It is narrated from Sayyiduna Umar bin Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), he says: One day we were sitting with the Prophet of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), when suddenly a man came to us. His clothes were extremely white and his hair was very black. There were no signs of travel visible on him, nor did any of us recognize him. Anyway, he came and sat near the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in such a way that he joined his knees with the knees of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and placed his hands on the thighs of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: "O Muhammad! Tell me about Islam, what is Islam?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Islam is that you bear witness that Allah alone is the true deity and Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) is the Messenger of Allah, and that you establish prayer, pay zakat, fast in Ramadan, and if you have the ability, perform Hajj to the House of Allah." He replied: "You have spoken the truth." We were greatly astonished that this person asks questions and also confirms the answers. Anyway, he then asked another question and said: "Tell me about Iman (faith)." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Iman is that you believe in Allah, His angels, His books, His messengers, the Last Day, and in all destiny, its good and its bad." He said: "Yes, you have spoken the truth." He asked a third question: "Now tell me about Ihsan, what is Ihsan?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Ihsan is that you worship Allah as if you see Him, and if you do not see Him, then (know that) He surely sees you." He then asked: "Tell me about the Hour (Day of Judgment)." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The one being questioned knows no more about it than the questioner." He said: "Then tell me about its signs." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "They are: the slave woman will give birth to her mistress, and you will see barefoot, naked, destitute shepherds competing in constructing tall buildings." Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) says: Then that man left, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) remained silent about him for some time, according to one narration, for three days, and then said to me: "Umar! Do you know who the questioner was?" I said: "Allah and His Messenger know best." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "That was Jibreel (Gabriel), he came to teach you your religion."

Sayyiduna Abu Amir Ash'ari (may Allah be pleased with him) also narrated a similar hadith from the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), except that in it is: Then that man who was asking questions went away. When we could no longer see any trace of him, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Subhan Allah! Subhan Allah! Subhan Allah! (i.e., how astonishing!) That was Jibril (peace be upon him) who came to teach people their religion. By the One in whose hand is my soul! Whenever he used to come to me, I would recognize him, except this time."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was sitting in a gathering when suddenly Jibreel (peace be upon him) came and sat before the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) in such a way that he placed his palms on the knees of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and said:“O Messenger of Allah! Tell me about Islam, what is it?”The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:“Islam is that you submit your face to Allah Almighty and bear witness that Allah Almighty alone is the true deity, He is One, He has no partner, and Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) is His servant and Messenger.”He said:“If I perform these acts, will I become a Muslim?”The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:“Yes, when you do these deeds, you will become a Muslim.”He said:“O Messenger of Allah! Tell me about Iman, what is Iman?”The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:“Iman is that you believe in Allah Almighty, in the Last Day, in the angels, in the Book, in the Prophets, in death and resurrection after death, in Paradise and Hell, in reckoning and the scale, and in all of destiny, whether good or bad.”He said:“If I do these acts, will I become a believer?”The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:“Yes, when you do so, you will become a believer.”He said:“O Messenger of Allah! Tell me, what is Ihsan?”The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:“Ihsan is that you worship Allah Almighty as if you are seeing Him, and if you do not see Him, then surely He sees you.”He said:“O Messenger of Allah! Tell me, when will the Hour (Day of Judgment) come?”The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:“Subhan Allah! How amazing! Its knowledge is among those five things of the unseen which only Allah Almighty knows. The statement of Allah Almighty is: «إِنَّ اللَّهَ عِنْدَهُ عِلْمُ السَّاعَةِ وَيُنَزِّلُ الْغَيْثَ وَيَعْلَمُ مَا فِي الْأَرْحَامِ وَمَا تَدْرِي نَفْسٌ مَاذَا تَكْسِبُ غَدًا وَمَا تَدْرِي نَفْسٌ بِأَيِّ أَرْضٍ تَمُوتُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَلِيمٌ خَبِيرٌ» (Indeed, with Allah alone is the knowledge of the Hour, He sends down the rain, and He knows what is in the wombs. No soul knows what it will earn tomorrow, nor does anyone know in which land he will die. Indeed, Allah is All-Knowing, All-Aware.) (Surah Luqman: 34). However, if you wish, I can tell you its signs.”He said:“Yes, of course, O Messenger of Allah! Please tell me.”The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:“When you see that a slave girl gives birth to her mistress or master, and the shepherds of goats begin to boast in building tall structures, and the barefoot, hungry, and poor become the leaders of people, these are the signs of the Hour.”He said:“O Messenger of Allah! Who are meant by the shepherds of goats and the barefoot, hungry, and poor?”The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:“The Arabs.”

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) also narrated a similar hadith from the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), except that in it is: When the naked and barefoot, the rude and hard-hearted people, when the shepherds of small sheep and goats will boast in buildings. After the verse, these words are also in this narration: Then that man went away, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Call that man back to me." The people searched for him and wanted to bring him to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), but they could not see him at all (where he had gone). Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "That was Jibreel (Gabriel), who came to teach the people their religion."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Islam is an outward (manifest) matter related to the limbs, and Iman is a hidden matter related to the heart." Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) pointed towards his chest three times and then said: "Taqwa is here."