The Book of Jihad
كتاب الجهاد
Chapter 1: Obligation of Jihad
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "He who supplicates sincerely for martyrdom, it will be granted to him even though he is not killed on the battlefield."[Muslim].
On one occasion the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was confronting the enemy. He waited until the sun had declined. Then he stood up to address the people and said, "O people! Do not wish for an encounter with the enemy. Pray to Allah to grant you safety; (but) when you encounter them, show patience, and know that Jannah is under the shades of the swords." Then he (ﷺ) said: "Allahumma munzilal-kitab, wa mujriyas- sahab, wa hazimal-Ahzab, ihzimhum wansurna alaihim (O Allah, Revealer of the Book, Disperser of the clouds, Defeater of the Confederates, put our enemy to rout and support us against them)."[Al- Bukhari and Muslim].
The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Goodness is tied to the foreheads of horses until the Day of Resurrection, i.e., reward (in the Hereafter) and spoils."[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].
I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) saying: "He who shoots an arrow for the sake of Allah, will have a reward equal to the emancipation of a slave."[Abu Dawud and At-Tirmidhi].
We accompanied the Prophet (ﷺ) in an expedition when he (ﷺ) said, "Some people have remained behind us in Al-Madinah, and we never cross a valley but they are with us. They share the reward with us because they have been held back by valid excuse."In another narration the wordings are: "...by any genuine excuse."In another narration the wordings are: "They are your partners in reward."[Al- Bukhari].
The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Fight the polytheists with your wealth, lives and tongues."[Abu Dawud].
I was with the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) when I witnessed that if he did not begin fighting in the early part of the day, he would postpone fighting till the sun had declined, the blowing of the breeze had blown and the victory from Allah had come.[Abu Dawud and At-Tirmidhi].
The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "War is deception."[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].
Chapter 5: The Merit of the Dutiful Slave
[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "The faithful and diligent slave will have a double reward." (Abu Hurairah added:) By Him in Whose Hand the soul of Abu Hurairah is! but for Jihad in the Cause of Allah, and Hajj and kindness to my mother, I would have preferred to die as a slave.[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Three kinds of people will have a double reward: A man from the People of the Book who believes in his Prophet and (also) believes in Muhammad; a slave who discharges properly the duties towards Allah and towards his master; and a man who possesses a slave-girl and teaches her manners, educates her well, and frees her and then marries her."[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].
Chapter 1: Obligation of Jihad
The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Jannah becomes incumbent for a Muslim who fights for the Cause of Allah for a period as long as the time between two consecutive turns of milking a she-camel. He who receives a wound or a bruise in the Cause of Allah will appear on the Day of Resurrection as fresh as possible, its colour will be the colour of saffron and its fragrance will be that of musk."[At-Tirmidhi and Abu Dawud].
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was asked: "What other good deed could be an equivalent of Jihad in the way of Allah?" He (ﷺ) replied, "You do not have the strength to do it." (The narrator said:) The question was repeated twice or thrice, but every time he (ﷺ) answered, "You do not have the strength to do it." Then he (ﷺ) said, "One who goes out for Jihad in the Cause of Allah is like a person who observes Saum (fasting), stands in Salat (prayer) constantly, recites the Ayat of the Qur'an and does not exhibit any lassitude in fasting and prayer until the participant of Jihad in the way of Allah returns."[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].
I heard my father saying in the presence of the enemy: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "The gates of Jannah are under the shades of the swords." A man with a shaggy appearance got up and said, "O Abu Musa! Did you hear the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say that in person?" Abu Musa replied in the affirmative; so he returned to his companions and said: "I tender you farewell greetings." Then he broke the scabbard of his sword and threw it away. He rushed towards the enemy with his sword and fought with it till he was martyred.[Muslim].
A man equipped with arms came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and asked: "O Messenger of Allah! Should I go and fight or should I embrace Islam first?" He (ﷺ) replied, "Enter in the fold of Islam and then fight." He embraced Islam and fought until he was killed. Thereupon the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "He accepted Islam for a short time but was rewarded much."[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and his Companions reached Badr before the polytheists, and when they arrived, he (ﷺ) directed: "Let no one of you advance ahead of me." When the polytheists came near, the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Now stand up and proceed towards Jannah which is as wide as are the heavens and the earth." 'Umair bin Al-Humam (May Allah be pleased with him) asked: "Is Jannah as wide as are the heaven and the earth?" The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) replied in the affirmative. 'Umair remarked: "Great!" The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) asked him what had urged him to say so. He replied: "Nothing, O Messenger of Allah! But hope that I might become one of the inhabitants of Jannah." The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "You will definitely be among them." 'Umair then took some dates out of his quiver and began to eat them, but after a short time he said: "If I survive till I eat my dates, it will mean a long life." So he threw away the dates which he had with him and then fought with the enemy till he was killed.[Muslim].
Some people came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and said to him: "Send with us some men who may teach us the Qur'an and the Sunnah." He (ﷺ) sent seventy men from the Ansar. They were called Al-Qurra' (the reciters) and among them was my maternal uncle, Haram. They used to recite the Qur'an, ponder over its meaning and learn (its wisdom) at night. In the day, they used to bring water and pour it in pitchers in the mosque, then they would collect wood and sell it; and with the sale proceeds, they would buy food for the people of As-Suffah and the needy. The Prophet (ﷺ) sent the reciters with these people but these (treacherous people) fell upon them and killed them before they reached their destination. (While dying) they supplicated: "O Allah convey from us the news to our Prophet that we have met You (in a way), that we are pleased with You and You are pleased with us." (The narrator said:) A man attacked Haram from behind and smote him with a spear which pierced him. Whereupon Haram said: "By the Rubb of Ka'bah, I have met with success. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said to his Companions, "Your brethren have been slain and they were saying: "O Allah! Convey from us to our Prophet the news that we have met You (in a way) that we are pleased with You and You are pleased with us."[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Last night two men (angels) came to me (in a dream) and made me ascend a tree and then admitted me into a nice and excellent house, the like of which I have never seen before. One of them said: 'This house is the house of martyrs'."[Al- Bukhari].
The dead body of my father, who was mutilated by the enemy, was brought and placed before the Prophet (ﷺ). I got up to uncover his face but the people stopped me, and the Prophet (ﷺ) said, "The angels continue to cover him with their wings."[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].
A man came to the Prophet (ﷺ) with a she-camel wearing a nose-string and said: "This is (a gift) in the Cause of Allah." The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) replied, "You will have in return for it on the Day of Resurrection seven hundred she-camels and every one of them will be wearing a nose-string."[Muslim].