Pearls of Wisdom of the Salaf

Changing Colours

It is reported that Ḥudhayfah b. Al-Yamān – Allāh be pleased with him – said:

True misguidance is that you approve now what you used to repudiate before (because it was wrong) and repudiate now what you used to approve before; and be aware of changing colours in the religion, for the religion of Allāh is one.

Ibn Baṭṭah, Al-Ibānatu Al-Kubrā ḥadīth 25, and others.
It is reported that ʿAdī b. Ḥātim – Allāh be pleased with him – said:

You will remain upon good as long as you do not start approving of what you used to repudiate and as long as you do not repudiate what you used to know (to be right), and as long as your scholar can speak amongst you without fear.

Op. cit. ḥadīth 26.

Praying for the Tawbah of the Sinner

It is reported that ʿAbdullāh b. Masʿūd – Allāh be pleased with him – said:

If you see a man amongst you having committed a sin, do not supplicate Allāh against him and do not revile him; instead, pray to Allāh to cure him and accept his repentance, for when we used to see a man die upon something good, we would have hope for him, and when we used to see a man die upon wrongdoing, we would fear for him.

Ibn Abī Al-Dunyā, Kitāb Al-Tawbah article 112.

How to Become the Most Devout, Careful and Richest Person

It is reported that ʿAbdullāh b. Masʿūd – Allāh be pleased with him – said:

Fulfil what Allāh has obligated you to do and you will be from the most devout of people, stay away from what Allāh has forbidden you and you will be from the most careful of people, and be satisfied with what Allāh has apportioned for you and you will be from the richest of people.

Hannād b. Al-Sarī, Al-Zuhd, article 1032.

Truthfulness Expels Sin & Lying Expels Goodness

It is reported that ʿAbdullāh b. Masʿūd – Allāh be pleased with him – said:

Verily a man continues to be truthful until he is written with Allāh as a true believer (ṣiddīq); and he persists in truthfulness until there is not even the space of a needle for sinfulness left in his heart to settle. And a man lies and persists in lying until there is not even the space of a needle for goodness in his heart to settle.

Wakīʿ b. Al-Jarrāḥ, Al-Zuhd ḥadīth 398.

"The believer speaks little, but does much. And the hypocrite talks a lot, but does little. The believer's speech is wisdom, his silence is contemplation, his gaze is pondering, his actions are righteous. So if this is your state, you shall perpetually be in worship."- Fudayl bin Iyyad

A Man Should Sit Where He Benefits

It is reported that:

ʿAlī b. Ḥusayn – Allāh have mercy on him – would sometimes ride to Makkah and return without entering it (meeting anyone there), and he used to sit with Aslam the freedman of ʿUmar (himself a scholar), so it was said to him, “You leave Quraysh, and instead sit with the slave of Banī ʿAdī!” So he replied, “A man [should] sit where he benefits.”

Al-Dhahabī, Siyar Aʿlām Al-Nubalāʾ 4:388.

I Would Rather Sing a Song

It is reported that a man once came to Al-Shaʿbī – Allāh have mercy on him – and asked him about something, so he replied:

“Ibn Masʿūd used to say such-and-such [about this issue].” The man asked, “But tell me your opinion.” He replied, “Are you not all astonished by this man? I inform him of what Ibn Masʿūd [said] and he asks me my opinion. My religion is more important to me than that. By Allāh, I would rather sing a song than inform you of my opinion.”

Al-Dārimī, Al-Sunan ḥadīth 108.

The Diagnosis and the Cure

It is reported that Qatādah – Allāh have mercy on him – said:

Verily the Qurān guides you to your disease and your treatment: as for your disease, it is your sins; and as for your treatment, it is to seek the forgiveness of Allāh.

Al-Bayhaqī, Shuʿab Al-Īmān 9:347 no. 6745.

The Diagnosis and the Cure - Sayings of the Salaf The Quran tells us both what is wrong with us and how to fix it....

Two Qualities of the Noble

It is reported that Ayyūb Al-Sakhtiyānī – Allāh have mercy on him – said:

A man does not become noble until he has two qualities: he is undesirous of what other people possess, and he pardons and overlooks them.

Ibn Ḥibbān, Rawḍatu Al-ʿUqalāʾ p167.

Two Qualities of the Noble - Sayings of the Salaf A man is not considered noble without rising above desire for what others possess and without being forgiving....

The Danger of Over-Suspicion

ʿAbdullāh b. Masʿūd – Allāh be pleased with him – said:

The victim of theft might continue to suspect and conjecture [about who stole from him] until he becomes worse [in sin] than the thief.

Al-Bukhārī, Al-Adab Al-Mufrad no. 1289. Its chain of transmission was graded ṣaḥīḥ by Al-Albānī in Ṣaḥīḥ Al-Adab Al-Mufrad no.974

Lying and Iman

It is reported that Abū Bakr Al-Ṣiddīq – Allāh be pleased with him – said:

Beware of lying, for lying is far removed from īmān.

Abū Bakr Al-Ḵallāl, Al-Sunnah no. 1467, 1470; Al-Bayhaqī, Shuʿab Al-Īmān no. 4463.
Ibn Al-Qayyim said in Al-Fawāʾid, …Thus, every good action – both outer and inner – comes from truthfulness, and every evil corrupt action – both outer and inner – comes from falsehood and lying.

Honouring and Dishonouring Oneself

It is reported that Yaḥyā b. Abī Kathīr – Allāh have mercy on him – said:

It used to be said, “People have never honoured themselves with anything [better] than the obedience of Allāh, and they have never dishonoured themselves with anything [worse] than disobedience to Allāh.”

Ibn Abī Al-Dunyā, Muḥāsabatu Al-Nafs article 98.

The Blessing of not Being a Kharijite

It is reported that Abu Al-ʿĀlyah – Allāh have mercy on him – said:

There are two blessings I have been blessed with, I know not which of them is greatest: that Allāh guided me to Islām, and that he did not make me a Ḥarūrī (from the Khawārij extremists).

ʿAbd Al-Razzāq Al-Ṣanʿānī, Al-Muṣannaf ḥadīth 18667.

Two Calamities for Fitnah

It is reported that Al-Shaʿbī – Allāh have mercy on him – said:

Stay away from the sinful amongst the scholars and the ignorant amongst the worshippers, for these two are the calamity of everyone who would fall into fitnah.

Al-Bayhaqī, Shuʿab Al-Īmān ḥadīth 1753.

Two Calamities for Fitnah - Sayings of the Salaf People who fall into fitnah are often lead astray by two categories of people....

The Correct Place of Opinion

Al-Awzāʿī reports that Caliph ʿUmar b. ʿAbd Al-ʿAzīz – Allāh have mercy on him – wrote (in his orders):

There is no place for anyone’s opinion [when it comes to] what is in the Book (revelation). The opinion of the imāms (great scholars) is only regarding what the Book did not come down with, and regarding which no Sunnah has passed from the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ. And the opinion of no one is counted in the face of a Sunnah from the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ.

Al-Ājurrī, Al-Sharīʿah #113 et al.

The Reality of Dhikr and Fear of Allah

It is reported that Saʿīd b. Jubayr – Allāh have mercy on him – said:

Verily, fear (al-khashyah) is that you fear Allāh such that your fear comes between you and your disobedience (of Allāh). That is khashyah. And dhikr (remembrance) is obedience to Allāh: whoever obeys Allāh has remembered Him; and whoever does not obey Him is not a rememberer of Him, even if he says a lot of tasbīḥ and recites a lot of Qurān.

Al-Dhahabī, Siyar ʾAʿlām Al-Nubalāʾ 4:326.

The Best Things a Person Can be Given

It is reported from Ḥabīb Al-Jallāb that he asked ʿAbdullāh b. Al-Mubārak – Allāh have mercy on him:

“What is the best thing a person is ever given?” He replied, “Innate intelligence.” He then asked, “And if not that?” He replied, “Good conduct.” He then asked, “And if not that?” He replied, “A compassionate brother to consult.” He then asked, “And if not that?” He replied, “Long silence.” He asked, “And if not that?” Ibn Al-Mubārak replied, “Then an early death.”

Al-Dhahabī, Siyar ʾAʿlām Al-Nubalāʾ 8:397.