It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with them both) that Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, spoke to the western sea and said: "O sea! I have created you, and I have made your creation excellent, and I have placed much water in you, and I will make some of My servants ride upon you who will proclaim My greatness (takbir), praise (tahmid), glorification (tasbih), and declaration of My oneness (tahlil). So how will you treat them?" The sea replied: "I will drown them." Allah the Exalted said: "I will confine your wrath within your shores, and I will lift those servants of Mine upon My hands." Then Allah the Exalted spoke to the eastern sea and said: "O sea! I have created you, and I have made your creation excellent, and I have placed much water in you, and I will make some of My servants ride upon you who will proclaim My greatness, praise, glorification, and declaration of My oneness. So how will you treat them?" The eastern sea replied: "I will join them in glorifying, praising, and declaring Your oneness, and I will carry them upon myself, within myself, and upon my back." Allah the Exalted, in return, granted it the reward of jewels and game.

It is narrated from Sa'id bin Abi Hilal (may Allah have mercy on him) that Alaa bin Ismail (may Allah have mercy on him) informed him that when Allah Almighty created the sea, He said to it: "When I make some of My creation ride upon you, what will you do to them?" The sea said: "I will not let them remain upon me." Allah Almighty said: "Rather, I will place My wrath within your shores and I will command you regarding it."

The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever sleeps on a roof without a protective barrier and dies, there is no responsibility upon us for him; and whoever boards the sea and perishes, there is also no responsibility for him."

Hazrat Mujahid (may Allah have mercy on him) says: "Only a pilgrim (Haji), one performing Umrah (Mu'tamir), or one fighting in the path of Allah should board the sea."

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "Only a pilgrim (Haji), one performing Umrah (Mu'tamir), or one striving in the path of Allah should embark upon the sea, for beneath the sea is fire and beneath the fire is again the sea. And do not purchase anything from the wealth of an oppressive ruler."

Umar bin Abdul Aziz, may Allah have mercy on him, wrote: "Travel by sea is permissible just like travel by land. Allah has subjected the sea for you so that you may seek His bounty in ships, therefore no one should prevent anyone from trading by sea."