An-Nawawi's Forty HadithHadith 50

Constant remembrance of Allah

دوام ذكر الله

To a man who found the duties of Islam many, the Prophet ﷺ gave one practice to hold on to: keeping the tongue busy with the remembrance of Allah.

Sahih

The hadith

لاَ يَزَالُ لِسَانُكَ رَطْبًا مِنْ ذِكْرِ اللَّهِ

Abdullah bin Busr (ra) narrated that:A man said: “O Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), indeed, the legislated acts of Islam have become too much for me, so inform me of a thing that I should stick to.” He (ﷺ) said: “Let not your tongue cease to be moist with the remembrance of Allah.”

Reported by
Ahmad, at-Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah
Added by
Ibn Rajab, completing the fifty of Jami' al-'Ulum wal-Hikam

Lessons

Ibn Rajab closes his book with remembrance: the Quran commands remembering Allah much and makes it a mark of the believers, while the hypocrites remember Him only a little. The Prophet ﷺ remembered Allah in every state, and the best remembrance is that of the heart and tongue together.

He sets out its times, after the prayers, morning and evening, before sleep and on waking, and on occasions such as eating and travel, and its forms: glorifying, praising, declaring Allah's oneness and greatness, and seeking forgiveness. Its fruits are tranquillity of the heart, nearness to Allah and protection from heedlessness. In practice: fill idle moments with remembrance, and keep the remembrances of the day and night.

Evidence

Sahih

Jami' at-Tirmidhi 3375

Grades
GraderVerdict
Ahmad Muhammad ShakirSahih (Sahih)
Al-AlbaniSahih (Sahih)
Bashar Awad MaaroufHasan (Hasan)
Zubair Ali ZaiIsnaad Hasan (Hasan)
Full narration

حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو كُرَيْبٍ، حَدَّثَنَا زَيْدُ بْنُ حُبَابٍ، عَنْ مُعَاوِيَةَ بْنِ صَالِحٍ، عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ قَيْسٍ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ بُسْرٍ، رضى الله عنه أَنَّ رَجُلاً، قَالَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ إِنَّ شَرَائِعَ الإِسْلاَمِ قَدْ كَثُرَتْ عَلَىَّ فَأَخْبِرْنِي بِشَيْءٍ أَتَشَبَّثُ بِهِ ‏.‏ قَالَ ‏ "‏ لاَ يَزَالُ لِسَانُكَ رَطْبًا مِنْ ذِكْرِ اللَّهِ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ قَالَ أَبُو عِيسَى هَذَا حَدِيثٌ حَسَنٌ غَرِيبٌ مِنْ هَذَا الْوَجْهِ ‏.‏

Abdullah bin Busr (ra) narrated that:A man said: “O Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), indeed, the legislated acts of Islam have become too much for me, so inform me of a thing that I should stick to.” He (ﷺ) said: “Let not your tongue cease to be moist with the remembrance of Allah.”

View on sunnah.com
Report an error on this page

Tell us what looks wrong: a reference, a translation, the Arabic, or anything else. Scholars and editors read every report. Please don’t include personal details.

Text size

Appearance