Majma al-Zawaid — Hadith 113

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Amir, or perhaps Sayyiduna Abu Amir, or perhaps Sayyiduna Abu Malik: Once the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was seated in a gathering in which his Companions were also present. Meanwhile Sayyiduna Jibril (peace be upon him) came to him in human form; (an onlooker) would have taken him for a Muslim. He gave the greeting of peace, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) returned his greeting. Then Sayyiduna Jibril (peace be upon him) placed his hand on the knees of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: O Messenger of Allah! What is meant by Islam? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: That you submit yourself to Allah Almighty, and that you bear witness that there is no god but Allah Almighty and that Sayyiduna Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) is His servant and His Messenger, and that you establish prayer and pay zakah. He said: When I do that, will I have become a Muslim? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Yes! He asked: What is meant by faith? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: That you believe in Allah Almighty, the Last Day, the angels, the Book, the prophets, death, life after death, Paradise, Hell, the Reckoning, the Scale, and destiny of every kind, good or bad! He asked: When I do that, will I be counted a believer? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Yes! Then he asked: O Messenger of Allah! What is meant by ihsan (excellence)? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: That you worship Allah Almighty as though you see Him; and if you cannot see Him, He sees you. He asked: When I do that, will I be counted among those who have ihsan? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Yes! The narrator states: We could hear the replies of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), but we could not see the person who was speaking with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), nor could we hear his words. He asked: O Messenger of Allah! When will the Hour be established? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Subhan Allah (Glory be to Allah)! There are five things of the unseen which no one knows except Allah Almighty (which are mentioned in the Noble Qur'an in these words:) "Indeed, with Allah Almighty alone is the knowledge of the Hour; and He sends down the rain, and He knows what is in the womb; no one knows what he will earn tomorrow, and no one knows in which land he will die. Indeed, Allah Almighty is All-Knowing, All-Aware." Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: But if you wish, I will tell you about its signs which will appear before the Hour. Sayyiduna Jibril (peace be upon him) said: Tell me! The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: When you see that a slave-woman has given birth to her master, and the builders are constructing tall buildings, and destitute people who used not even to have shoes on their feet have become the rulers of the people (then these will be major signs of the Hour drawing near). He asked: O Messenger of Allah! Who are those people? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: 'Arib (the destitute).
The narrator states: Then that person went away, and we did not see his path (that is, we did not see him leaving). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Subhan Allah! This was Jibril, who came to teach people their religion. By the One in whose Hand is the soul of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), whenever he came to me I recognized him, except that this time the matter was different."
Imam Ahmad recorded it, and its chain contains a narrator, Shahr bin Hawshab.