It is not permissible for a woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day to mourn the dead beyond three days except in case of her husband (for whom the period is) four months and ten days."'

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) forbade that a person in the city should make a deal on behalf of a villager on commission even if he is his real brother."

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Do not meet the merchandise till they arrive in the market.".

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "The caravans carrying merchandise should not be met on the way to purchase from them; a man in the city should not sell for a man of the desert."Tawus asked him (Ibn 'Abbas): "What do these words really imply?" He said: "He should not work as an agent on his behalf.".

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) forbade that a man in the city should be the commission agent of a man from the desert and prohibited the practice of Najsh (i.e., offering a high price for something in order to allure another customer who is interested in the thing); and that a man should make an offer while the offer of his brother is pending; or that he should make a proposal of marriage while that of his brother is pending; or that a woman should try that a sister of hers might be divorced so that she might take her place.Another narration is: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) forbade the people from meeting the caravan on the way for entering into business transaction with them; and the selling of the goods by a dweller of the city on behalf of a man of the desert; and the seeking by a woman the divorce of her sister (from her husband); and the practice of Najsh and leaving the animals unmilked (for sometime for the purpose of accumulation of milk to deceive the buyer)..

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "A person should not enter into a transaction when his (Muslim) brother has already negotiated, nor should he make a proposal of marriage when that of his brother is pending, except with the permission of the latter."

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "A Mu'min is the brother of another Mu'min; and thus it is not permissible for a Mu'min to make an offer while the offer of his brother is pending, nor should he make a proposal of marriage while that of his brother is pending till he withdraws his proposal.".

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Verily, Allah likes three things for you and disapproves three things for you. He likes that you should worship Him Alone, not to associate anything with Him (in worship) and to hold fast to the Rope of Allah and not to be divided among yourselves; and He disapproves for you irrelevant talk, persistent questioning and the squandering of the wealth.".

Al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah dictated a letter to me addressed to Mu'awiyah (May Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (ﷺ) used to supplicate at the end of each obligatory Salat (prescribed prayer): "La ilaha illallahu, wahadahu la sharika lahu, lahul-mulku, wa lahul-hamdu, wa Huwa 'ala kulli shai'in Qadir. Allahumma la mani'a lima a'taita, wa la mu'tiya lima mana'ta, wa la yanfa'u dhal-jaddi mink-al-jaddu. (There is no true god except Allah, the One, Who has no partner. His is the sovereignty and His is the praise, and He is Able to do everything. O Allah! Nobody can withhold what You give; and nobody can give what You withhold; and the high status of a person is of no avail against Your Will)." He also wrote to him that the Prophet (ﷺ) used to forbid irrelevant talk, wasteful expenditure, persistent questioning, disobedience of parents (especially mothers), infanticide of daughters by burying them alive, depriving others of their rights and acquisition of property wrongfully..

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "None of you should point at his brother with a weapon because he does not know that Satan may make it lose from his hand and, as a result, he may fall into a pit of Hell-fire (by accidentally killing him).".The narration in Muslim is: Abul-Qasim (i.e., the Messenger of Allah) (ﷺ) said, "He who points at his (Muslim) brother with a weapon is cursed by the angels even if the other person should be his real brother."

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) prohibited from presenting a drawn sword to another.".

We were sitting with Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) in the mosque when the Mu'adhdhin proclaimed the Adhan. A man stood up in the mosque and started walking out. Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) stared at him till he went out of the mosque. Upon this Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) said: Indeed, this man has disobeyed Abul-Qasim (ﷺ)..

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "He who is presented with a flower of sweet basil should not reject it, because it is light in weight and pleasant in odour.".

The Prophet (ﷺ) never refused a gift of perfume..

The Prophet (ﷺ) heard a person lauding another person or praising him too much. Thereupon he said, "You killed the man," or he said, "You ruined the man.".

Mention of a man was made to the Prophet (ﷺ) and someone praised him whereupon he (ﷺ) said, "Woe be to you! You have broken the neck of your friend!" He repeated this several times and added, "If one of you has to praise his friend at all, he should say: 'I reckon him to be such and such and Allah knows him well', if you think him to be so-and-so, you will be accountable to Allah because no one can testify the purity of others against Allah.".

A person began to praise 'Uthman (May Allah be pleased with him), and Al-Miqdad (May Allah be pleased with him) sat upon his knees and began to throw pebbles upon the flatterer's face. 'Uthman (May Allah be pleased with him) said: "What is the matter with you?" He said: "Verily, the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, 'When you see those who shower undue praises upon others throw dust upon their faces."'.

'Umar bin Al- Khattab (May Allah be pleased with him) set out for Ash-Sham (the region comprising Syria, Palestine, Lebanon and Jordan). As he reached at Sargh (a town by the side of Hijaz) he came across the governor of Al-Ajnad, Abu 'Ubaidah bin Al-Jarrah (May Allah be pleased with him) and his companions. They informed him that an had broken out in Syria. Ibn 'Abbas relates: 'Umar (May Allah be pleased with him) said to me: "Call to me the earliest Muhajirun (Emigrants)." So I called them. He sought their advice and told them that an epidemic had broken out in Ash-Sham. There was a difference of opinion whether they should proceed further or retreat to their homes in such a situation. Some of them said: "You have set forth to fight the enemy, and therefore you should not go back;" whereas some of them said: "As you have along with you many eminent Companions of Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), we would not advice you to set forth to the place of the plague (and thus expose them deliberately to a danger)." 'Umar (May Allah be pleased with him) said: "You can now go away." He said: "Call to me the Ansar (the Helpers)." So I called them to him, and he consulted them and they differed in their opinions as well. He said: "Now, you may go." He again said: "Call the old (wise people) of the Quraish who had emigrated before the conquest of Makkah." I called them. 'Umar (May Allah be pleased with him) consulted them in this issue and not even two persons among them differed in the opinions. They said: "We think that you should go back along with the people and do not take them to this scourge. 'Umar (May Allah be pleased with him) made an announcement to the people, saying: "In the morning I intend to go back, and I want you to do the same." Abu 'Ubaidah bin Al-Jarrah (May Allah be pleased with him) said: "Are you going to run away from the Divine Decree?" Thereupon 'Umar (May Allah be pleased with him) said: "O Abu 'Ubaidah ! Had it been someone else to say this." ('Umar (May Allah be pleased with him) did not like to differ with him). He said: "Yes, we are running from the Divine Decree to the Divine Decree. What do you think if you have camels and you happen to get down a valley having two sides, one of them covered with foliage and the other being barren, will you not act according to the Divine Decree if you graze them in vegetative land? In case you graze them in the barren land, even then you will be doing so according to the Divine Decree.There happened to come 'Abdur-Rahman bin 'Auf who had been absent for some of his needs. He said: I have knowledge about it. I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) saying, "If you get wind of the outbreak of plague in a land, you should not enter it; but if it spreads in the land where you are, you should not depart from it." Thereupon 'Umar bin Khattab (May Allah be pleased with him) praised Allah and went back..

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If you get wind of the outbreak of plague in a land, do not enter it; and if it breaks out in a land in which you are, do not leave it.".

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Avoid the seven destructive things." It was asked: (by those present): "What are they, O Messenger of Allah?" He replied, "Associating anyone or anything with Allah in worship; practising sorcery, killing of someone without a just cause whom Allah has forbidden, devouring the property of an orphan, eating of usury, fleeing from the battlefield and slandering chaste women who never even think of anything touching chastity and are good believers.".

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) forbade travelling to the land of the enemy carrying the Qur'an..

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Whosoever drinks in utensils of silver, in fact, kindles in his belly the fire of Hell.".The narration of Muslim is: "Verily, the person who eats or drinks in utensils made of gold and silver."

The Prophet (ﷺ) prohibited us from wearing silk or Dibaj and from drinking out of gold and silver vessels and said, "These are meant for them (non- Muslims) in this world and for you in the Hereafter."In another narration Hudhaifah (May Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Do not wear silk and Dibaj, nor eat or drink from utensils made of gold and silver.".

I was with Anas bin Malik (May Allah be pleased with him) in the company of some Magians when Faludhaj (a sweet made of flour and honey) was brought in a silver utensil, and Anas did not take it. The man was told to change the utensil. So he changed the utensil and when he brought it to Anas, he took it..

The Prophet (ﷺ) prohibited men from wearing saffron-dyed clothes..

The Prophet (ﷺ) saw me dressed in two saffron-coloured garments and asked, "Has your mother commanded you to wear these?" I asked him, "Shall I wash them out?" He replied, "You had better set them to fire."Another narration is: "These are garments of the disbelievers. So do not wear them.".

I have retained in my memory the saying of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) that: "No one is considered an orphan after he has attained the age of maturity; and it is unlawful to remain silent from dawn till night.".

Abu Bakr (May Allah be pleased with him) came upon a woman named Zainab from the Ahmas tribe and noticed that she was observing total silence. He said: "What has happened to her? Why does she not speak?'' People informed him that she had sworn to remain silent. He then said to her: "You should speak, it is not permissible (to observe silence), for it is an act of the Days of Ignorance (Jahiliyyah)." (After hearing this) she started speaking. .

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "He who (falsely) attributes his fatherhood to anyone besides his real father, knowing that he is not his father, will be forbidden to enter Jannah.".

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Do not turn away from your fathers, for he who turns away from his father, will be guilty of committing an act of disbelief."

I saw 'Ali (May Allah be pleased with him) giving a Khutbah (sermon) from the pulpit and I heard him saying: "By Allah, we have no book to read except Allah's Book and what is written in this scroll. He unrolled the scroll which showed a list of what sort of camels to be given as blood-money, and other legal matters relating to killing game in the sanctuary of Makkah and the expiation thereof. In it was also written: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'Al-Madinah is a sanctuary from 'Air to Thaur (mountains). He who innovates in this territory new ideas in Islam, commits a sin therein, or shelters the innovators, will incur the Curse of Allah, the angels, and all the people, and Allah will accept from him neither repentance nor a ransom on the Day of Resurrection. The asylum (pledge of protection) granted by any Muslim (even of the) lowest status is to be honoured and respected by all other Muslims, and whoever betrays a Muslim in this respect (by violating the pledge) will incur the Curse of Allah, the angels, and all the people; and Allah will accept from him neither repentance nor a ransom on the Day of Resurrection. Whoever attributes his fatherhood to someone other than his (real) father, and takes someone else as his master other than his (real) master without his permission, will incur the Curse of Allah, the angels and all the people, and Allah will accept from him neither repentance nor a ransom on the Day of Resurrection.".

I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) saying: "A person who attributes his fatherhood to anyone other than his real father, knowing that he is not his father, commits an act of disbelief. And he who makes a claim of anything which in fact does not belong to him, is none of us. He should make his abode in Hell, and he who labels anyone as disbeliever or calls him the enemy of Allah and he is in fact not so, his charge will revert to him.".

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Allah, the Exalted, becomes angry, and His Anger is provoked when a person does what Allah has declared unlawful.".

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "He who takes an oath and involuntarily says: 'By Al-Lat and Al-'Uzza' should at once affirm: 'La ilaha illallah (there is no true god except Allah)', and he who says to his companion: 'Come let's gamble' should make expiation by giving something in charity.".