Reports on orphans, widows and the poor

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) relates: A man complained to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) about the hardness of his heart, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Pass your hand over the head of an orphan, and feed the poor."
Imam Ahmad recorded it, and its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih.

Sayyiduna Abu al-Darda' (may Allah be pleased with him) relates: A man came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and complained about the hardness of his heart. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Would you like your heart to become soft and to attain what you seek? Then show mercy to the orphan, pass your hand over his head, and feed him from your own food; your heart will become soft and your need will be fulfilled."
Imam Tabarani recorded it; its chain contains a narrator who has not been named, and a narrator, Baqiyyah, who is a mudallis.

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) relates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) visited a woman from the tribe of Khath'am and asked: "How do you find yourself?" She said: "I think of myself only that I am about to die." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I wish that, before departing from this world, you would take care of an orphan or equip a warrior."
Imam Tabarani recorded it; its chain contains a narrator, Nufay' Abu Dawud al-A'ma, and he is a liar (kadhdhab).

Sayyidah Aishah Siddiqah (may Allah be pleased with her) relates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I and the one who takes care of an orphan will be in Paradise like these two (fingers)." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said this while joining his index finger and middle finger (and then he further said): "The one who looks after an orphan, or a widow, or a poor person is like someone who strives in the path of Allah and who also fasts and offers voluntary prayers without any break between them."
Imam Abu Ya'la and Imam Tabarani in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat recorded it; its chain contains a narrator, Layth bin Abi Sulaym, and he is a mudallis, and the remaining narrators of this report are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Abu Musa al-Ash'ari (may Allah be pleased with him) reports this saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "Whenever an orphan sits with some people and eats from their bowl, Satan does not come near their bowl."
Imam Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat; its chain contains a narrator, al-Hasan bin Wasil, who is al-Hasan bin Dinar, and he is da'if (weak) because of his poor memory; yet this hadith is hasan (good). And Allah knows best.

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, the most beloved house to Allah Almighty is the house in which an orphan is treated with honour."
Imam Tabarani recorded it; its chain contains a narrator, Ishaq bin Ibrahim al-Hunayni, and he is among those who make mistakes.

Sayyiduna Abu Umamah (may Allah be pleased with him) reports this saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "Whoever passes his hand over the head of an orphan, and passes it only for the pleasure of Allah Almighty, he receives good deeds for every single hair his hand passes over. And whoever treats well an orphan girl or an orphan boy who is in his care, he and I will be in Paradise like these two (fingers)." The narrator relates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) (said this) while separating his index finger and middle finger.
Imam Ahmad and Imam Tabarani recorded it; its chain contains a narrator, Ali bin Yazid al-Alhani, and he is da'if (weak).

Sayyiduna Amr bin Malik al-Qushayri (may Allah be pleased with him) relates: I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "Whoever takes an orphan child of two Muslim parents into his food and drink until Allah Almighty makes that child self-sufficient, Paradise becomes binding for that person."
Imam Ahmad and Imam Tabarani recorded it; its chain contains a narrator, Ali bin Zayd, and he is hasan al-hadith (good in hadith), and the remaining narrators of this report are the narrators of the Sahih.

Zurarah bin Awfa reports from a man of his people, Sayyiduna Abu Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) (the narrator is unsure; perhaps the words are:) Sayyiduna Ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him), that he heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "Whoever takes the orphan child of two Muslims (parents) into his food and drink (and keeps him so) until he (the child) becomes independent of him, Paradise definitely becomes binding for that person. And whoever finds his parents, or one of them, and does not treat them well and then enters Hell, may Allah Almighty distance him. And any Muslim who frees a Muslim slave, that will be his means of rescue from Hell."
Imam Abu Ya'la recorded it, and the wording is his; Imam Ahmad recorded it in abridged form, and Imam Tabarani also recorded it, and it is hasan (good) in its chain.

Sayyiduna Bashir bin Aqrabah al-Juhani (may Allah be pleased with him) relates: I met the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) on the day of the Battle of Uhud and asked: "What became of my father?" He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "He has attained martyrdom, may the mercy of Allah Almighty be upon him." At that I began to weep. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) took hold of me, passed his hand over my head and seated me with him on his mount. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Are you not pleased that I should be your father and Aishah your mother?"
Imam Bazzar recorded it, and its chain contains a narrator who is not known.

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abi Awfa (may Allah be pleased with him) relates: Once we were sitting with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) when a boy came to him and said: "O Messenger of Allah! May my father and mother be sacrificed for you. Here is an orphan boy, and he has an orphan sister and a widowed mother; so give us something to eat, may Allah Almighty give you food from what is with Him; (give us enough) that we are satisfied." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O boy! How well you have spoken! Go to our household and bring us whatever food you find with them." Then Sayyiduna Bilal (may Allah be pleased with him) brought twenty-one dates and placed them in the palm of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) then raised both his palms towards his mouth, and we could see that he was praying for blessing in them. Then he said: "O boy! Seven are for you, seven for your mother and seven for your sister. Eat one date in the evening and one in the morning." The narrator says: When the boy got up and left the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), Sayyiduna Mu'adh bin Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him) got up and went to him, placed his hand on his head and said: "May Allah Almighty mend your orphanhood and grant you a good guardian in place of your father." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Mu'adh! I saw what you did with that boy." He said: "O Messenger of Allah! (I did it) out of mercy for the boy." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "By the One in whose Hand is the soul of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), whoever among the Muslims becomes the guardian of an orphan, Allah Almighty records for him a rank in return for every single hair, grants him a good deed in return for every single hair, and erases one of his sins in return for every single hair." Imam Bazzar recorded this report in full; Imam Ahmad recorded its opening portion and then said: The narrator narrated it as a long hadith. Its chain contains a narrator, Fa'id Abu al-Warqa', and he is matruk (abandoned).

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I will be the first person to open the gate of Paradise. Then a woman will come and hasten ahead of me. I will say to her: 'What is the matter with you? And who are you?' She will say: 'I am the woman who remained a widow for the sake of my orphaned children.'"
Imam Abu Ya'la recorded it; its chain contains a narrator, Abd al-Salam bin Ajlan, whom Abu Hatim and Ibn Hibban declared trustworthy; he (Ibn Hibban) says: He makes mistakes and narrates contrary to others. The remaining narrators of this report are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever becomes the guardian of an orphan, whether he (the orphan) is his relative or not his relative, he and I will be in Paradise like these two (fingers)." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said this while joining two fingers.
Imam Bazzar recorded it; its chain contains a narrator, Layth bin Abi Sulaym, and he is a mudallis.

Sayyiduna Adi bin Hatim (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever takes in an orphan, whether of his own (family) or of someone else, until Allah Almighty makes that orphan self-sufficient, Paradise becomes binding for that person."
Imam Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat; its chain contains a narrator, al-Musayyab bin Sharik, and he is matruk (abandoned).

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever gives shelter to one or two orphans, then is patient and hopes for reward, he and I will be in Paradise like these two (fingers)." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said this while turning his index finger and middle finger.
Imam Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat, and its chain contains narrators whom I do not know.

Sayyiduna Abu Umamah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I and the one who takes care of an orphan will be in Paradise like these two (fingers)."
Imam Tabarani recorded it; its chain contains a narrator, Ishaq bin Ibrahim al-Hunayni, whom Ibn Hibban declared trustworthy, saying: He makes mistakes; the majority declared him da'if (weak), and its remaining narrators have been declared trustworthy.

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) reports this saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "Whoever takes care of an orphan of his own (family) or of another (family), Paradise becomes binding for him; however, the ruling is different if he has committed a deed that cannot be forgiven."
Imam Tabarani recorded it; its chain contains a narrator, Dawud bin al-Zibriqan, and he is matruk (abandoned).

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) mentions from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) (that he said): "Any Muslim who takes the orphan child of Muslim parents into his food and drink will definitely enter Paradise; however, the ruling is different if he has committed a sin that cannot be forgiven. And whoever has his two precious things taken away and is patient and hopes for reward, there is no reward for him other than Paradise." It was said: "What is meant by his two precious things?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "His two eyes." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) also said: "Whoever provides for three daughters, teaches them, gets them married and brings them up well, Allah Almighty will admit that person into Paradise." A man from among the Bedouins said: "What if there are two (daughters)?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Even if there are two (the same reward will be gained)." Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) says: This is one of the finest and most outstanding hadiths. (Allamah Haythami says:) I say: Imam Tirmidhi recorded part of this report.
Imam Tabarani recorded it; its chain contains a narrator, Hanash bin Qays al-Rahabi, and he is matruk (abandoned).

The daughter of Sayyiduna Murrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reports from her father this saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "The one who takes care of an orphan of his own (family) or of someone else will be with me in Paradise like these two (fingers)." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said this while pointing with his index finger and middle finger. Through another chain it is narrated: Sayyidah Umm Sa'id (may Allah be pleased with her), the daughter of Sayyiduna Murrah al-Fihri (may Allah be pleased with him), reports this from her father. I do not know the daughter of Sayyiduna Murrah (may Allah be pleased with him), and the remaining narrators of this report are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyidah Umm Sa'id bint Amr bin Murrah al-Jumahiyyah (may Allah be pleased with her) relates: I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "Whoever takes care of an orphan of his own (family) or of some other people, he and I will be in Paradise like these two (fingers)."
Imam Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Jabir bin Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) relates: I said: "O Messenger of Allah! For what may I discipline the orphan in my care?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "For whatever you would discipline your own child for, provided you are not increasing your wealth by means of his wealth, nor accumulating wealth for yourself out of his wealth."
Imam Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Saghir; its chain contains a narrator, Mu'alla bin Mahdi, whom Ibn Hibban and others declared trustworthy, yet there is weakness in him, and the remaining narrators of this report are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Abd al-Rahman bin Abza (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Be like a compassionate father to the orphan!" (Allamah Haythami says:) I say: After this he mentioned the full hadith, which is cited in the Book of Asceticism (Kitab al-Zuhd), and the narrators of this report are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The head of an orphan is to be stroked like this." Then a narrator named Salih demonstrated the method: he placed his palm on the front part of the head, near the forehead, then moved it up to the middle of the head, then brought it back down to the front of the head or to the forehead. (The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) also said:) "The one whose father is alive is to be treated like this." He placed his palm on the front part of the head near the forehead and then moved it to the middle of the head.
Imam Bazzar recorded it, and Imam Tabarani recorded something similar in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat, but with these words: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When a boy is an orphan, stroke his head like this, towards the front; and when his father is alive, stroke his head like this, from the front towards the back." The chain of this report contains a narrator, Muhammad bin Sulayman, and people have mentioned this report among his munkar (denounced) hadiths.