The Sahabah (may Allah be pleased with them) – because of their keenness to do that which would bring them closer to the pleasure of Allah (may He be glorified and exalted) – often asked the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) about the best deeds and those which would bring them closest to Allah (may He be exalted). The responses of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) varied from one person to another, according to their character and situation, and what would be most beneficial for each of them. In this hadith, ‘Abdullah ibn Mas‘ud (may Allah be pleased with him) asks the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him): Which deed is most beloved to Allah? The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) answered that the most beloved of deeds to Allah (may He be exalted) and the most pleasing to Him is prayer offered at the beginning of its time. That means that the Muslim regularly offers the prayer after hearing the adhan. Mentioning the best time to pray serves to urge and encourage the Muslim to hasten to pray, and not be lazy or delay offering the prayer, because offering the prayer at the beginning of its time indicates that one is keen to do it, and that the Muslim acknowledges the rights of Allah and honours them, that he offers the prayer at the time when it becomes obligatory, without delaying or procrastinating, and that he is not among those of whom Allah (may He be exalted) says: {So woe to those who pray, [But] who are heedless of their prayer} [al-Ma‘un 107:4-5] – they are the ones who delay the prayer from the best time to offer it, or even until its time has ended. Then the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) told him that the next most beloved deed to Allah is honouring one’s parents, by treating them kindly and serving them, and not defiantly disobeying them. That was because Ibn Mas‘ud had a mother, so he needed to be reminded about honouring his parents after the prayer, because prayer is the right of Allah and the rights of parents come after the rights of Allah (may He be glorified and exalted, as He says: {Be grateful to Me and to your parents; to Me is the [final] destination} [Luqman 31:14]. Then Ibn Mas‘ud (may Allah be pleased with him) asked which deed was most beloved to Allah (may He be exalted) after honouring one’s parents, and the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) told him that it is jihad in Allah’s cause, to make the word of Allah (may He be glorified and exalted) supreme, offering one’s life and wealth, so that the symbols and rituals of Islam may be practised openly. What is meant is that the best of deeds is fulfilling the rights of Allah that He has enjoined upon His slaves, the best of which is prayer offered on time, then fulfilling the rights of His slaves, the most important of which is honouring one’s parents. And the pinnacle of deeds is jihad in Allah’s cause. It was said that the wisdom behind singling out these three things for mention – prayer on time, honouring one’s parents, and jihad – is because these three are the best of deeds after faith. The one who neglects the prayer – which is the foundation of faith – at the time when he is aware of its virtue, is more likely to neglect other matters of religion, be careless about them and take them lightly. Similarly, the one who fails to honour his parents is more likely to neglect other rights of people. By the same token, the one who neglects jihad in Allah’s cause – even though he is able to do it when it becomes an individual obligation for him –is more likely to neglect other deeds by means of which he may draw closer to Allah (may He be exalted). Then Ibn Mas‘ud (may Allah be pleased with him) stated that if he had asked the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) to tell him about more deeds, the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) would not have refused to tell him of the best deeds. This hadith highlights the keenness of the Sahabah and of Ibn Mas‘ud (may Allah be pleased with him) to seek out the most sublime of deeds. It also indicates that Muslims are urged to pray when the time for the prayer begins, to honour their parents, and to strive in jihad in Allah’s cause..