He also said, with respect to the Almighty’s words,
“and purify your garments” (al-Muddaththir 4):
“Your deeds—so set them right.” (1)

Concerning His words,
“and ask Allah of His bounty” (al-Nisāʾ 32),
he said:
“It is not part of the transient goods of this world.”

Regarding the verse,
“Those who came with the truth and confirmed it” (al-Zumar 33),
he said:
“They are the people who come with the Quran, have followed it, and acted upon what it contains.”

He further said:
“The Quran says to the servant, ‘I am with you so long as you follow me; but when you cease to act upon me, I will pursue you.’”

As for His words,
“Do not forget your share of this world” (al-Qaṣaṣ 77),
he said: “Take from your worldly life for your Hereafter; that is, employ it in obeying Allah—may He be exalted.” (2)

Dāwūd ibn al-Muhabbar related from ʿAbbād ibn Kathīr, from ʿAbd al-Wahhāb ibn Mujāhid, from his father Mujāhid ibn Jabr, who said: “I asked Ibn ʿUmar, ‘Which pilgrims to the House of Allah are the best and have the greatest reward?’ He replied, ‘Those who combine three qualities: a sincere intention, sound reason, and expenditures from lawful wealth.’ I mentioned that to Ibn ʿAbbās and he said, ‘He has spoken the truth.’ I then asked, ‘If his intention is sincere and his spending is lawful, how can limited intellect harm him?’ He said, ‘O Abū Ḥajjāj, you have asked me about something for which I questioned the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.’ He replied:

‘By Him in Whose hand is my soul, a servant has never obeyed Allah with anything better than sound reason. Allah does not accept a servant’s fast, prayer, or any other act of goodness unless it is performed with reason; and if an ignorant man were to outdo the diligent worshippers in devotion, what he corrupts would outweigh what he rectifies.’ (4)

I say: Mentioning “reason” in this ḥadīth and attributing it to the Prophet ﷺ is among the rejected and fabricated reports. The three qualities are only mawqūf on Ibn ʿUmar—from his words “Whoever combines three qualities” up to Ibn ʿAbbās’s statement “He has spoken the truth.” The rest is neither authentically marfūʿ nor mawqūf. As for Dāwūd ibn al-Muhabbar—whose kunyah is Abū Sulaymān—al-Ḥākim said: “He narrated in Baghdad from a group of reliable transmitters but related forged ḥadīths from them, which al-Ḥārith ibn Abī Usāmah transmitted from him. He compiled a book entitled ‘al-ʿAql,’ and most of what he placed in that book is fabricated against the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. The mention of ‘reason’ raised to the Prophet in this report is probably one of those fabrications. Allah knows best.” Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal declared him a liar. (5)