That he heard `Uthman bin `Affan delivering a sermon on the pulpit of the Prophet

The Prophet said, "The most superior among you (Muslims) are those who learn the Qur'an and teach it."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Nafi that Rubayyi bint Muawwidh ibn Afra came with her paternal uncle to Abdullah ibn Umar and told him that she had divorced her husband for a compensation in the time of Uthman ibn Affan, and he heard about it and did not disapprove. Abdullah ibn Umar said, "Her idda is the idda of a divorced woman."

Malik related to me that he had heard that Uthman ibn Affan was brought a woman who had given birth after six months and he ordered her to be stoned. Ali ibn Abi Talib said to him, "She does not deserve that. Allah, the Blessed, the Exalted, says in His Book, 'Their carrying and weaning is thirty months,' (Sura 46 ayat 15) and he said, 'Mothers suckle their children for two full years for whoever wishes to complete the suckling.' (Sura 2 ayat 233) Pregnancy can then be six months, so she does not deserve to be stoned." Uthman ibn Affan sent for her and found that she had already been stoned.

Malik related to me that he asked Ibn Shihab about someone who committed sodomy. Ibn Shihab said, "He is to be stoned, whether or not he is muhsan."

(in continuation of above). Then I witnessed the `Id with `Uthman bin `Affan, and that was on a Friday. He offered the prayer before the sermon, saying, "O people! Today you have two 'Its (festivals) together, so whoever of those who live at Al-`Awali (suburbs) would like to wait for the Jumua prayer, he may wait, and whoever would like to return (home) Is granted my permission to do so."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Hisham ibn Urwa from his father from Humran, the mawla of Uthman ibn Affan, that Uthman ibn Affan was once sitting on the Maqaid (the benches surrounding the Madina Mosque, or else a stone near Uthman ibn Affan's house where he sat to discuss with people), when the muadhdhin came and told him that it was time for the asr prayer. He called for water and did wudu. Then he said, "By Allah, I shall tell you something which I would not tell you if it were not in the Book of Allah. I heard the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, say, 'If a man does wudu, and makes sure he does it correctly, and then does the prayer, he will be forgiven everything that he does between then and the time when he prays the next prayer.' "

Yahya said that Malik said, "I believe he meant this ayat - 'Establish prayer at the two ends of the day and in some watches of the night. Good actions take away wrong actions. That is a reminder for those who remember.' " (Sura 11 ayat 114).

We used to compare the people as to who was better during the lifetime of Allah's Apostle . We used to regard Abu Bakr as the best, then `Umar, and then `Uthman .

`Uthman bin `Affan went (to the Prophet) and said, "O Allah's Apostle! You gave property to Bani Al-Muttalib and did not give us, although we and they are of the same degree of relationship to you." The Prophet said, "Only Bani Hashim and Bani Al Muttalib are one thing (as regards family status).

Yahya related to me from Malik from Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr that a man from the Ansar was praying in a garden of his in Quff, one of the valleys of Madina, during the date season and the palms' branches were weighed down with fruit on all sides. He looked at them and what he saw of their fruits amazed him. Then he went back to his prayer and he did not know how much he had prayed. He said, "A trial has befallen me in this property of mine." So he went toUthman ibn Affan, who was the khalifa at the time, and mentioned it to him and said, "It is sadaqa, so give it away in the paths of good." Uthman ibn Affan sold it for fifty thousand and so that property became known as the Fifty.

A man came to perform the Hajj to (Allah's) House. Seeing some people sitting, he said, "Who are these sitting people?" Somebody said, "They are the people of Quraish." He said, "Who is the old man?" They said, "Ibn `Umar." He went to him and said, "I want to ask you about something; will you tell me about it? I ask you with the respect due to the sanctity of this (Sacred) House, do you know that `Uthman bin `Affan fled on the day of Uhud?" Ibn `Umar said, "Yes." He said, "Do you know that he (i.e. `Uthman) was absent from the Badr (battle) and did not join it?" Ibn `Umar said, "Yes." He said, "Do you know that he failed to be present at the Ridwan Pledge of allegiance (i.e. Pledge of allegiance at Hudaibiya) and did not witness it?" Ibn `Umar replied, "Yes," He then said, "Allahu- Akbar!" Ibn `Umar said, "Come along; I will inform you and explain to you what you have asked. As for the flight (of `Uthman) on the day of Uhud, I testify that Allah forgave him. As regards his absence from the Badr (battle), he was married to the daughter of Allah's Apostle and she was ill, so the Prophet said to him, 'You will have such reward as a man who has fought the Badr battle will get, and will also have the same share of the booty.' As for his absence from the Ridwan Pledge of allegiance if there had been anybody more respected by the Meccans than `Uthman bin `Affan, the Prophet would surely have sent that man instead of `Uthman. So the Prophet sent him (i.e. `Uthman to Mecca) and the Ridwan Pledge of allegiance took place after `Uthman had gone to Mecca. The Prophet raised his right hand saying. 'This is the hand of `Uthman,' and clapped it over his other hand and said, "This is for `Uthman.'" Ibn `Umar then said (to the man), "Go now, after taking this information."

The person who increased the number of Adhans for the Jumua prayers to three was `Uthman bin `Affan and it was when the number of the (Muslim) people of Medina had increased. In the lifetime of the Prophet there was only one Mu'adh-dhin and the Adhan used to be pronounced only after the Imam had taken his seat (i.e. on the pulpit).

Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that Uthman ibn Affan forbade hoarding .

Nubaih b Wahb reported that the eyes of Umar b. Ubaidnllah b. Ma'mar were swollen, and he decided to use antimony. Aban b. 'Uthman forbade him to do so and commanded him to apply aloes on them, and reported on the authority of 'Uthman b. Affan that the Apostle of Allah (may peace be upon him) had done that.

Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that Umar ibn al-Khattab and Ali ibn Abi Talib and Uthman ibn Affan drank while standing.

`Uthman bin `Affan and I went to the Prophet and said, "You had given Banu Al-Muttalib from the Khumus of Khaibar's booty and left us in spite of the fact that we and Banu Al-Muttalib are similarly related to you." The Prophet said, "Banu Hashim and Banu Al-Muttalib only are one and the same." So the Prophet did not give anything to Banu `Abd Shams and Banu Nawfal.

Uthman offered complete prayer at Mina for the sake of bedouins who attended (hajj) in large numbers that year. He led the people four rak'ahs in prayer in order to teach them that the prayer (i.e. noon or afternoon prayer) essentially contained four rak'ahs.

Yahya related to me from Malik from Abdullah ibn al-Fadl from al- Araj that Uthman ibn Affan made the wives of ibn Mukmil inherit from him, and he had divorced them while he was terminally ill.

Yahya related to me from Malik from Ibn Shihab from Said ihn al-Musayyab that Umar ibn al Khattab and Uthman ibn Affan, may Allah be pleased with them, used to do the same.

I asked `Uthman bin `Affan about a person who engaged in intercourse but did no discharge. `Uthman replied, "He should perform ablution like the one for an ordinary prayer but he must wash his penis." `Uthman added, "I heard it from Allah's Apostle." I asked `Ali Az-Zubair, Talha and Ubai bin Ka`b about it and they, too, gave the same reply. (This order was canceled later on and taking a bath became necessary for such cases).

I asked the Prophet during his Hajj, "O Allah's Apostle! Where will you stay tomorrow?" He said, "Has `Aqil left for us any house?" He then added, "Tomorrow we will stay at Khaif Bani Kinana, i.e. Al-Muhassab, where (the Pagans of) Quraish took an oath of Kufr (i.e. to be loyal to heathenism) in that Bani Kinana got allied with Quraish against Bani Hashim on the terms that they would not deal with the members of the is tribe or give them shelter." (Az-Zuhri said, "Khaif means valley.") (See Hadith No. 659, Vol. 2)

Malik related to me from al-Ala ibn Abd ar-Rahman from his father from his father that Uthman ibn Affan gave him some money as qirad to use provided the profit was shared between them.