Sayyiduna Thawban (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates this statement of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "Follow the Sunnah and adopt moderation." And know that the best of your deeds is prayer, and only a believer guards the ablution. (Imam Ibn Hibban, may Allah have mercy on him, says:) These are the words which we have mentioned several times in our books; the Arabs, in their idiom, use the name of a complete thing for any one of its various parts. They use the name of the thing for that one part. The statement of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), "Only a believer will guard the ablution," here the word 'faith' is applied to the one who guards the ablution, although ablution is one part of the components of faith. In this way, the word 'faith' is applied to such a single thing upon which action is done. The reason for this is that it is one part of the components of faith, as we have mentioned earlier. The narration which Salim bin Abu Al-Ja'd has transmitted from Sayyiduna Thawban (may Allah be pleased with him) is "disconnected (munqati')." Therefore, we have avoided it.

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said:“Shall I not tell you about something through which Allah wipes away sins and raises ranks? Performing ablution properly when it is difficult for the self, walking with more steps towards the mosque, and waiting for one prayer after another prayer—this is preparedness, this is preparedness, this is preparedness.”(Imam Ibn Hibban, may Allah have mercy on him, says:) Its meaning is guarding against sins, because ablution removes sins.

Sayyiduna Jabir bin Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates: The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Shall I not guide you to that which, through it, Allah wipes away sins and removes wrongdoings?" The people said: "Yes, O Messenger of Allah." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Performing ablution well when it is difficult for the self, walking with more steps towards the mosque, and waiting for one prayer after another—this is the preparation."

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah, may Allah be pleased with him, narrates this statement of the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him: "When a Muslim servant (the narrator is unsure, perhaps these are the words) or a believing servant washes his face while performing ablution, then with the water (the narrator is unsure, perhaps these are the words) or with the last drop of water, or with similar words, every sin committed by his eyes leaves his face. When he washes his two arms, every sin committed by his hands leaves with the water (the narrator is unsure, perhaps these are the words) or with the last drop of water, until that person becomes purified from sins."

Humran reports: Sayyiduna Uthman Ghani (may Allah be pleased with him) was sitting in the courtyard when the muezzin came to inform him. He asked for water, performed ablution, and then said: "I am going to narrate to you a hadith. If there were not a verse in the Book of Allah, I would not narrate this hadith. I heard the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) say: 'Whoever performs ablution well and then offers prayer, Allah forgives the sins committed between that prayer and the next prayer, as long as he does not commit a major sin.' Imam Malik narrates: I think Sayyiduna Uthman Ghani (may Allah be pleased with him) was referring to this verse: 'Establish prayer at the two ends of the day and at some hours of the night. Indeed, good deeds remove bad deeds. That is a reminder for those who remember.'"

Asim bin Sufyan Thaqafi narrates: People participated in the Battle of Salasil but they could not overpower the enemy; they kept standing guard. Then, when they returned to Sayyiduna Muawiyah (may Allah be pleased with him), at that time Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub Ansari (may Allah be pleased with him) and Sayyiduna Uqbah bin Amir (may Allah be pleased with him) were also present with him. Asim bin Sufyan said: O Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub, this year we could not overpower the enemy. We have been told that whoever prays in four mosques, his sins are forgiven. So he said: O my nephew! Shall I not guide you to something that is easier for you than this? I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) say: "Whoever performs ablution in the manner he has been commanded, and prays in the manner he has been commanded, his past sins are forgiven." (Then he asked Sayyiduna Uqbah, may Allah be pleased with him) O Uqbah! Is it so? He replied: Yes. (Imam Ibn Hibban, may Allah have mercy on him, says:) These four mosques are: Masjid al-Haram, Masjid of Madinah, Masjid al-Aqsa, and Masjid Quba. The Battle of Salasil during the caliphate of Sayyiduna Muawiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) took place, and the Battle of Salasil during the blessed era of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) also took place.

Jami' bin Shaddad narrates: He heard Humran telling Abu Burdah this statement. Sayyiduna Uthman Ghani (may Allah be pleased with him) reported this saying of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him): "Whoever performs ablution completely in the manner Allah has commanded, then the five prayers become an expiation for the sins committed between them."

Ishaq bin Saeed narrates from his father, who reports from his grandfather: Once I was with Sayyiduna Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him). He called for water to perform ablution, then said: I heard the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "Whenever the time for an obligatory prayer comes upon any Muslim, and he performs ablution well, performs bowing well, and offers the prayer with humility, then this prayer becomes an expiation for his previous sins, as long as he does not commit a major sin. And this (virtue) is always available."

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates this statement of the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "The adornment of the people of Paradise will reach up to the places where ablution is performed."

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: Once the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) went to the graveyard, and he recited this supplication:“Peace be upon you, O inhabitants of the abode of the believers! Indeed, we too, if Allah wills, shall join you. I wish I had seen my brothers.”The people asked: O Messenger of Allah, are we not your brothers? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: You are my companions; our brothers are those who will come after (us), and I will precede you at the Hawd (the Pond). The people asked: O Messenger of Allah! How will you recognize those of your Ummah who come after you? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: What do you think, if a man has a black horse with a white blaze on its forehead and white marks on its four legs, would he not recognize it among all-black horses? The people replied: Yes, O Messenger of Allah! The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Those people will come on the Day of Resurrection with their foreheads shining due to ablution, and I will precede them at the Hawd. Some people will be driven away from my Hawd just as a lost camel is driven away. I will call out to them: Come forward! Come forward! Then it will be said: After you, they changed (their ways), so I will say: Be off! Be off! Be off!

(Imam Ibn Hibban, may Allah have mercy on him, says:) It is impossible to make an exception in something that has already passed. Exception (istithna) can only be made in things related to the future. Regarding exception, a person’s state can be of two types. When he makes an exception in his faith, one type is that which is absolutely permissible for a person. The second type is that if a person makes an exception in it, he becomes a disbeliever. As for the type that is not permissible, it is this: If a person is asked, do you believe in Allah, His angels, His books, His messengers, Paradise, Hell, resurrection, the scale, and other such things, then it is obligatory for him to say: I believe in the truth of Allah and in the truth of these things. If a person makes an exception regarding these things, he becomes a disbeliever. The second type is this: When a person is asked, are you among those believers who establish prayer, give zakat, are humble in their prayers, and avoid vain things, then if he says: I hope, if Allah wills, I am among them. Or if he is asked: Are you among the people of Paradise? and he makes an exception regarding being among the people of Paradise. This benefit is established from the narration in this way: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said,“Indeed, if Allah wills, we shall join you.”This happened when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) came to Jannat al-Baqi‘ with some companions, among whom were both believers and hypocrites.“Indeed, if Allah wills, we shall join you”—here the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) made an exception. As for the hypocrites, he made the exception that if Allah wills, they will become Muslims and join you. On this basis, it becomes clear that linguistically, it is correct to make an exception regarding something related to the future, even if there is no doubt about its occurrence. The evidence for this is the statement of Allah Almighty:“If Allah wills, you will surely enter the Sacred Mosque in security.”