We said to the Prophet, "You send us out and it happens that we have to stay with people who do not entertain us. What do you think about it? He said to us, "If you stay with some people and they entertain you as they should for a guest, accept their hospitality, but if they don't, take the right of the guest from them."

The people of Kufa sent a letter to Ibn Az-Zubair, asking about (the inheritance of) (paternal) grandfather. He replied that the right of the inheritance of (paternal) grandfather is the same as that of father if the father is dead) and added, "Allah's Apostle said, ' If I were to take a Khalil from this nation, I would have taken him (i.e. Abu Bakr).

A man of Banu Amir told that he asked the Prophet (saws) for permission (to enter the house) when he was in the house, saying: May I enter ? The Prophet (saws) said to his servant: Go out to this (man) and teach him how to ask permission to enter the house, and say to him: "Say : Peace be upon you. May I enter?" The man heard it and said: Peace be upon you! May I enter ? The Prophet (saws) permitted him and he entered.

Malik related to me from Ibn Shihab from Humayd ibn Abd ar-Rahman ibn Awf that a man came to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and said, "Messenger of Allah, teach me some words which I can live by. Do not make them too much for me, lest I forget." The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Do not be angry."

Allah's Apostle said, any man who has a slave girl whom he educates properly, teaches good manners, manumits and marries her, will get a double reward And if any man of the people of the Scriptures believes in his own prophet and then believes in me too, he will (also) get a double reward And any slave who fulfills his duty to his master and to his Lord, will (also) get a double reward."

I was the first man among the Arabs to throw an arrow for Allah's Cause. We used to fight in Allah's Cause while we had nothing to eat except the leaves of the Hubla and the Sumur trees (desert trees) so that we discharged excrement like that of sheep (i.e. unmixed droppings). Today the (people of the) tribe of Bani Asad teach me the laws of Islam. If so, then I am lost, and all my efforts of that hard time had gone in vain.

I came to the Prophet with some men from my tribe and stayed with him for twenty nights. He was kind and merciful to us. When he realized our longing for our families, he said to us, "Go back and stay with your families and teach them the religion, and offer the prayer and one of you should pronounce the Adhan for the prayer when its time is due and the oldest one amongst you should lead the prayer."

The Prophet (saws) intended to do many things for calling (the people) to prayer, but he did not do any of them. Then Abdullah ibn Zayd was taught in a dream how to pronounce the call to prayer. He came to the Prophet (saws) and informed him. He said: Teach it to Bilal. He then taught him, and Bilal made a call to prayer. Abdullah said: I saw it in a dream and I wished to pronounce it, but he (the Prophet) said: You should pronounce iqamah.

The Prophet (saws) said: How will you do when that time will come? Or he said: A time will soon come when the people are sifted and only dregs of mankind survive and their covenants and guarantees have been impaired and they have disagreed among themselves and become thus, interwining his fingers. They asked: What do you order us to do, Messenger of Allah? He replied: Accept what you approve, abandon what you disapprove, attend to your own affairs and leave alone the affairs of the generality.

Abu dawud said: A similar tradition has been transmitted by 'Abd Allah bin 'Amr from the Prophet (saws) through different chain.

Yahya related to me from Malik that Abdullah ibn Dinar said, "A man came to Abdullah ibn Umar when I waswith him at the place where judgments were given and asked him about the suckling of an older person. Abdullah ibn Umar replied, 'A man came to Umar ibn al-Khattab and said, 'I have a slave-girl and I used to have intercourse with her. My wife went to her and suckled her. When I went to the girl, my wife told me to watch out, because she had suckled her!' Umar told him to beat his wife and to go to his slave-girl because kinship by suckling was only by the suckling of the young.' "

Yahya related to me from Malik that Abu'z-Zinad informed him that a governor of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz took some people in battle and had not killed any of them. He wanted to cut off their hands or kill them, so he wrote to Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz about that Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz wrote to him, "Better to take less than that."

Yahya said that he heard Malik say, "What is done among us about a person who steals the goods of people which are placed under guard in the markets, and their owners put them in their containers and store them together is that if anyone steals any of that from where it is kept, and its value reaches that for which cutting off the hand is obliged, his hand must be cut off, whether or not the owner of the goods is with his goods and whether it is night or day."

Malik said about some one who stole something for which cutting off the hand was obliged and then what he stole was found with him and he returned it to its owner, "His hand is cut off."

Malik said, "If someon says, 'How can his hand be cut off when the goods have been taken from him and returned to their owner?', it is because he is in the same position as the wine drinker when the smell of the wine is found on his breath and he is not drunk. He is flogged with the hadd.

"The hadd is imposed for drinking wine even if it does not make the man intoxicated. That is because he drank it to become intoxicated. It is the same as that with cutting off the hand of the thief for theft when it is taken from him, even if he has not profited from it and it was returned to its owner. When he stole it, he stole it to take it away."

Malik said that if some people came to a house and robbed it together, and then they left with a sack or box or a board or basket or the like of that which they carried together, and when they took it out of its guarded place, they carried it together, and the price of what they took reached that for which cutting off the hand was obliged, and that was three dirhams and upwards, each of them had his hand cut off.

"If each of them takes out something by himself, whoever of them takes out something whose value reaches three dirhams and upwards must have his hand cut off. If any of them takes out something whose value does not reach three dirhams, he does not have his hand cut off."

Yahya said that Malik said, "What is done among us is that when a man's house is locked and he is the only one living in it, cutting off the hand is not obliged against the one who steals something from it until he takes it out of the house completely. That is because all of the house is a place of custody. If someone other than him lives in the house and each of them locks his door, and it is a place of custody for each of them, whoever steals anything from the apartments of that house must have his hand cut off when he leaves the apartment and goes into the main house. He has removed it from its place of custody to another place and he must have his hand cut off."

Malik said, "What is done in our community about a slave who steals from the property of his master is that if he is not in service and among those trusted in the house and he enters secretly and steals from his master something that for which cutting off the hand is obliged, his hand is not cut off. It is like that with a slave-girl when she steals from her master's property. Her hand is not cut off."

Malik then spoke about a slave who was not in service and not one of those trusted in the house, and he entered secretly and stole from the property of his master's wife that for which cutting off the hand was obliged. He said, "His hand is cut off."

"It is like that with the wife's slave-girl when she does not serve her or her husband nor is she trusted in the house and she enters secretly and steals from her mistress's property that for which cutting off the hand is obliged. Her hand is not cut off."

"It is like that with the wife's slave-girl who is not in her service and is not trusted in the house and she enters secretly and steals from the property of her mistress's husband something for which cutting off the hand is obliged. Her hand is cut off."

It is like that with the man who steals from his wife's goods or the wife who steals from her husband's goods something for which cutting off the hand is obliged. If the thing which one of them steals from his spouse's property is in a room other than the room which they both lock for themselves, or it is in a place of custody in a room other than the room which they are in, whichever of them steals something for which cutting off the hand is obliged, their hand should be cut off."

Malik spoke about a small child and a foreigner who does not speak clearly. He said, "If they are robbed of something from its place of custody or from under a lock, the one who stole it has his hand cut off. If the property is outside of its place of custody or locked room(when it is stolen), the one who robbed them does not have his hand cut off. It is then in the position of sheep stolen from the mountain and uncut fruit hanging on the trees "

Malik said, "What is done among us about a person who robs graves is that if what he takes from the grave reaches what cutting off the hand is obliged for, his hand is cut off . That is because the grave is a place of custody for what is in it just as houses are a place of custody for what is in them. "

Malik added, "Cutting off the hand is not obliged for him until he takes it out of the grave."

We alighted with the Prophet (saws) at Khaybar, and he had his companions with him. The chief of Khaybar was a defiant and abominable man.

He came to the Prophet (saws) and said: Is it proper for you, Muhammad, that you slaughter our donkeys, eat our fruit, and beat our women?

The Prophet (saws) became angry and said: Ibn Awf, ride your horse, and call loudly: Beware, Paradise is lawful only for a believer, and that they (the people) should gather for prayer.

They gathered and the Prophet (saws) led them in prayer, stood up and said: Does any of you, while reclining on his couch, imagine that Allah has prohibited only that which is to be found in this Qur'an? By Allah, I have preached, commanded and prohibited various matters as numerous as that which is found in the Qur'an, or more numerous. Allah has not permitted you to enter the houses of the people of the Book without permission, or beat their women, or eat their fruits when they give you that which is imposed on them.

I heard Hisham bin Hakim bin Hizam reciting Surat-al-Furqan during the lifetime of Allah's Apostle, and I listened to his recitation and noticed that he recited it in several ways which Allah's Apostle had not taught me. So I was on the point of attacking him in the prayer, but I waited till he finished his prayer, and then I seized him by the collar and said, "Who taught you this Surah which I have heard you reciting?" He replied, "Allah's Apostle taught it to me." I said, "You are telling a lie; By Allah! Allah's Apostle taught me (in a different way) this very Surah which I have heard you reciting." So I took him, leading him to Allah's Apostle and said, "O Allah's Apostle! I heard this person reciting Surat-al-Furqan in a way that you did not teach me, and you have taught me Surat-al-Furqan." The Prophet said, "O Hisham, recite!" So he recited in the same way as I heard him recite it before. On that Allah's Apostle said, "It was revealed to be recited in this way." Then Allah's Apostle said, "Recite, O `Umar!" So I recited it as he had taught me. Allah's Apostle then said, "It was revealed to be recited in this way." Allah" Apostle added, "The Qur'an has been revealed to be recited in several different ways, so recite of it that which is easier for you."

I came to `Aisha while she was praying, and said to her, "What has happened to the people?" She pointed out towards the sky. (I looked towards the mosque), and saw the people offering the prayer. Aisha said, "Subhan Allah." I said to her, "Is there a sign?" She nodded with her head meaning, "Yes." I, too, then stood (for the prayer of eclipse) till I became (nearly) unconscious and later on I poured water on my head. After the prayer, the Prophet praised and glorified Allah and then said, "Just now at this place I have seen what I have never seen before, including Paradise and Hell. No doubt it has been inspired to me that you will be put to trials in your graves and these trials will be like the trials of Masih-ad-Dajjal or nearly like it (the sub narrator is not sure which expression Asma' used). You will be asked, 'What do you know about this man (the Prophet Muhammad)?' Then the faithful believer (or Asma' said a similar word) will reply, 'He is Muhammad Allah's Apostle who had come to us with clear evidences and guidance and so we accepted his teachings and followed him. And he is Muhammad.' And he will repeat it thrice. Then the angels will say to him, 'Sleep in peace as we have come to know that you were a faithful believer.' On the other hand, a hypocrite or a doubtful person will reply, 'I do not know, but I heard the people saying something and so I said it.' (the same). "

Ma'iz ibn Malik came to the Prophet (saws) and admitted fornication twice. But he drove him away. He then came and admitted fornication twice. But he drove him away. He then came and admitted fornication twice. He (the Prophet) said: You have testified to yourself four times. Take him away and stone him to death.

The Prophet said, "While Job was naked, taking a bath, a swarm of gold locusts fell on him and he started collecting them in his garment. His Lord called him, 'O Job! Have I not made you rich enough to need what you see? He said, 'Yes, O Lord! But I cannot dispense with your Blessing."'

The Prophet or Abul-Qasim said, "If the Ansar took their way through a valley or a mountain pass, I would take Ansar's valley. And but for the migration, I would have been one of the Ansar." Abu Huraira used to say, "The Prophet is not unjust (by saying so). May my parents be sacrificed for him, for the Ansar sheltered and helped him," or said a similar sentence.

I used to sell camels at al-Baqi for dinars and take dirhams for them, and sell for dirhams and take dinars for them. I would take these for these and give these for these. I went to the Messenger of Allah (saws) who was in the house of Hafsah. I said: Messenger of Allah , take it easy, I shall ask you (a question): I sell camels at al-Baqi'. I sell (them) for dinars and take dirhams and I sell for dirhams and take dinars. I take these for these, and give these for these. The Messenger of Allah (saws) then said: There is no harm in taking them at the current rate so long as you do not separate leaving something to be settled.

Marwan said to his gatekeeper, "Go to Ibn `Abbas, O Rafi`, and say, 'If everybody who rejoices in what he has done, and likes to be praised for what he has not done, will be punished, then all of us will be punished." Ibn `Abbas said, "What connection have you with this case? It was only that the Prophet called the Jews and asked them about something, and they hid the truth and told him something else, and showed him that they deserved praise for the favor of telling him the answer to his question, and they became happy with what they had concealed. Then Ibn `Abbas recited:-- "(And remember) when Allah took a Covenant from those who were given the Scripture..and those who rejoice in what they have done and love to be praised for what they have not done.' " (3.187-188)

Humaid bin `Abdur-Rahman bin `Auf narrated that Marwan had told him (the above narration).

Yahya related to me from Malik from Hisham ibn Urwa that his father said, "A woman who bleeds as if menstruating only has to do one ghusl, and then after that she does wudu for each prayer."

Yahya said that Malik said, "The position with us is that when a woman who bleeds as if menstruating starts to do the prayer again, her husband can have sexual intercourse with her. Similarly, if a woman who has given birth sees blood after she has reached the fullest extent that bleeding normally restrains women, her husband can have sexual intercourse with her and she is in the same position as a woman who bleeds as if menstruating."

Yahya said that Malik said, "The position with us concerning a woman who bleeds as if menstruating is founded on the hadith of Hisham ibn Urwa from his father, and it is what I prefer the most of what I have heard about the matter."

Yahya said that Malik said, "The generally agreed on way of doing things among us about an investor who pays qirad money to an agent to buy goods, and the agent then sells the goods for a price to be paid later, and has a profit in the transaction, then the agent dies before he has received payment, is that if his heirs want to take that money, they have their father's stipulated portion from the profit. That is theirs if they are trustworthy to take the payment. If they dislike to collect it from the debtor and they refer him to the investor, they are not obliged to collect it and there is nothing against them and nothing for them by their surrendering it to the investor. If they do collect it, they have a share of it and expenses like their father had. They are in the position of their father. If they are not trustworthy to do so, they can bring someone reliable and trustworthy to collect the money. If he collects all the capital and all the profit, they are in the position of their father."

Malik spoke about an investor who paid qirad money to a man provided that he used it and was responsible for any delayed payment for which he sold it. He said, "This is obligatory on the agent. If he sells it for delayed payment, he is responsible for it."

By Allah except Whom none has the right to- be worshipped, (sometimes) I used to lay (sleep) on the ground on my liver (abdomen) because of hunger, and (sometimes) I used to bind a stone over my belly because of hunger. One day I sat by the way from where they (the Prophet and his companions) used to come out. When Abu Bakr passed by, I asked him about a Verse from Allah's Book and I asked him only that he might satisfy my hunger, but he passed by and did not do so. Then `Umar passed by me and I asked him about a Verse from Allah's Book, and I asked him only that he might satisfy my hunger, but he passed by without doing so. Finally Abu-l-Qasim (the Prophet ) passed by me and he smiled when he saw me, for he knew what was in my heart and on my face. He said, "O Aba Hirr (Abu Huraira)!" I replied, "Labbaik, O Allah's Apostle!" He said to me, "Follow me." He left and I followed him. Then he entered the house and I asked permission to enter and was admitted. He found milk in a bowl and said, "From where is this milk?" They said, "It has been presented to you by such-and-such man (or by such and such woman)." He said, "O Aba Hirr!" I said, "Labbaik, O Allah's Apostle!" He said, "Go and call the people of Suffa to me." These people of Suffa were the guests of Islam who had no families, nor money, nor anybody to depend upon, and whenever an object of charity was brought to the Prophet, he would send it to them and would not take anything from it, and whenever any present was given to him, he used to send some for them and take some of it for himself. The order of the Prophet upset me, and I said to myself, "How will this little milk be enough for the people of As- Suffa? though I was more entitled to drink from that milk in order to strengthen myself", but behold! The Prophet came to order me to give that milk to them. I wondered what will remain of that milk for me, but anyway, I could not but obey Allah and His Apostle so I went to the people of As-Suffa and called them, and they came and asked the Prophet's permission to enter. They were admitted and took their seats in the house. The Prophet said, "O Aba-Hirr!" I said, "Labbaik, O Allah's Apostle!" He said, "Take it and give it to them." So I took the bowl (of milk) and started giving it to one man who would drink his fill and return it to me, whereupon I would give it to another man who, in his turn, would drink his fill and return it to me, and I would then offer it to another man who would drink his fill and return it to me. Finally, after the whole group had drunk their fill, I reached the Prophet who took the bowl and put it on his hand, looked at me and smiled and said. "O Aba Hirr!" I replied, "Labbaik, O Allah's Apostle!" He said, "There remain you and I." I said, "You have said the truth, O Allah's Apostle!" He said, "Sit down and drink." I sat down and drank. He said, "Drink," and I drank. He kept on telling me repeatedly to drink, till I said, "No. by Allah Who sent you with the Truth, I have no space for it (in my stomach)." He said, "Hand it over to me." When I gave him the bowl, he praised Allah and pronounced Allah's Name on it and drank the remaining milk.

Allah's Apostle came to visit me during my ailment which had been aggravated during Hajjat-al- Wada`. I said to him, "You see how sick I am. I have much property but have no heir except my only daughter May I give two thirds of my property in charity?"! He said, "No." I said, "Half of it?" He said, "No." I said "One third?" He said, "One third is too much, for to leave your heirs rich is better than to leave them poor, begging of others. Nothing you spend seeking Allah's pleasure but you shall get a reward for it, even for what you put in the mouth of your wife."

My father, seeing a silken cloak being sold, said, "O Allah's Apostle! Buy this and wear it on Fridays and when the foreign delegates pay a visit to you." He said, "This is worn only by that person who will have no share in the Hereafter." Later a few silken cloaks were given to the Prophet as a gift, and he sent one of those cloaks to `Umar. `Umar said (to the Prophet), "How can I wear it while you have said about it what you said?" The Prophet said, "I did not give it to you to wear but to sell or to give to someone else to wear." So `Umar sent it to his (pagan) brother who was from the inhabitants of Mecca before he (`Umar's brother) embraced Islam.

We paid a visit to Khabbab who was sick, and he said, "We migrated with the Prophet for Allah's Sake and our wages became due on Allah. Some of us died without having received anything of the wages, and one of them was Mus`ab bin `Umar, who was martyred on the day of the battle of Uhud, leaving only one sheet (to shroud him in). If we covered his head with it, his feet became uncovered, and if we covered his feet with it, his head became uncovered. So the Prophet ordered us to cover his head with it and put some Idhkhir (a kind of grass) over his feet. On the other hand, some of us have had the fruits (of our good deed) and are plucking them (in this world).

Some Muslim men emigrated to Ethiopia whereupon Abu Bakr also prepared himself for the emigration, but the Prophet said (to him), "Wait, for I hope that Allah will allow me also to emigrate." Abu Bakr said, "Let my father and mother be sacrificed for you. Do you hope that (emigration)?" The Prophet said, 'Yes." So Abu Bakr waited to accompany the Prophet and fed two she-camels he had on the leaves of As-Samur tree regularly for four months One day while we were sitting in our house at midday, someone said to Abu Bakr, "Here is Allah's Apostle, coming with his head and a part of his face covered with a cloth-covering at an hour he never used to come to us." Abu Bakr said, "Let my father and mother be sacrificed for you, (O Prophet)! An urgent matter must have brought you here at this hour." The Prophet came and asked the permission to enter, and he was allowed. The Prophet entered and said to Abu Bakr, "Let those who are with you, go out." Abu Bakr replied, "(There is no stranger); they are your family. Let my father be sacrificed for you, O Allah's Apostle!" The Prophet said, "I have been allowed to leave (Mecca)." Abu Bakr said, " I shall accompany you, O Allah's Apostle, Let my father be sacrificed for you!" The Prophet said, "Yes," Abu Bakr said, 'O Allah's Apostles! Let my father be sacrificed for you. Take one of these two shecamels of mine" The Prophet said. I will take it only after paying its price." So we prepared their baggage and put their journey food In a leather bag. And Asma' bint Abu Bakr cut a piece of her girdle and tied the mouth of the leather bag with it. That is why she was called Dhatan- Nitaqaln. Then the Prophet and Abu Bakr went to a cave in a mountain called Thour and remained there for three nights. `Abdullah bin Abu Bakr. who was a young intelligent man. used to stay with them at night and leave before dawn so that in the morning, he would he with the Quraish at Mecca as if he had spent the night among them. If he heard of any plot contrived by the Quraish against the Prophet and Abu Bakr, he would understand it and (return to) inform them of it when it became dark. 'Amir bin Fuhaira, the freed slave of Abu Bakr used to graze a flock of milch sheep for them and he used to take those sheep to them when an hour had passed after the `Isha prayer. They would sleep soundly till 'Amir bin Fuhaira awakened them when it was still dark. He used to do that in each of those three nights.

Yahya related to me from Malik from Zayd ibn Aslam that the ayat "You who believe! When you rise for prayer wash your faces, and your arms to the elbows, and wipe over your heads and your feet up to the ankles," refers to rising from bed, meaning sleep.

Yahya said that Malik said, "The situation with us is that one does not have to do wudu for a nose-bleed, or for blood, or for pus issuing from the body. One only has to do wudu for impurities which issue from the genitals or the anus, or for sleep."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Yahya ibn Said that he heard Said ibn al-Musayyab say, "When people in military expeditions divided the spoils, they made a camel equal to ten sheep."

Malik said about the paid labourer in military expeditions, "If he is present at the battle and is with the people in the battle and he is a free man, he has his share. If he is not present, he has no share."

Malik summed up, "I think that the booty is only divided among free men who have been present at the battle. "

I asked the Prophet (about the hunting dogs) and he replied, "If you let loose (with Allah's name) your tamed dog after a game and it hunts it, you may eat it, but if the dog eats of (that game) then do not eat it because the dog has hunted it for itself." I further said, "Sometimes I send my dog for hunting and find another dog with it. He said, "Do not eat the game for you have mentioned Allah's name only on sending your dog and not the other dog."

The Prophet said, "Whoever slaughtered (his sacrifice) before the `Id prayer, should slaughter again." A man stood up and said, "This is the day on which one has desire for meat," and he mentioned something about his neighbors. It seemed that the Prophet I believed him. Then the same man added, "I have a young she-goat which is dearer to me than the meat of two sheep." The Prophet permitted him to slaughter it as a sacrifice. I do not know whether that permission was valid only for him or for others as well.

We set out in the company of Allah's Apostle five days before the end of Dhul Qa'da intending to perform Hajj only. When we approached Mecca Allah's Apostle ordered those who did not have the Hadi (i.e. an animal for sacrifice) with them, to perform the Tawaf around the Ka`ba, and between Safa and Marwa and then finish their Ihram. Beef was brought to us on the day of (i.e. the days of slaughtering) and I asked, "What is this?" Somebody said, Allah's Apostle has slaughtered (a cow) on behalf of his wives."

`Abdullah cursed those women who practiced tattooing and those who removed hair from their faces and those who created spaces between their teeth artificially to look beautiful, such ladies as changed what Allah has created. Um Ya'qub said, "What is that?" `Abdullah said, "Why should I not curse those who were cursed by Allah's Apostle and are referred to in Allah's Book?" She said to him "By Allah, I have read the whole Qur'an but I have not found such a thing. `Abdullah said, "By Allah, if you had read it (carefully) you would have found it. (Allah says:) 'And what the Apostle gives you take it and what he forbids you abstain (from it).' (59.7)

Once the Messenger of Allah (saws) intended to go on an expedition. He said: O group of the emigrants (Muhajirun) and the helpers (Ansar), among your brethren there are people who have neither property nor family. So one of you should take with him two or three persons; with me. I also rode on my camel by turns like one of them.

`Abbas bin `Abdul Muttalib said, "O Allah's Apostle! Did you benefit Abu Talib with anything as he used to protect and take care of you, and used to become angry for you?" The Prophet said, "Yes, he is in a shallow place of Fire. Were it not for me, he would have been in the bottom-most depth of the Fire."

Rifa`a was one of the warriors of Badr while (his father) Rafi` was one of the people of Al-`Aqaba (i.e. those who gave the pledge of allegiance at Al-`Aqaba). Rafi` used to say to his son, "I would not have been happier if I had taken part in the Badr battle instead of taking part in the 'Aqaba pledge."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Zayd ibn Aslam that Umar ibn al-Khattab asked the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, about someone who died without parents or offspring, and the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said to him, "The ayat which was sent down in the summer at the end of the Surat an-Nisa (Sura 4) is enoughfor you."

Malik said, "The generally agreed on way of doing things among us, in which there is no dispute, and which I saw the people of knowledge in our city doing, is that the person who leaves neither parent or offspring can be of two types. As for the kind described in the ayat which was sent down at the beginning of the Surat an-Nisa in which Allah, the Blessed, the Exalted! said, 'If a man or a woman has no direct heir, but has a brother or a sister by the mother, each of the two has a sixth. If there are more than that, they share equally in a third.' (Sura 4 ayat 12) This heirless one does not have heirs among his mother's siblings since there are no children or parents. As for the other kind described in the ayat which comes at the end of the Surat an-Nisa, Allah, the Blessed, the Exalted, said in it, 'They will ask you for a decision. Say, "Allah gives you a decision about the indirect heirs. If a man perishes having no children, but he has a sister, she shall receive a half of what he leaves, and he is her heir if she has no children. If there are two sisters, they shall receive two-thirds of what he leaves. If there are brothers and sisters, the male shall receive the portion of two females. Allah makes clear to you that you might not go astray. Allah has knowledge of everything" ' " (Sura 4 ayat 176).

Malik said, "If this person without direct heirs (parents) or children has siblings by the father, they inherit with the grandfather from the person without direct heirs. The grandfather inherits with the siblings because he is more entitled to the inheritance than them. That is because he inherits a sixth with the male children of the deceased when the siblings do not inherit anything with the male children of the deceased. How can he not be like one of them when he takes a sixth with the children of the deceased? How can he not take a third with the siblings while the brother's sons take a third with them? The grandfather is the one who overshadows the half-siblings by the mother and keeps them from inheriting. He is more entitled to what they have because they are omitted for his sake. If the grandfather did not take that third, the half-siblings by the mother would take it and would take what does not return to the half-siblings by the father. The half-siblings by the mother are more entitled to that third than the half-siblings by the father while the grandfather is more entitled to that than the half- siblings by the mother."

Abdu Khayr said: Ali came upon us and he had already offered prayer. He called for water. We asked: What will you do with water when you have already offered prayer? - Perhaps to teach us. A utensil containing water and a wash-basin were brought (to him).

He poured water from the utensil on his right hand and washed both his hands three times, rinsed the mouth, snuffed up water and cleansed the nose three times. He then rinsed the mouth and snuffed up water with the same hand by which he took water. He then washed his face three times, and washed his right hand three times and washed his left hand three times. He then put his hand in water and wiped his head once.

He then washed his right foot thrice and left foot thrice, then said: If one is pleased to know the method of performing ablution of the Messenger of Allah, this is how he did it.