Riyad as-Salihin

'Umar bin Al- Khattab (May Allah be pleased with him) set out for Ash-Sham (the region comprising Syria, Palestine, Lebanon and Jordan). As he reached at Sargh (a town by the side of Hijaz) he came across the governor of Al-Ajnad, Abu 'Ubaidah bin Al-Jarrah (May Allah be pleased with him) and his companions. They informed him that an had broken out in Syria. Ibn 'Abbas relates: 'Umar (May Allah be pleased with him) said to me: "Call to me the earliest Muhajirun (Emigrants)." So I called them. He sought their advice and told them that an epidemic had broken out in Ash-Sham. There was a difference of opinion whether they should proceed further or retreat to their homes in such a situation. Some of them said: "You have set forth to fight the enemy, and therefore you should not go back;" whereas some of them said: "As you have along with you many eminent Companions of Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), we would not advice you to set forth to the place of the plague (and thus expose them deliberately to a danger)." 'Umar (May Allah be pleased with him) said: "You can now go away." He said: "Call to me the Ansar (the Helpers)." So I called them to him, and he consulted them and they differed in their opinions as well. He said: "Now, you may go." He again said: "Call the old (wise people) of the Quraish who had emigrated before the conquest of Makkah." I called them. 'Umar (May Allah be pleased with him) consulted them in this issue and not even two persons among them differed in the opinions. They said: "We think that you should go back along with the people and do not take them to this scourge. 'Umar (May Allah be pleased with him) made an announcement to the people, saying: "In the morning I intend to go back, and I want you to do the same." Abu 'Ubaidah bin Al-Jarrah (May Allah be pleased with him) said: "Are you going to run away from the Divine Decree?" Thereupon 'Umar (May Allah be pleased with him) said: "O Abu 'Ubaidah ! Had it been someone else to say this." ('Umar (May Allah be pleased with him) did not like to differ with him). He said: "Yes, we are running from the Divine Decree to the Divine Decree. What do you think if you have camels and you happen to get down a valley having two sides, one of them covered with foliage and the other being barren, will you not act according to the Divine Decree if you graze them in vegetative land? In case you graze them in the barren land, even then you will be doing so according to the Divine Decree.There happened to come 'Abdur-Rahman bin 'Auf who had been absent for some of his needs. He said: I have knowledge about it. I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) saying, "If you get wind of the outbreak of plague in a land, you should not enter it; but if it spreads in the land where you are, you should not depart from it." Thereupon 'Umar bin Khattab (May Allah be pleased with him) praised Allah and went back..

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If you get wind of the outbreak of plague in a land, do not enter it; and if it breaks out in a land in which you are, do not leave it.".

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Avoid the seven destructive things." It was asked: (by those present): "What are they, O Messenger of Allah?" He replied, "Associating anyone or anything with Allah in worship; practising sorcery, killing of someone without a just cause whom Allah has forbidden, devouring the property of an orphan, eating of usury, fleeing from the battlefield and slandering chaste women who never even think of anything touching chastity and are good believers.".

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) forbade travelling to the land of the enemy carrying the Qur'an..

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Whosoever drinks in utensils of silver, in fact, kindles in his belly the fire of Hell.".The narration of Muslim is: "Verily, the person who eats or drinks in utensils made of gold and silver."

The Prophet (ﷺ) prohibited us from wearing silk or Dibaj and from drinking out of gold and silver vessels and said, "These are meant for them (non- Muslims) in this world and for you in the Hereafter."In another narration Hudhaifah (May Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Do not wear silk and Dibaj, nor eat or drink from utensils made of gold and silver.".

I was with Anas bin Malik (May Allah be pleased with him) in the company of some Magians when Faludhaj (a sweet made of flour and honey) was brought in a silver utensil, and Anas did not take it. The man was told to change the utensil. So he changed the utensil and when he brought it to Anas, he took it..

The Prophet (ﷺ) prohibited men from wearing saffron-dyed clothes..

The Prophet (ﷺ) saw me dressed in two saffron-coloured garments and asked, "Has your mother commanded you to wear these?" I asked him, "Shall I wash them out?" He replied, "You had better set them to fire."Another narration is: "These are garments of the disbelievers. So do not wear them.".

I have retained in my memory the saying of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) that: "No one is considered an orphan after he has attained the age of maturity; and it is unlawful to remain silent from dawn till night.".

Abu Bakr (May Allah be pleased with him) came upon a woman named Zainab from the Ahmas tribe and noticed that she was observing total silence. He said: "What has happened to her? Why does she not speak?'' People informed him that she had sworn to remain silent. He then said to her: "You should speak, it is not permissible (to observe silence), for it is an act of the Days of Ignorance (Jahiliyyah)." (After hearing this) she started speaking. .

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "He who (falsely) attributes his fatherhood to anyone besides his real father, knowing that he is not his father, will be forbidden to enter Jannah.".

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Do not turn away from your fathers, for he who turns away from his father, will be guilty of committing an act of disbelief."

I saw 'Ali (May Allah be pleased with him) giving a Khutbah (sermon) from the pulpit and I heard him saying: "By Allah, we have no book to read except Allah's Book and what is written in this scroll. He unrolled the scroll which showed a list of what sort of camels to be given as blood-money, and other legal matters relating to killing game in the sanctuary of Makkah and the expiation thereof. In it was also written: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'Al-Madinah is a sanctuary from 'Air to Thaur (mountains). He who innovates in this territory new ideas in Islam, commits a sin therein, or shelters the innovators, will incur the Curse of Allah, the angels, and all the people, and Allah will accept from him neither repentance nor a ransom on the Day of Resurrection. The asylum (pledge of protection) granted by any Muslim (even of the) lowest status is to be honoured and respected by all other Muslims, and whoever betrays a Muslim in this respect (by violating the pledge) will incur the Curse of Allah, the angels, and all the people; and Allah will accept from him neither repentance nor a ransom on the Day of Resurrection. Whoever attributes his fatherhood to someone other than his (real) father, and takes someone else as his master other than his (real) master without his permission, will incur the Curse of Allah, the angels and all the people, and Allah will accept from him neither repentance nor a ransom on the Day of Resurrection.".

I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) saying: "A person who attributes his fatherhood to anyone other than his real father, knowing that he is not his father, commits an act of disbelief. And he who makes a claim of anything which in fact does not belong to him, is none of us. He should make his abode in Hell, and he who labels anyone as disbeliever or calls him the enemy of Allah and he is in fact not so, his charge will revert to him.".

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Allah, the Exalted, becomes angry, and His Anger is provoked when a person does what Allah has declared unlawful.".

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "He who takes an oath and involuntarily says: 'By Al-Lat and Al-'Uzza' should at once affirm: 'La ilaha illallah (there is no true god except Allah)', and he who says to his companion: 'Come let's gamble' should make expiation by giving something in charity.".