Musnad of Abdullah bin Mas'ud

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that a man said: "O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! Which sin is the greatest in the sight of Allah Almighty?" He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "That you set up a rival and partner to Allah, while it is He who created you." He asked: Then which after that? He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Then that you commit adultery with your neighbour's wife." Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) relates: Then Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, revealed this verse in confirmation of it: "And those who do not invoke another god along with Allah, nor kill the soul which Allah has made sacred except by right."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I will be your forerunner at the Pond (al-Kawthar). Then I will contend over some men among you, but I will be overpowered concerning them, and it will be said (by Allah): 'Indeed, you do not know what new things they invented (in the religion) after you.'"

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "There is no one to whom praise is dearer than it is to Allah, the Mighty and Majestic; that is why He has praised Himself. And there is no one more possessed of ghayrah (protective jealousy) than Allah Almighty; for that reason He has forbidden all shameful deeds."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "No woman should mix so intimately with another woman that she then describes the other woman's physical features to her husband as though he (the husband) were looking at her with his own eyes."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: "Today a man asked me something such that I did not know what answer to give him. He asked: What is your view about a man who fulfils his duties, is energetic and keen on jihad, but our rulers impose on us commands in matters that we cannot fully manage? Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) says: I replied: By Allah, I do not know what to say to you, except that we were with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and whatever he (peace and blessings be upon him) commanded us, we would do it (without any hesitation). And compared with the part of this world that has passed, what remains is like the water of a pool whose clear part has been drunk and only the muddy dregs remain. And any one of you will remain upon good as long as he keeps the fear of Allah, and when something troubles his heart, he will go to someone (of knowledge) and ask him, and he will satisfy him. And by Allah, soon a time is coming when you will not find any such person (to ask about matters)."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him): We were walking with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) when we passed by some boys among whom was Ibn Sayyad. (On seeing us) the other boys ran away, but Ibn Sayyad remained sitting in his place. It was as though this behaviour of his displeased the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), so he (peace and blessings be upon him) asked him: "May your hands be covered in dust! Do you bear witness that I am the Messenger of Allah?" He replied: No; rather, do you bear witness that I am the Messenger of Allah? At this Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! Do you give me permission to kill him? The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "If he is the one (the Dajjal) you think he is, you will never be able to kill him."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: "Surah 'By those sent forth in succession' (al-Mursalat) was revealed to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) when we were in a cave, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) recited this surah to me, and I recite it close to how he (peace and blessings be upon him) taught it to me." (Sayyiduna Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said:) I do not remember for certain with which verse he (peace and blessings be upon him) concluded the surah: whether it was the verse "And when it is said to them: Bow down, they do not bow," or "Then in what statement after this will they believe?"

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: "None of you should assign to Satan any share of himself by thinking that it is binding on him to turn away (after the prayer) only from his right side, for I have frequently seen the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) turning away from his left side." Umarah (may Allah have mercy on him) relates: Later I came to Madinah and saw that the blessed apartments of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) were indeed on his left side.

Abd al-Rahman bin Yazid (may Allah have mercy on him) relates that Sayyiduna al-Ash'ath bin Qays (may Allah be pleased with him) came to Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) while he was having his midday meal. Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Come closer (and eat)." Sayyiduna al-Ash'ath (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Is today not the day of Ashura?" Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "What do you know of what Ashura really is? In fact, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to fast on this day, then when (the command of) the fasting of Ramadan was revealed, he (peace and blessings be upon him) left it (as an obligation)."

It is narrated from Abd al-Rahman bin Yazid (may Allah have mercy on him) that Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) related: "I always saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) perform every prayer at its own (appointed) time, except for two prayers (which he (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed outside his usual time): I saw that he (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed Maghrib and Isha together (combining them) at Muzdalifah, and (there) he performed the Fajr prayer before its usual time, in the darkness of early dawn."

It is narrated from al-Harith bin Suwayd (may Allah have mercy on him): I went to visit Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) while he was ill, and he told us two things: one was his own saying and the other was a hadith of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). He said: "Indeed the believer feels his sins as though he were sitting at the foot of a mountain, fearing that the mountain might fall upon him, whereas the wicked person regards his sins like a fly (something trivial) that passed by his nose and he waved it away with a gesture of his hand." (Sayyiduna Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him)) said: And I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "Allah Almighty is far more pleased with the repentance of His believing servant than a man who is in a deadly wilderness, with his mount carrying his food and water; he falls asleep, then wakes up to find the mount gone; he gets up and searches for it until thirst overtakes him; then he says: I will go back to the place where I was until I die; so he lays his head on his forearm to die; then he wakes up and finds his mount beside him, carrying his provisions, his food and his water. Allah Almighty is more pleased with the repentance of His servant than this man is with (finding) his mount and his provisions."

Abd al-Rahman bin Yazid (may Allah have mercy on him) relates that Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "There is no one to whom praise is dearer than it is to Allah Almighty; that is why He has praised Himself. And there is no one more possessed of ghayrah (protective jealousy) than Allah Almighty; for that reason He has forbidden all shameful deeds. And there is no one to whom excuse (the servants' offering of excuses and repentance) is dearer than it is to Allah Almighty; that is why He sent down the Book and sent the Messengers."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "No soul is killed unjustly but that a share of the sin of its blood falls upon the first son of Adam, because he was the first to establish the practice of killing."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I declare myself free and disassociated from the khullah (intimate friendship) of every khalil. If I were to take anyone as my khalil, I would certainly have taken Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) as my khalil; and indeed this companion of yours (meaning the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) himself) is the khalil of Allah."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to make this supplication: 'Allahumma ahsanta khalqi fa-ahsin khuluqi' (O Allah, You have made my creation (physical form) excellent, so make my character excellent as well).

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said three times: "Nothing (by itself) transmits (disease) to another thing." At this a Bedouin among those present said: O Messenger of Allah! A camel is among a large herd of camels, a mange spot appears on its tail or its lip, and (from being with it) all those camels become mangy? Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Then who gave the mange to the first camel?" Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Disease spreading of itself, taking bad omens, the ill omen of the month of Safar and the ill omen of the owl have no reality. Allah Almighty created every soul and has written (beforehand) its life, its provision and the calamities that will befall it." In the chain of this report, Imam Abu Zur'ah (may Allah have mercy on him) narrated from an unknown (unnamed) companion of his.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, Allah Almighty has not sent down any disease without also creating a cure (remedy) for it; whoever came to know it, knew it, and whoever remained ignorant of it, remained ignorant."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him): "I went out with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) to relieve himself. When he (peace and blessings be upon him) had finished, he said: "Find me something with which I can clean myself (istinja), and do not bring me any bone or dung."" He relates: "Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) performed ablution and stood up to pray, and I saw that whenever he (peace and blessings be upon him) bowed, he would do 'hana', meaning he would join both his hands together (performing tatbiq) and place them between his knees." Layth (may Allah have mercy on him) said: 'Ha'il' means a bone.

Abd al-Rahman bin Yazid (may Allah have mercy on him) relates: I was with Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) until, when he reached Jamrat al-Aqabah, I went ahead of him. He said: "Hand me some pebbles." So I gave him seven pebbles while he was continuously reciting the talbiyah. Then he said: "Hold the camel's nose-rein." Then he came to the middle of the valley and turned towards the tree that was there. Then he said 'Allahu akbar' (Allah is the Greatest) and threw, saying the takbir with each pebble until he had thrown seven pebbles. Then he made this supplication: 'Allahumma ij'alhu hajjan mabruran wa dhanban maghfuran' (O Allah, make it an accepted Hajj and a means of forgiveness of sins). Then he said: "This is exactly how that pure person (peace and blessings be upon him) upon whom Surah al-Baqarah was revealed acted."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Envy (praiseworthy envy, i.e. emulation) is permissible only in two cases: a man to whom Allah Almighty has given wealth and has then granted him full ability to spend it and give it away in the way of truth; and another man to whom Allah Almighty has granted wisdom, so he judges by it and teaches it to people."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: "On the day of the Battle of Badr, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) asked (in consultation): "What is your opinion about these captives?" Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Rawahah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "O Messenger of Allah! You are in a valley with plenty of firewood, so set the valley ablaze against them and then throw them into it." (Hearing this) Sayyiduna al-Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "May Allah cut off your ties of kinship (that is, why did you say such a harsh thing)." Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "O Messenger of Allah! These are the leaders and chiefs of the polytheists; they denied you and fought you, so strike their necks." Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "O Messenger of Allah! These are your kinsmen and your people; let them live, perhaps Allah Almighty will save them from the Fire of Hell through you." Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) went inside for some need of his, and one group began saying that the right view is what Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said, and another group said that the right view is what Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said. Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) came out and said: "What do you think of these two men (Abu Bakr and Umar)? Their example is like that of their brothers, the Prophets, before them. Sayyiduna Nuh (peace be upon him) said: 'My Lord, do not leave upon the earth a single inhabitant from among the disbelievers. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants.' And Sayyiduna Musa (peace be upon him) said: 'Our Lord, obliterate their wealth and harden their hearts so that they do not believe until they see the painful punishment.' Whereas Sayyiduna Ibrahim (peace be upon him) said: 'So whoever follows me, he is of me; and whoever disobeys me, then indeed You are Most Forgiving, Most Merciful.' And Sayyiduna Isa (peace be upon him) said: 'If You punish them, they are Your servants; and if You forgive them, then indeed You alone are the Almighty, the Wise.'" (Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said:) "And you are a people in economic need, so let none of the captives leave here except by paying ransom or by having his neck struck (being killed)." Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) says: I said: "O Messenger of Allah! Except Sahl bin Bayda' (let him be released), for I have heard him speaking of Islam." At this he (peace and blessings be upon him) remained silent, and no moment passed over me that day in which I was more afraid that stones would rain down upon me from the sky, until the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) himself said: "Except Sahl bin Bayda'.""

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that he related: "We used to greet the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) with salam while he was in prayer and he (peace and blessings be upon him) used to respond to us. But when we returned from the Negus (from the migration to Abyssinia), we greeted him (peace and blessings be upon him) with salam but he (peace and blessings be upon him) did not respond to us. So we said: "O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! We used to greet you with salam in prayer and you used to respond to us." He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed in prayer (a servant) is fully occupied (with the remembrance of Allah and intimate conversation with Him).""

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: "We used to greet the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) with salam during prayer and he (peace and blessings be upon him) used to respond to us. Then one day I greeted him (peace and blessings be upon him) with salam but he (peace and blessings be upon him) did not respond to me, and I felt (grief and concern) in my heart. When he (peace and blessings be upon him) had finished the prayer, I said: O Messenger of Allah! Previously, whenever I greeted you with salam during prayer, you used to respond to me? At this he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed Allah Almighty brings about whatever new command He wills from among His commands.""

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that he heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "Indeed the excellence of a man's prayer in congregation exceeds his prayer performed alone by twenty-odd degrees."

It is narrated from Abd al-Rahman bin al-Aswad (may Allah have mercy on him) that Alqamah and al-Aswad (may Allah have mercy on them both) sought permission to enter upon Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him). The two of them had sat at his door for a long time, until midday came. The narrator says: I went out and sought permission for them, and he granted them permission. Then Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) asked them: "What prevented the two of you from coming in?" They said: "We thought that perhaps you were resting." He said: "I strongly dislike that you should think this of me. We used to regard the prayer and worship of this hour of the day as equal to the night prayer." Then he said: "Soon rulers will be placed over you who will delay the prayer from its (preferred) time, so perform the prayer at its proper time." Then he stood up and stood between the two of them (as imam) and led the prayer, and said: "This is how I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) do it."

Alqamah (may Allah have mercy on him) relates: I was walking with Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) at Mina when he met Sayyiduna Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him), so he stopped with him and began talking with him. Sayyiduna Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him) said to him: "O Abu Abd al-Rahman! Shall we not marry you to a young girl? Perhaps she will remind you of your bygone days." At this Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) replied: "If you are saying this, then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) indeed said to us: 'O assembly of young men! Whoever among you is able to marry, let him marry, for it lowers the gaze most and best guards the private parts; and whoever is not able, then fasting is binding on him, for it is a shield for him (that breaks his desire).'"

It is narrated from Alqamah (may Allah have mercy on him) that Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) recited Surah Yusuf at Hims, and a man said: "This surah was not revealed like this." So Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) came close to him and smelled the odour of wine on him. Expressing his anger, he (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "You deny the truth and drink filth? By Allah, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) taught me this surah exactly like this. By Allah, I will not leave you until I have given you the prescribed punishment (hadd for drinking wine)." The narrator says: Then he (may Allah be pleased with him) gave him the hadd.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that Sayyiduna Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him) led four rak'ahs of prayer at Mina. Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said (commenting on it): "I prayed two rak'ahs at Mina with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), two rak'ahs with Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), and two rak'ahs with Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) as well. Then your paths parted (and the practices changed). As for me, I wish that in place of these four rak'ahs I had two rak'ahs that are granted acceptance in the court of Allah."

Abdur-Rahman bin Yazid (may Allah have mercy on him) relates that Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) stoned Jamrat al-Aqabah from the bed of the valley with seven pebbles, saying the takbir with every pebble. The narrator says: It was said to him that some people throw at it from its upper part. Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "By the One besides whom there is no god worthy of worship! This is the standing place of the one (the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)) upon whom Surah al-Baqarah was revealed."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: "We were with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) at Mina when the moon split into two pieces, until one part of it went behind the mountain. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said (addressing us): 'Bear witness to it.'"

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever swears a false oath in order to seize the wealth of a Muslim by it will meet Allah Almighty while He is extremely angry with him." Upon this Sayyiduna al-Ash'ath (may Allah be pleased with him) said: By Allah, this incident was about me. There was a dispute over a piece of land between me and a Jewish man, and he denied my claim. So I took him to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) asked me: "Do you have any proof or witness?" I said: No. So he (peace and blessings be upon him) said to the Jew: "Swear an oath." I said: O Messenger of Allah, in that case he will swear and take away my property. Then Allah Almighty revealed this verse: "Indeed, those who purchase a small price (worldly gain) in exchange for the covenant of Allah and their oaths."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said one thing and I said another. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever dies while not associating anything with Allah enters Paradise." And I said: "And whoever dies while associating something with Allah enters the Fire."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I will be your forerunner (the first to arrive) at the Pond (al-Kawthar). There will be a contention between me and some people concerning them, then I will be overpowered regarding them. I will say: 'O my Lord, these are my Companions!' And the reply will be: 'Indeed, you do not know what changes and innovations they introduced into the religion after you.'"

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Do not become absorbed in acquiring estates, farms and orchards, lest you be drawn into desire for this world." Then Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said (pointing to the abundance of his own properties): "And in Madinah there is what there is, and in Radhan there is what there is."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "He is not one of us (that is, not on our way) who (at a time of calamity and grief) strikes his cheeks, tears open the fronts of his garments, and calls out with the call of the days of Ignorance (that is, wailing and lamenting)."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "It is not lawful to shed the blood of any Muslim who bears witness that there is no god worthy of worship except Allah and that I am the Messenger of Allah, except in one of three cases: the married adulterer, a life for a life (retaliation), and the one who abandons his religion and separates from the community of the Muslims."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: "When one of you bows (in ruku'), let him spread his forearms over his thighs and bend down (for the ruku')." He said (describing the manner of this act): "It is as if I am looking at the fingers of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) interlaced (into one another)." Then Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) joined his two palms together (doing tatbiq) and showed them.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: "I was hiding behind the curtains of the Ka'bah when three men came whose bellies were laden with fat but whose hearts had little understanding: one of them was a Qurashi and his two sons-in-law were Thaqafis, or one was a Thaqafi and his two sons-in-law were Qurashis. They spoke among themselves in words I could not fully understand. Then one of them asked: 'Do you think Allah hears this talk of ours?' Another said: 'If we raise our voices He hears it, and if we do not raise them He does not hear it.' Then the third said: 'If He can hear part of our talk, then He can hear all of it.'" Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Then I mentioned this to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and Allah Almighty revealed these verses to him (peace and blessings be upon him): 'And you were not concealing yourselves lest your hearing, your sight and your skins should testify against you' up to the words of Allah Almighty: 'So you have become among the losers.'"

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: "It is as if I am beholding the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) while he (peace and blessings be upon him) was describing a prophet whose people had beaten him (and wounded him). He was wiping the blood from his face and saying: 'Rabbighfir li-qawmi fa-innahum la ya'lamun' (O my Lord, forgive my people, for they do not know (the truth))."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) made a distribution (of wealth), and a man from the Ansar said (objecting): "Indeed, this is a distribution by which the pleasure of Allah was not intended." Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: I said (to him): "O enemy of Allah! I will certainly inform the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) of what you have said." So I mentioned it to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and (from the intensity of grief and anger) his (peace and blessings be upon him) blessed face turned red, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "May Allah Almighty have mercy on Musa (peace be upon him); he was certainly harmed with far more than this, yet he was patient."