What is mentioned on the excellence of Ramadan and its reward

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), while giving his Companions the glad tidings of Ramadan, said: "The month of Ramadan has come to you, a blessed month. Its fasting has been made obligatory upon you. In it the gates of Paradise are opened and the gates of Hell are closed. In it the devils are shackled. In this month there is a night that is better than a thousand months; whoever is deprived of its good is truly deprived."

Arfajah said: I was with Sayyiduna Utbah bin Farqad (may Allah be pleased with him), and he was describing the virtue of Ramadan. Meanwhile one of the Companions arrived, and he fell silent. It seemed as though he had fallen silent out of awe for him. When he sat down, Sayyiduna Utbah said to him: "O Abu so-and-so, narrate to us the hadith you heard from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) about Ramadan." He said: the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "In Ramadan the gates of Paradise are opened, the gates of Hell are closed, the devils are chained in it, and every night of Ramadan a caller calls out: 'O seeker of good, come forward! O seeker of evil, desist!'"

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to encourage standing in prayer at night (qiyam) in Ramadan without making it binding. Once he said: "When the month of Ramadan comes, the gates of Paradise are opened, the gates of Hell are closed and the devils are put in chains."

Abu Salamah bin Abd al-Rahman narrates from his father (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever fasts Ramadan with faith and seeking reward, his past sins are forgiven."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The month of Ramadan has come. In it the gates of Paradise are opened, the gates of Hell are closed, and the devils are put in chains. Ruin to the one who reaches the month of Ramadan and is not forgiven! If he could not obtain forgiveness even in Ramadan, then when will he?"

Al-Sha'bi said: When the month of Ramadan came, Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) would deliver a sermon, and in it he would say: "This is the blessed month in which Allah Almighty has made fasting obligatory; He has not made its night prayer (qiyam) obligatory."

Masruq said: Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) used to say the same.

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The first reward that comes to the one who keeps up the night prayer and the fasting of Ramadan is that his sins are forgiven as though he had been born from his mother's womb that very day.

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: "Whoever fasts Ramadan with faith and seeking reward, his past sins are forgiven."

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: "This month has come upon you. By the oath of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), hear this: no month has come upon the Muslims better for them than it, and no month has come upon the hypocrites worse for them than it. By the oath of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), Allah Almighty writes the reward and the voluntary deeds of this month before it arrives, and Allah Almighty writes its sin and its wretchedness before it arrives. That is because the believer prepares in it provision for strength in worship, while the hypocrite prepares in it to pursue the heedlessness of the Muslims and their faults. This month is a gain for the believer and a calamity for the wicked" — or he said: "by which the wicked is grieved."

It is narrated from Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever fasts Ramadan with faith and seeking reward, whatever has passed of his deeds is forgiven."