12 Hadiths Narrated by Eyup Sultan: Counsel From the Prophet's Household in Medina

Most visitors to Eyup Sultan know him as the Companion who hosted the Prophet in his home in Medina. Yet one of the most lasting legacies Abu Ayyub al-Ansari left to the Muslim community, and perhaps the least known, is the body of hadiths that reached us through him. After the Hijra, the Prophet stayed in his house for about seven months. In those months Abu Ayyub saw the Messenger of Allah up close every day: at his table, in his prayer and as he received his guests. In the years that followed, from Badr onwards, he never stayed behind from a single campaign. That closeness made him a trustworthy witness to the Prophet's words and way of life.

In this article we have gathered twelve of the hadiths narrated by Abu Ayyub, together with their sources. After each one, we pause briefly on what it asks of us today, in the hope that when you stand at his tomb you will remember that these words reached you through that very door.

How Many Hadiths Did Abu Ayyub Narrate?

The hadith literature records more than 150 narrations from Abu Ayyub al-Ansari. Some appear in the Sahih collections of Bukhari and Muslim; others in core works such as those of Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi, Nasa'i, Ibn Majah and the Musnad of Ahmad ibn Hanbal. Those who narrated from him include Companions such as al-Bara' ibn 'Azib, Zayd ibn Khalid al-Juhani, 'Abdullah ibn 'Abbas and Anas ibn Malik, and leading figures of the next generation such as Sa'id ibn al-Musayyib, 'Urwa ibn al-Zubayr and 'Ata' ibn Yazid al-Laythi. In the circles of learning in Medina, Abu Ayyub's word carried weight.

1. The Deed That Leads to Paradise

During a journey, a Bedouin took hold of the reins of the Prophet's camel and said, "Tell me of a deed that will bring me near to Paradise and keep me far from the Fire." The Messenger of Allah said:

"Worship Allah and associate nothing with Him, establish the prayer, pay the zakat, and keep the ties of kinship." (Bukhari, Zakat 1; Muslim, Iman 12-14)

What stands out is that in this short list of the path to Paradise, caring for one's relatives is named alongside prayer and zakat. The rights of people and the rights of Allah meet in a single sentence.

2. Six Days of Shawwal

"Whoever fasts Ramadan and then follows it with six days of Shawwal, it is as though he fasted the whole year." (Muslim, Siyam 204)

Scholars explain this by the principle that every good deed is rewarded tenfold: a month of Ramadan equals ten months, and six days equal two more. The hadith reminds us that worship does not end where Ramadan ends, and that the goodness gained should be carried forward.

3. A Three-Day Limit on Estrangement

"It is not lawful for a Muslim to shun his brother for more than three days, each turning away from the other when they meet. The better of the two is the one who greets first." (Bukhari, Adab 62; Muslim, Birr 25)

The Prophet accepts that hurt feelings are part of human nature, but he gives them a limit. And he places the burden of reconciliation not on the one who is in the right, but on the one who moves first: the better person is the one who offers the greeting first. A single message to someone you have fallen out with is the simplest way to live this hadith today.

4. A Remembrance Worth Freeing Four Slaves

"Whoever says ten times, 'La ilaha illallahu wahdahu la sharika lah, lahul-mulku wa lahul-hamdu wa huwa 'ala kulli shay'in qadir,' it is as though he freed four people from the descendants of Isma'il." (Bukhari, Da'awat 64; Muslim, Dhikr 30)

Its meaning: "There is no god but Allah, alone, without partner. His is the dominion and His is the praise, and He has power over all things." Freeing a human being is counted among the greatest good deeds in Islam. This hadith gives the glad tidings that a few minutes of sincere remembrance can carry such weight with Allah. For prayers you can recite during your visit, see Prayers and Surahs to Recite at the Tomb of Eyup Sultan.

5. The Prayer of One Who Is Bidding Farewell

A man asked the Prophet for a brief, concise piece of advice. The Messenger of Allah said:

"When you stand for prayer, pray as one who is bidding farewell. Do not say a word for which you will have to apologise tomorrow. And give up all hope in what is in people's hands." (Ibn Majah, Zuhd 15; Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Musnad)

This three-sentence counsel reads like the summary of a lifetime: humility in prayer, care with the tongue, and a heart attached to Allah alone. A prayer offered with the thought "this may be my last" awakens a person both to the world and to himself.

6. A Third of the Quran in One Night

The Prophet asked his Companions whether any of them was unable to recite a third of the Quran in a single night. They found this heavy. He then said:

"Whoever recites 'Allahul-wahidus-samad' (that is, Surah al-Ikhlas) has recited a third of the Quran." (Tirmidhi, Fada'il al-Quran 11)

Scholars explain this by the fact that Surah al-Ikhlas expresses tawhid, the oneness of God and one of the Quran's central themes, in its most concentrated form. A short surah, and a profound declaration.

7. The Witr Prayer

"Witr is a duty upon every Muslim. Whoever wishes to pray witr with five rak'ahs, let him do so; whoever wishes with three, let him do so; and whoever wishes with one, let him do so." (Abu Dawud, Witr; Nasa'i, Qiyam al-Layl; Ibn Majah, Iqamat al-Salat)

This hadith stresses the importance of not leaving one's night worship without its closing prayer. The different views of the schools of law on the number of rak'ahs of witr and its ruling arise largely from how narrations like this one are weighed. In the Hanafi school, followed in Turkey, witr is prayed as three rak'ahs and is considered wajib (necessary).

8. Four Practices of the Prophets

"Four things are among the practices of the messengers: modesty, wearing fragrance, using the miswak, and marriage." (Tirmidhi, Nikah 1)

In this list the inner life and outward appearance stand together. Modesty is the adornment of the heart; cleanliness and fragrance adorn the body, and marriage gives order to life. The way of the prophets is to beautify every side of a person at once.

9. Never Separate a Mother From Her Child

"Whoever separates a mother from her child, Allah will separate him from his loved ones on the Day of Resurrection." (Tirmidhi, Buyu' 52)

In an age when slavery was still widespread, this hadith established a principle of mercy, forbidding a mother and her young child from being torn apart in a sale. Its spirit still holds today: being the cause of a family's breaking apart is a heavy responsibility before Allah.

10. Reverence for the Qibla

"When you go to relieve yourselves, do not face the qibla or turn your back towards it." (Bukhari, Wudu 11; Muslim, Tahara 59)

Abu Ayyub observed this carefully throughout his life. He himself recounted: "We came to Syria and found that the latrines had been built facing the qibla. So we would turn away from it and ask Allah for forgiveness." (Bukhari, Salat 29) This small detail shows how he carried a word he had heard from the Prophet into even the most ordinary moments of life.

11. The Combined Prayers at Muzdalifa

Abu Ayyub was with the Prophet on the Farewell Pilgrimage and reported: "In the Farewell Pilgrimage, the Messenger of Allah combined the maghrib and isha prayers at Muzdalifa." (Bukhari, Hajj 96)

This narration is one of the sources on which the pilgrimage rites are still performed today. When pilgrims come down from Arafat to Muzdalifa and pray maghrib and isha together, they continue Abu Ayyub's testimony.

12. A Journey to Egypt for One Hadith

The story that best shows Abu Ayyub's devotion to the Prophet's words is a journey he made in old age. To hear once more, and confirm, a hadith that only one other living person, 'Uqba ibn 'Amir, had heard from the Prophet together with him, he travelled from Medina to Egypt. 'Uqba recited the hadith:

"Whoever covers the fault of a believer in this world, Allah will cover his fault on the Day of Resurrection." (Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Musnad)

On hearing it, Abu Ayyub said, "You have spoken the truth," returned to his mount and set off for Medina without lingering in the city. Hadith scholars recorded this episode in their books as one of the finest examples of travelling in search of knowledge. It is all the more meaningful that the hadith was about covering faults: Abu Ayyub crossed the desert to learn the value of concealing a brother's shortcomings.

What Do These Hadiths Tell Us?

Looking at Abu Ayyub's narrations together, a common spirit stands out: worship and character are never separated. Alongside acts of worship such as humility in prayer, the Shawwal fast and witr, human relationships always stand side by side: ending estrangement, caring for relatives, protecting families and covering faults. This is also a reflection of what a Companion who hosted the Prophet in his home saw most in his life.

When you visit the Tomb of Eyup Sultan, you might choose one of these hadiths and resolve to live it that day: reconciling with someone you are estranged from, covering someone's fault, or offering your prayer as "the prayer of one bidding farewell". For visiting etiquette, our guide Tomb Visiting Hours, Rules and Etiquette will help.

A Short Note on the Sources

The references for the hadiths in this article are given according to the six canonical collections (Kutub al-Sitta) and the Musnad of Ahmad ibn Hanbal. Chapter and hadith numbers may differ slightly between editions. Some of the narrations in Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah have been graded "hasan" (good) by hadith scholars. For a question of religious law, we recommend consulting a qualified scholar.

For the full life of Abu Ayyub al-Ansari, read Who Was Eyup Sultan?; for moving scenes from his life, 10 Instructive Moments From the Life of Eyup Sultan; and for the days he hosted the Prophet, Host of the Messenger: Eyup Sultan.