Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: "Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) has four distinctions that no one else has: he is the first of the Arabs and non-Arabs to pray with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him); in every battle the banner of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was with him; he stood firm with him (peace and blessings be upon him) on the day of Uhud (the Day of al-Mihras); and it was he who washed him (peace and blessings be upon him) and laid him in his blessed grave."

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) gave the banner to Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) on the day of Badr, when he was twenty years old. This hadith is sahih (authentic) on the condition of Imam Bukhari and Imam Muslim, but they did not record it.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: "I am the servant of Allah and the brother of His Messenger, and I am al-Siddiq al-Akbar (the greatest affirmer of truth); no one after me will make this claim except a liar. I prayed seven years before the people." This hadith is sahih (authentic) on the condition of Imam Bukhari and Imam Muslim, but they did not record it, and it is supported by this hadith:

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: "I began worshipping Allah Almighty together with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) seven years before any other member of this Ummah worshipped Him."