Ibn-Daqiq's Commentary on the Nawawi Forty Hadiths

By Arabic Virtual Translation Center and Ibn-Daqiq Al-Eid

In his lifetime, Ibn-Daqiq wrote many books but this has become his most popular. In it he comments on the forty hadiths compiled by Yahya Al-Nawawi and known as the Nawawi Forty Hadiths. His commentary has become so popular that it is virtually impossible for any scholar to write a serious book about the forty hadiths without quoting Ibn-Daqiq.
This is the only book that combines the sagacity of Ibn-Daqiq and the vast knowledge of Al-Nawawi. The book was written centuries ago but its benefits are everlasting. The book is indispensible for anyone who wants to study Islam thoroughly and laconically from the masters themselves.
We translated from Arabic Ibn-Daqiq’s commentary in its entirety. We listed the text of each hadith first and followed it by the commentary. We added a detailed table of contents and thorough explanatory notes. A short introduction to the science of hadith by the translators is also included.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Oct 1, 2013
• ISBN: 9781304503015

Book preview

Ibn-Daqiq's Commentary on the Nawawi Forty Hadiths

IBN-DAQIQ’S COMMENTARY

ON THE

NAWAWI FORTY HADITHS

BY

IBN-DAQIQ AL-EID

1228 – 1302

Translated by

Arabic Virtual Translation Center

New York

Arabic Virtual Translation Center LLC

330 East 38th Street

New York, NY 10016

www.books.avtcllc.com

Telephone: [phone]

Copyright © 2011 by Arabic Virtual Translation Center

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher.

Any questions regarding the material discussed in this book should be sent to [e-mail]. All other questions should be sent to [e-mail].

ISBN: 978-1-304-50301-5

Printed in the United States of America

Introduction by the Publisher

If you haven’t heard of Ibn-Daqiq Al-Eid you probably don’t know much about hadith. In fact, you probably don’t know much about Islamic history period. That’s how famous and revered Ibn-Daqiq was and still is. On the day of his funeral in the fourteenth century, the city of Cairo came to a halt and the Egyptian army stood in honor. That’s because the world didn’t just lose a scholar but lost the scholar of scholars and, literally, the judge of judges.

In his lifetime, Ibn-Daqiq wrote many books but this has become his most popular. In it he comments on the forty hadiths compiled by Yahya Al-Nawawi and known as the Nawawi Forty Hadiths. His commentary has become so popular that it is virtually impossible for any scholar to write a serious book about the forty hadiths without quoting Ibn-Daqiq.

This is the only book that combines the sagacity of Ibn-Daqiq and the vast knowledge of Al-Nawawi. The book was written centuries ago but its benefits are everlasting. The book is indispensible for anyone who wants to study Islam thoroughly and laconically from the masters themselves.

We translated from Arabic Ibn-Daqiq’s commentary in its entirety. We listed the text of each hadith first and followed it by the commentary. We added a detailed table of contents and thorough explanatory notes. A short introduction to the science of hadith by the translators is also included.

To show you the importance of the hadiths in this book, we need to go no further than to state Imam Al-Nawawi’s own words: It is incumbent on anyone who looks forward to the hereafter to know these hadiths due to the important information that they contain and the attention that they bring to all the pious deeds.

Arabic Virtual Translation Center

New York

January 24, 2011

Introduction by the Translators

A hadith is a narration, or story, that involves the Prophet Muhammad, may God’s peace and blessings be upon him. Since these narrations were collected hundreds of years after the Prophet’s death, many mechanisms have been put in place to make sure that these stories are authentic and not fabricated. Such mechanisms have given birth to what we know now as the science of hadith.

The scholars who collected the narrations are known as hadith reporters (muhadithun). A hadith recorder (hafiz) is loosely defined as someone who is an expert hadith reporter. The forty-two hadiths in this book were reported by master hadith recorders Al-Bukhari, Muslim, and others.

The body of any hadith is split into two parts. The first contains the names of the individuals who heard the hadith, starting with the person who recited the hadith to the reporter and ending with the person who heard the narration directly from the Prophet. This chain of transmission is called sanad or isnad. The text of the story itself is known as matn. A hadith is called musnad when the isnad is continuous, i.e. all the people mentioned in the isnad heard the story from each other in the order mentioned with no people missing. A hadith is called mursal when the isnad is missing the name of the companion[1] who heard the hadith from the Prophet directly. A hadith is called gharib (strange) when it’s reported by one single companion only. A hadith is called mutawatir when it is reported by numerous companions. A hadith is called marfu` when it is ascribed to the Prophet. A hadith is called mawquf when it is ascribed to the sahabah.

Hadiths are classified based on the degree of their reliability as a whole taking into consideration the isnad and the matn. The classifications used in this book, along with their English equivalents, are as follows, in descending order of reliability:

Sahih authentic

hasan sahih good authentic

hasan good

da`if weak

mawdu` fabricated

The hasan sahih classification is used by Imam Al-Tirmidhi only.

A hadith is called generally accepted (muttafaq `alayh) when it is reported by both Imam Al-Bukhari, in his hadith collection Sahih Al-Bukhari, and Imam Muslim, in his hadith collection Sahih Muslim.

Finally, we’d like to leave you with a few notes:

The actual number of the Nawawi Forty Hadiths is forty-two and not forty. This can be rectified by knowing that it was common practice for Arabs to round numbers to the nearest decade.

The first twenty-six hadiths were actually compiled by Imam Ibn-Al-Salah and the rest were compiled by Imam Al-Nawawi himself. Later on, all the hadiths became known as the Nawawi Forty Hadiths.

We used Arabic Islamic terminology when necessary in order to define words precisely and remove any ambiguity. With less common words, we used translations of the words but gave their Arabic equivalents.

We provided the name of the sura (chapter) and the number of the verse (ayah) for all Qur'anic quotes.

As it is common practice in the Scriptures, we capitalized all attributes of the deity. We also conformed to common practice in Islamic literature by using salutations whenever the names of the prophets and any of their companions are mentioned.

Whenever the titles Messenger or Prophet are used without mentioning a name, they refer exclusively to the Prophet Muhammad, may God’s peace and blessings be upon him.

All information included in parentheses and footnotes are added by us for clarification. We used full descriptive nouns, such as God, and general pronouns, such as they, instead of he and she, for clarity and to prevent giving preference to any of the sexes.

Table of Contents

---

[1] A companion of the Prophet is known in Islamic terminology as sahabi (singular) and sahabah (plural). A companion is defined as someone who met the Prophet, believed in him, befriended him, and died a Muslim.

Introduction by the Publisher

Introduction by the Translators

Introduction by Imam Al-Nawawi

First Hadith

Intentions

Second Hadith

Definition of Islam

Definition of Iman

Definition of Ihsan

The hour of resurrection

Signs of the hour of resurrection

Third Hadith

The five pillars of Islam

Fourth  Hadith

Stages of prenatal development

Fate

Fifth Hadith

Heresy

Sixth Hadith

Halal, haram, and questionable matters

Seventh Hadith

Advice

Eighth Hadith

Jihad against unbelievers

Ninth Hadith

Disputes over grey areas

Do what you can

Tenth Hadith

Hypocrisy

Eleventh Hadith

Doubt and certainty

Twelfth Hadith

Minding one’s own business

Thirteenth Hadith

Loving others

Fourteenth Hadith

Capital punishment

Fifteenth Hadith

Saying only good things

Respecting neighbors

Honoring guests

Sixteenth Hadith

Anger management

Seventeenth Hadith

Killing with kindness

Eighteenth Hadith

Fearing God

Good deeds erase bad deeds

Treating people with kindness

Nineteenth Hadith

Faith in God

Predestination

Twentieth Hadith

Shame

Twenty-First Hadith

Righteousness

Twenty-Second Hadith

Prerequisites for heaven

Twenty-Third Hadith

Good deeds

Selling one’s soul to God

Selling one’s soul to the Devil

Twenty-Fourth Hadith

Injustice

Providence

Forgiveness

Omnipotence

Judgment Day

Twenty-Fifth Hadith

Rewardable deeds

Twenty-Sixth Hadith

People are indebted to God

Twenty-Seventh Hadith

Definition of righteousness

Definition of sin

Twenty-Eighth Hadith

Last words of advice

Twenty-Ninth Hadith

Prerequisites for heaven

Good deeds

Islam; salat; jihad

Keeping the tongue from evil

Thirtieth Hadith

Dealing with grey areas

Thirty-First Hadith

Asceticism

Thirty-Second Hadith

Inflection of harm

Thirty-Third Hadith

Burden of proof is on the plaintiff

Thirty-Fourth Hadith

Stopping evil

Thirty-Fifth Hadith

Unlawful deeds

Muslims are brothers

The sanctity of a Muslim’s life, property, and honor

Thirty-Sixth Hadith

Helping other Muslims

Seeking knowledge

Reading the Qur'an

Kith and kin don’t count

Thirty-Seventh Hadith

Deeds: rewards and penalties

Thirty-Eighth Hadith

God protects the believers

Mandatory and optional acts

Thirty-Ninth Hadith

Dealing with mistakes, forgetfulness, and coercion

Fortieth Hadith

Asceticism

Do not postpone today’s work until tomorrow

Forty-First Hadith

Following the teachings of the Qur'an and hadith

Forty-Second Hadith

All sins are forgivable

IBN-DAQIQ’S COMMENTARY

ON THE

NAWAWI FORTY HADITHS

Introduction by Imam Al-Nawawi

In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate

May thanks be to God, the Everlasting in heavens and on earth. God who takes care of all creatures and sends messengers, may God’s peace and blessings be upon them, to the designees to guide them and show them the laws of religion through decisive evidence and clear proofs. I thank God for all God’s gifts and ask God for more grace and generosity. I acknowledge that there is no god but Allah, the Only Conqueror and Gracious Forgiver. I also acknowledge that our master Muhammad, God’s servant and Messenger, God’s loved one and close friend, is the best of creatures. He’s been honored with the Qur'an, the continuous miracle that has lasted countless years, and with the sunna[2], the guiding light for all seekers. He’s been gifted with succinct speech and grace of religion. May God’s peace and blessings be upon him, and all the prophets and messengers, and all their families, and all the righteous ones.

We’ve reported that, according to, `Ali-Bin-Abi-Talib, `Abdullah-Bin-Mas`ud, Mu`adh-Bin-Jabal, Abu[3]-Al-Darda', Ibn[4]-`Umar, Ibn-`Abbas, Anas-Bin-Malik, Abu-Hurayrah, and Abu-Sa`id Al-Khudri, may God be pleased with them, through numerous transmissions and various reports, that God’s Messenger, may God’s peace and blessings be upon him, said, People who safeguard forty hadiths for my nation pertaining to its religion, God will bring them back, on the day of resurrection, in the company of jurisprudents and scholars. In another report it says, God will resurrect them as jurisprudents and scholars. And in the report of Abu-Al-Darda', I will be for them, on the day of resurrection, an intercessor and a witness. And in the report of Ibn-Mas`ud, They will be told, ‘Enter heaven from any gate you wish.’ And in the report of Ibn-`Umar, They will be recorded together with the group of scholars and gathered with the group of martyrs. Hadith recorders have agreed that this hadith is da`if even though it has many transmissions.

Scholars, may God be pleased with them, classified in this category countless compilations. The first one I know to have such a compilation is `Abdullah-Bin-Al-Mubarak, and then Muhammad-Bin-Aslam Al-Tusi Al-`Alim Al-Rabbani, and then Al-Hasan-Bin-Sufyan Al-Nasa'i, Abu-Bakr Al-Ajurri, Abu-Bakr Muhammad-Bin-Ibrahim Al-Asfahani, Al-Daraqutni, Al-Hakim, Abu-Nu`aym, Abu-`Abd-Al-Rahman Al-Sulama, Abu-Sa`id Al-Malini, Abu-`Uthman Al-Sabuni, `Abdullah-Bin-Muhammad Al-Ansari, Abu-Bakr Al-Bayhaqi, and innumerable predecessors and successors.

I turned to God, the Sublime, to seek what is best in collecting forty hadiths, emulating those great imams and hadith recorders of Islam. Scholars have agreed that it is permissible to work with da`if hadiths when dealing with good traits. Despite of this, I did not rely on this hadith but I relied on what the Messenger, may God’s peace and blessings be upon him, said in sahih hadiths: Let the eyewitness, from you, inform the absent and  May God prosper those who hear and comprehend a discourse of mine and deliver it the way they heard it.

There have been scholars who collected forty hadiths before. Some collected forty hadiths about the principles of the religion (Usul Al-Din). And some collected forty hadiths about the branches of the religion (Furu` Al-Din). And some collected forty hadiths about jihad. And some collected forty hadiths about asceticism. And some collected forty hadiths about good conduct. And some collected forty hadiths about sermons. Those are all good acts, and may God be pleased with the people who did them. But I wanted to collect forty hadiths that are more important than all of them. I wanted to collect forty hadiths that include all of those subjects where each hadith represents one great foundation, of the religion’s foundations, and is described by scholars as being an axis of Islam, or represents half of Islam, or a third of it, or something of the sort. Also, I wanted to make sure that the forty hadiths are authentic and largely listed in Sahih[5] Al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim. I wanted to list the hadiths without isnad to make them easy to remember and widely beneficial, God willing. Lastly, I wanted to add a section to show precisely the hidden meaning of each hadith.

It is incumbent on anyone who looks forward to the hereafter to know these hadiths due to the important information that they contain and the attention that they bring to all the pious deeds. That is clear to the careful examiner. I do rely on God, and I do turn to the Lord for empowerment and support. To God, belong all praise and grace, and through God, comes all success and preservation.

First Hadith

Commander of the Faithful, Abu-Hafs, `Umar-Bin-Al-Khattab, may the Sublime God be pleased with him, said, "I heard God’s Messenger, may the Sublime God’s peace and blessings be upon him and his family, say, ‘Actions are judged by intentions and everyone reaps what they intend. So those who migrate for the sake of God and God’s Messenger, their migrations are for the sake of God and God’s Messenger. And those who migrate for the sake of a worldly gain or for the sake of someone to marry, their migrations are for what they intended.’"

Reported by the two imams of hadith reporters Abu-`Abdullah, Muhammad-Bin-Isma`il-Bin-Ibrahim-Bin-Al-Mighirah-Bin-Bardizbah Al-Bukhari, and Abu-Al-Husayn, Muslim-Bin-Al-Hajjaj-Bin-Muslim Al-Qushayri Al-Naysaburi, in their two hadith books, which are the most accurate books of hadith.

***

This is a sahih hadith. It’s been agreed that it is accurate[6], important, significant, and beneficial. It’s been reported by Imam Abu-`Abdullah, Al-Bukhari, in more than one location in Sahih Al-Bukhari. It’s been also reported by Abu-Al-Husayn, Muslim-Bin-Al-Hajjaj, at the end of the Book of Jihad in Sahih Muslim. It’s one of the hadiths that Islam revolves around. Imam Ahmad and Al-Shafi`i, may they rest in peace, said that the actions are judged by intentions hadith comprises one-third of jurisprudence. That was also said by Al-Bayhaqi and others. That’s because servants are compensated for what they hold in their hearts, for what they say, and for what they do physically. Intentions are one-third of that. It’s been reported that Al-Shafi`i, may he rest in peace, said, This hadith plays part in seventy chapters of jurisprudence. A group of scholars said, This hadith comprises one-third of Islam.

Scholars have recommended that people start their books with this hadith. One of the people who started their books with this hadith is Imam Abu-`Abdullah, Al-Bukhari. `Abd-Al-Rahman-Bin-Mahdi, said, Authors should start their books with this hadith in order to remind readers how important their intentions are.

The matn of this hadith is popular but the sanad is gharib because the only one who reported that they heard it from the Prophet, may God’s peace and blessings be upon him, was `Umar-Bin-Al-Khattab, may God be pleased with him. And the only who reported that they heard it from `Umar was `Alqamah-Bin-Abi-Waqqas. And the only one who reported that they heard it from `Alqamah was Muhammad-Bin-Ibrahim-Al-Taymi. And the only one who reported that they heard it from Muhammad-Bin-Ibrahim was Yahya-Bin-Sa`id Al-Ansari. After that the hadith became widespread and more than two hundred people, most of them imams, reported that they heard it from Al-Ansari.

Actions are judged by intentions, implies exclusivity. It applies to what is mentioned and excludes everything else. Sometimes the exclusivity is specific and sometimes it’s general. This can be clarified by drawing some analogies. For example, God says, "You (Prophet Muhammad) are but a warner.[7] It’s clear that the exclusivity here is for the warning because the Messenger is not restricted only to giving warning for he has many nice attributes such as giving good tiding and others. Also, God says, The worldly life is but play and diversion.[8]" This seems to indicate, and God knows best, that the worldly life is nothing but play and diversion exclusively to those who cherish it. At the same time, it can be understood as a reason to do good deeds in the worldly life in order to attain rewards in the hereafter. In the latter case, it would have a general implication. If clarifications are mentioned to support the latter, the general implication should be concluded. Hence, if exclusivity is mentioned by name or implied, it is specific. Otherwise, it’s general. This can be applied to the statement of the Prophet, may God’s peace and blessings be upon him, actions are judged by intentions. The intentions are exclusively specific to legal[9] actions, or deeds, and not all actions.

What the hadith implies is that actions such as wudu'[10], bathing[11], and tayammum[12] are not valid without intentions. Also, salat[13], zakat[14], fasting, hajj[15], reclusion, and all acts of worship are not valid without intentions. Removing impurities[16], on the other hand, doesn’t require intentions because it is an act of abandonment and acts of abandonment do not require intentions. Some said that it is valid to perform wudu' and to bathe without intentions. The statement of the Prophet, may God’s peace and blessings be upon him, is omissive. Scholars have disagreed on its exact meaning. Those who set intentions as a condition said that actions are only valid when accompanied by intentions. And those who did not set intentions as a condition said that actions can only be complete when accompanied by intentions.

The statement of the Prophet, may God’s peace and blessings be upon him, everyone reaps what they intend. Al-Khattabi said that this statement has a special meaning, different from the first, which is that actions have to be specified when invoking niyyah, or intentions. Sheikh Muhyi-Al-Din Al-Nawawi said that actions that are intended must be specified. For example: If people want to offer a makeup salat, it is not sufficient that they pronounce that they want to offer a makeup salat but they must specify whether the makeup is for a noon salt, an afternoon salt, etc. If it were not for this second statement, the first statement would’ve validated intentions without specificity, or at least gave that impression of validity. God knows best.

The statement of the Prophet, may God’s peace and blessings be upon him, So those who migrate for the sake of God and God’s Messenger, their migrations are for the sake of God and God’s Messenger, means those who migrate for the sake of God and God’s Messenger, intentionally and determinedly, their migrations are for the sake of God and God’s Messenger lawfully and in accordance with sharia. There is a reason behind this hadith. People said that a man migrated from Mecca to Medina not for the virtue of migration, or hegira, but in order to marry a woman named Umm-Qays. The man was later known as the Umm-Qays Migrant. God knows best.

Second Hadith

`Umar, may the Sublime God be pleased with him, also said, "One day, while we were sitting with God’s Messenger, may the Sublime God’s peace and blessings be upon him and his family, we saw a man whose clothes were so white and whose hair was so black. He didn’t carry the signs of a traveler and none of us knew who he was. He sat in front of the Prophet, may the Sublime God’s peace and blessings be upon him and his family, positioning his knees opposite those of the Prophet’s and placing his palms on his thighs. He said, ‘Muhammad, tell me about Islam?’ God’s Messenger, may the Sublime God’s peace and blessing be upon him, said, ‘Islam is to acknowledge that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is Allah’s Messenger. And to offer salat, pay zakat, fast Ramadan, and make hajj if you are able to do so.’ The man said, ‘You have told the truth.’ So we were surprised because the man was asking the Prophet questions and confirming his answers! The man asked, ‘Tell me about Iman (faith)?’ The Prophet replied, ‘It is to believe in Allah, Allah’s angels, Allah’s books, Allah’s messengers, and the day of resurrection and to believe in fate, good and bad.’ The man said, ‘You have told the truth.’ The man asked, ‘Tell me about Ihsan (benevolence)?’ The Prophet replied, ‘It is to worship God as if God were in your sight, and if God wasn’t in your sight, as if you were in God’s sight.’ The man asked, ‘Tell me about the hour of resurrection?’ The Prophet replied, ‘The one being asked doesn’t know more about it than the asker.’ The man asked, ‘Tell me about its signs?’ The Prophet replied, ‘When a bondmaid gives birth to her female master and you see the barefoot, the naked, the poor, and the shepherds building taller and taller structures.’ After that, the man left. Then, after quite a while, the Prophet asked me, ‘`Umar, do you know who the asker was?’ I replied, ‘God and God’s Messenger know best.’  The Prophet said, ‘It was Gabriel. He came to teach you your religion.’" Reported by Muslim.

***

This is a great hadith. It includes all the works of visible and internal deeds. All the sciences of sharia are based on this hadith and rely heavily on it due to the immense information that it contains of the science of sunna. It is like a mother to sunna the way Al-Fatiha[17] is like a mother to the Qur'an due to the many meanings of the holy book that it contains. The hadith shows that it is important that people wear nice clothing and be presentable and clean when going to see scholars, dignitaries, or kings since Gabriel was presentable when he came as a teacher.

The statement of `Umar, He didn’t carry the signs of a traveler, means the man didn’t appear to have been traveling since he looked clean and his clothes were neat.

The statement of `Umar, placing his palms on his thighs, means the man put his palms on his own thighs as a sign of respect, the way students would show respect to their teachers. This is how the hadith has been widely reported. Al-Nasa'i, however, reported it differently and said, "the man placed his hands on the knees of the Prophet, may God’s peace and blessings be upon him," in order to get the Prophet’s attention.

This hadith shows that Islam and Iman are two different entities linguistically and in sharia. This is the case with all different names. Sometimes the meaning of an entity is stretched in sharia and intersects with the meaning of another entity, and hence, they are used interchangeably, but the two entities remain distinct.

The statement of `Umar, So we were surprised because the man was asking the Prophet questions and confirming his answers! The companions of the Prophet, may God’s peace and blessings be upon him, were surprised because the information that was given by the Prophet was known only to him. The man who was asking the Prophet questions was not known to have ever met the Prophet or heard anything from him previously. Furthermore, the man asked inquisitive questions and looked as if he already knew the answers and believed in them. That was the source of the surprise.

The statement of the Prophet, may God’s peace and blessings be upon him, It is to believe in Allah, Allah’s angels, Allah’s books, Allah’s messengers, and the day of resurrection and to believe in fate, good and bad. To believe in Allah