It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Umamah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) prepared for a battle. I presented myself in the service of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and requested: O Messenger of Allah! Pray to Allah Almighty for me to be martyred. But the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed thus: O Allah! Keep him safe and grant him honor from the spoils of war. As a result of this prayer, we remained safe and returned with the spoils of war. After that, on another occasion, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) prepared for a battle. I presented myself in your service and said: O Messenger of Allah! This time, please pray to Allah Almighty for martyrdom for me. But the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed thus: O Allah! Keep him safe and grant him honor from the spoils of war. By the blessing of this prayer of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), we remained safe and returned with the spoils of war. After that, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prepared for a third battle. I came to your service and said: O Messenger of Allah! Pray to Allah Almighty for martyrdom for me. You prayed both times that Allah keep us safe and grant us from the spoils of war. Thus, both times we remained safe and returned with the spoils of war. O Messenger of Allah! Pray to Allah for martyrdom for me. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed thus: O Allah! Keep him safe and grant him honor from the spoils of war. Thus, we remained safe and returned with the spoils of war. I presented myself in your service and said: O Messenger of Allah! Command me to do such a deed that if I act upon it, Allah will benefit me through it. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Observe fasting, for no deed can match fasting. Raja bin Haywah says: After that, Sayyiduna Abu Umamah (may Allah be pleased with him), his wife, and his servant were seen in a state of fasting. Raja says: If ever smoke was seen rising from their house during the day, people would say that a guest or visitor must have come to them. Sayyiduna Abu Umamah (may Allah be pleased with him) says: As long as Allah willed, I remained steadfast in fasting. Then once I went to the service of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: O Messenger of Allah! You have commanded us to fast; I hope that Allah has blessed us in this deed. Now, please command us to do another deed besides this. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Know that for every prostration you make for the pleasure and approval of Allah, Allah will raise you one degree and forgive one of your sins.