Musnad Ahmad

Hazrat Abu Malik Ash'ari (may Allah be pleased with him) once gathered his people and said, "O group of Ash'aris! Gather together yourselves and also gather your wives and children so that I may teach you the prayer of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), the same prayer that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) taught us in Madinah." So they all gathered together and brought their wives and children as well. Then he demonstrated ablution to the people, performing it with great care on every limb, ensuring that all parts were thoroughly washed. When the shadow began to return, he stood up and gave the call to prayer (adhan). Then, first, he arranged the rows of men, behind them the children, and behind them the women. Then he had the iqamah called and stepped forward to begin the prayer. First, he raised both hands and said the takbir, then recited Surah Al-Fatihah and another surah quietly, then said the takbir and went into bowing (ruku'), said "Subhan Allah wa bihamdihi" three times, then said "Sami' Allahu liman hamidah" and stood up straight, then said the takbir and went into prostration (sajdah), then said the takbir and performed the second prostration, then said the takbir and stood up straight. In this way, there were six takbirs in the first rak'ah, and he also said the takbir while standing for the second rak'ah. After finishing the prayer, he turned towards his people and said, "Remember my takbirs and learn my bowing and prostration, for this is the same prayer of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he used to teach us at that time." One day, in the same way, after finishing the prayer, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) turned his blessed face towards the people and said, "O people! Listen, understand, and be certain that there are some servants of Allah who will not be prophets or martyrs, but even the prophets and martyrs will envy them when they see their closeness to Allah and their position." Upon this, a Bedouin who was sitting at the very end knelt on his knees and said, "O Messenger of Allah! Please describe their qualities to us." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was pleased to hear this question from the Bedouin and said, "They will be people whose lineage will not be well-known among the people, nor will they belong to any famous tribe, but will be related to foreign tribes, and there will be no close kinship among them. They will love and form ranks with each other for the sake of Allah. On the Day of Resurrection, Allah will place pulpits of light for them and seat them upon them. Their faces will be radiant, and their garments will be of light. On the Day of Resurrection, all people will be afraid, but they will not be afraid. These are the friends of Allah, upon whom there will be no fear, nor will they grieve."