Abu Hasan, a client of Banu Nawfal asked Ibn Abbas: A slave had a wife who was a slave-girl. He divorced her by two pronouncements. Afterwards both of them were freed. Is it permissible for him to ask her in marriage again? He said: Yes. This is a decision given by the Messenger of Allah (saws).

Musailama-al-Kadhdhab (i.e. the liar) came in the life-time of Allah's Apostle with many of his people (to Medina) and said, "If Muhammad makes me his successor, I will follow him." Allah's Apostle went up to him with Thabit bin Qais bin Shams; and Allah's Apostle was carrying a piece of a datepalm leaf in his hand. He stood before Musailama (and his companions) and said, "If you asked me even this piece (of a leaf), I would not give it to you. You cannot avoid the fate you are destined to, by Allah. If you reject Islam, Allah will destroy you. I think that you are most probably the same person whom I have seen in the dream." Abu Huraira told me that Allah's Apostle; said, "While I was sleeping, I saw (in a dream) two gold bracelets round my arm, and that worried me too much. Then I was instructed divinely in my dream, to blow them off and so I blew them off, and they flew away. I interpreted the two bracelets as symbols of two liars who would appear after me. And so one of them was Al-Ansi and the other was Musailama Al-Kadhdhab from Al-Yamama."

(The wife of the Prophet) Whenever Allah's Apostle intended to go on a journey, he used to draw lots among his wives and would take with him the one on whom the lot had fallen. Once he drew lots when he wanted to carry out a Ghazwa, and the lot came upon me. So I proceeded with Allah's Apostle after Allah's order of veiling (the women) had been revealed and thus I was carried in my howdah (on a camel) and dismounted while still in it. We carried on our journey, and when Allah's Apostle had finished his Ghazwa and returned and we approached Medina, Allah's Apostle ordered to proceed at night. When the army was ordered to resume the homeward journey, I got up and walked on till I left the army (camp) behind. When I had answered the call of nature, I went towards my howdah, but behold ! A necklace of mine made of Jaz Azfar (a kind of black bead) was broken and I looked for it and my search for it detained me. The group of people who used to carry me, came and carried my howdah on to the back of my camel on which I was riding, considering that I was therein. At that time women were light in weight and were not fleshy for they used to eat little (food), so those people did not feel the lightness of the howdah while raising it up, and I was still a young lady. They drove away the camel and proceeded. Then I found my necklace after the army had gone. I came to their camp but found nobody therein so I went to the place where I used to stay, thinking that they would miss me and come back in my search. While I was sitting at my place, I felt sleepy and slept. Safwan bin Al-Mu'attil As-Sulami Adh- Dhakw-ani was behind the army. He had started in the last part of the night and reached my stationing place in the morning and saw the figure of a sleeping person. He came to me and recognized me on seeing me for he used to see me before veiling. I got up because of his saying: "Inna Li l-lahi wa inna ilaihi rajiun," which he uttered on recognizing me. I covered my face with my garment, and by Allah, he did not say to me a single word except, "Inna Li l-lahi wa inna ilaihi rajiun," till he made his shecamel kneel down whereupon he trod on its forelegs and I mounted it. Then Safwan set out, leading the she-camel that was carrying me, till we met the army while they were resting during the hot midday. Then whoever was meant for destruction, fell in destruction, and the leader of the Ifk (forged statement) was `Abdullah bin Ubai bin Salul. After this we arrived at Medina and I became ill for one month while the people were spreading the forged statements of the people of the Ifk, and I was not aware of anything thereof. But what aroused my doubt while I was sick, was that I was no longer receiving from Allah's Apostle the same kindness as I used to receive when I fell sick. Allah's Apostle would enter upon me, say a greeting and add, "How is that (lady)?" and then depart. That aroused my suspicion but I was not aware of the propagated evil till I recovered from my ailment. I went out with Um Mistah to answer the call of nature towards Al-Manasi, the place where we used to relieve ourselves, and used not to go out for this purpose except from night to night, and that was before we had lavatories close to our houses. And this habit of ours was similar to the habit of the old 'Arabs (in the deserts or in the tents) concerning the evacuation of the bowels, for we considered it troublesome and harmful to take lavatories in the houses. So I went out with Um Mistah who was the daughter of Abi Ruhm bin `Abd Manaf, and her mother was daughter of Sakhr bin Amir who was the aunt of Abi Bakr As-Siddiq, and her son was Mistah bin Uthatha. When we had finished our affair, Um Mistah and I came back towards my house. Um Mistah stumbled over her robe whereupon she said, "Let Mistah be ruined ! " I said to her, "What a bad word you have said! Do you abuse a man who has taken part in the Battle of Badr?' She said, "O you there! Didn't you hear what he has said?" I said, "And what did he say?" She then told me the statement of the people of the Ifk (forged statement) which added to my ailment. When I returned home, Allah's Apostle came to me, and after greeting, he said, "How is that (lady)?" I said, "Will you allow me to go to my parents?" At that time I intended to be sure of the news through them. Allah's Apostle allowed me and I went to my parents and asked my mother, "O my mother! What are the people talking about?" My mother said, "O my daughter! Take it easy, for by Allah, there is no charming lady who is loved by her husband who has other wives as well, but that those wives would find fault with her." I said, "Subhan Allah! Did the people really talk about that?" That night I kept on weeping the whole night till the morning. My tears never stopped, nor did I sleep, and morning broke while I was still weeping, Allah's Apostle called `Ali bin Abi Talib and Usama bin Zaid when the Divine Inspiration delayed, in order to consult them as to the idea of divorcing his wife. Usama bin Zaid told Allah's Apostle of what he knew about the innocence of his wife and of his affection he kept for her. He said, "O Allah's Apostle! She is your wife, and we do not know anything about her except good." But `Ali bin Abi Talib said, "O Allah's Apostle! Allah does not impose restrictions on you; and there are plenty of women other than her. If you however, ask (her) slave girl, she will tell you the truth." `Aisha added: So Allah's Apostle called for Barira and said, "O Barira! Did you ever see anything which might have aroused your suspicion? (as regards Aisha). Barira said, "By Allah Who has sent you with the truth, I have never seen anything regarding Aisha which I would blame her for except that she is a girl of immature age who sometimes sleeps and leaves the dough of her family unprotected so that the domestic goats come and eat it." So Allah's Apostle got up (and addressed) the people an asked for somebody who would take revenge on `Abdullah bin Ubai bin Salul then. Allah's Apostle, while on the pulpit, said, "O Muslims! Who will help me against a man who has hurt me by slandering my family? By Allah, I know nothing except good about my family, and people have blamed a man of whom I know nothing except good, and he never used to visit my family except with me," Sa`d bin Mu`adh Al-Ansari got up and said, "O Allah's Apostle! By Allah, I will relieve you from him. If he be from the tribe of (Bani) Al-Aus, then I will chop his head off; and if he be from our brethren, the Khazraj, then you give us your order and we will obey it." On that, Sa`d bin 'Ubada got up, and he was the chief of the Khazraj, and before this incident he had been a pious man but he was incited by his zeal for his tribe. He said to Sa`d (bin Mu`adh), "By Allah the Eternal, you have told a lie! You shall not kill him and you will never be able to kill him!" On that, Usaid bin Hudair, the cousin of Sa`d (bin Mu`adh) got up and said to Sa`d bin 'Ubada, "You are a liar! By Allah the Eternal, we will surely kill him; and you are a hypocrite defending the hypocrites!" So the two tribes of Al-Aus and Al-Khazraj got excited till they were on the point of fighting with each other while Allah's Apostle was standing on the pulpit. Allah's Apostle continued quietening them till they became silent whereupon he became silent too. On that day I kept on weeping so much that neither did my tears stop, nor could I sleep. In the morning my parents were with me, and I had wept for two nights and a day without sleeping and with incessant tears till they thought that my liver would burst with weeping. While they were with me and I was weeping, an Ansari woman asked permission to see me. I admitted her and she sat and started weeping with me. While I was in that state, Allah's Apostle came to us, greeted, and sat down,. He had never sat with me since the day what was said, was said. He had stayed a month without receiving any Divine Inspiration concerning my case. Allah's Apostle recited the Tashahhud after he had sat down, and then said, "Thereafter, O `Aisha! I have been informed such and-such a thing about you; and if you are innocent, Allah will reveal your innocence, and if you have committed a sin, then ask for Allah's forgiveness and repent to Him, for when a slave confesses his sin and then repents to Allah, Allah accepts his repentance." When Allah's Apostle had finished his speech, my tears ceased completely so that I no longer felt even a drop thereof. Then I said to my father, "Reply to Allah's Apostle on my behalf as to what he said." He said, "By Allah, I do not know what to say to Allah's Apostle." Then I said to my mother, "Reply to Allah's Apostle." She said, "I do not know what to say to Allah's Apostle." Still a young girl as I was and though I had little knowledge of Qur'an, I said, "By Allah, I know that you heard this story (of the Ifk) so much so that it has been planted in your minds and you have believed it. So now, if I tell you that I am innocent, and Allah knows that I am innocent, you will not believe me; and if I confess something, and Allah knows that I am innocent of it, you will believe me. By Allah, I cannot find of you an example except that of Joseph's father: "So (for me) patience is most fitting against that which you assert and it is Allah (Alone) Whose help can be sought. Then I turned away and lay on my bed, and at that time I knew that I was innocent and that Allah would reveal my innocence. But by Allah, I never thought that Allah would sent down about my affair, Divine Inspiration that would be recited (forever), as I considered myself too unworthy to be talked of by Allah with something that was to be recited: but I hoped that Allah's Apostle might have a vision in which Allah would prove my innocence. By Allah, Allah's Apostle had not left his seat and nobody had left the house when the Divine Inspiration came to Allah's Apostle . So there overtook him the same hard condition which used to overtake him (when he was Divinely Inspired) so that the drops of his sweat were running down, like pearls, though it was a (cold) winter day, and that was because of the heaviness of the Statement which was revealed to him. When that state of Allah's Apostle was over, and he was smiling when he was relieved, the first word he said was, "Aisha, Allah has declared your innocence." My mother said to me, "Get up and go to him." I said, "By Allah, I will not go to him and I will not thank anybody but Allah." So Allah revealed: "Verily! They who spread the Slander are a gang among you. Think it not...." (24.11-20). When Allah revealed this to confirm my innocence, Abu Bakr As-Siddiq who used to provide for Mistah bin Uthatha because of the latter's kinship to him and his poverty, said, "By Allah, I will never provide for Mistah anything after what he has said about Aisha". So Allah revealed: (continued...) (continuing... 1): -6.274:... ... "Let not those among you who are good and are wealthy swear not to give (help) to their kinsmen, those in need, and those who have left their homes for Allah's Cause. Let them Pardon and forgive (i.e. do not punish them). Do you not love that should forgive you? Verily Allah is Oft-forgiving. Most Merciful." (24.22) Abu Bakr said, "Yes, by Allah, I wish that Allah should forgive me." So he resumed giving Mistah the aid he used to give him before and said, "By Allah, I will never withold it from him at all." Aisha further said: Allah's Apostle also asked Zainab bint Jahsh about my case. He said, "O Zainab! What have you seen?" She replied, "O Allah's Apostle! I protect my hearing and my sight (by refraining from telling lies). I know nothing but good (about Aisha)." Of all the wives of Allah's Apostle, it was Zainab who aspired to receive from him the same favor as I used to receive, yet, Allah saved her (from telling lies) because of her piety. But her sister, Hamna, kept on fighting on her behalf so she was destroyed as were those who invented and spread the slander.

My father said, "I saw Allah's Apostle eating a piece of meat from the shoulder of a sheep and he was called for the prayer. He stood up, put down the knife and prayed but did not perform ablution.''

A man made his wife like the back of his mother. He then had intercourse with her before he atoned for it. He came to the Prophet (saws) and informed him of this matter. He asked (him): What moved you to the action you have committed? He replied: I saw the whiteness of her shins in moon light. He said: Keep away from her until you expiate for your deed.

I came to `Aisha the wife of the Prophet during the solar eclipse. The people were standing and offering the prayer and she was also praying. I asked her, "What is wrong with the people?" She beckoned with her hand towards the sky and said, "Subhan Allah." I asked her, "Is there a sign?" She pointed out, "Yes." So I, too, stood for the prayer till I fell unconscious and later on I poured water on my head. After the prayer, Allah's Apostle praised and glorified Allah and said, "Just now I have seen something which I never saw before at this place of mine, including Paradise and Hell. I have been inspired (and have understood) that you will be put to trials in your graves and these trials will be like the trials of Ad-Dajjal, or nearly like it (the sub narrator is not sure of what Asma' said). Angels will come to every one of you and ask, 'What do you know about this man?' A believer will reply, 'He is Muhammad, Allah's Apostle , and he came to us with self-evident truth and guidance. So we accepted his teaching, believed and followed him.' Then the angels will say to him to sleep in peace as they have come to know that he was a believer. On the other hand a hypocrite or a doubtful person will reply, 'I do not know but heard the people saying something and so I said the same.' "

on the authority of his father that he had asked `Aisha (about the Hadith of Ibn `Umar). She said, "May Allah be Merciful to Abu `Abdur-Rahman. I used to put scent on Allah's Apostle and he used to go round his wives, and in the morning he assumed the Ihram, and the fragrance of scent was still coming out from his body."

Abu Bakr went to a lady from the Ahmas tribe called Zainab bint Al-Muhajir and found that she refused to speak. He asked, "Why does she not speak." The people said, "She has intended to perform Hajj without speaking." He said to her, "Speak, for it is illegal not to speak, as it is an action of the pre-islamic period of ignorance. So she spoke and said, "Who are you?" He said, "A man from the Emigrants." She asked, "Which Emigrants?" He replied, "From Quraish." She asked, "From what branch of Quraish are you?" He said, "You ask too many questions; I am Abu Bakr." She said, "How long shall we enjoy this good order (i.e. Islamic religion) which Allah has brought after the period of ignorance?" He said, "You will enjoy it as long as your Imams keep on abiding by its rules and regulations." She asked, "What are the Imams?" He said, "Were there not heads and chiefs of your nation who used to order the people and they used to obey them?" She said, "Yes." He said, "So they (i.e. the Imams) are those whom I meant."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Yahya ibn Said from Salim ibn Abdullah that Abdullah ibn Umar sold one of his slaves for eight hundred dirhams with the stipulation that he was not responsible for defects. The person who bought the slave complained to Abdullah ibn Umar that the slave had a disease which he had not told him about. They argued and went to Uthman ibn Affan for a decision . The man said, "He sold me a slave with a disease which he did not tell me about." Abdullah said, "I sold to him with the stipulation that I was not responsible." Uthman ibn Affan decided that Abdullah ibn Umar should take an oath that he had sold the slave without knowing that he had any disease. Abdullah ibn Umar refused to take the oath, so the slave was returned to him and recovered his health in his possession. Abdullah sold him afterwards for 1500 dirhams.

Malik said, "The generally agreed upon way of doing things among us about a man who buys a female slave and she becomes pregnant, or who buys a slave and then frees him, or if there is any other such matter which has already happened so that he cannot return his purchase, and a clear proof is established that there was a fault in that purchase when it was in the hands of the seller or the fault is admitted by the seller or someone else, is that the slave or slave-girl is assessed for its value with the fault it is found to have had on the day of purchase and the buyer is refunded,from what he paid,the difference between the price of a slave who is sound and a slave with such a defect.

Malik said, "The generally agreed upon way of doing things among us regarding a man who buys a slave and then finds out that the slave has a defect for which he can be returned and meanwhile another defect has happened to the slave whilst in his possession, is that if the defect which occurred to the slave in his possession has harmed him, like loss of a limb, loss of an eye, or something similar, then he has a choice. If he wants, he can have the price of the slave reduced commensurate with the defect (he bought him with ) according to the prices on the day he bought him, or if he likes, he can pay compensation for the defect which the slave has suffered in his possession and return him. The choice is up to him. If the slave dies in his possession, the slave is valued with the defect which he had on the day of his purchase. It is seen what his price would really have been. If the price of the slave on the day of purchase without fault was 100 dinars, and his price on the day of purchase with fault would have been 80 dinars, the price is reduced by the difference. These prices are assessed according to the market value on the day the slave was purchased . "

Malik said, "The generally agreed upon way of doing things among us is that if a man returns a slave girl in whom he has found a defect and he has already had intercourse with her, he must pay what he has reduced of her price if she was a virgin. If she was not a virgin, there is nothing against his having had intercourse with her because he had charge of her."

Malik said, "The generally agreed upon way of doing things among us regarding a person, whether he is an inheritor or not, who sells a slave, slave-girl, or animal without a liability agreement is that he is not responsible for any defect in what he sold unless he knew about the fault and concealed it. If he knew that there was a fault and concealed it, his declaration that he was free of responsibility does not absolve him, and what he sold is returned to him."

Malik spoke about a situation where a slave-girl was bartered for two other slave-girls and then one of the slave-girls was found to have a defect for which she could be returned. He said, "The slave-girl worth two other slave- girls is valued for her price. Then the other two slave-girls are valued, ignoring the defect which the one of them has. Then the price of the slave-girl sold for two slave-girls is divided between them according to their prices so that the proportion of each of them in her price is arrived at - to the higher priced one according to her higher price, and to the other according to her value. Then one looks at the one with the defect, and the buyer is refunded according to the amount her share is affected by the defect, be it little or great. The price of the two slave-girls is based on their market value on the day that they were bought."

Malik spoke about a man who bought a slave and hired him out on a long-term or short-term basis and then found out that the slave had a defect which necessitated his return. He said that if the man returned the slave because of the defect, he kept the hire and revenue. "This is the way in which things are done in our city. That is because, had the man bought a slave who then built a house for him, and the value of the house was many times the price of the slave, and he then found that the slave had a defect for which he could be returned, and he was returned, he would not have to make payment for the work the slave had done for him. Similarly, he would keep any revenue from hiring him out, because he had charge of him. This is the way of doing things among us."

Malik said, "The way of doing things among us when someone buys several slaves in one lot and then finds that one of them has been stolen, or has a defect, is that he looks at the one he finds has been stolen or the one in which he finds a defect. If he is the pick of those slaves, or the most expensive, or it was for his sake that he bought them, or he is the one in whom people see the most excellence, then the whole sale is returned. If the one who is found to be stolen or to have a defect is not the pick of the slaves, and he did not buy them for his sake, and there is no special virtue which people see in him, the one who is found to have a defect or to have been stolen is returned as he is, and the buyer is refunded his portion of the total price."

We were at a place which was a thoroughfare for the people, and the caravans used to pass by us and we would ask them, "What is wrong with the people? What is wrong with the people? Who is that man?. They would say, "That man claims that Allah has sent him (as an Apostle), that he has been divinely inspired, that Allah has revealed to him such-and-such." I used to memorize that (Divine) Talk, and feel as if it was inculcated in my chest (i.e. mind) And the 'Arabs (other than Quraish) delayed their conversion to Islam till the Conquest (of Mecca). They used to say." "Leave him (i.e. Muhammad) and his people Quraish: if he overpowers them then he is a true Prophet. So, when Mecca was conquered, then every tribe rushed to embrace Islam, and my father hurried to embrace Islam before (the other members of) my tribe. When my father returned (from the Prophet) to his tribe, he said, "By Allah, I have come to you from the Prophet for sure!" The Prophet afterwards said to them, 'Offer such-and-such prayer at such-and-such time, and when the time for the prayer becomes due, then one of you should pronounce the Adhan (for the prayer), and let the one amongst you who knows Qur'an most should, lead the prayer." So they looked for such a person and found none who knew more Qur'an than I because of the Qur'anic material which I used to learn from the caravans. They therefore made me their Imam ((to lead the prayer) and at that time I was a boy of six or seven years, wearing a Burda (i.e. a black square garment) proved to be very short for me (and my body became partly naked). A lady from the tribe said, "Won't you cover the anus of your reciter for us?" So they bought (a piece of cloth) and made a shirt for me. I had never been so happy with anything before as I was with that shirt.

I had been eager to ask `Umar bin Al-Khattab about the two ladies from among the wives of the Prophet regarding whom Allah said 'If you two (wives of the Prophet namely Aisha and Hafsa) turn in repentance to Allah, your hearts are indeed so inclined (to oppose what the Prophet likes). (66.4) till `Umar performed the Hajj and I too, performed the Hajj along with him. (On the way) `Umar went aside to answer the call of nature, and I also went aside along with him carrying a tumbler full of water, and when `Umar had finished answering the call of nature, I poured water over his hands and he performed the ablution. Then I said to him, "O chief of the Believers! Who were the two ladies from among the wives of the Prophet regarding whom Allah said: 'If you two (wives of the Prophet) turn in repentance to Allah your hearts are indeed so inclined (to oppose what the Prophet likes)?" (66.4) He said, "I am astonished at your question, O Ibn `Abbas. They were `Aisha and Hafsa." Then `Umar went on narrating the Hadith and said, "I and an Ansari neighbor of mine from Bani Umaiyya bin Zaid who used to live in `Awali-al-Medina, used to visit the Prophet in turn. He used to go one day and I another day. When I went, I would bring him the news of what had happened that day regarding the Divine Inspiration and other things, and when he went, he used to do the same for me. We, the people of Quraish used to have the upper hand over our wives, but when we came to the Ansar, we found that their women had the upper hand over their men, so our women also started learning the ways of the Ansari women. I shouted at my wife and she retorted against me and I disliked that she should answer me back. She said to me, 'Why are you so surprised at my answering you back? By Allah, the wives of the Prophet answer him back and some of them may leave (does not speak to) him throughout the day till the night.' The (talk) scared me and I said to her, 'Whoever has done so will be ruined!' Then I proceeded after dressing myself, and entered upon Hafsa and said to her, 'Does anyone of you keep the Prophet angry till night?' She said, 'Yes.' I said, 'You are a ruined losing person! Don't you fear that Allah may get angry for the anger of Allah's Apostle and thus you will be ruined? So do not ask more from the Prophet and do not answer him back and do not give up talking to him. Ask me whatever you need and do not be tempted to imitate your neighbor (i.e., `Aisha) in her manners for she is more charming than you and more beloved to the Prophet ." `Umar added,"At that time a talk was circulating among us that (the tribe of) Ghassan were preparing their horses to invade us. My Ansari companion, on the day of his turn, went (to the town) and returned to us at night and knocked at my door violently and asked if I was there. I became horrified and came out to him. He said, 'Today a great thing has happened.' I asked, 'What is it? Have (the people of) Ghassan come?' He said, 'No, but (What has happened) is greater and more horrifying than that: Allah's Apostle; has divorced his wives. `Umar added, "The Prophet kept away from his wives and I said "Hafsa is a ruined loser.' I had already thought that most probably this (divorce) would happen in the near future. So I dressed myself and offered the morning prayer with the Prophet and then the Prophet; entered an upper room and stayed there in seclusion. I entered upon Hafsa and saw her weeping. I asked, 'What makes you weep? Did I not warn you about that? Did the Prophet divorce you all?' She said, 'I do not know. There he is retired alone in the upper room.' I came out and sat near the pulpit and saw a group of people sitting around it and some of them were weeping. I sat with them for a while but could not endure the situation, so I went to the upper room where the Prophet; was and said to a black slave of his, 'Will you get the permission (of the Prophet ) for `Umar (to enter)?' The slave went in, talked to the Prophet about it and then returned saying, 'I have spoken to the Prophet and mentioned you but he kept quiet.' Then I returned and sat with the group of people sitting near the pulpit. but I could not bear the situation and once again I said to the slave, 'Will you get the permission for `Umar?' He went in and returned saying, 'I mentioned you to him but he kept quiet.' So I returned again and sat with the group of people sitting near the pulpit, but I could not bear the situation, and so I went to the slave and said, 'Will you get the permission for `Umar?' He went in and returned to me saying, 'I mentioned you to him but he kept quiet.' When I was leaving, behold! The slave called me, saying, 'The Prophet has given you permission.' Then I entered upon Allah's Apostle and saw him Lying on a bed made of stalks of date palm leaves and there was no bedding between it and him. The stalks left marks on his side and he was leaning on a leather pillow stuffed with date-palm fires. I greeted him and while still standing I said, 'O Allah's Apostle! Have you divorced your wives?' He looked at me and said, 'No.' I said, 'Allah Akbar!' And then, while still standing, I said chatting, 'Will you heed what I say, O Allah's Apostle? We, the people of Quraish used to have power over our women, but when we arrived at Medina we found that the men (here) were overpowered by their women.' The Prophet smiled and then I said to him, 'Will you heed what I say, O Allah's Apostle? I entered upon Hafsa and said to her, "Do not be tempted to imitate your companion (`Aisha), for she is more charming than you and more beloved to the Prophet.' " The Prophet smiled for a second time. When I saw him smiling, I sat down. Then I looked around his house, and by Allah, I could not see anything of importance in his house except three hides, so I said, 'O Allah's Apostle! Invoke Allah to make your followers rich, for the Persians and the Romans have been made prosperous and they have been given (the pleasures of the world), although they do not worship Allah.' Thereupon the Prophet sat up as he was reclining. and said, 'Are you of such an opinion, O the son of Al-Khattab? These are the people who have received the rewards for their good deeds in this world.' I said, 'O Allah's Apostle! Ask Allah to forgive me.' Then the Prophet kept away from his wives for twenty-nine days because of the story which Hafsa had disclosed to `Aisha. The Prophet had said, 'I will not enter upon them (my wives) for one month,' because of his anger towards them, when Allah had admonished him. So, when twenty nine days had passed, the Prophet first entered upon `Aisha. `Aisha said to him, 'O Allah's Apostle! You had sworn that you would not enter upon us for one month, but now only twenty-nine days have passed, for I have been counting them one by one.' The Prophet said, 'The (present) month is of twenty nine days.' `Aisha added, 'Then Allah revealed the Verses of the option. (2) And out of all his-wives he asked me first, and I chose him.' Then he gave option to his other wives and they said what `Aisha had said . " (1) The Prophet, ' had decided to abstain from eating a certain kind of food because of a certain event, so Allah blamed him for doing so. Some of his wives were the cause of him taking that decision, therefore he deserted them for one month. See Qur'an: (66.4)

I heard Allah's Apostle saying, "Three men from among those who were before you, set out together till they reached a cave at night and entered it. A big rock rolled down the mountain and closed the mouth of the cave. They said (to each other), Nothing could save you from this rock but to invoke Allah by giving reference to the righteous deed which you have done (for Allah's sake only).' So, one of them said, 'O Allah! I had old parents and I never provided my family (wife, children etc.) with milk before them. One day, by chance I was delayed, and I came late (at night) while they had slept. I milked the sheep for them and took the milk to them, but I found them sleeping. I disliked to provide my family with the milk before them. I waited for them and the bowl of milk was in my hand and I kept on waiting for them to get up till the day dawned. Then they got up and drank the milk. O Allah! If I did that for Your Sake only, please relieve us from our critical situation caused by this rock.' So, the rock shifted a little but they could not get out." The Prophet added, "The second man said, 'O Allah! I had a cousin who was the dearest of all people to me and I wanted to have sexual relations with her but she refused. Later she had a hard time in a famine year and she came to me and I gave her one-hundred-and-twenty Dinars on the condition that she would not resist my desire, and she agreed. When I was about to fulfill my desire, she said: It is illegal for you to outrage my chastity except by legitimate marriage. So, I thought it a sin to have sexual intercourse with her and left her though she was the dearest of all the people to me, and also I left the gold I had given her. O Allah! If I did that for Your Sake only, please relieve us from the present calamity.' So, the rock shifted a little more but still they could not get out from there." The Prophet added, "Then the third man said, 'O Allah! I employed few laborers and I paid them their wages with the exception of one man who did not take his wages and went away. I invested his wages and I got much property thereby. (Then after some time) he came and said to me: O Allah's slave! Pay me my wages. I said to him: All the camels, cows, sheep and slaves you see, are yours. He said: O Allah's slave! Don't mock at me. I said: I am not mocking at you. So, he took all the herd and drove them away and left nothing. O Allah! If I did that for Your Sake only, please relieve us from the present suffering.' So, that rock shifted completely and they got out walking.

Malik related to me that he heard that Umm Salama, the wife of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, made a settlement with her mukatab for an agreed amount of gold and silver.

Malik said, "The generally agreed on way of doing things among us in the case of a mukatab who is shared by two partners, is that one of them cannot make a settlement with him for an agreed price according to his portion without the consent of his partner. That is because the slave and his property are owned by both of them, and so one of them is not permitted to take any of the property except with the consent of his partner. If one of them settled with the mukatab and his partner did not, and he took the agreed price, and then the mukatab died while he had property or was unable to pay, the one who settled would not have anything of the mukatab's property and he could not return that for which he made settlement so that his right to the slave's person would return to him. However, when someone settles with a mukatab with the permission of his partner and then the mukatab is unable to pay, it is preferable that the one who broke with him return what he has taken from the mukatab for the severance and he can have back his portion of the mukatab. He can do that. If the mukatab dies and leaves property, the partner who has kept hold of the kitaba is paid in full the amount of the kitaba which remains to him against the mukatab from the mukatab's property. Then what remains of property of the mukatab is between the partner who broke with him and his partner, according to their shares in the mukatab. If one of the partners breaks off with him and the other keeps the kitaba, and the mukatab is unable to pay, it is said to the partner who settled with him, 'If you wish to give your partner half of what you took so the slave is divided between you, then do so. If you refuse, then all of the slave belongs to the one who held on to possession of the slave.' "

Malik spoke about a mukatab who was shared between two men and one of them made a settlement with him with the permission of his partner. Then the one who retained possession of the slave demanded the like of that for which his partner had settled or more than that and the mukatab could not pay it. He said, "The mukatab is shared between them because the man has only demanded what is owed to him. If he demands less than what the one who settled with him took and the mukatab can not manage that, and the one who settled with him prefers to return to his partner half of what he took so the slave is divided in halves between them, he can do that. If he refuses then all of the slave belongs to the one who did not settle with him. If the mukatab dies and leaves property, and the one who settled with him prefers to return to his companion half of what he has taken so the inheritance is divided between them, he can do that. If the one who has kept the kitaba takes the like of what the one who has settled with him took, or more, the inheritance is between them according to their shares in the slave because he is only taking his right."

Malik spoke about a mukatab who was shared between two men and one of them made a settlement with him for half of what was due to him with the permission of his partner, and then the one who retained possession of the slave took less than what his partner settled with him for and the mukatab was unable to pay. He said, "If the one who made a settlement with the slave prefers to return half of what he was awarded to his partner, the slave is divided between them. If he refuses to return it, the one who retained possession has the portion of the share for which his partner made a settlement with the mukatab."

Malik said, "The explanation of that is that the slave is divided in two halves between them. They write him a kitaba together and then one of them makes a settlement with the mukatab for half his due with the permission of his partner. That is a fourth of all the slave. Then the mukatab is unable to continue, so it is said to the one who settled with him, 'If you wish, return to your partner half of what you were awarded and the slave is divided equally between you.' If he refuses, the one who held to the kitaba takes in full the fourth of his partner for which he made settlement with the mukatab. He had half the slave, so that now gives him three-fourths of the slave. The one who broke off has a fourth of the slave because he refused to return the equivalent of the fourth share for which he settled."

Malik spoke about a mukatab whose master made a settlement with him and set him free and what remained of his severance was written against him as debt, then the mukatab died and people had debts against him. He said, "His master does not share with the creditors because of what he is owed from the severance. The creditors begin first."

Malik said, "A mukatab cannot break with his master when he owes debts to people. He would be set free and have nothing because the people who hold the debts are more entitled to his property than his master. That is not permitted for him."

Malik said, "According to the way things are done among us, there is no harm if a man gives a kitaba to his slave and settles with him for gold and reduces what he is owed of the kitaba provided that only the gold is paid immediately. Whoever disapproves of that does so because he puts it in the category of a debt which a man has against another man for a set term. He gives him a reduction and he pays it immediately. This is not like that debt. The breaking of the mukatab with his master is dependent on his giving money to speed up the setting free. Inheritance, testimony and the hudud are obliged for him and the inviolability of being set free is established for him. He is not buying dirhams for dirhams or gold for gold. Rather it is like a man who having said to his slave, 'Bring me such-and-such an amount of dinars and you are free', then reduces that for him, saying, 'If you bring me less than that, you are free.' That is not a fixed debt. Had it been a fixed debt, the master would have shared with the creditors of the mukatab when he died or went bankrupt. His claim on the property of the mukatab would join theirs."

Malik said, "The generally agreed-on way of doing things in our community is that any setting-free which a man makes in a bequest that he wills in health or illness can be rescinded by him when he likes and changed when he likes as long as it is not a tadbir. There is no way to rescind a tadbir once he has made it.

"As for every child born to him by a slave-girl who he wills to be set free but he does not make mudabbara, her children are not freed with her when she is freed. That is because her master can change his will when he likes and rescind it when he likes, and being set free is not confirmed for her. She is in the position of a slave-girl whose master says, 'If so- and-so remains with me until I die, she is free.' " (i.e. he does not make a definite contract.)

Malik said, "If she fulfils that, that is hers. If he wishes, before that, he can sell her and her child because he has not entered her child into any condition he has made for her.

"The bequest in setting free is different from the tadbir. The precedent of the sunna makes a distinction between them. Had a bequest been in the position of a tadbir, no testator would be able to change his will and what he mentioned in it of setting free. His property would be tied up and he would not be able to use it."

Malik said about a man who made all his slaves mudabbar while he was well and they were his only property, "If he made some of them mudabbar before the others, one begins with the first until the third of his property is reached. (i.e. their value is matched against the third, and those whose value is covered are free.) If he makes the mall mudabbar in his illness, and says in one statement, 'So-and-so is free. So-and-so is free. So-and-so is free if my death occurs in this illness,' or he makes them all mudabbar in one statement, they are matched against the third and one does not begin with any of them before the others. It is a bequest and they have a third of his property divided between them in shares. Then the third of his property frees each of them according to the extent of his share.

"No single one of them is given preference when that all occurs in his illness."

Malik spoke about a master who made his slave a mudabbar and then he died and the only property he had was the mudabbar slave and the slave had property. He said, "A third of the mudabbar is freed and his property remains in his possession."

Malik said about a mudabbar whose master gave him a kitaba and then the master died and did not leave any property other than him, "A third of him is freed and a third of his kitaba is reduced, and he owes two-thirds."

Malik spoke about a man who freed half of his slave while he was ill and made irrevocable his freeing half of him or all of him, and he had made another slave of his mudabbar before that. He said, "One begins with the slave he made mudabbar before the one he freed while he was ill. That is because the man cannot revoke what he has made mudabbar and cannot follow it with a matter which will rescind it. When this mudabbar is freed, then what remains of the third goes to the one who had half of him freed so as to complete his setting-free entirely in the third of the property of the deceased. If what is left of the third does not cover that, whatever is covered by what is left of the third is freed after the first mudabbar is freed . "

The Messenger of Allah (saws) gave licence to the Mothers of the believers (i.e. the wives of the Prophet) to hang down their lower garment a span. Then they asked him to increase it, and he increased one span for them. They would send (the garment) to us and we would measure it one forearm's length for them.

Aisha said, "I bought Barira and her masters stipulated that the Wala would be for them." Aisha mentioned that to the Prophet and he said, "Manumit her, as the Wala is for the one who gives the silver (i.e. pays the price for freeing the slave)." Aisha added, "So I manumitted her. After that, the Prophet caller her (Barira) and gave her the choice to go back to her husband or not. She said, "If he gave me so much and so much (money) I would not stay with him." So she selected her ownself (i.e. refused to go back to her husband)."

Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that Said ibn al-Musayyab said, "When a man comes to his wife in her room, he is believed. When she comes to him in his room, she is believed."

Malik commented, "I think that this refers to sexual intercourse. When he comes in to her in her room and she says, 'He has had intercourse with me' and he says, 'I have not touched her', he is believed. When she comes in to him in his room and he says, 'I have not had intercourse with her' and she says, 'He had intercourse with me', she is believed."

`Umar bin Al-Khattab said, "When Hafsa bint `Umar became a widow after the death of (her husband) Khunais bin Hudhafa As-Sahmi who had been one of the companions of the Prophet, and he died at Medina. I went to `Uthman bin `Affan and presented Hafsa (for marriage) to him. He said, "I will think it over.' I waited for a few days, then he met me and said, 'It seems that it is not possible for me to marry at present.' " `Umar further said, "I met Abu Bakr As-Siddique and said to him, 'If you wish, I will marry my daughter Hafsa to you." Abu Bakr kept quiet and did not say anything to me in reply. I became more angry with him than with `Uthman. I waited for a few days and then Allah's Apostle asked for her hand, and I gave her in marriage to him. Afterwards I met Abu Bakr who said, 'Perhaps you became angry with me when you presented Hafsa to me and I did not give you a reply?' I said, 'Yes.' Abu Bakr said, 'Nothing stopped me to respond to your offer except that I knew that Allah's Apostle had mentioned her, and I never wanted to let out the secret of Allah's Apostle. And if Allah's Apostle had refused her, I would have accepted her.' "

Yahya related to me from Malik that Yahya ibn Said said that he had heard al-Qasim ibn Muhammad say that Zayd ibn Abd al-Malik separated some men and their wives who were slave-girls who had borne children to men who had died, because they had married them after one or two menstrual periods. He separated them until they had done an idda of four months and ten days. Al-Qasim ibn Muhammad said, "Glory be to Allah! Allah says in His Book, 'Those of you who die, leaving wives, they are not wives.' "

A piece of silken cloth was given to the Prophet as a present and the people handed it over amongst themselves and were astonished at its beauty and softness. Allah's Apostle said, "Are you astonished at it?" They said, "Yes, O Allah's Apostle!" He said, "By Him in Whose Hand my soul is, the handkerchiefs of Sa`d in Paradise are better than it."

The Prophet stood before Musailama (the liar) who was sitting with his companions then, and said to him, "If you ask me for this piece (of palm-leaf stalk), even then I would not give it to you. You cannot avoid what Allah has ordained for you, and if you turn away from Islam, Allah will surely ruin you! "

Abu Dawud said: The narrator Makhramah did not hear from his father except one tradition.

that he came to `Aisha and said to her, "O Mother of the Believers! There is a man who sends a Hadi to Ka`ba and stays in his city and requests that his Hadi camel be garlanded while he remains in a state of Ihram from that day till the people finish their Ihram (after completing all the ceremonies of Hajj)" (What do you say about it?) Masruq added, I heard the clapping of her hands behind the curtain. She said, "I used to twist the garlands for the Hadi of Allah's Apostle and he used to send his Hadi to Ka`ba but he never used to regard as unlawful what was lawful for men to do with their wives till the people returned (from the Hajj).

Zainab bint Abu Salama told me these three narrations: Zainab said: I went to Um Habiba, the wife of the Prophet when her father, Abu- Sufyan bin Herb had died. Um ,Habiba asked for a perfume which contained yellow scent (Khaluq) or some other scent, and she first perfumed one of the girls with it and then rubbed her cheeks with it and said, "By Allah, I am not in need of perfume, but I have heard Allah's Apostle saying, 'It is not lawful for a lady who believes in Allah and the Last Day to mourn for a dead person for more than three days unless he is her husband for whom she should mourn for four months and ten days.'"

(the wife of the Prophet (p.b.u.h) We set out with the Prophet in his last Hajj and we assumed Ihram for Umra. The Prophet then said, "Whoever has the Hadi with him should assume Ihram for Hajj along with `Umra and should not finish the Ihram till he finishes both." I was menstruating when I reached Mecca, and so I neither did Tawaf round the Ka`ba nor Tawaf between Safa and Marwa. I complained about that to the Prophet on which he replied, "Undo and comb your head hair, and assume Ihram for Hajj (only) and leave the Umra." So, I did so. When we had performed the Hajj, the Prophet sent me with my brother `Abdur-Rahman bin Abu Bakr to Tan`im. So I performed the `Umra. The Prophet said to me, "This `Umra is instead of your missed one." Those who had assumed Ihram for `Umra (Hajj-atTamattu) performed Tawaf round the Ka`ba and between Safa and Marwa and then finished their Ihram. After returning from Mina, they performed another Tawaf (between Safa and Marwa). Those who had assumed Ihram for Hajj and `Umra together (Hajj-al-Qiran) performed only one Tawaf (between Safa and Marwa).

Malik said that a man who had committed fornication with a woman and the hadd-punishment had been applied to him for it, could marry that woman's daughter and his son could marry the woman herself if he wished. That was because he had haram relations with her, and the relations Allah had made haram were from the relations made in a halal manner or in a manner resembling marriage. Allah, the Blessed, the Exalted, said, "Do not marry the women your fathers have married. " (Sura 4 ayat 21)

Malik said, "If a man were to marry a woman in her idda-period in a halal marriage and have relations with her, it would be haram for his son to marry the woman. That is because the father married her in a halal manner, and the hadd-punishment would not have been applied to him. Any child who was born to him would be attached to him as the father. Just as it would be haram for the son to marry a woman whom his father had married in her idda-period and had relations with, so the woman's daughter would be haram for the father if he had had sexual relations with her."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Yahya ibn Said that al-Qasim ibn Muhammad said, "Two grandmothers came to Abu Bakr asSiddiq, and he wanted to give the sixth to the one who was from the mother's side, and a man of the Ansar said, 'What? Are you omitting the one from whom he would inherit if she died while he was alive?' Abu Bakr divided the sixth between them.~

My father got me married to a lady of a noble family, and often used to ask my wife about me, and she used to reply, "What a wonderful man he is! He never comes to my bed, nor has he approached me since he married me." When this state continued for a long period, my father told the story to the Prophet who said to my father, "Let me meet him." Then I met him and he asked me, "How do you fast?" I replied, "I fast daily," He asked, "How long does it take you to finish the recitation of the whole Qur'an?" I replied, "I finish it every night." On that he said, "Fast for three days every month and recite the Qur'an (and finish it) in one month." I said, "But I have power to do more than that." He said, "Then fast for three days per week." I said, "i have the power to do more than that." He said, "Therefore, fast the most superior type of fasting, (that is, the fasting of (prophet) David who used to fast every alternate day; and finish the recitation of the whole Qur'an In seven days." I wish I had accepted the permission of Allah's Apostle as I have become a weak old man. It is said that `Abdullah used to recite one-seventh of the Qur'an during the day-time to some of his family members, for he used to check his memorization of what he would recite at night during the daytime so that it would be easier for him to read at night. And whenever he wanted to gain some strength, he used to give up fasting for some days and count those days to fast for a similar period, for he disliked to leave those things which he used to do during the lifetime of the Prophet.