And prayers and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions.

The reader: In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions.
He (may Allah have mercy on him) said: "The chapter on the virtue of the circles of dhikr. Allah the Exalted said:

And keep yourself patient [by being] with those who call upon their Lord in the morning and the evening, seeking His countenance. And let not your eyes pass beyond them, desiring adornments of the worldly life

واصبر نفسك مع الذين يدعون ربهم بالغداة والعشي يريدون وجهه ولا تعد عيناك عنهم تريد زينة الحياة الدنيا

[Al-Kahf 18:28]

[Narrated by] Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), who said:

The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Indeed, Allah the Exalted has angels who traverse the roads seeking the people of dhikr (remembrance of Allah). When they find a group of people remembering Allah, Mighty and Majestic, they call out to one another, ‘Come to your need.’ They then cover them with their wings up to the lowest heaven. Their Lord asks them, and He is the All-Knowing, ‘What are My servants saying?’ They say, ‘They glorify You, magnify You, praise You, and exalt You.’ He says, ‘Have they seen Me?’ They say, ‘No, by Allah, they have not seen You.’ He says, ‘How would it be if they saw Me?’ They say, ‘If they saw You, they would worship You more intensely, exalt You more, and glorify You more.’ He says, ‘What do they ask for?’ They say, ‘They ask You for Paradise.’ He says, ‘Have they seen it?’ They say, ‘No, by Allah, O Lord, they have not seen it.’ He says, ‘How would it be if they saw it?’ They say, ‘If they saw it, they would be more eager for it, more seeking of it, and have greater desire for it.’ He says, ‘What do they seek refuge from?’ They say, ‘They seek refuge from the Fire.’ He says, ‘Have they seen it?’ They say, ‘No, by Allah, they have not seen it.’ He says, ‘How would it be if they saw it?’ They say, ‘If they saw it, they would flee from it more intensely and fear it more.’ He says, ‘I bear witness that I have forgiven them.’ One of the angels says, ‘Among them is so-and-so, who is not of them; he only came for a need.’ He says, ‘They are the company, and no companion is made wretched by them.’”

قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم: إن لله تعالى ملائكة يطوفون في الطرق يلتمسون أهل الذكر فإذا وجدوا قومًا يذكرون الله عز وجل تنادوا هلموا إلى حاجتكم فيحفونهم بأجنحتهم إلى السماء الدنيا، فيسألهم ربهم وهو أعلم ما يقول عبادي؟ قال: يقولون: يسبحونك ويكبرونك ويحمدونك ويمجدونك، فيقول: هل رأوني؟ فيقولون: لا والله ما رأوك، فيقول: كيف لو رأوني؟ قال: يقولون: لو رأوك أشد لك عبادة وأشد لك تمجيدًا وأكثر لك تسبيحًا، فيقول: فماذا يسألون؟ قال: يقولون: يسألونك الجنة، قال: يقول: وهل رأوها؟ قال: يقولون: لا والله يا رب ما رأوها، قال: يقول: فكيف لو رأوها؟ قال: يقولون: لو أنهم رأوها كانوا أشد عليها حرصًا وأشد لها طلبًا وأعظم فيها رغبة، قال: فمم يتعوذون؟ قال: يقولون: يتعوذون من النار، قال: فيقول: وهل رأوها؟ قال: يقولون: لا والله ما رأوها، فيقول:كيف لو رأوها؟ قال: يقولون: لو رأوها كانوا أشد منها فرارًا وأشد لها مخافة، قال: فيقول: فأشهدكم أني قد غفرت لهم، قال، يقول ملك من الملائكة: فيهم فلان ليس منهم إنما جاء لحاجة، قال: هم الجلساء لا يشقى بهم جليسهم

It is agreed upon by al-Bukhari and Muslim. And in a narration by Muslim from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), he said:

Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Allah, the Exalted, has teams of angels who go about on the roads seeking those who remember Allah. When they find some people remembering Allah they call to one another and say, 'Come to what you are looking for;' and they surround them with their wings till the space between them and the lowest sky is fully covered. Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, asks them (although He is best informed about every thing): 'What are my slave saying?' They say: 'They are glorifying Your Tasbih, Tahmid, Takbir, Tamjid, (i.e., they were declaring Your Perfectness, praising, remembering the Greatness and Majesty of Allah).' He asks: 'Have they seen Me?' They reply, 'No, indeed, they have not seen You.' He asks: 'How would they act if they were to see Me?' Thereupon they reply: 'If they were to see You, they would engage more earnestly in worshipping and glorifying You and would extol You more.' He would say: 'What do they beg of Me?' They say, 'They beg You for Your Jannah.' Allah says, 'Have they seen My Jannah?' They say, 'No, our Rubb.' He says: 'How would they act if they were to see My Jannah?' They reply, 'Were they to see it, they would more intensely eager for it.' They (the angels) say, 'They seek Your Protection.' He asks, 'Against what do they seek My Protection?' They (the angels) say, 'Our Rubb, from the fire of Hell.' (He, the Rubb) says, 'Have they seen the fire of Hell?' They say, 'No. By Your Honour, they have not seen it.' He says: 'How would they act if they were to see My Fire?' They say: 'If they were to see it, they would more earnest in being away from it and fearing it. They beg of Your forgiveness.' He says: 'I call you to witness that I hereby grant pardon to them and confer upon them what they ask for; and grant them protection against what they seek protection from.' One of the angels says: 'Our Rubb, there is amongst them such and such slave who does not belong to the assembly of those who are participating in Your remembrance. He passed by them and sat down with them.' He says: 'I also grant him pardon because they are the people by virtue of whom their associates will not be unfortunate'." [Al-Bukhari and Muslim] . (The narration in Muslim is also the same with minor changes in wordings).

إن لله ملائكة سيارة فضلا يتتبعون مجالس الذكر فإذا وجدوا مجلسًا فيه ذكر قعدوا معهم وحف بعضهم بعضًا بأجنحتهم حتى يملؤوا ما بينهم وبين السماء الدنيا، فإذا تفرقوا عرجوا وصعدوا إلى السماء، فيسألهم الله عز وجل وهو أعلم من أين جئتم فيقولون جئنا من عند عباد لك في الأرض يسبحونك ويكبرونك ويهللونك ويحمدونك ويسألونك، قال: وماذا يسألوني؟ قالوا: يسألونك جنتك، قال: وهل رأوا جنتي؟ قالوا: لا أي رب، قال: فكيف لو رأوا جنتي؟ قالوا: ويستجيرونك، قال: ومم يستجيروني؟ قالوا: من نارك يا رب، قال: وهل رأوا ناري؟ قالوا: لا، قال: فكيف لو رأوا ناري؟ قالوا: ويستغفرونك، فيقول: قد غفرت لهم وأعطيتهم ما سألوا وأجرتهم مما استجاروا، قال: يقولون: رب فيهم فلان عبد خطاء إنما مر فجلس معهم، فيقول: وله غفرت هم القوم لا يشقى بهم جليسهم

Riyad as-Salihin 1447

".

The Shaykh : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
The author (may Allah have mercy on him) said in his book *Riyad al-Salihin*: "The chapter on the virtue of the circles of dhikr", meaning gathering to remember Allah Mighty and Majestic. Then he cited the noble verse: So Allah the Exalted commanded His Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) to restrain himself with these noble, honorable, and generous people. Restraining oneself means holding it back; hold yourself back with them, for these people are better than anyone you sit with. In the morning and in the evening, at the end of the day. Included in this, if Allah wills, is gathering for the Fajr prayer and the 'Asr prayer, because the first is in the morning and the second is in the evening, dawn and dusk. This is evidence of their sincerity to Allah Mighty and Majestic, and that they do not want this gathering and supplication to be praised for, or for it to be said, "How great their worship is, how much of it there is, how patient they are with it." They do not want any of this; they only want the Face of Allah Mighty and Majestic. Meaning: Do not pass by them, leave them, or look down on them for the sake of this world. However, for a greater benefit than what they are doing, there is no harm. But for the sake of this world, no. These are the people, and they are people of both this world and the Hereafter. Meaning: Do not obey the heedless one whose heart has become heedless, may Allah protect us, from the remembrance of Allah, and whose affair was excessive, who followed his desires, and whose this world and Hereafter were lost. In this noble verse is the virtue of gathering for dhikr and supplication, and the virtue of sincerity, and that sincerity is the foundation of everything. It also indicates that a person should not let the affairs of the Hereafter and worship be subordinate to the affairs of this world. As for the hadiths, the author mentioned the hadith of Abu Hurayrah in *Sahih al-Bukhari* and *Sahih Muslim* that Allah the Exalted assigned angels who roam the earth seeking the circles of dhikr. The angels are a hidden, noble creation that Allah Mighty and Majestic created from light and made solid, with no bellies, so they do not eat or drink; they do not need this. They have no stomachs or intestines, but they are solid. Therefore, they do not eat or drink. They are hidden and not seen, but Allah the Exalted may show them to people sometimes, as Jibril (peace be upon him) came in the form of a man with very white clothes and very black hair, with no trace of travel on him, and none of the Companions recognized him. He sat with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and asked him questions. This happens sometimes, but the original state is that the world of the angels is a hidden world, and all the angels are good. Therefore, they do not enter places that contain what angers Allah Mighty and Majestic. They do not enter a house with an image, nor accompany a group with a bell, nor a group with a dog, except a dog that is permissible to keep. These angels, whom Allah Mighty and Majestic assigned to roam the earth, when they find circles of dhikr, they sit with them, then they surround these people with their wings up to the sky, meaning these angels from the earth to the sky. Then Allah the Exalted asks them to manifest the virtue of these people who sat remembering Allah, glorifying Him, praising Him, saying Allahu Akbar, magnifying Him, and supplicating to Him. Otherwise, Allah the Exalted knows why He gathered them, but to manifest their virtue and nobility, He asks the angels, "Where did you come from?" They say: "We came from among Your servants on earth who glorify Him, say Allahu Akbar, magnify Him, praise Him, and supplicate to Him." He says to them: "What do they want?" They say: "They want Paradise. O Allah, make us among those who desired it and were among its people. They want Paradise." He says: "Have they seen it?" They say: "No." He says: "How would it be if they had seen it?" Meaning, they would have said they would seek it more intensely and have a greater longing for it, because Allah says: Then He asks them what they seek safety from? He says: "They ask You for safety from the Fire." This is the meaning of the hadith. He says: "Have they seen it?" They say: "No, they have not seen it." He says: "How would it be if they had seen it?" He says: "They would fear it more intensely." He says to them, Mighty and Majestic: all of them. And when Allah forgives a person, he becomes deserving of entering Paradise and being saved from the Fire. One of the angels says: "Among them is so-and-so who did not come for dhikr, but came for a need and found these people, so he sat with them." He (peace and blessings be upon him) says: And in this hadith is evidence of the virtue of righteous companions, and that a righteous companion may cause Allah the Exalted to extend His mercy to his companion even if he is not like him, because Allah the Exalted said: even though he did not come for dhikr and supplication, but for a need. And He said: And based on this, it is recommended to gather for reading the Qur'an, for dhikr, for tasbih, tahmid, and tahlil. Each of us supplicates for himself, remembers Allah for himself, and asks Allah for himself, but they gather. And as I told you, gathering includes Muslims gathering for the Fajr prayer and the 'Asr prayer, because it is dhikr, tasbih, takbir, tahlil, Qur'an, and supplication. It is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that the angels assigned to the children of Adam gather in the Fajr prayer and the 'Asr prayer. May Allah guide me and you to what He loves and is pleased with, for He is Able to do all things.