The forty heart

The Forty in the Heart's Matters Many scholars of the Salaf and Khalaf were keen on collecting forty Hadiths from the sayings of the Messenger ﷺ, and they excelled in gathering them until their topics varied, and their purposes differed. They authored countless works in this regard, and their intentions in composing, collecting, and arranging them varied. Some relied on mentioning Hadiths of Tawhid in their forty, or establishing the attributes, such as the Forty in the Evidence of Tawhid, by Abu Ismail al-Horri - may Allah have mercy on him -, and the Forty in the Attributes of the Lord of the Worlds, by Imam al-Dhahabi - may Allah have mercy on him. Some aimed in their forty to focus on rulings, as Imam al-Hafiz al-Mundhiri - may Allah have mercy on him - compiled forty in the Hadiths of rulings. Some limited themselves to worship, among the rulings, such as the Forty in Worship, by Yusuf ibn Abdullah ibn Saeed al-Husseini al-Armouni al-Masri al-Shafi’i, a student of Imam al-Suyuti - may Allah have mercy on him. Some chose sermons and admonitions. Some aimed to extract authentic chains of narration, free from criticism. Some focused on what has a high chain of narration. Some preferred to extract lengthy texts that appear to the listener as good when heard, and so on. Each of these authors named their book: The Forty in such-and-such, and the most famous is: The Forty Nawawi by Imam al-Nawawi - may Allah have mercy on him. Imam al-Nawawi - may Allah have mercy on him - intended to compile forty Hadiths concerning the fundamentals of religion and its roots, the Hadiths upon which the religion is built. Al-Hafiz ibn Rajab added to them what he added and explained many of them. This book, The Forty in the Heart's Matters and the Reform of the Heart, is based on the approach of scholars. A famous Hadith has been narrated through various chains from several companions, such as Ali, Ibn Mas’ud, Mu’adh ibn Jabal, Abu Darda, Abu Sa’id, Abu Huraira, Abu Imama, Ibn Abbas, Ibn Umar, Ibn ‘Amr, Jaber ibn Sumaura, Anas, Buraira, among others. Imam Ibn al-Jawzi - may Allah have mercy on him - mentioned these in his book "Al-‘Ilal al-Mutannahiya fi al-Ahadiith al-Waheh," explaining their weakness. From these narrations: “Whoever memorizes forty Hadiths concerning the affairs of his religion, Allah will resurrect him on the Day of Resurrection as a jurist and scholar.” [Al-‘Ilal al-Mutannahiya: 1/119] In another narration: “It was said to him: Enter from whichever gates of Paradise you wish.” [Al-‘Ilal al-Mutannahiya: 1/119] And in another: “Allah will resurrect him as a jurist, and I will be his intercessor and witness on the Day of Resurrection.” [Al-‘Ilal al-Mutannahiya: 1/120] However, despite many of his narrations, they are not authentic, as they are transmitted through many routes, many of which are weak. Scholars have exerted effort in this matter, and they rely on the transmitted Hadiths, and the many chains. This collection has benefits, including: creating a concise summary that makes it easier for Muslims to grasp the fundamentals of one aspect of the field, even if the specific virtue is not proven. But the general virtue is in conveying knowledge to people, by providing a summarized collection, gathering the texts on a topic, and summarizing a chapter; thus, it has great educational benefit. Imam al-Nawawi - may Allah have mercy on him - said in the introduction of the Forty Nawawi: “Scholars - may Allah be pleased with them - have authored countless works in this field. This compiler gathers in his chapter Hadiths that speak about the heart and what relates to it, making it easy to compile, explain, and extract benefits from them.”