Imām Tirmidhī relates in his sunnan that on the Day of Judgement a person will not shift until they have been questioned about five things: 1. Where did they while away their age? 2. How did they spend their youth? 3. Where did they acquire their wealth? 4. How did they spend their wealth? 5. How did they act on the knowledge that was given to them?
The key points of this ḥadīth are the first two questions, relating to how a person spends their time and more specifically how they spent their youth. We are often conscious of how we generate our wealth and spend it, however our time is a free commodity given to us by Allāh which we will also be questioned about.
Sayyiduna Khuraym ibn Fatik رضي الله عنه narrates: Nabee صلى الله عليه وسلم said: (as part of a longer narration)
“Whomsoever intends doing a good deed, his heart is set on carrying it out and Allah Ta’ala is aware that he wants to carry it out, then Allah Ta’ala will record for him one good deed”
(Musnad Ahmad)
The above narration explains that a person will be rewarded merely for having a firm intention to carry out a good deed, although he has not carried it out yet. When he carries it out, he will be rewarded tenfold as Allah Ta’ala mentions:
“Whosoever carries out a good deed, will receive ten times as much”
There are many ahadeeth narrating the benefits and virtues of Durood, below are a selected few shared to encourage the believers to send abundant durood upon the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him).
Definition: Durood – the uttering of specific phrases to compliment the Prophet Muhammad (peace & blessings upon him) when his name is mentioned or read in a text. It is usually to praise and honour him with great love and compassion.
Surely Allah Ta’ala and his angels send Durood (blessings) upon Nabi (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam), O you who believe! You also send Durood and Salaams upon Hazrat Nabi (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam) in abundance.
In the above mentioned verse, Allah Ta’ala commands the believers to send Durood and Salaams upon Hazrat Nabi-e-kareem (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam). Allah Ta’ala says I myself and my pure creation; the Malaaikah continuously send Durood (blessings) upon Nabi (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam). Hence, you should also send Durood and Salaams upon my beloved Nabi (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam).
Virtues of Durood
Muslim narrated in his Sahih from Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and give him peace) said ‘he who invokes blessings on me once, Allah sends ten blessings upon him.’
Al-Nasa’i narrated in ‘Invocations of the day and night’, from ‘Umar bin Dinar (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (may Allah bless him and give him peace) said ‘he of my community who invokes blessings upon me sincerely, Allah will bless him ten fold and raise him ten degrees, and he will have written for him ten good deeds, and erased from his record ten bad deeds.’
Tirmidhi narrated that ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) said ‘Verily, supplications are stalled between the heavens and the earth, and are not lifted up until the supplicant invokes blessings upon the Prophet (may Allah bless him and give him peace).’
Tirmidhi related from Abdullah bin Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and give him peace) said ‘the closest people to me on the Day of Resurrection will be those who invoked the most blessings upon me.’
Tirmidhi narrated from ‘Amir bin Rani’ah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (may Allah bless him and give him peace) said ‘he who invokes blessings upon me, the Angels send blessings upon him equal to that which he invoked, so let the worshipper invoke some, or increase upon that.’
Rasulullah (Allah bless him & give him peace) said:
“Friday is the best of days. It was on this day that Hadrat Aadam alayhis salaam was created, it was on this day that he was granted entry into jannah, it was on this day that he was removed from jannah (which became the cause for man’s existence in this universe, and which is a great blessing), and the day of resurrection will also take place on this day.”
(Sahih Muslim)
On one Friday, Rasulullah (Allah bless him & give him peace) said: “O Muslims! Allah Ta’ala has made this day a day of eid . So have a bath on this day, whoever has perfume should apply it, and use the miswaak. ” (Ibn Majah)
Sayyiduna Thawban رضي الله عنه narrates: Nabee صلى الله عليه وسلم said:_
Soon people will invite each other plotting against you like how a person eating invites others to share their dish.
Someone asked: ‘Will that be because of our small numbers at that time’?
Nabi صلى الله عليه وسلم replied: No, you will be many at that time, but you will be scum like that carried down by a flood, and Allah will take away the awe and fear of you from the chest of your enemy and cast ‘wahn’ into your hearts.
Someone asked: ‘What is wahn’?_
Nabee صلى الله عليه وسلم replied: ‘Love of the world and dislike of death’.
Fasting is a shield for a person which protects them from Shaytan, Allah’s punishment and Jahannam. However, one needs to make sure the shield is not damaged in any way. Otherwise it will not be effective in doing its job. The actions that damage this shield and render it useless are sins like Backbiting, Lying, Evil Glance, Swearing, Nonsensical Conversation, Arguments, Slander, Haram Sustenance, and every other evil.
Besides the compulsory fasting in the month of Ramadan, one should try to fast during those days for which Rasoolullah (صلي الله عليه و سلم) has mentioned many rewards, for example:
