The Prophet (peace be upon him) sent Mu‘ādh to Yemen and outlined for him how he should call on people to embrace Islam. The first thing he was to advocate was God’s oneness. If they responded and embraced Islam, Mu‘ādh was to tell them that prayer was obligatory. Subsequently, he was to tell them the obligation of zakat. The Prophet (peace be upon him) then informed Mu‘ādh that he must not take the best of their property when he collected their zakat. He should neither take the best nor the worst, but should choose what was of medium quality. The Prophet (peace be upon him) finally warned Mu‘ādh about a supplication by someone suffering injustice. A prayer by such a person is certain to be answered.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) tells us that all people have a duty which they owe to God by right, namely, to worship Him alone, associating no partners with Him. He further tells us that God, Mighty and Exalted, has promised that He will not punish anyone who does not associate partners with Him. The Prophet (peace be upon him) told Mu‘ādh not to spread this information so that people would not rely on it and stop doing good work.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) explains in this hadith that all people of his community will be admitted into Heaven except those who refuse. He further explains that only those who disobey him and do what is contrary to his Sunnah refuse to enter Heaven.
This hadith sums up all the fundamentals of the Islamic faith. It explains the essentials of our religion, which are: Islam, īmān and iḥsān. It also mentions some of the portents of the Day of Judgement
The Prophet (peace be upon him) emphasizes that religion is based on sincerity. Every person should do whatever they can to establish the truth towards God, His Book, His Messenger and the leaders and common folk of the Muslim community.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) tells us that faith yields a fruit which has a sweet taste. Its taste is experienced only by a person who takes his faith seriously and lives it. He accepts God as his Lord and submits to Islam as a faith and creed. He acknowledges Muhammad (peace be upon him) as a Prophet and adheres to his message, believing in him as God’s Messenger.
The Jews envied the Muslims that this verse was revealed to them and wished that a similar verse had been revealed to their own prophets. This is the verse in which God states that He has perfected the religion of Islam. ‘Umar told them that he knew the time and place of its revelation and that all Muslims honour that place and that day.
In this hadith the Prophet (peace be upon him) tells us that faith comprises many parts which differ in merit and importance. The most important one is belief in God’s oneness and the lowest in importance is the removal of harmful objects from people’s way. The other parts, including modesty, fall in between these two.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) speaks about some matters known to God only, including some of His attributes and actions. He mentions that God was always in existence, before the creation of anything, and that His throne was on water before He created the heavens, earth and the universe. He also mentions that God wrote in the Imperishable Tablet all that will happen to His creation. He then created the universe.
God, limitless is He in His glory, mentions that He has forbidden injustice and commanded people not to resort to it. He then tells His servants that He is the One who provides guidance and sustenance and that He forgives sins and bestows mercy. He further tells us that none of His creation can ever harm Him or cause Him benefit. He tells us of His limitless treasures which are never exhausted. God then states that what everyone will receive is only the fruit of their own deeds.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) informs us in this hadith that God has ninety-nine fine names and that whoever learns them all, with their full meanings, and implements what they signify will be in Heaven.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) tells us some of the attributes of God, Mighty and Exalted. One such attribute is that He does not sleep. Indeed sleep does not apply to Him, because sleep is a quality of weakness and no weakness may attach to God. He accepts good deeds, elevating these to Himself, and rejects those that are not good. The angels present to Him the deeds done during the night before the start of the day, and present the deeds of the day before the start of the night. The Prophet further tells us that God’s screen from His creation is made of light – or from fire. Were He to remove it, the light of His face would burn all creation.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) mentions the origin of some of God’s creation, stating that the angels were created from light and the jinn from fire. He further mentions that Adam was created from clay, as clearly mentioned in the Qur’an.
In this hadith, ‘Āʼishah, the Prophet’s wife and Mother of the Believers, gives the details of the start of revelations to the Prophet (peace be upon him), starting with having true dreams. She then mentions the Angel Gabriel’s visit when he was spending time in devotion at Ḥirāʼ Cave. He was then given his first revelations. The hadith further mentions Khadījah’s words of reassurance and what Waraqah ibn Nawfal said to him.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) says that he is the closest to Prophet Jesus (peace be upon him). No other prophet was sent by God in the intervening period between them. Moreover, all prophets are brethren because they preached and advocated the same faith.
Ibn ‘Abbās mentions some of the important points in the Prophet’s life. He states that his prophethood started when he was forty years of age. He migrated from Makkah to Yathrib, which was subsequently named Madinah, thirteen years later. He stayed in Madinah for ten years and then passed away to be with his Lord when he was sixty-three.
The Prophet makes clear that no one should deny the status of the Sunnah, claiming that the Qur’an is sufficient. Like the Qur’an, the Sunnah is part of the revelations given to the Prophet.
The Prophet states an oath that no one who is his contemporary or lives later and hears of him and his message, but who still refuses to believe in him will be accepted by God. Whoever consciously disbelieves in Prophet Muhammad is destined to Hell, even though such a person be a Jew or a Christian.
One companion of the Prophet (peace be upon him) asked him about the timing of the Last Hour. The Prophet drew his attention to what is more important than knowing its timing, which is known only to God. This is preparing for it. The man said that he did not do much by way of preparation, but he loved God and His Messenger. The Prophet told him that this was sufficient to ensure that he would go to Heaven and be a companion of the Prophet there, if he was true in his love.
The Prophet prohibits reviling his companions. Their great services for the cause of Islam give them the greatest reward among all mankind.
