English Translation

Affan told us: Abu Khalaf Musa ibn Khalaf, who was counted among the substitutes, told us: Yahya ibn Abi Kathir told us, from Zayd ibn Sallam, from his grandfather Mamtur, from al-Harith al-Ash'ari, that the Prophet of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: Allah, Mighty and Majestic, commanded Yahya ibn Zakariyya, peace be upon them both, with five commands, to act upon them himself and to command the Children of Israel to act upon them, and he was near to being slow in delivering them, so Isa said to him: You have been commanded with five commands, to act upon them and to command the Children of Israel to act upon them, so either you convey them or I will convey them. He said: O my brother, I fear that if you precede me in this I will be punished or made to sink into the earth. He said: So Yahya gathered the Children of Israel in the Holy House until the mosque was full, and he sat upon the elevated place, and praised Allah and extolled Him, then said: Allah, Mighty and Majestic, has commanded me with five commands, to act upon them and to command you to act upon them. The first of them is that you worship Allah and associate nothing with Him, for the likeness of that is the likeness of a man who bought a slave with his own pure wealth, in silver or gold, and the slave then went about working and delivering his earnings to someone other than his master - which of you would be pleased for his slave to be like that? And indeed Allah, Mighty and Majestic, created you and provided for you, so worship Him and associate nothing with Him. And I command you to pray, for Allah, Mighty and Majestic, turns His face toward the face of His servant so long as he does not turn away, so when you pray, do not turn away. And I command you to fast, for the likeness of that is the likeness of a man who has with him a bag of musk among a group of people, all of whom find the scent of the musk; and indeed the breath of the fasting person's mouth is, with Allah, sweeter than the scent of musk. And I command you to give charity, for the likeness of that is the likeness of a man whom the enemy has captured, and they bound his hands to his neck and brought him forward to strike off his neck, and he said: Will you accept that I ransom myself from you? So he went on ransoming himself from them with little and much until he freed himself. And I command you to remember Allah, Mighty and Majestic, much, for the likeness of that is the likeness of a man pursued swiftly by the enemy in hot pursuit, until he came to a fortified stronghold and took refuge in it; and indeed the servant is most protected from Satan when he is engaged in the remembrance of Allah, Mighty and Majestic. He said: Then the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: And I command you with five things which Allah has commanded me with: the community, hearing and obeying, emigration, and jihad in the way of Allah. For whoever departs from the community by the span of a hand has cast off the noose of Islam from his neck, unless he returns; and whoever calls with the call of the Jahiliyyah is among the fuel of Hell. They said: O Messenger of Allah, even if he fasts and prays? He said: Even if he fasts and prays and claims that he is a Muslim. So call the Muslims by the names that Allah, Mighty and Majestic, has named them: the Muslims, the believers, the servants of Allah, Mighty and Majestic.