Abu Sa‘īd al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Abu Sa‘īd, whoever is pleased with Allah as a Lord, with Islam as a religion, and with Muhammad as a messenger, Paradise is guaranteed for him." Abu Sa‘īd was full of wonder at that, so he said: O Messenger of Allah, repeat that to me. He did so and then said: "There is something else by means of which the slave is raised a hundred degrees in Paradise; the distance between each two degrees is like that between the heavens and the earth." He said: O Messenger of Allah, what is it? He said: "Jihad for the sake of Allah, Jihad for the sake of Allah."
GradingAuthentic
AttributionNarrated by Muslim
Explanation
The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) informed Abu Sa‘īd al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) that whoever believes in Allah, accepts Him as a Lord, God, Owner, Master, and Commander, embraces Islam as a religion, submitting and surrendering to all of its commands and prohibitions, and believes in Muhammad (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) as a prophet with everything he was sent with and conveyed, Paradise will be guaranteed for him. Abu Sa‘īd (may Allah be pleased with him) was amazed and asked: Repeat it to me, O Messenger of Allah, and he did. Then the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) added: And I have another quality by which Allah raises a slave by one hundred degrees in Paradise; the distance between every two degrees is like that between the heavens and the earth. Abu Sa‘īd asked: What is it, O Messenger of Allah? He replied: Jihad for the sake of Allah, Jihad for the sake of Allah.