Riyad us-Saliheen

Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "(The performance of) 'Umrah is an expiation for the sins committed between it and the previous 'Umrah; and the reward of Hajj Mabrur (i.e., one accepted) is nothing but Jannah."

'Aishah (May Allah be pleased with her) reported: I said: "O Messenger of Allah! We consider Jihad as the best deed, should we not then go for Jihad?" The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "The best Jihad for you women is Hajj Mabrur (i.e., one accepted by Allah)."

'Aishah (May Allah be pleased with her) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "There is no day on which Allah sets free more slaves from Hell than He does on the Day of 'Arafah."

Ibn 'Abbas (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "(The performance of) 'Umrah during Ramadan is equal to Hajj (pilgrimage)." Or said, "Equal to the performance of Hajj with me."

Ibn 'Abbas (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: A woman came to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and said, "Allah's obligation upon His slaves has become obligatory on my father in his old age. My father is very old and incapable of riding. May I perform Hajj on his behalf?" He (ﷺ) said, "Yes."

As-Sai'b bin Yazid (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: I was seven years old when I was taken to perform Hajj (pilgrimage). This was during the time the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) performed the Hajjat-ul-Wada' (Farewell Pilgrimage)..

Ibn 'Abbas (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: The Prophet (ﷺ) came across a caravan at Ar-Rauha' and asked who the people in the caravan were. They replied that they were Muslims. They asked: "Who are you?" He (ﷺ) said, "I am the Messenger of Allah." Then a woman lifted up a boy to him and asked: "Would this child be credited with having performed the Hajj (pilgrimage)?" Whereupon he (ﷺ) said, "Yes, and you will have a reward."

Anas (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) performed the pilgrimage on an unsaddled camel which also carried his provisions (i.e., his Zamilah)..

Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was asked, "Which deed is the best?" He (ﷺ) replied, "Faith in Allah and His Messenger." He (ﷺ) was asked, "What is next?" He (ﷺ) replied, "Jihad (holy fighting) in the Cause of Allah." Then he was asked: "What is after that (in goodness)?" He (ﷺ) replied, "Hajj Mabrur (which is accepted by Allah)."

Ibn Mas'ud (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: I asked the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ): "Which action is dearest to Allah?" He (ﷺ) replied, "Performing As-Salat (the prayer) at its earliest fixed time." I asked, "What is next (in goodness)?" He (ﷺ) said, "Kindness towards parents." I asked, "What is next (in goodness)?" He (ﷺ) said, "To participate in Jihad in the Cause of Allah."

Abu Dharr (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was asked: "Which deed is the best?" He (ﷺ) replied, "Faith in Allah and Jihad (fighting, struggle) in the Cause of Allah."

Anas (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Verily! Setting out in the early morning or in the evening in order to fight in Allah's way is better than the world and what it contains."

Abu Sa'id Al-Khudri (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: A man came to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and said, "Who is the best among men?" He (ﷺ) replied, "A believer who strives in the way of Allah with his wealth and life." The man asked again, "Who is next to him (in excellence)?" He (ﷺ) said, "Next to him is a man who is engaged in worshipping his Rubb in a mountain valley, leaving the people secure from his mischief."

Sahl bin Sa'd (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Observing Ribat (e.g., guarding the Islamic frontier for the sake of Allah) for a single day is far better than the world and all that it contains. A place in Jannah as small as the whip of your horse is far better than the world and all that it contains. An endeavour (fighting) in the Cause of Allah in the evening or in the morning is far better than the world and all that it contains."

Salman (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying, "Observing Ribat in the way of Allah for a day and a night is far better than observing Saum (fasting) for a whole month and standing in Salat (prayer) in all its nights. If a person dies (while performing this duty), he will go on receiving his reward for his meritorious deeds perpetually, and he will be saved from Al- Fattan."

Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Whoever is wounded while fighting in the way of Allah, will come on the Day of Resurrection with blood oozing from his wound having the colour of blood but with the fragrance of musk."

Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was asked: "What other good deed could be an equivalent of Jihad in the way of Allah?" He (ﷺ) replied, "You do not have the strength to do it." (The narrator said:) The question was repeated twice or thrice, but every time he (ﷺ) answered, "You do not have the strength to do it." Then he (ﷺ) said, "One who goes out for Jihad in the Cause of Allah is like a person who observes Saum (fasting), stands in Salat (prayer) constantly, recites the Ayat of the Qur'an and does not exhibit any lassitude in fasting and prayer until the participant of Jihad in the way of Allah returns."

Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "The best life is that of the man who holds his horse's rein in Allah's way and flies on its back to the places from whence he hears a war cry or the clatter of arms, seeking martyrdom or slaughter on the battlefield; or that of a person who goes to stay on the top of the hill or in a valley, and there he performs Salat (prayer), pays the Zakat and worships his Rubb till death overtakes him. He has no concern with the affairs of anyone except the doing of good."

Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "In Jannah there are a hundred grades which Allah has prepared for those who fight in His Cause; and the distance between any two of those grades is like the distance between the heaven and the earth."

Abu Sa'id Al-Khudri (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "If anyone is pleased with Allah as his Rubb, with Islam as his religion and with Muhammad (ﷺ) as (Allah's) Messenger, surely, he will be entitled to enter Jannah." Abu Sa'id was delighted with this and requested the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) to repeat it. He (ﷺ) repeated it again and then said, "There is also another act by which Allah will elevate the position of a (pious believing) slave in Jannah to a grade one hundred degrees higher. And the distance between any two grades is equal to the distance between heaven and earth." He asked the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) what it was and he ((ﷺ)) replied, "Jihad in the way of Allah; Jihad in the way of Allah."