Free hadith citation tool

Hadith Reference Finder

Search a hadith theme or keyword and get a full, checkable citation — narrator, collection, book, number, and grade — ready to use in a lesson, khutbah, or article.

28 verified references Search by topic or number Works in your browser
SAMPLE CITATION
Text“Actions are judged by intentions…”
NarratorUmar ibn al-Khattab
CollectionSahih al-Bukhari 1
GradeSahih

Find a hadith citation by keyword or theme

This hadith reference finder already lists every citation below — fully readable and indexable. Tap a topic bead, or filter by keyword.

Showing all 28 references.

01

Every deed is judged by the intention behind it, and each person will be rewarded according to what they intended.

Narrator Umar ibn al-KhattabSource Sahih al-Bukhari 1; also Sahih Muslim 1907Sahih
02

None of you truly believes until he loves for his brother what he loves for himself.

Narrator Anas ibn MalikSource Sahih al-Bukhari 13; also Sahih Muslim 45Sahih
03

Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should speak good or remain silent, and should honor his guest and his neighbor.

Narrator Abu HurairahSource Sahih al-Bukhari 6018; also Sahih Muslim 47Sahih
04

Smiling at your brother is an act of charity.

Narrator Abu DharrSource Jami at-Tirmidhi 1956Hasan
05

Faith has over sixty branches, and modesty (haya) is one of them.

Narrator Abu HurairahSource Sahih al-Bukhari 9; also Sahih Muslim 35Sahih
06

He is not one of us who does not show mercy to our young and does not honor our elders.

Narrator Abdullah ibn AmrSource Jami at-Tirmidhi 1919; also Sunan Abi Dawud 4943Hasan
07

A man asked the Prophet who most deserves his good companionship. He said, “Your mother,” three times, then, “Your father.”

Narrator Abu HurairahSource Sahih al-Bukhari 5971; also Sahih Muslim 2548Sahih
08

The Lord’s pleasure lies in the parent’s pleasure, and the Lord’s displeasure lies in the parent’s displeasure.

Narrator Abdullah ibn AmrSource Jami at-Tirmidhi 1899Hasan
09

The most complete believers in faith are those with the best character, and the best among you are those best to their families.

Narrator Abu HurairahSource Jami at-Tirmidhi 3895Hasan
10

Seeking knowledge is an obligation upon every Muslim.

Narrator Anas ibn MalikSource Sunan Ibn Majah 224Hasan (grading discussed among specialists)
11

Whoever takes a path in search of knowledge, Allah makes easy for him a path to Paradise.

Narrator Abu HurairahSource Sahih Muslim 2699Sahih
12

The strong believer is better and more beloved to Allah than the weak believer, though there is good in both.

Narrator Abu HurairahSource Sahih Muslim 2664Sahih
13

Cleanliness is half of faith.

Narrator Abu Malik al-Ash’ariSource Sahih Muslim 223Sahih
14

Allah does not show mercy to one who does not show mercy to people.

Narrator Jarir ibn AbdullahSource Sahih al-Bukhari 6013Sahih
15

The strong person is not the one who overpowers others; the strong person is the one who controls himself when angry.

Narrator Abu HurairahSource Sahih al-Bukhari 6114; also Sahih Muslim 2609Sahih
16

Truthfulness leads to righteousness, and righteousness leads to Paradise. Lying leads to wickedness, and wickedness leads to the Fire.

Narrator Abdullah ibn Mas’udSource Sahih al-Bukhari 6094; also Sahih Muslim 2607Sahih
17

The signs of a hypocrite are three: when he speaks he lies, when he promises he breaks it, and when he is entrusted he betrays that trust.

Narrator Abu HurairahSource Sahih al-Bukhari 33; also Sahih Muslim 59Sahih
18

Do you know what backbiting is? It is saying something about your brother that he would dislike.

Narrator Abu HurairahSource Sahih Muslim 2589Sahih
19

Jibril kept advising me about the neighbor until I thought he would make him an heir.

Narrator Ibn Umar & AishaSource Sahih al-Bukhari 6014; also Sahih Muslim 2624Sahih
20

You will not enter Paradise until you believe, and you will not believe until you love one another. Spread the greeting of peace (salam) among yourselves.

Narrator Abu HurairahSource Sahih Muslim 54Sahih
21

True patience is at the first strike of calamity.

Narrator Anas ibn MalikSource Sahih al-Bukhari 1283; also Sahih Muslim 926Sahih
22

Whoever relieves a believer’s hardship in this world, Allah will relieve his hardship on the Day of Judgment.

Narrator Abu HurairahSource Sahih Muslim 2699Sahih
23

Fasting is a shield.

Narrator Abu HurairahSource Sahih al-Bukhari 1894; also Sahih Muslim 1151Sahih
24

Whoever fasts Ramadan out of faith and hope for reward will have his previous sins forgiven.

Narrator Abu HurairahSource Sahih al-Bukhari 38; also Sahih Muslim 760Sahih
25

Charity does not decrease wealth.

Narrator Abu HurairahSource Sahih Muslim 2588Sahih
26

Supplication (dua) is the essence of worship.

Narrator An-Nu’man ibn BashirSource Jami at-Tirmidhi 3371Hasan
27

If you relied on Allah with true reliance, He would provide for you as He provides for the birds: they go out hungry in the morning and return full in the evening.

Narrator Umar ibn al-KhattabSource Jami at-Tirmidhi 2344Hasan
28

Remember often the destroyer of pleasures — death.

Narrator Abu HurairahSource Jami at-Tirmidhi 2307; also Sunan Ibn Majah 4258Hasan

What makes a citation complete

A usable hadith reference is more than the quoted line. It needs the narrator — the Companion who reported it — the collection and book it comes from, a hadith number so anyone can look it up, and the authenticity grade assigned by hadith scholars. Missing any one of these turns a citation into an unverifiable quote.

That completeness matters most in three situations: teaching a class where a student might ask “where is this from,” writing an article where a reader will want to check the source, and preparing a khutbah where the congregation deserves a properly sourced reminder. This tool is built around that need — every entry above already carries all four elements.

Example hadith citation showing narrator, collection, number, and grading

A worked example

Filtering this hadith reference finder for “mother” surfaces a citation formatted like this:

FieldValue
Text“Your mother,” named three times before “your father,” when asked who deserves the best companionship.
NarratorAbu Hurairah
SourceSahih al-Bukhari 5971; also Sahih Muslim 2548
GradeSahih

What each grade means for citation purposes

  • Sahih — the chain of narration meets the strictest criteria hadith scholars apply; safe to cite without further caveat in most contexts.
  • Hasan — the chain is reliable but slightly less strong than Sahih; still considered usable in scholarship, worth noting as Hasan when citing precisely.
  • Grading under discussion — a small number of widely used hadith have chains that specialists have debated; this tool flags those explicitly rather than presenting them as settled.

Every reference above states its grade plainly so you never have to guess before citing it.

The topics covered

Family & ParentsParents, mother, marriage
Character & SpeechHonesty, anger, backbiting
Worship & FaithIntention, dua, cleanliness
KnowledgeLearning, education
Charity & CommunityNeighbor, mercy, greeting
FastingRamadan
Patience & TrustTawakkul, death

Sources and methodology

Every citation on this page is drawn from a major, widely recognized collection — mainly Sahih al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim, and Jami at-Tirmidhi — with the narrator, book, and hadith number taken from standard print numbering. No wording, narrator, or reference on this page is generated; each was entered from an existing published citation.

For a formal citation, a ruling, or teaching, verify the exact Arabic wording and full chain against a primary source such as Sunnah.com.

Questions

What’s the difference between this and Hadith by Topic Finder?

Hadith by Topic Finder is for open-ended browsing through ten themed folios. This tool is built specifically to hand you a complete, ready-to-cite reference once you already know roughly what you’re looking for.

Can I use these citations in a published article or khutbah?

Yes — each includes narrator, collection, book, number, and grade, which is what a citation needs. For direct quotation, cross-check the exact Arabic wording against a primary source first.

Why do some references list two collections?

Many well-known hadith were recorded independently by more than one compiler — commonly both Bukhari and Muslim. Listing both gives a stronger, doubly-attested reference.

What does “grading discussed among specialists” mean?

A handful of widely cited hadith have chains that hadith specialists have debated over the centuries. Rather than presenting these as uncontroversially Sahih or Hasan, this tool notes the discussion explicitly.

Can I search by hadith number instead of topic?

Yes — type a reference like “Bukhari 5971” or “Muslim 223” into the search box and this hadith reference finder will match it directly, alongside its normal topic-based search.

Is this hadith reference finder connected to a live hadith database?

No — this hadith reference finder is a fixed, hand-checked list of 28 references. It won’t cover every hadith in existence; for a broader search, use the Hadith Search Tool.

Find your next reference

Filter by topic above, copy the full citation, and cite with confidence.

Find a reference
Scroll to Top