It has been reported by Hadhrat Omar (R.A) that one day he and some other Sahabaah (companions of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W) were sitting in the presence of The Holy Prophet (S.A.W) when a man suddenly appeared. His clothes were very white, his hair jet black and there was not a trace of his having travelled on a journey. None of the Companions recognized Him.
The Companions of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W) were very surprised because if the man was from Medina they would have recognized him and if he travelled here from somewhere else then his clothing would be soiled and other traces of the journey would be apparent.
The visitor went straight up to The Holy Prophet (S.A.W) & sat down, his knees touching those of the Prophet (S.A.W) Then he placed his hand on the thigh of the Messenger of Allah (S.A.W) and began asking questions which the Prophet (S.A.W) answered.
"Muhammad (S.A.W), tell me what is Islam?" the stranger asked.
The Prophet (S.A.W) answered "Islam is that you bear witness that There is no God but Allah and that Muhammad (S.A.W) is His Messenger, that you establish Salaah (prayer), observe fasting during the month of Ramadan, give zakaat (charity) and perform the annual pilgrimage (Hajj) if you can"
Hearing this the stranger remarked "Sadaqta", which when translated from Arabic means 'You are right'
Hazrat Omar (R.A) says that he was astonished that the man himself had asked a question and when the answer was given he commented on its correctness as though he already knew the answer.
The visitor then asked "Tell me what is Faith?"
"Faith is that you believe in the Allah, in His Angels, in his revealed Books, in His Messengers, in the Last Day and in fate, whether good or bad." replied The Holy Prophet (S.A.W)
The visitor remarked again "Sadaqta" You are right.
"And what is ehsan?" the visitor went on.
"Ehsan" the Prophet(S.A.W), "is that you worship Allah in such a way that you believe that you are seeing Him, and if you cannot do that, you should be aware that He is seeing you."
"Now Tell me what are the signs of the approach of the Last Day?"
"Some of the signs are that women will give birth to daughters who will lord over them, and beggars and poachers will pride themselves over living in high mansions."
The mysterious stranger then left and The Prophet (S.A.W) then asked "Omar, do you know who this visitor was?"
"Allah and His Messenger know best" was Omar's humble reply.
"He was Jibraeel (Gabriel). He came to teach you by questioning me what your religion is."
This Tradition is known as the Hadees of Gabriel. It covers all the principles of Islam and thus it is also called 'The Mother Tradition'
Sometimes the Companions of The Holy Prophet (S.A.W) were in such awe of Him that they did not ask the questions that they wanted to and waited instead for some Bedouin to turn up and query Him.
This is why Allah Ta'alah sent Gabriel to assume the role of a pupil so that He might convey essential teachings by asking questions.
In the next article I will discuss in more detail about the 6 basic beliefs that every Muslim should have.
If you would like to read more about the basic principles and beliefs of Islam then I highly recommend:
Toward Understanding Islam
