, and he replied: ‘To testify that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, establish prayer, give zakat, fast Ramadan, and perform pilgrimage to the House.’”

It is also narrated from him that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

“I have been commanded to fight the people until they say, ‘There is no deity worthy of worship except Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah,’ establish prayer, and give zakat. If they do so, they have secured their lives and property against me, except where a rightful claim applies, and their reckoning rests with Allah.”

When he sent Muʿādh to Yemen, he told him:

“You are going to a people from among the People of the Book. Let the first thing you call them to be the testimony that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah and that I am the Messenger of Allah. If they accept this from you, inform them that Allah has prescribed for them five prayers each day and night. If they accept this from you, inform them that Allah has prescribed for them obligatory charity, to be taken from their wealthy and returned to their poor. If they accept this from you, take it from them, but avoid taking their choicest possessions. Beware of the supplication of one who has been wronged, for there is no barrier between it and Allah.”

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Prayer and zakat are mentioned in the Quran in general terms, and the Messenger, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, explained them in detail. His explanation, too, is revelation, for Allah, glorified be He, sent down to him the Book and wisdom.