English Translation

Yazid told us: al-Mas'udi informed us, from Abu Amr al-Shami, from Ubayd ibn al-Khashkhash, from Abu Dharr, who said: I came to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, while he was in the mosque, and I sat by him. He said: "O Abu Dharr, have you prayed?" I said: "No." He said: "Get up and pray." So I got up and prayed, then I came to him and sat by him. He said to me: "O Abu Dharr, seek refuge in Allah from the evil of the devils among mankind and the jinn." I said: "O Messenger of Allah, are there devils among mankind?" He said: "Yes. O Abu Dharr, shall I not show you a treasure from among the treasures of Paradise?" I said: "Yes indeed, may my father and mother be your ransom." He said: "Say: 'There is no power and no strength except with Allah,' for it is a treasure from the treasures of Paradise." I said: "O Messenger of Allah, what is prayer?" He said: "A good thing that is laid down; whoever wishes may do more and whoever wishes may do less." I said: "What is fasting, O Messenger of Allah?" He said: "An obligation that suffices." I said: "O Messenger of Allah, what is charity?" He said: "Manifold reward, and with Allah there is increase." I said: "Which of these is most excellent, O Messenger of Allah?" He said: "A small effort from one who has little, or [given] secretly to a poor person." I said: "Which of what Allah, Mighty and Sublime, has revealed to you is greatest?" He said: "'Allah, there is no god but He, the Ever-Living, the Sustainer of all'" until he finished the verse. I said: "Which of the prophets was first?" He said: "Adam." I said: "Was he a prophet, O Messenger of Allah?" He said: "A prophet spoken to." I said: "How many are the messengers, O Messenger of Allah?" He said: "Three hundred and fifteen, a great multitude."