“Those who do not invoke another god along with God, or kill one whom God has declared inviolate without a just cause, or commit fornication..." 1 (Bukhari and Muslim.)1 Quran, xxv, 68.

‘Abdallah b. ‘Amr reported God’s messenger as saying, “The major sins are associating other objects of worship with God, disobedience to parents, murder, and deliberate perjury (al-yamin al-ghamus)." Bukhari transmitted it. Anas’s version has “false witness”* (shahadat al-zur) instead of ‘‘deliberate perjury." (Bukhari and Muslim.)

Abu Huraira reported God’s messenger as saying, “Avoid the seven noxious things." When his hearers asked, “What are they, messenger of God?" he replied, “Associating anything with God, magic, killing one whom God has declared inviolate without a just cause, devouring usury, consuming the property of an orphan, turning back when the army advances, and slandering chaste women who are believers but indiscreet." (Bukhari and Muslim.)

Hudhaifa said, “Hypocrisy existed only in the time of God’s messenger, whereas to-day there are only unbelief and faith.” Bukhari transmitted it.

A man of the people of Najd with dishevelled hair came to God’s messenger. We could hear the sound of his voice, but could not understand what he was saying till he came near God’s messenger and we realised that he was asking about Islam. God’s messenger said, “Five times of prayer each day and night.” He asked, “Must I observe any more than them?” He replied, “No, unless you do it voluntarily.” God's messenger said, “And fasting during the month of Ramadan.” He asked, “Must I observe anything else?” He replied, “No, unless you do it voluntarily.” Talha said that God's messenger mentioned the zakat to him, and he asked, “Must I pay anything else?” He replied, “No, unless you do it voluntarily.” He said that the man turned away saying, “I swear by God that I shall not add anything to this or fall short of it.” So God’s messenger said, “The man will prosper if he is speaking the truth.” (Bukhari and Muslim.)

Abu Sa'id al-Khudri said that when God’s messenger went out to the place of prayer on the day of sacrifice, or on the day when the fast was broken, he came upon some women and said, "Give alms, you women folk, for I have been shown that you will be the majority of the inhabitants of hell.” They asked, “For what reason, messenger of God?” He replied, “You are greatly given to abuse, and you are ungrateful to your husbands. Among women who are deficient in intelligence and religion I have not seen anyone more able to remove the understanding of a prudent man than one of you.” They asked, “What is the deficiency of our religion and our intelligence, messenger of God?” He replied, “Is not the testimony of a woman equivalent to half the testimony of a man?” They said, “Yes.” Remarking that that pertained to the deficiency of her intelligence, he asked, “Is it not the case that when she menstruates she neither prays nor fasts?” When they replied, “Yes,” he said, “That pertains to the deficiency of her religion.” (Bukhari and Muslim.)

I was riding behind the Prophet on an ass with nothing between him and me but the rear part of the saddle, when he said, “Do you know, Mu'adh, what God has a right to expect from His servants, and what His servants have a right to expect from God?” I replied, “God and His messenger know best.” He said, “What God has a right to expect from His servants is that they should worship Him, not associating anything with him; and what the servants have a right to expect from God is that He should not punish one who does not associate anything with Him.” I said, “Messenger of God, shall I not give this good news to the people?” He replied, “Do not tell them, and have them trusting in it alone.” (Bukhari and Muslim.)

‘Ubada b. as-Samit reported God’s messenger as saying, “If anyone testifies that there is no god but God alone, who has no partner, that Muhammad is His servant and messenger, that Jesus is God’s servant and messenger, the son of His handmaid, His word which he cast into Mary and a spirit from Him, and that paradise and hell are real, God will cause him to enter paradise no matter what he has done.”(Bukhari and Muslim.)

I came to the Prophet and said, “Stretch out your right hand and let me swear allegiance to you.” He stretched out his right hand, but I clenched my hand and he said, “What is the matter with you, ‘Amr?” I replied, “I want to make a condition.” He asked, “What condition do you make?” I replied, “That I should receive forgiveness.” He said, “Do you not know, 'Amr, that Islam demolishes what preceded it, that the Hijra demolishes what preceded it, and the Pilgrimage demolishes what preceded it?”Muslim transmitted it. We shall mention the two traditions transmitted from Abu Huraira, (1) He declared that God said, “I am the one who is most able to dispense with partnership”; (2) “Pride is my cloak”, in the chapters on Hypocrisy and Pride1, if God most high will.1 i.e, Book XXIV, Ch. vi and Book XXIII, Ch. xx.

I said, “Inform me, messenger of God, of an act which will cause me to enter paradise and remove me far from hell.” He replied, “You have asked a serious question, but it is easy for the one whom God helps to answer it. Worship God, associate nothing with Him, observe the prayer, pay the zakat, fast during Ramadan, and make the Pilgrimage to the House.” He said, “Shall I not guide you to the gateways of what is good? Fasting is a protection, and almsgiving extinguishes sin as water extinguishes fire, and a man's prayer in the middle of the night [has the same effect].” Then he recited, “Withdrawing themselves from their couches ... they have been doing.” 1 Then he said, “Shall I not guide you to the head and support of the matter and the top of its hump?” I replied, “Yes, messenger of God.” He said, “The head of the matter is Islam, its support is prayer, and the top of its hump is jihad.” Then he said, “Shall I not inform you of the controlling of all that?” I replied, “Yes, Prophet of God.” So he took hold of his tongue and said, “Restrain this.” I asked, “Prophet of God, shall we really be punished for what we talk about?” He replied, “I am surprised at you, 2 Mu'adh! Will anything but the harvests of their tongues overthrow men in hell on their faces (or, on their nostrils)?” Ahmad, Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah transmitted it.1 Quran, xxxii, 16f.2 Literally, may your mother be bereft of you.

Abu Umama reported that God’s messenger said, “If anyone loves for God’s sake, hates for God’s sake, gives for God’s sake and withholds for God's sake, he will have perfected faith.” Abu Dawud transmitted it; and Tirmidhi transmitted it from Mu'adh b. Anas with a transposition of phrases, including “he will have perfected his faith.”

We were seated around God's messenger, Abu Bakr, ‘Umar and some others being with us, when God's messenger got up and left us. He delayed for some time, which made us fear that he might be attacked by some enemy when we were not with him; so being alarmed we got up. I was the first to be alarmed. I therefore went out to look for God's messenger and came to a garden belonging to the B. an-Najjar, a section of the Ansar, I went round it looking for a gate, but failed to find one. Seeing a rabi’ (i.e. a streamlet) flowing into the garden from a well outside, I drew myself together and went in to where God's messenger was. He said, “Is it Abu Huraira?" I replied, “Yes, messenger of God." He said, “What do you want?" I replied, “You were among us, but got up and went away and delayed for a time, so fearing that you might be attacked by some enemy when we were not with you, we became alarmed. I was the first to be alarmed, so when I came to this garden I drew myself together as a fox does; and these people are following me." Addressing me by name he gave me his sandals and said, “Take away these sandals of mine, and when you meet anyone outside this garden who testifies that there is no god but God, being assured of it in his heart, gladden him by announcing that he will go to paradise." Now the first one I met was ‘Umar. He asked, “What are these sandals, Abu Huraira?” and I replied, “These are God’s messenger’s sandals with which he has sent me to gladden anyone I met who testified that there is no god but God, being assured of it in his heart, with the announcement that he would go to paradise.” Thereupon ‘Umar struck me on the breast and I fell down on my seat.” He then said, “Go back, Abu Huraira”; so I went back to God’s messenger, and I was ready to weep. ‘Umar followed me closely, and there he was behind me. God’s messenger said, “What is the matter with you, Abu Huraira?” I replied, “I met ‘Umar and conveyed to him your message, whereupon he gave me a blow on the breast which made me fall down on my seat and ordered me to go back.” God’s messenger said, “What induced you, ‘Umar, to do what you did?” He replied, “Messenger of God, for whom I would give my father and mother as ransom, did you send Abu Huraira with your sandals to gladden anyone he met who testified that there is no god but God, being assured of it in his heart, with the announcement that he would go to paradise?” He said, “Yes.” ‘Umar said, “You must not do it, for I am afraid that people will trust in it alone; let them go on doing [good] works.” God’s messenger said, “Well let them.” Muslim transmitted it.

While I was sitting ‘Umar passed me and gave me a salutation, but I did not notice it. ‘Umar complained to Abu Bakr, and the two of them came forward and gave me a salutation; then Abu Bakr asked, “What induced you to refrain from returning the salutation of your brother ‘Umar?” I replied, “I did no such thing.” ‘Umar retorted, “Yes, I swear by God, you did.” I said, “I swear by God that I did not notice you passing me or giving me a salutation.” Abu Bakr then said, “‘Uthman is speaking the truth. Something must have distracted you.” On my replying that it had, he asked me what it was, and I said, “God has taken His Prophet before we asked him wherein this affair provides salvation.” Abu Bakr said that he had asked him about that, so I rose and went to him and said to him, “You for whom I would give my father and mother as ransom are most worthy of it.” Abu Bakr then told me that he had asked, “Messenger of God, wherein does this affair provide salvation?” to which God’s messenger replied, “If anyone accepts from me the confession which I proposed to my paternal uncle1 and he rejected, it will be salvation for him.” Ahmad transmitted it.1 Abu Talib, the uncle who gave protection in Makkah, but did not accept his religion.

Wahb b. Munabbih, on being asked whether ‘There is no god but God’ was not the key of paradise, said, “Yes, but every key has wards. If you bring a key with wards the door will be opened for you, otherwise I it will not.” Bukhari transmitted it in a chapter heading.

Abu Umama reported that a man asked God’s messenger what faith was, to which he replied, “When your good deed pleases you and your evil deed grieves you, you are a believer.” He then asked what sin was and received the reply, “When you have a besetting sin, give it up.” Ahmad transmitted it.

He also reported God’s messenger as saying, “When one commits fornication he is not a believer, when one steals he is not a believer, when one drinks wine he is not a believer, when one takes plunder on account of which men raise their eyes at him he is not a believer, and when one of you defrauds he is not a believer; so beware, beware!" (Bukhari and Muslim.) The version of Ibn ‘Abbas contains “When one commits murder he is not a believer.” ‘Ikrima said that he asked Ibn 'Abbas how faith could be snatched away from him, and he replied “Thus (interlacing his fingers and then separating them), but if he repents, it will return to him thus,” and he interlaced his fingers. Aba ‘Abdallah1 said that such a one is not a perfect believer and does not possess the light of faith. This is Bukhari's wording.1 i.e. ‘Ikrima, Abu Abdullah being his kunya.

Abu Huraira reported God's messenger as saying, “There are three signs of a hypocrite.” Muslim added, “Even if he fasts, prays, and asserts that he is a Muslim.” Thereafter both Bukhari and Muslim said, “When he speaks he lies, when he makes a promise he breaks it, and when he is trusted he betrays his trust.”

when he is trusted he betrays his trust, when he talks he lies, when he makes a covenant he acts treacherously, and when he quarrels he deviates from the truth.” (Bukhari and Muslim.)

Abu Huraira reported that God's messenger said, “When a servant of God commits fornication faith departs from him and there is something like an awning over his head; but when he quits that action faith returns to him.” Tirmidhi and Abu Dawud transmitted it.

one of the people of the Book who believes in his prophet and believes in Muhammad; a slave when he fulfils what is due to God and what is due to his patrons; and a man who has a slavegirl with whom he has intercourse, who gives her a good training in manners and a good education, then sets her free and marries her—he will have a double reward.” (Bukhari and Muslim.)