ONE HADITH A DAY
Narrated by At-Tirmidhi · Authentic
عَنْ مُعَاذِ بْنِ جَبَلٍ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ: قُلْت يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ! أَخْبِرْنِي بِعَمَلٍ يُدْخِلُنِي الجَنَّةَ وَيُبَاعِدْنِي مِنْ النَّارِ، قَالَ: «لَقَدْ سَأَلْتَ عَنْ عَظِيمٍ، وَإِنَّهُ لَيَسِيرٌ عَلَى مَنْ يَسَّرَهُ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ: تَعْبُدُ اللَّهَ لَا تُشْرِكُ بِهِ شَيْئًا، وَتُقِيمُ الصَّلَاةَ، وَتُؤْتِي الزَّكَاةَ، وَتَصُومُ رَمَضَانَ، وَتَحُجُّ البَيْتَ، ثُمَّ قَالَ: أَلَا أَدُلُّكَ عَلَى أَبْوَابِ الخَيْرِ، الصَّوْمُ جُنَّةٌ، وَالصَّدَقَةُ تُطْفِئُ الْخَطِيئَةَ كَمَا يُطْفِئُ المَاءُ النَّارَ، وَصَلَاةُ الرَّجُلِ مِنْ جَوْفِ اللَّيْلِ، ثُمَّ تَلَا: {تَتَجَافَى جُنُوبُهُمْ عَنِ الْمَضَاجِعِ} حَتَّى {بَلَغَ يَعْمَلُونَ}، ثُمَّ قَالَ: أَلَا أُخْبِرُك بِرَأْسِ الأَمْرِ وَعَمُودِهِ وَذِرْوَةِ سَنَامِهِ، فَقُلْتُ: بَلَى يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، قَالَ: رَأْسُ الأَمْرِ الإِسْلَامُ، وَعَمُودُهُ الصَّلَاةُ، وَذِرْوَةُ سَنَامِهِ الجِهَادُ، ثُمَّ قَالَ: أَلَا أُخْبِرُك بِمِلَاكِ ذَلِكَ كُلِّهِ، فقُلْت: بَلَى يَا رَسُولَ اللَّه! فَأَخَذَ بِلِسَانِهِ وَقَالَ: كُفَّ عَلَيْك هَذَا، قُلْت: يَا نَبِيَّ اللَّهِ! وَإِنَّا لَمُؤَاخَذُونَ بِمَا نَتَكَلَّمُ بِهِ، فَقَالَ: ثَكِلَتْكَ أُمُّكَ وَهَلْ يَكُبُّ النَّاسَ عَلَى وُجُوهِهِمْ أَوْ قَالَ عَلَى مَنَاخِرِهِمْ إلَّا حَصَائِدُ أَلسِنَتِهِمْ»!
“Mu‘ādh ibn Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I said: O Messenger of Allah, tell me of an action that lets me enter Paradise and keep me away from Hellfire. He said: "You have asked about something grave, but it is easy for whomever Allah makes it easy for. Worship Allah, without associating anything with Him, offer the prayer, pay Zakah, fast Ramadan, and perform Hajj. Then, he said: Shall I not guide you to the gates of goodness? Fasting is a shield, charity extinguishes sins as water extinguishes fire, and a man's prayer in the middle of night. Then, he recited: {Their sides forsake their beds} until he reached {what they used to do.} Then he added: Shall I tell you of the essence of the matter, its pillar, and its peak? I replied: Yes, O Messenger of Allah. He said: The essence of this matter is Islam, its pillar is the prayer, and its peak is Jihad. Then he said: Shall I tell you of what holds all these things? I said: Yes, O Messenger of Allah. He took hold of his tongue and said: Keep this under control. I asked: O Prophet of Allah, shall we be held accountable for what we say? He replied: May your mother lose you! What else can cast people on their faces—or on their noses—except the harvest of their tongues?!"”
Mu‘ādh (may Allah be pleased with him) said: I was on a journey in the company of the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him). One morning, I was close to him when we were on the move, so I said: O Messenger of Allah, inform me of a deed that admits me to Paradise and keeps me far from Hellfire. He said: You have asked me about a deed that is hard for people to perform, but it is, indeed, easy and simple for whomever Allah makes it easy. Perform the obligations of Islam. First: Worship Allah alone and do not associate anything with Him. Second: Establish the five obligatory prayers every day and night, namely Fajr, Zhuhr, ‘Asr, Maghrib, and ''Ishā'—along with observing their conditions, pillars, and obligatory acts. Third: Pay the obligatory Zakah, which is an obligatory financial act of worship due on every type of property that has reached the limit prescribed by the Shariah, and it is to be given to those entitled to it. Fourth: Fast Ramadan, which is abstaining from food, drink, and other fast invalidators as a form of worship from the break of dawn to sunset. Fifth: Make Hajj to the House by heading for Makkah to perform the rituals as a means of worshiping Allah Almighty. Then he (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: Shall I inform you of the path leading to the gates of goodness? Follow these obligations with voluntary acts of worship. First: Voluntary fast, which prevents from falling into sins by breaking the lust and enfeebling the power. Second: Voluntary charity extinguishes the sin after being committed, eliminates it, and erases it…