حياة السلف بين القول والعمل

Abdullah bin Dawood, may God have mercy on him, said: When one of them reached forty years of age, he would fold his bed. Some of them would stay up all night, and when they looked at the dawn, they would say: At dawn, the people praise the night journey. [Uyun al-Akhbar 2/677].

On the authority of Mujahid, may God have mercy on him, he said: “Three types of people will be brought forth on the Day of Resurrection: the rich, the sick, and the slave.” On the authority of Abu al-Ahwas, he said: Abu Ishaq, may God have mercy on him, told us: “I have grown old and weak, and I only fast three days a month, Mondays and Thursdays, and the sacred months.” [Al-Hilya (its abridgment) 2/119]

On the authority of Musa bin Ismail, he said: If I told you that I never saw Hammad bin Salamah, may God have mercy on him, laughing, I would be telling you the truth. He was always preoccupied with himself, either narrating hadith, or reciting, or glorifying God, or praying. He had divided the day among these activities. [Al-Hilya (its abridgment) 2/335].

On the authority of Ibn al-Mubarak, he said: I asked Sufyan al-Thawri, may God have mercy on him, about a man who prays, what should he intend by his prayer? He said: He should intend to converse with his Lord. [Al-Hilya (its abridgment) 2/402].

Al-Fudayl ibn Iyad, may God have mercy on him, said: The words of the believer are wisdom, his silence is contemplation, his gaze is a lesson, and his actions are righteousness. If you are like this, you will always be in worship. [Al-Hilya (its abridgment) 3/16].