The virtue of remembrance

It is narrated from Uqbah bin Abd al-Ghafir (the narrator of the hadith, Hammad bin Salamah, says that to the best of his knowledge he narrated it as marfu', up to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)) that he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever says these words: 'Subhana rabbika rabbi al-'izzati 'amma yasifun, wa salamun 'ala al-mursalin, wa al-hamdu lillahi rabbi al-'alamin' [Surah al-Saffat: 180-182] (Glorified is your Lord, the Lord of Might, above all the (false) things that they (the polytheists) describe, and peace be upon all the Messengers, and all praise belongs to Allah, the Lord of all the worlds), he has certainly measured (his reward) with the fullest measure (that is, he has attained the fullest reward)."
Ibn Abi Umar narrated this hadith in his Musnad; Imam Hammad bin Salamah mentioned its being marfu', and the words mentioned in it consist of the final verses of Surah al-Saffat of the Noble Qur'an, which are a comprehensive collection of the glorification of Allah Almighty, peace upon the Messengers, and the praise of Allah.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu al-Darda' (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Let none of you ever give up earning a thousand good deeds every day for the pleasure of Allah Almighty, that is, saying the tasbih 'Subhanallah' a thousand times; for, if Allah Almighty wills, he will never manage to commit that amount of sins in that day of his (which would wipe out the reward of these good deeds), and whatever other good deed he does besides this will be an abundant additional reward and a store for the Hereafter for him."
The chain of this narration is weak: its narrators Abu Bakr bin Abi Maryam and al-Ahwas bin Hakim are weak, and it is munqati' (broken) because Habib bin Ubayd's hearing from Sayyiduna Abu al-Darda' (may Allah be pleased with him) is not established.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever among you is unable to endure the hardship of staying awake through the night in worship, is stingy in spending wealth, and feels cowardly about waging jihad against the enemy, let him remember Allah Almighty abundantly."
Imam al-Bazzar (may Allah have mercy on him) says: Muhammad bin Uthman bin Karamah narrated to us; he transmitted this narration through Ubaydullah with the same chain as before; and he said: To our knowledge this hadith is narrated only through this route.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Jabir bin Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) came out to us and said: "O people, indeed Allah Almighty has detachments and groups of angels who descend (from the heaven) and stop at the gatherings of dhikr on earth; so graze freely in the meadows of Paradise (that is, gain benefit from them)." The Companions said: O Messenger of Allah, where are the meadows of Paradise? He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The gatherings of dhikr are the meadows of Paradise. So remain occupied in the remembrance of Allah Almighty morning and evening, and remember Him with your heart and soul. Whoever wishes to know what his rank and standing is with Allah Almighty, let him see what standing Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, has with him; for Allah Almighty places the servant in the same rank and standing that the servant gives to Allah Almighty in his own self."
Imam Ahmad bin Mani' narrated it likewise through the chain of al-Haytham bin Kharijah, Isma'il bin Ayyash and Umar bin Abdullah.
Imam Abd bin Humayd narrated it through the chain of Habban bin Hilal and Bishr bin al-Mufaddal.
Imam Abu Ya'la narrated it through the chain of Ubaydullah al-Qawariri and Bishr bin al-Mufaddal.
Imam al-Bazzar mentioned it through the chain of Muhammad bin Abd al-Malik and Bishr bin al-Mufaddal, and he said: We do not know this hadith to be narrated from Sayyiduna Jabir (may Allah be pleased with them both) through any chain other than this.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "There is no piece of land upon which Allah Almighty is remembered, whether in the form of prayer or in the form of some other dhikr, except that, because of this remembrance of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, upon it, it feels joy and delight down to the furthest limit of the seven earths, and it takes pride over the other tracts of land around it."
And in the narration of Imam Abu Ya'la there is this addition: "And no servant stands in a barren plain or wilderness of the earth intending to pray except that the earth is adorned and beautified for him."

It is narrated from al-Ala' bin Ziyad (may Allah have mercy on him) that it reached him that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Strive to race to the meadows of Paradise and hasten to reach them (to gain benefit)." The Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) said: O Prophet of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), what is meant by the meadows of Paradise? He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The circles of dhikr, and those gatherings where the remembrance of Allah is raised."
This narration is mursal; however, it is supported by other hadith of this meaning, by which its meaning and sense are established.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, Satan has placed his snout (trunk-like mouth) firmly upon the heart of the son of Adam. When he remembers Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, Satan draws back and slinks away; and when he becomes heedless of the remembrance of Allah, Satan swallows his heart like a morsel. This is the reality of 'the whisperer who withdraws' [Surah al-Nas: 4] (that is, the one who repeatedly casts whispers and draws back at the remembrance of Allah)."
Imam Abu Ya'la narrated it in his Musnad; most hadith scholars declared the narrator Ziyad al-Numayri in its chain da'if (weak); however, the meaning of this hadith is established and supported by verses of the Noble Qur'an and the supporting reports of other authentic hadith.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that a man asked him which deed is the most virtuous. He said: "Remembering Allah, the Mighty and Majestic," and then he said 'Allahu akbar' (Allah is the Greatest) three times.
Then he said: "No people sit in one of the houses of Allah, the Blessed and Exalted (a mosque), studying the Book of Allah Almighty together and teaching it to one another, except that the angels shade them with their wings, and they remain the honoured guests of Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, until they get up from there."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Mu'adh bin Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him) that once we were passing with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) (during a journey) by the place called Jumdan, when suddenly signs of joy appeared on the radiant face of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and he (peace and blessings be upon him) asked: "O Mu'adh, where are those who go ahead?" I said: (O Messenger of Allah,) some people have gone ahead and some have stayed behind. Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Those who go ahead are the people who are constantly absorbed and immersed in the remembrance of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic. So whoever would like to roam freely in the meadows of Paradise and enjoy its blessings, let him remember Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, abundantly."
Imam Ishaq bin Rahwayh narrated this hadith in his Musnad; Musa bin Ubaydah al-Rabadhi in its chain is a weak narrator; however, a supporting report for it concerning the virtue of those who remember Allah abundantly exists in Sahih Muslim, with the mention of "al-Mufarridun".

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Mu'adh bin Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: "No human being has done any deed that is more saving for him from the punishment of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, than the remembrance of Allah Almighty." The people asked: "Not even jihad in the path of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic (is equal to dhikr)?" He replied: "No. (Even jihad cannot reach its virtue,) even if that warrior is striking the enemy with his sword (on the battlefield), for Allah, Glorified and Exalted, Himself has said: 'And the remembrance of Allah is greater' [Surah al-Ankabut: 45]."
I (Ibn Hajar) say: Imam Ahmad narrated the last part of this hadith through another chain besides this one, which is munqati' (broken), and the basis of this hadith is found with Imam al-Tirmidhi and other imams.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Gatherings are of three kinds: the one that gains, the one that remains safe, and the one that perishes. The gaining one is the gathering in which Allah Almighty is remembered abundantly; the safe one is that in which a person stays silent, so there is neither any burden against him nor any reward for him; and the perishing one is the gathering in which a person's speech and his deeds are in disobedience to Allah, the Blessed and Exalted."
Imam Musaddad narrated this hadith in his Musnad; however, the narrator named Yahya bin Ubaydullah in its chain is weak.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: "Gatherings are of three kinds: among them is one that gains, one that remains safe, and one that perishes. The gaining one is the servant who remembered Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, so Allah Almighty remembered him (with His mercy); the safe one is the servant who dictated to his recording angel (who writes his deeds) neither any good nor any evil; and the perishing one is the person who took part in falsehood and futile talk, so he drew calamity and ruin upon himself."
The chain of this narration is of hasan (good) grade, and Imam al-Bayhaqi transmitted it in Shu'ab al-Iman.