Narrated by Abdullah ibn Abbas
When the Prophet ﷺ sent Mu'adh to Yemen he said: "Call them to testify that there is no god but Allah and that I am the Messenger of Allah. If they obey you in that, tell them that Allah has made five prayers obligatory upon them in every day and night. If they obey you in that, tell them that Allah has made charity obligatory upon them, taken from their rich and given to their poor."
Sahih al-Bukhari 1395, Sahih Muslim 19
What this hadith teaches
This shows the order of teaching Islam: faith first, then prayer, then zakah. Prayer is the first practical sign that a person has accepted Islam.
Reference and grade
- Grade
- Sahih: agreed upon by al-Bukhari and Muslim
- Narrator
- Abdullah ibn Abbas
- Chapter
- Why prayer matters
The hadith in Arabic نص الحديث
ادْعُهُمْ إِلَى شَهَادَةِ أَنْ لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ اللَّهُ، وَأَنِّي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ، فَإِنْ هُمْ أَطَاعُوا لِذَلِكَ فَأَعْلِمْهُمْ أَنَّ اللَّهَ قَدِ افْتَرَضَ عَلَيْهِمْ خَمْسَ صَلَوَاتٍ فِي كُلِّ يَوْمٍ وَلَيْلَةٍ، فَإِنْ هُمْ أَطَاعُوا لِذَلِكَ فَأَعْلِمْهُمْ أَنَّ اللَّهَ افْتَرَضَ عَلَيْهِمْ صَدَقَةً فِي أَمْوَالِهِمْ، تُؤْخَذُ مِنْ أَغْنِيَائِهِمْ وَتُرَدُّ عَلَى فُقَرَائِهِمْ
Arabic text of Sahih al-Bukhari 1395, as given on sunnah.com.