O Abu al-Mundhir, do you know which verse of Allah's Book that you have is the greatest?" I said: "{Allah: none has the right to be worshiped except Him, the Ever-Living, All-Sustaining...} [Surat al-Baqarah: 255]." Thereupon, he struck me on the chest and said: "May knowledge be pleasant for you, O Abu al-Mundhir!
Narrator in the source: ’Ubayy ibn Ka‘b
Ubayy ibn Ka‘b (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Abu al-Mundhir, do you know which verse of Allah's Book that you have is the greatest?" I replied: "Allah and His Messenger know best." He said: "O Abu al-Mundhir, do you know which verse of Allah's Book that you have is the greatest?" I said: "{Allah: none has the right to be worshiped except Him, the Ever-Living, All-Sustaining...} [Surat al-Baqarah: 255]." Thereupon, he struck me on the chest and said: "May knowledge be pleasant for you, O Abu al-Mundhir!"- Grade in the source
- Authentic
- Reported by
- Narrated by Muslim
- Source entry
- HadeethEnc · 65059 ↗
Original Arabic wording
عَنْ أُبَيِّ بْنِ كَعْبٍ رضي الله عنه قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: «يَا أَبَا الْمُنْذِرِ، أَتَدْرِي أَيُّ آيَةٍ مِنْ كِتَابِ اللهِ مَعَكَ أَعْظَمُ؟» قَالَ: قُلْتُ: اللهُ وَرَسُولُهُ أَعْلَمُ. قَالَ: «يَا أَبَا الْمُنْذِرِ، أَتَدْرِي أَيُّ آيَةٍ مِنْ كِتَابِ اللهِ مَعَكَ أَعْظَمُ؟» قَالَ: قُلْتُ: {اللهُ لا إِلَهَ إِلا هُوَ الْحَيُّ الْقَيُّومُ} [البقرة: 255]. قَالَ: فَضَرَبَ فِي صَدْرِي، وَقَالَ: «وَاللهِ لِيَهْنِكَ الْعِلْمُ، أَبَا الْمُنْذِرِ».Understand this hadith
The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) asked Ubayy ibn Ka‘b about the greatest verse in Allah's Book. He initially hesitated about the answer and then said: {Allah: none has the right to be worshiped except Him, the Ever-Living, All-Sustaining...} The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) agreed with him and struck him on the chest, indicating that it is filled with knowledge and wisdom. He also supplicated that this knowledge be pleasant and easy for him.
Lessons from the hadith
- The Hadīth highlights great excellence for Ubayy ibn Ka‘b (may Allah be pleased with him).
- The verse of al-Kursī is the greatest verse in the Book of Allah Almighty. So, we should memorize it, ponder its meanings, and act accordingly.
References (original Arabic)
صحيح مسلم (1/ 556) (810)، إكمال المعلم (3/178)، الكاشف عن حقائق السنن (5/1644)، المفهم (2/436)، البحر المحيط الثجاج في شرح صحيح الإمام مسلم بن الحجاج (16/ 394).