Nawawī’s Arbaýīn

A Collection of Forty Traditions of the Prophet ﷺ

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Being Mindful of Allāh - Hadith 19

عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عَبَّاسٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمَا قَالَ كُنْت خَلْفَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه و سلم يَوْمًا، فَقَالَ يَا غُلَامِ إنِّي أُعَلِّمُك كَلِمَاتٍ احْفَظْ اللَّهَ يَحْفَظْك، احْفَظْ اللَّهَ تَجِدْهُ تُجَاهَك، إذَا سَأَلْت فَاسْأَلْ اللَّهَ، وَإِذَا اسْتَعَنْت فَاسْتَعِنْ بِاَللَّهِ، وَاعْلَمْ أَنَّ الْأُمَّةَ لَوْ اجْتَمَعَتْ عَلَى أَنْ يَنْفَعُوك بِشَيْءٍ لَمْ يَنْفَعُوك إلَّا بِشَيْءٍ قَدْ كَتَبَهُ اللَّهُ لَك، وَإِنْ اجْتَمَعُوا عَلَى أَنْ يَضُرُّوك بِشَيْءٍ لَمْ يَضُرُّوك إلَّا بِشَيْءٍ قَدْ كَتَبَهُ اللَّهُ عَلَيْك؛ رُفِعَتْ الْأَقْلَامُ، وَجَفَّتْ الصُّحُفُ . رَوَاهُ التِّرْمِذِيُّ وَقَالَ حَدِيثٌ حَسَنٌ صَحِيحٌ.

وَفِي رِوَايَةِ غَيْرِ التِّرْمِذِيِّ احْفَظْ اللَّهَ تَجِدْهُ أمامك، تَعَرَّفْ إلَى اللَّهِ فِي الرَّخَاءِ يَعْرِفُك فِي الشِّدَّةِ، وَاعْلَمْ أَنَّ مَا أَخْطَأَك لَمْ يَكُنْ لِيُصِيبَك، وَمَا أَصَابَك لَمْ يَكُنْ لِيُخْطِئَك، وَاعْلَمْ أَنَّ النَّصْرَ مَعَ الصَّبْرِ، وَأَنْ الْفَرَجَ مَعَ الْكَرْبِ، وَأَنَّ مَعَ الْعُسْرِ يُسْرًا

Narrated by Abū’l Ábbās Ábdullāh ibn Ábbās radiyAllāhu Anhu who said: One day, I was [seated] behind RasūlAllāh ﷺ, and he said to me:

Son! Verily, I will teach you a few words – Be mindful of Allāh, and Allāh will protect you. Be mindful of the commands of Allāh and you will find Him present.

When you (have to) ask, ask Allāh; when you (have to) seek help, seek help from Allāh.

And know, that if the entire creation comes together to give you benefit, they will not be able to benefit you in any way, except that which Allāh has written for you [in your destiny].

And if they join together to harm you in any way, they will not be able to harm you except that which Allāh has written for you.

The pens have been lifted, and the [writing on the] paper has dried.

This was reported by Tirmidhī, [1] who said that it was a Ĥasan-Şaĥīĥ [2] ĥadīth. And in a narration, other than that of Tirmidhī:

Be mindful of Allāh’s commands, you will find Him present before you; remember Allāh in your good times, He will not forsake you in hard times. And know: that which is destined to evade you will never befall you and that which is meant to befall you will never miss you.

And know that [Divine] Aid is gained by patience; comfort will come after distress and affliction – and that ease is together with hardship.

Notes:

[1] Tirmidhī §2524.

[2] If a ĥadīth comes via two routes – one şaĥīĥ and other ĥasan, Tirmidhī classes it as Ĥasan-Şaĥīĥ [Sharīf Jurjānī in his Monograph on Ĥadīth Principles].

References:

1. Nawawī’s Arbaýīn, Collection of Forty Traditions of the Prophet ﷺ, Hadith 19

[ English Translation ]

Mawlana Abu Hasan Ridawi,

Ridawi Press.