1080 - 'Ismah ibn 'Isam informed me, saying: Hanbal narrated to us, saying: Abu 'Abd Allah narrated to us, saying: Mu'awiyah ibn Hisham and Abu Ahmad narrated to us, saying: Sufyan narrated to us, from 'Alqamah ibn Marthad, from Sulayman ibn Buraydah, from his father, who said: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) used to teach them when they went out to the graveyards; one of them would say: "Peace be upon you, O dwellers of the abodes, from among the believers and the Muslims. Indeed, we, if Allah wills, will join you." Mu'awiyah ibn Hisham added: "You are our predecessors, and we are your followers, and we ask Allah for ourselves and for you well-being." I heard Abu 'Abd Allah say: In this hadith is an argument against the one who says that faith (iman) is the statement of the one who says, 'I am a believer.' His saying: 'from among the believers and the Muslims,' by distinguishing the believer from the Muslim, refutes the one who says, 'I am a complete believer.' And his saying, 'Indeed, we, if Allah wills, will join you,' while he knows that he is a dying person, strengthens the statement of the one who says, 'I am a believer, if Allah wills'; the exception (istithna') is in this place. I said to Abu 'Abd Allah: If a man commits a sin, such as adultery or theft, does his faith depart from him? He replied: His faith is diminished; it is stripped from him just as a man is stripped of his shirt, and when he repents and turns back, his faith returns to him. Hanbal said: I heard Abu 'Abd Allah, when he was asked about the statement of the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace): "The adulterer does not commit adultery while he is a believer," say: This is how the hadith is narrated. It is also narrated from Abu Ja'far that he said: "The adulterer does not commit adultery while he is a believer," and he said: He exits from faith (iman) into Islam; for faith is contained within Islam, so when he commits adultery, he exits from faith into Islam. He said: Al-Zuhri said regarding the hadith of 'Amir ibn Sa'd: The man said, 'O Messenger of Allah, he is a believer,' so the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said: 'Or a Muslim?' Al-Zuhri said: We consider that Islam is the word, and faith is the deed. I said to Abu 'Abd Allah: What do you say? He replied: Islam is different from faith.