Short Prophetic Sayings

Sayings on the Virtue of Knowledge and Action

The prophetic tradition contains a number of sayings that highlight the significance of seeking knowledge and taking action. Here are some notable examples:

The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: “When a person dies, their deeds come to an end except for three: ongoing charity, beneficial knowledge, or a righteous child who prays for them.”
Jabir bin Abdullah, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said: “Ask Allah for beneficial knowledge, and seek refuge in Him from knowledge that does not benefit.”
The Prophet, peace be upon him, stated: “Soon, there will come to you people seeking knowledge; if you see them, say to them, ‘Welcome, welcome, to the advice of the Messenger of Allah,’ and teach them.”
He also said: “Whoever comes to my mosque seeking only good to learn or teach is like a warrior in the path of Allah. But if they come for anything else, they are like a person looking at the belongings of others.”
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, remarked: “May Allah brighten the face of a person who hears our saying, preserves it, and communicates it to others. Perhaps a person who bears knowledge is not knowledgeable, and perhaps a bearer of knowledge conveys it to someone who is more knowledgeable than they are.”
The Prophet, peace be upon him, asserted: “Seeking knowledge is an obligation upon every Muslim.”
He remarked: “The virtue of knowledge is more beloved to me than the virtue of worship, and the best of your religion is piety.”
He said: “O Allah, bless my nation in their early mornings.” Whenever he sent out a military unit or a merchant caravan, he did so at the beginning of the day, and he was a successful man who became wealthy.
One day, the Prophet, peace be upon him, observed a man actively engaged in labor. His companions suggested he was doing so in the way of Allah. The Prophet replied: “If he went out to provide for his young children, he is in the way of Allah; if he is supporting his elderly parents, he is also in the way of Allah. If he seeks to protect himself from his own needs, he is in the way of Allah. However, if he seeks to show off or boast, he is in the way of Satan.”
The Prophet, peace be upon him, said: “Indeed, Allah loves that when any one of you does a job, he does it with proficiency.”
He added: “If the Hour comes while one of you has a seedling in hand, if he can plant it before the Hour comes, let him do so.”
He said: “It’s better for any one of you to carry a bundle of firewood on his back than to beg from someone who may either give or withhold.”

Sayings About the Blessings of Paradise

Numerous sayings describe the beauty and features of Paradise. Here are a few significant ones:

The Prophet, peace be upon him, stated: “In Paradise, there is a marketplace, where they gather every Friday. A northern wind blows upon them, scattering it over their faces and garments, causing them to become even more beautiful. They return to their families having increased in beauty, and their families say to them: ‘By Allah, you have returned even more beautiful than you were.’ They reply: ‘And you, by Allah, are even more beautiful than us!'”
The Prophet, peace be upon him, highlighted: “Paradise has one hundred levels, prepared by Allah for those who strive in His way. The distance between two levels is like the distance between the heavens and the earth. If you ask Allah, ask Him for Al-Firdaus, for it is the middle and highest part of Paradise, above which is the Throne of the Most Merciful, and from it flow the rivers of Paradise.”
Some companions, may Allah be pleased with them, asked the Prophet, peace be upon him, “O Messenger of Allah, tell us about Paradise. What is its construction?” He replied: “It is made of bricks of gold and silver, and its mortar is scented musk; its pebbles are pearls and rubies, and its soil is saffron. Whoever enters it will enjoy and never experience misery; he will live forever and will not die, his clothes will never wear out, and his youth will never fade.”
The Prophet, peace be upon him, said: “The inhabitants of Paradise will be able to see the inhabitants of the lofty chambers above them, just as one sees a distant star in the horizon, due to the difference in their ranks.” When asked, “O Messenger of Allah, are these the abodes of the Prophets, and no one else can reach them?” He answered, “Yes, by the One in Whose hand is my soul. There will be men who believed in Allah and believed in the messengers.”
He noted: “The first group to enter Paradise will appear like the moon on a full night, and the group that follows will shimmer like the brightest star in the sky. Each of them will have two wives, and the marrow of their shins will be visible through the flesh, and there is no one in Paradise who is single.”
The Prophet, peace be upon him, affirmed: “When the people of Paradise enter Paradise and the people of Hell enter Hell, a caller will announce: ‘O people of Paradise, indeed, you have a meeting with Allah that He wants to fulfill for you.’ They will say: ‘What could that possibly be? Did Allah not lighten our scales, clarify our faces, admit us into Paradise, and save us from Hellfire?’ The veil will be lifted, and they will behold Him, and by Allah, nothing He gives them will be more beloved than this sight, nor more comforting to their eyes.”
The Prophet also mentioned: “The place of a bow’s string or the spot of a foot in Paradise is better than what is in this world and everything in it. Were a woman from the people of Paradise to look at the earth, it would illuminate what is between them, and her veil would be better than what is in this world and all that is in it.”
He remarked: “In Paradise, there are eight gates, one of which is called Ar-Rayan, which none will enter except those who fast.”

General Sayings from the Two Sahihs

The term “the Two Sahihs” refers to Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, which are the two books universally accepted by the Muslim community and considered the most authentic collections of Hadith after the Qur’an. Below are some sayings found in these revered texts:

The Prophet, peace be upon him, stated: “Whoever alleviates the burden of a believer from the burdens of this world, Allah will alleviate their burden on the Day of Resurrection. Whoever facilitates a difficult situation for a debtor, Allah will make things easy for him in this world and the Hereafter. Whoever conceals the faults of a Muslim, Allah will conceal his faults in this world and the Hereafter. Allah is in the help of the servant as long as the servant is in the help of his brother. Whoever follows a path to seek knowledge, Allah will make his path to Paradise easy. Whenever a group gathers in one of Allah’s houses reciting the Book of Allah and studying it among themselves, tranquility descends upon them, mercy envelops them, and angels surround them, and Allah mentions them to those who are near Him. And whoever’s deeds lag behind him, his lineage will not hasten him forward.”
The Prophet, peace be upon him, said: “The best form of seeking forgiveness is to say: ‘O Allah, You are my Lord; there is no deity except You. You created me, and I am Your servant. I am committed to Your covenant and promise as much as I can. I seek refuge in You from the evil of what I have done. I acknowledge Your blessings upon me, and I confess my sins. So forgive me, for indeed, no one forgives sins except You.'”
The Prophet, peace be upon him, noted: “A Muslim is one from whom Muslims are safe from his tongue and hand, and a مهاجِر (muhajir) is one who forsakes what Allah has forbidden.”
He mentioned: “A strong believer is better and more beloved to Allah than a weak believer, although in both there is good. Be keen on that which benefits you, seek assistance from Allah, and do not become weak. If something befalls you, do not say, ‘If I had done this and that,’ but instead, say, ‘This is Allah’s decree, and He does as He wills,’ for the word ‘if’ opens the door to the actions of Satan.”
The Prophet, peace be upon him, compared the believer who recites the Qur’an to a fragrant fruit tree with a pleasant scent and sweet taste, while the believer who does not recite the Qur’an is like a date palm, having no scent but sweet taste.
He stated: “Every member of my ummah will enter Paradise except for those who refuse.” They asked, “O Messenger of Allah, who would refuse?” He replied, “Whoever obeys me will enter Paradise, and whoever disobeys me has refused.”
The Prophet, peace be upon him, mentioned: “There is no jealousy except in two cases: a man whom Allah has taught the Qur’an, so he recites it day and night, and his neighbor hears him and says: ‘I wish I had been given like what has been given to so-and-so, so that I could do as he does.’
The Prophet, peace be upon him, indicated: “Every day, two angels descend and say: ‘O Allah, give the spender replacement, and ‘O Allah, give the miser destruction.'”
He highlighted: “Allah, Blessed and Exalted, said: ‘I am the most self-sufficient of those who have partners. Whoever does a deed associating others with Me in it, I will leave him to his partner.'”
It was narrated that Aisha, the Mother of the Believers, may Allah be pleased with her, said: “The Prophet, peace be upon him, never failed to pray four rak’ahs before Dhuhr and two before Fajr.”
The Prophet, peace be upon him, affirmed: “Whoever stands in prayer on the Night of Decree (Laylat al-Qadr) with faith and seeking reward will have his previous sins forgiven.”
The Prophet, peace be upon him, stated: “The best among you are those who learn the Qur’an and teach it.”
He mentioned: “Two phrases are beloved to the Most Merciful, light on the tongue, heavy on the scales: ‘Subhanallah wa bihamdi, Subhanallah al-Azim’.”
The Prophet, peace be upon him, said: “Whoever memorizes ten verses from the beginning of Surah Al-Kahf will be protected from the Dajjal.”
He denounced: “The Prophet, peace be upon him, cursed men who imitate women, and women who imitate men.”
He said: “Saying ‘Subhanallah, Alhamdulillah, La Ilaha Illallah, and Allahu Akbar’ is more beloved to me than that which the sun rises upon.”
The Prophet, peace be upon him, warned: “Whoever neglects the Asr prayer, their deeds will be nullified.”
He advised: “Do not turn your homes into graves, for the devil flees from the house in which Surah Al-Baqarah is recited.”
The Prophet, peace be upon him, remarked: “May the nose of a person be humbled, may the nose of a person be humbled, may the nose of a person be humbled.” When asked who he meant, he replied: “Whoever reaches his parents in old age, one of them or both, yet does not enter Paradise.”
A man asked the Prophet, peace be upon him: “O Messenger of Allah, who is most deserving of my good companionship?” The Prophet replied: “Your mother.” He asked again: “Then who?” The Prophet said: “Then your mother.” The man continued: “Then who?” The Prophet replied: “Then your mother.” The man asked once more: “Then who?” The Prophet concluded: “Then your father.”
The Prophet, peace be upon him, questioned: “Is one of you not capable of earning a thousand good deeds each day?” A man from his companions asked: “How can we earn a thousand good deeds?” The Prophet replied: “By saying a hundred praises, it will earn him a thousand good deeds or erase a thousand wrongdoings.”

The Significance of the Prophetic Tradition

The Sunnah refers to everything attributed to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) through his sayings, actions, characteristics, approvals, and practices in his life. It is widely acknowledged that the Qur’an is the primary source for forming a Muslim’s beliefs, thoughts, and culture. Equally, the Sunnah holds immense importance in the lives of Muslims as it serves as the practical application of the teachings of the Qur’an. While the Qur’an contains general guidelines, many specific details are elaborated upon in the Sunnah, such as the number of prayer units, their method, the rites of Hajj and Umrah, the distribution of zakat, and other Islamic rituals. Hence, the Prophetic Tradition is a vital source and authority in the great body of Islamic law.