Alqamah bin Wa'il bin Hujr narrates from his father, who said: A man asked the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), "If rulers are imposed over us who do not give us our rights, but demand their own rights from us (then what is the command for us)?" The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Listen to them and obey them; upon them is the burden that they have been made to bear (i.e., justice and fairness), and upon you is the burden that you have been made to bear (i.e., obedience)."

Sayyiduna Awf bin Malik Ashja'i (may Allah be pleased with him) says: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) delivered a sermon to us at midday, in a state of awe. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Obey me as long as I am among you, hold fast to the Book of Allah, consider its lawful as lawful and its unlawful as unlawful."

Sayyiduna Abu Sa‘id Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) delivered a sermon to us, and an excerpt from that sermon is as follows:“Be aware! Soon I will be called (by Allah) and I will respond to that call. After me, various rulers will take responsibility for you; they will act upon what they say and will act upon what they know. Their obedience is true obedience; you will remain in this state for some time. Then such rulers will be imposed upon you who will not act upon what they say, and if they do act, they will not recognize it. Those who show sympathy to them, become their advisors and supporters, they will destroy themselves and will destroy others as well. (O people!) Outwardly remain with them, but in matters of action, separate from them, and bear witness to the righteousness of the righteous and to the evil of the evil.”

Sayyiduna Abu Sa‘id Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) delivered a sermon to us, and an excerpt from that sermon is as follows:“Be aware! Soon I will be called (by Allah) and I will respond to that call. After me, various rulers will take responsibility for you; they will act upon what they say and will act upon what they know. Their obedience is true obedience; you will remain in this state for some time. Then such rulers will be imposed upon you who will not act upon what they say, and if they do act, they will not recognize it. Those who show sympathy to them, become their advisors and supporters, they will destroy themselves and will destroy others as well. (O people!) Outwardly remain with them, but in matters of action, separate from them, and bear witness to the righteousness of the righteous and to the evil of the evil.”

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Sa'id and Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with them) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Rulers will be imposed upon you who will bring the wicked close to themselves and will delay the prayer from its proper time. Whoever lives in their era, let him not become their administrator, nor a soldier, nor a collector, nor a treasurer."

Abdur Rahman bin Shumasah says: I came to Lady Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) to ask her about something. She said: "Which people are you from?" I said: "From the people of Egypt." She said: "How was your companion in that battle?" I said: "We do not blame him in any matter; if a man's camel dies, he gives him a camel; if someone's slave dies, he gives him a slave; and he fulfills the needs of those who are in need of sustenance." She said: "Because of what he said about my brother Abdur Rahman bin Abu Bakr, I cannot refrain from narrating to you a hadith of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). He said in this house of mine: 'O Allah! Whoever takes charge of any affair of my Ummah and makes things difficult for them, then make things difficult for him; and whoever takes charge of any affair of my Ummah and treats them gently, then be merciful to him.'"

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "Indeed, Allah Almighty will question every guardian about his subjects—whether he protected them or neglected them—even to the extent that He will ask a man about his household."

Sayyiduna Ma'qil bin Yasar (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever is entrusted with the responsibility of some subjects and then deceives them, he will enter the Fire."

Alqamah bin Wa'il narrates from his father that he asked the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him): "If rulers are imposed over us who perform deeds that are not in obedience to Allah, then what should we do?" The Prophet (peace be upon him) replied: "The burden that has been placed upon them (i.e., justice and fairness) is their responsibility, and the burden that has been placed upon you (i.e., obedience) is your responsibility."

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) reports that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) asked Abu Haytham:“Do you have a servant?”He replied:“No.”The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:“When captives come to us, come (and we will give you a servant).”Two captives were brought to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him); there was no third. Abu Haytham also came to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said to him:“Choose one.”He said:“O Messenger of Allah! You choose for me.”The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:“A person is only consulted when he is considered trustworthy. (If you have trusted me, then I will decide that) take this slave, for I have seen him performing prayer. (Now I advise you) treat him well.”(Abu Haytham took the slave home.) His wife said to him that acting upon the advice of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is only possible if you set him free. He said:“He is free.”The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:“Allah Almighty has not sent any prophet or caliph except that he had two close advisors: one who commands him to do good and forbids him from evil, and the other who spares no effort in leading him astray. Whoever is saved from the evil confidant is protected.”