Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that one day the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was sitting among the people when a man came to him and began to ask:“What is faith (iman)?”The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) replied:“Faith is that you believe in the existence and oneness of Allah the Exalted, and in the existence of His angels, and in the truth of meeting Him (Allah), and in the truth of His messengers, and in resurrection after death.”Then he asked:“What is Islam?”The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) replied:“Islam is that you worship Allah alone sincerely and do not associate anyone with Him, establish prayer, pay the obligatory zakat, and fast in Ramadan.”Then he asked about ihsan (excellence). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:“Ihsan is that you worship Allah as if you are seeing Him; and if you do not achieve this state, then (know that) He is seeing you.”Then he asked:“When will the Hour (Day of Judgment) come?”The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) replied:“The one being questioned knows no more about it than the questioner. (However), I can tell you its signs: when a slave woman gives birth to her master, and when the barefoot, naked, destitute shepherds (Bedouins) compete with one another in constructing tall buildings. (Remember) the knowledge of the Hour is among five things which none knows except Allah.”Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) recited this verse:“Verily, with Allah alone is the knowledge of the Hour, as to when it will be.”(up to the end of the verse) Then the questioner turned and left. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:“Bring him back to me.”The people rushed but saw no trace of him. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:“That was Jibreel (Gabriel), who came to teach the people their religion.”

Sayyiduna Talhah bin Ubaidullah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that a man from among the people of Najd came to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), his hair disheveled, that is, his hair was scattered. We could hear the buzzing of his voice, but we could not understand what he was saying. Until he came near, then it became clear that he was asking about Islam. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said that Islam is to perform five prayers in the day and night. He said, "Is there any prayer upon me other than this?" The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, "No, except if you offer voluntary prayers (that is another matter)." The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, "And to fast in Ramadan." He said, "Is there any other fast upon me?" The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, "No, except if you keep voluntary fasts (that is another matter)." Sayyiduna Talhah (may Allah be pleased with him) said, "And the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) mentioned Zakat to him." He said, "Is there any other charity upon me?" The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, "No, except if you give voluntary charity (that is another matter)." The narrator said, "Then that man turned his back and went away, saying, 'By Allah, I will neither add to this nor decrease from it.'" The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, "If he is truthful, he will attain success."

Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub Ansari (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that a man said, "O Messenger of Allah, tell me of a deed that will admit me to Paradise." Upon this, the people said, "What is wrong with him? What is wrong with him?" The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, "Why do you say what is wrong with him? He needs to ask." Then he said to the man, "Worship Allah and do not associate anything with Him, establish prayer, give zakat, and maintain the ties of kinship. These deeds will admit you to Paradise. Now let the camel's rein go."

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that a Bedouin came to the service of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and said, "Tell me of a deed which, if I do it continuously, I will enter Paradise." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "Worship Allah and do not associate anything with Him, establish the obligatory prayers, give the obligatory zakat, and fast during Ramadan." The Bedouin said, "By Him in Whose hand is my soul, I will not add anything to these deeds." When he turned his back and was leaving, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "Whoever wants to see a person from among the people of Paradise, let him look at this man."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both, that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: Islam is built upon five things. First, bearing witness that there is no deity except Allah and that indeed Sayyiduna Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, is the true Messenger of Allah; and establishing prayer; and giving zakat; and performing Hajj; and fasting in Ramadan.

Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrated that when the delegation of Abdul Qais came to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), he asked, "Which people are you, or from where is this delegation?" They replied, "We are from the tribe of Rabi'ah." He said, "Welcome (marhaban) to this people or this delegation—neither will they be humiliated nor will they regret (i.e., their coming is very good)." They said, "O Messenger of Allah, we can only come to you during the sacred months, because between us and you is the tribe of the disbelievers of Mudar. So, tell us a decisive matter which we can inform those who are behind us and who have not come here, and by acting upon it, we may enter Paradise." In addition, they asked the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) about their utensils. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) commanded them with four things and forbade them from using four types of utensils. He commanded them to believe in the One God alone. Then the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) asked, "Do you know what it means to believe in the One God alone?" They said, "Allah and His Messenger know best." The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, "It is to testify that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is the true Messenger of Allah, to establish prayer, to give zakat, to fast in Ramadan, and to give one-fifth of the spoils of war (to the Muslim treasury)." He also forbade them from using four types of utensils: green glazed jars, gourds, hollowed-out wooden vessels, and oil-coated containers. He said, "Memorize these things and also inform those who are behind you and have not come here."

Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrated that when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) sent Sayyiduna Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him) to Yemen, he said to him: "Behold, you are going to a people from among the People of the Book (Christians and Jews), so the first thing you should invite them to is the worship of Allah. When they recognize Allah (i.e., accept Islam), then inform them that Allah has made five prayers obligatory upon them during the day and night. When they perform them, then inform them that Allah has made zakat obligatory upon them, which is to be taken from their wealthy (those who possess the nisab) and distributed among their poor. When they accept that, then take zakat from them, but avoid taking their best possessions (as zakat)."

Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrated that when the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) sent Sayyiduna Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him) to Yemen (as a governor), he instructed him: "Beware of the supplication of the oppressed, for there is no barrier between it and Allah, the Exalted."

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) passed away and Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) became the Caliph, some tribes among the Arabs turned disbelievers (and some refused to pay Zakat, and Sayyiduna Abu Bakr intended to fight them). So Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said, "How can you fight with people in the presence of the statement of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): 'I have been commanded to fight the people until they testify that there is no god but Allah, and whoever testifies to this, his wealth and life will be safe from me except for its due right (i.e., in cases of retribution, etc.), and his reckoning is with Allah.'" Upon this, Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) replied, "By Allah, I will fight everyone who differentiates between prayer and Zakat (i.e., performs prayer but refuses to pay Zakat), for Zakat is the due right of wealth. By Allah, if they withhold even a young she-goat which they used to give to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), I will fight them for it." Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said, "By Allah, it was nothing but that Allah had opened Abu Bakr's chest for the truth, and later I also realized that Abu Bakr was indeed upon the truth."

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: I have been commanded to fight the people until they testify that there is no deity except Allah. So whoever testifies that there is no deity except Allah, his life and property are protected from me except for the right which is due by law, and his reckoning is with Allah.