It is narrated from Sayyiduna Jabir bin Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that I went with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to a woman, and she slaughtered a goat for us. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "A man who is from the people of Paradise will now enter," and Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) entered. Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "A man who is from the people of Paradise will now enter," and Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) entered. Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "A man who is from the people of Paradise will now enter. O Allah! If You will, make him Ali." The narrator says: After that Sayyiduna Ali bin Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) entered. This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain of narration, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Salman al-Farisi (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The first of you to reach me at the Pond of Kawthar will be the one who was the first of you to accept Islam, and that is Ali bin Abi Talib."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Zayd bin Arqam (may Allah be pleased with him) that the first to accept Islam with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was Ali bin Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him). This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain of narration, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it. The reality of the disagreement on this matter is that Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him) was the first among adult men to accept Islam, while Sayyiduna Ali bin Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) accepted Islam before reaching adulthood.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) came to the house of Sayyidah Fatimah (may Allah be pleased with her) and said: "I, you, this sleeping one (that is, Ali) and these two (that is, Hasan and Husayn) will be in one place on the Day of Resurrection." This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain of narration, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.

It is narrated from Malik bin Dinar that I asked Sa'id bin Jubayr: O Abu Abdullah! Who used to carry the banner of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)? He looked at me and said: It seems you are very carefree and at ease (that is, you do not realise the delicacy of the situation). At this I became angry and complained about him to a group of Qur'an reciters. They said: You asked him at a time when he had taken refuge in the House of Allah out of fear of Hajjaj bin Yusuf; now ask him again. So I asked him now, and he said: "Ali used to carry the banner of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him); this is how I heard it from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both)." This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain of narration, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it. This hadith is also supported by the lengthy narration of Zanfal al-Arafi, which has not been recorded here for fear of length.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Paradise longs for three people: Ali, Ammar and Salman." This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain of narration, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Abi Awfa (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I asked my Lord, the Mighty and Majestic, that whoever from my Ummah I give in marriage (to my daughter), or whoever I myself marry, should be with me in Paradise, and Allah granted me this supplication." This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain of narration, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin As'ad bin Zurarah narrates from his father that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Three things have been revealed to me concerning Ali: that he is the leader of the believers, the imam of the pious, and the leader of those with radiant limbs (on the Day of Resurrection)." This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain of narration, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.

It is narrated from Ali bin Abi Talhah that we performed Hajj and passed by Sayyiduna Hasan bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with them both) in Madinah, and Mu'awiyah bin Hudayj was with us. It was said to Sayyiduna Hasan: This is Mu'awiyah bin Hudayj, who reviles Sayyiduna Ali. He said: "Bring him to me." When he was brought, he asked: "Do you revile Ali?" He said: "I have not done so." He said: "By Allah! If you meet him, and I do not think you will be able to meet him on the Day of Resurrection, you will find him standing at the Pond of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), driving the banners of the hypocrites away from it with a staff of boxthorn ('awsaj) in his hand. The truthful one, the one confirmed as truthful (peace and blessings be upon him), told me this; and whoever fabricates lies has indeed failed." This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain of narration, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said to me: "O Ali! Shall I not teach you words which, if you say them, you will be forgiven, even though you have already been forgiven: 'La ilaha illallahul-Aliyyul-Azim, la ilaha illallahul-Halimul-Karim, subhanallahi Rabbil-Arshil-Azim, wal-hamdu lillahi Rabbil-alamin' (There is no god but Allah, the Most High, the Most Great; there is no god but Allah, the Most Forbearing, the Most Generous; glory be to Allah, the Lord of the Mighty Throne; and all praise is for Allah, the Lord of all the worlds)." This hadith is sahih (authentic) on the condition of the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim), but they did not record it.