Ibn ‘Abbas said that God’s messenger was the most generous of men, and he was as generous as possible in Ramadan. Gabriel used to meet him every night in Ramadan and the Prophet would go over the Qur’an to him. When Gabriel met him he was more generous than the wind which blows freely. (Bukhari and Muslim.)

He said that God’s messenger said to an invalid whom he visited, "Cheer up, for God most high says, ‘It is my fire to which I give power over my believing servant in the world to be his portion of hell on the day of resurrection.” Ahmad, Ibn Majah and Baihaqi, in Shu'ab al- iman, transmitted it.

Anas reported God’s messenger as stating that the Lord who is glorious and exalted says, "By my might and glory, I will not take out of the world anyone I intend to forgive till I get payment for every sin which hangs on his neck by illness in his body and scarcity in his provision.” Razin transmitted it.

Qatada told of hearing Anas say that when there was an alarm in Medina the Prophet borrowed from Abu Talha a horse called al-Mandub which he rode. When he returned he said, “I did not see anything, and I found that the horse could run as speedily as a great river.” (Bukhari and Muslim.)

‘Abdallah b. Busr told of a man saying, “Messenger of God, the ordinances of Islam are too many for me, so tell me something to which I may cling.” He replied, “Your tongue will continue to be supple by making mention of God.” Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah transmitted it. Tirmidhi saying this is a hasan gharib tradition.

Hudhaifa reported God’s messenger as saying, “It is not fitting for a believer to demean himself." On being asked how he could demean himself he replied, “By exposing himself to a calamity which he has not the capacity to endure." Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah and Baihaqi, in Shu'ab al-iman, transmitted it, Tirmidhi saying this is a hasan gharib tradition.

He said that in the year of the Conquest* God's Messenger recited a verse at which a prostration should be made and all the people prostrated themselves. Some were mounted, some were prostrating themselves on the ground, and those who were mounted prostrated themselves on their hands. * i.e. the Conquest of Mecca in 8 A.H. Abu Dawud transmitted it.

Ibn ‘Abbas said the Prophet liked to do the same as the People of the Book in matters about which he had received no command. The People of the Book used to let their hair hang down and the polytheists used to part their hair, so the Prophet let his forelock hang down, but afterwards he parted it. (Bukhari and Muslim.)

Abu Dharr reported God’s messenger as saying, “The best things with which grey hairs are changed are henna and katam (leaves of the salam tree (mimosa flava). This dye applied with henna to the hair is said to preserve its original colour. Katam is also said to lighten the colour of the hair). Tirmidhi, Abu Dawud and Nasa’i transmitted it.

He told that when Abu Humaid, one of the Ansar, brought a vessel of milk to the Prophet from an-Naqi'* the Prophet said, “Why did you not cover it up, even by putting a piece of wood on it?” *A place in the wadi al-'Aqiq where camels which had been given in sadaqa were kept. (Bukhari and Muslim.)

that the Messenger of Allah said: “There is no breastfeeding except that which fills the stomach.”

Abū Bakr sent for me after the slaughter of those who fought at al-Yamāma and ‘Umar b. al-Khattāb was with him. Abū Bakr told me that ‘Umar had come to him and drawn attention to the extensive slaughter among Qur’ān readers at the battle of al- Yamāma, saying he was afraid that if readers continued to be killed in large numbers at other battles a large amount of the Qur’ān would be lost, and that he therefore thought he should give command that the Qur’ān be collected. He had asked. ‘Umar how he could do a thing which God’s messenger had not done, and ‘Umar, swearing by God that this was best, had kept at him till God made him inclined to do that, and he came to hold ‘Umar’s opinion about the matter. Zaid told how Abū Bakr said to him, “You are an intelligent young man whom we do not suspect and you have been writing down the revelation which came to God’s messenger, so search for the Qur’ān and collect it,” adding: I swear by God that if they had imposed on me the transportation of a mountain it would not have been a heavier load for me than the collecting of the Qur’ān which he ordered me to undertake. I asked how they could do a thing which God’s messenger had not done and Abū Bakr, swearing by God that this was best, kept at me till God made me in­clined to do what He had made Abū Bakr and ‘Umar inclined to do. I therefore searched for the Qur’ān and collected it from leafless palm branches, white stones and the breasts of men till I found the end of sūra at-Tauba (Qur’ān, 9) with Abū Khuzaima al-Ansārī, not having found it with anyone else: "A messenger from among yourselves has come to you . . .” to the end of Barā'a* (Qur’ān, 9 128-129). The sheets were deposited with Abū Bakr till God took him, then with ‘Umar during his lifetime, then with Hafsa, ‘Umar’s daughter. *Tauba and Barā’a are alternative titles of sūra 9. Bukhārī transmitted it.

Bara bin Azib said concerning the Verse: “And of that which We have priduced from the earth for you, and don not aim at that which is bad to spend from it. ” [Al-Baqarah 2:267] “This was revealed concerning the Ansar. At the time of the new date-palm harvest, they would take a bunch of dates that were beginning to ripen and hang it on a rope between two of the pillars in the mosque of the Messenger of Allah (saw), and the poor emigrants would eat from it.” One of them deliberately mixed a bunch containing rotten and shriveled dates, and thought this was permissible because of the large number of dates that had been put there. So the following was revealed about the one who did that: '… and do not aim at that which is bad to spend from it'. Meaning do not seek out the rotten and shriveled dates to give in charity: '…(thought) you would not accept it save if you close your eyes and tolerate therein.' Meaning, if you were given this as a gift you would only accept it because you felt embarrassed, and you would get angry that he had sent something of which you have no need. And know that Allah has no need of your charity.”

Yahya related to me from Malik, from Hisham ibn Urwa, from his father, that A'isha, umm al-muminin, said to him, "Son of my sister, it is only for ten nights, so if you get an urge to do something, leave it," by which she meant eating game-meat.

Malik said that if game was hunted forthe sake of a man who is in ihram and it was prepared for him and he ate some of it knowing that it had been hunted for his sake, then he had to pay a forfeit for all of the game that had been hunted on his behalf.

Malik was asked about whether someone who was forced to eat carrion while he was in ihram should hunt game and then eat that rather than the carrion, and he said, "It is better for him to eat the carrion, because Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, has not given permission for someone in ihram to either eat game or take it in any situation, but He has made allowances for eating carrion when absolutely necessary."

Malik said, "It is not halal for anyone, whether in ihram or not, to eat game which has been killed or sacrificed by some one in ihram, because, whether it was killed deliberately or by mistake, it was not done in a halal manner, and so eating it is not halal. I have heard this from more than one person. Somebody who kills game and then eats it only has to make a single kaffara, which is the same as for somebody who kills game but does not eat any of it."

Yahya related to me from Malik that Zurayq ibn Hakim informed him that he had a runaway slave who had stolen. He said, "The situation was obscure for me, so I wrote to Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz to ask him about it. He was the governor at that time. I informed him that I had heard that if a runaway slave stole while he was a fugitive, his hand was not cut off. 'Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz wrote to contradict my letter, 'You wrote to me that you have heard that when the runaway slave steals, his hand is not cut off. Allah, the Blessed, the Exalted, says in His Book, 'The thief, male and female, cut off the hands of both, as a recompense for what they have earned, and an exemplary punishment from Allah. Allah is Mighty, Wise.' (Sura 5 ayat 41) When his theft reaches a quarter of a dinar, and upwards, his hand is cut off.' "

Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that al- Qasim ibn Muhammad and Salim ibn Abdullah and Urwa ibn az-Zubayr said, "When a runaway slave steals something for which cutting off the hand is obliged, his hand is cut off."

Malik said, "The way of doing things amongst us about which there is no dispute is that when the runaway slave steals that for which cutting off the hand is obliged, his hand is cut off."

Abu Huraira told of the poor Emigrants coming to God’s Messenger and saying, “The possessors of great wealth have obtained all the highest grades and lasting bliss.” When he asked what they meant they replied, “They pray as we do, they fast as we do, they give alms but we do not, and they set slaves free but we do not.” So God’s Messenger said, “Shall I not teach you something by which you will catch up on those who have preceded you and get ahead of those who come after you, only those who do as you do being more excellent than you?” On their replying, “Certainly, Messenger of God,” he said, “Extol God, declare His greatness, and praise Him thirty-three times after every prayer.” Abu Salih said that the poor Emigrants returned to God’s Messenger saying, “Our brethren, the possessors of property, have heard what we have done, and they have done the same,” to which he replied, “That is God’s grace, which He gives to whom He wishes.” (Al-Qur’an; 5:54; 57:21; 62:4.) (Bukhari and Muslim) What Abu Salih said is given up to the end only by Muslim. A version has, “Extol God ten times after every prayer, praise Him ten times, and declare His greatness ten times,” instead of thirty-three times given by Bukhari.

I have seen the time when no one stayed away from prayer except a hypocrite whose hypocrisy was well known, or a sick man, but if a sick man could walk with one on each side of him he would come to prayer. He also said: God’s Messenger taught us the paths of right guidance, among which is prayer in the mosque in which the adhan is called. In a version he said: If anyone would like to meet God tomorrow as a Muslim he should persevere in observing these five times of prayer where the announcement for them is made, for God has laid down for your Prophet the paths of right guidance, among which are the prayers. If you were to pray in your houses as this man who stays away prays in his house, you would abandon the practice of your Prophet, and if you were to abandon the practice of your Prophet you would go astray. No man purifies himself, doing it well, then makes for one of these mosques, without God recording a blessing for him for every step he takes, raising him a degree for it and removing a sin from him for it. I have seen the time when no one stayed away from it except a hypocrite who was well known as such, whereas a man would be brought swaying* between two men till he was set up in the row.” * Because he was too weak to walk alone. Muslim transmitted it.

He told that once when the Prophet was brought some meat and was offered the foreleg, which was a part he liked, he bit off a piece of it and then said, ``I shall be the lord of mankind on the day of resurrection, the day when mankind will stand up before the Lord of the universe and the sun will draw near. Mankind will then experience a degree of care and anxiety which they will be unable to bear, so they will ask one another whether they cannot see anyone who may intercede for them with their Lord and will go to Adam." He then mentioned the tradition about intercession and said, "I shall then set off and come below the Throne and fall down prostrating myself before my Lord, and after God has revealed to me some utterances of His praise and of a worthy manner of extolling Him which He had not revealed to anyone before me He will say, `Raise your head, Muhammad. If you make a request, it will be granted, and if you make intercession, it will be accepted.' I shall then raise my head and say, `My people, O my Lord; my people, O my Lord; my people, O my Lord,' and the reply will be given, `Bring in by the right gate of paradise, Muhammad, those of your people who are not taken into account, though they may equally enter by other gates along with mankind'." He then said, "By Him in whose hand my soul is, the distance between the two halves of the gates of paradise is like that between Mecca and Hajar." (Bukhari and Muslim.)

Sahl b. Sa'd told that God's messenger said on the day of Khaibar, "I shall certainly give this standard tomorrow to a man who loves God and His messenger and is loved by God and His messenger, at whose hands God will give victory." In the morning the people came to God's messenger each hoping he would be given it, but he asked, "Where is `Ali b. Abu Talib?" On being informed that he was suffering from eye trouble he told them to send for him, and when he was brought God's messenger spat in his eyes and he recovered, so that it seemed as if nothing had been wrong with him. He then gave him the standard, and he said, "Messenger of God, I shall fight with them till they are like us." He then said, "Go gently till you come to their outskirts, then invite them to accept Islam and inform them of the demands due to God which it will involve for them. I swear by God it will be better for you that God should give guidance to one man through your agency than that you should acquire the red ones among the camels[*]." *This phrase indicates camels of the most valuable breed, and is also used figuratively of anything which is valuable. (Bukhari and Muslim.) The tradition of al-Bara' in which he said to `Ali, "You pertain to me and I pertain to you," has been mentioned in the chapter on young people attaining puberty.

Some of the Companions of Prophet (saws) went on a journey. They encamped with a clan of the Arabs and sought hospitality from them, but they refused to provide them with any hospitality. The chief of the clan was stung by a scorpion or bitten by a snake. They gave him all sorts of treatment, but nothing gave him relied. One of them said: Would that you had gone to those people who encamped with you ; some of them might have something which could give you relief to your companion. (So they went and) one of them said: Our chief has been stung by a scorpion or bitten by a snake. We administered all sorts of medicine but nothing gave him relief. Has any of you anything, i.e. charm, which gives healing to our companion. One of those people said: I shall apply charm; we sought hospitality from you, but you refused to entertain us. I am not going to apply charm until you give me some wages. So they offered them a number of sheep. He then came to and recited Faithat-al-Kitab and spat until he was cured as if he were set free from a bond. Thereafter they made payment of the wages as agreed by them. They said: Apportion (the wages). The man who applied the charm said: Do not do until we come to the Messenger of Allah (saws) and consult him. So they came to the Messenger of Allah (saws) next morning and mentioned it to him. The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: From where did you learn that it was a charm ? You have done right. Give me a share along with you.

Yahya related to me from Malik from Muhammad ibn Amr ibn Halhala ad-Dili from Muhammad ibn lmran al-Ansari that his father said that Abdullah ibn Umar came upon him while he stopped for a rest under a tall tree on the road to Makka, and he said, "What has made you stop under this tall tree?" He replied that he sought it's shade. Abdullah ibn Umar said, "Anything besides that?" and he said, "No, that was the only. reason he stopped for a rest," and Abdullah ibn Umar said, "The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, 'If you are between al-Akhshabayn (which are two mountains) near Mina,' indicating the east with his outspread hand, 'you will find a valley called as-Surar with a tree in it beneath which the umbilical cords of seventy prophets have been cut.' "

“I asked Aishah [may Allah be pleased with her]: ‘With what did the Prophet used to open his Salat when he stood up in the night?’ She said: ‘When he stood up in the night, he would open his Salat by saying: “O Allah, Lord of Jibra’il, Mika’il, and Israfil; Originator of the heavens and the earth, [and] Knower of the hidden and the seen; You judge between Your slaves concerning that which they used to differ, guide me through that which there has been difference concerning the truth, verily, You are upon a straight path (Allāhumma rabba Jibrīla wa Mīkā'ila wa Isrāfīl, fāṭira-samāwāti wal-arḍi [wa] `ālimal-ghaibi wash-shahādati anta taḥkumu baina `ibādika fīmā kānū fīhi yakhtalifūn, ihdini limakhtulifa fīhi minal-ḥaqqi bi'idhnika innaka tahdī man tashā'u ilā ṣirātin mustaqīm).”

"When the Messenger of Allah (SAW) reached Sidrat Al-Muntaha" He said: 'There terminates everything that ascends from the earth, and everything that descends from above. So there Allah gave him three, which He did not give to any Prophet before him: He made fiver prayers obligatory upon him, He gave him the last Verses of Surat Al-Baqarah, and He pardoned the grave sins for those of his Ummah who do not associate anything with Allah.' Ibn Mas'ud said regarding the Ayah: "When that covered the Sidrah which did cover it! (53:16)" he said: "The sixth Sidrah in heavens." Sufyan said: "Golden butterflies" and Sufyan indicated with his hand in a fluttering motion. Others besides Malik bin Mighwal said: "There terminates the creatures' knowledge, there is no knowledge for them of what is above that."

I went to visit Khabbab bin Aratt (May Allah be pleased with him) during his illness. He had been cauterized in seven places. He said: "Our companions who have died have left (this world) without having enjoyed the pleasures of the world (in order to get a great full reward in the Hereafter) while we have amassed wealth exceeding our needs for which there is no place to keep except in the earth. Had Messenger of Allah (PBUH) not prohibited us from longing for death, I would have prayed for it." Then we visited him again and he was building a wall. He said: "There is a reward in store for a Muslim in respect of everything on which he spends except for something he places in the earth (i.e., something exceeding our needs or essentials)."

[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

Sa'id b. al-Musayyib told that there were two brothers among the Ansar who shared an inheritance and that when one of them asked the other for the portion due to him he replied, “If you ask me again for the portion due to you, all my property will be devoted to the Ka'ba.”¹ ‘Umar, telling him that the Ka'ba did not need his property, ordered I him to make atonement for his oath and speak to his brother, for he had heard God’s Messenger say, “An oath or a vow to disobey the Lord, t or to break ties of relationship, or about something over which one has no control is not binding on you.” Abu Dawud transmitted it. 1. Fi ritaj al-ka'ba. This phrase which speaks of the door of the Ka'ba is used as a phrase for the Ka'ba itself. 2. Mirqat, iii, 570 says it means he is to speak to his brother about repeating his request.

‘Abdallah b. Busr said that God’s messenger visited his father and they presented him with some food and a mixture of dates, dried curd and clarified butter,* some of which he ate. Then some dates were brought to him and he ate them, throwing away the stones between two fingers, joining the forefinger and the middle finger. A version says that he began to throw away the stones on the outside of his forefinger and middle finger. He was then brought something to drink, and when he had drunk it [‘Abdallah’s] father took hold of the bridle of his beast and said, “Supplicate God for us.” So he said, “O God, bless them in that with which Thou hast provided them, forgive them and show them mercy.” *The Arabic word for this dish is watba. The word hais is used for very much the same dish. See p. 439, n.1. Muslim transmitted it.

on it God created Adam, on it God sent Adam down to the earth, on it God took Adam in death, it contains a time at which no one will ask for anything without God giving it, so long as he does not ask for anything unlawful, and on it the last hour will come. There is no angel near God’s presence, or sky, or earth, or winds, or mountains, or sea which do not fear Friday.” Ibn Majah transmitted it. Ahmad transmitted from Sa'd b. Mu'adh that one of the Ansar went to the Prophet and asked him to tell him about the good contained in Friday. He replied, "It has five distinguishing characteristics ...” and he carried on to the end of the tradition.

Yazid b. Ruman told on the authority of Salih b. al-Khawwat on the authority of one who prayed in time of danger along with God’s Messenger at the battle of Dhat ar-Riqa'* that a section formed a line along with him and a section faced the enemy. He led the section which was along with him in a rak'a, then remained standing while they finished the prayer by themselves. They then departed and drew up in line facing the enemy, and when the other party came he led them in the remaining rak'a of his prayer, after which he remained seated while they finished the prayer by themselves. He then led them in uttering the salutation. * This was during an expedition against some sections of Ghatafan in 4 A.H (Bukhari and Muslim.) Bukhari rendered it also by another line from al-Qasim from Salih b. al-Khawwat from Sahl b. Abu Hathma from the Prophet.

Abu Tha'laba al-Khushani told that he said, “Prophet of God, we are in a land belonging to folk who are people of the Book, so may we eat out of their vessels? In a hunting region I hunt with my bow, my dog which is not trained and my dog which is trained, so what is right for me?” He replied, “Regarding what you have mentioned about the vessels of the people of the Book, if you can get anything else do not eat out of them, but if you cannot, wash them and eat out of them. Eat what you catch with your bow when you have mentioned God’s name; eat what you catch by your trained dog when you have mentioned God’s name; and eat what you catch by your untrained dog when you are present at the kill.” (Bukhari and Muslim.)

Zainab the wife of ‘Abdallah b. Mas'ud told that ‘Abdallah saw a thread on her neck and asked what it was. When she told him that it was a thread over which a spell had been recited for her he took it, cut it up and said, “You, family of ‘Abdallah, are independent of polytheism. I have heard God’s messenger say that spells, charms and love-spells are polytheism.” She replied, “Why do you speak like this? My eye was discharging and I kept going to so and so, the Jew, and when he applied a spell to it it calmed down.” ‘Abdallah said, “That was just the work of the devil who was pricking it with his hand, and when a spell was uttered he desisted. All you need to do is to say as God’s messenger did, ‘Remove the harm, O Lord of men, and heal. Thou art the Healer. There is no remedy but Thine which leaves no disease behind.” Abu Dawud transmitted it.

`Ubada b. as-Samit reported God's messenger as saying, "In paradise there are a hundred stages between each two of which there is a distance like that between heaven and earth. Al-Firdaus from which issue the four rivers of paradise is the highest of them, and above it is the Throne; so, when you make request from God ask Him for al-Firdaus." Tirmidhi transmitted it. I have not found it in the two Sahihs or al-Humaidi's book[*]. *In Masabih as-sunna the source of each individual tradition is not given but those in section 1 are all called sahih and come from Bukhari or Muslim, or from both. One therefore does not expect to find a tradition from Tirmidhi in section 1. It occurs in his collection in Sifat al janna, 4. In Masabih as-sunna it does not say that this tradition comes from 'Ubada, but the Mishkat is correct in attributing it to him. There is one like it from Abu Huraira in Bukhari, jihad, 4, but the wording is not identical.

Jabir saw the Messenger of Allah (saws) observing prayer. (The narrator Amr said: I do not know which prayer he was offering.)

He (the Prophet) said: Allah is altogether great; Allah is altogether great; Allah is altogether great; and praise be to Allah in abundance; and praise be to Allah is abundance; and praise be to Allah in abundance. Glory be to Allah in the morning and after (saying it three times). I seek refuge in Allah from the accursed devil, from his puffing up (nafkh), his spitting (nafth) and his evil suggestion (hamz).

He (Amr) said: His nafth it poetry, his nafkh is pride, and his hamz is madness.

A man came to the Prophet (saws) and said: I cannot memorise anything from the Qur'an: so teach me something which is sufficient for me. He said: Say Glory be to Allah, and praise be to Allah, and there is no god but Allah, and Allah is most great, and there is no might and no strength but in Allah.

:He said: Messenger of Allah, this is for Allah, but what is for me? He said: Say: O Allah have mercy on me, and sustain me, and keep me well, and guide me. When he stood up, he made a sign with his hand (indicating that he had earned a lot).

The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: He filed up his hand with virtues.

A man came to the Prophet (saws) when he was at al-Ji'ranah. He was wearing perfume or the mark of saffron was on him and he was wearing a tunic.

He said: Messenger of Allah, what do you command me to do while performing my Umrah. In the meantime, Allah, the Exalted, sent a revelation to the Prophet (saws).

When he (the Prophet) came to himself gradually, he asked: Where is the man who asking about umrah? (When the man came) he (the Prophet) said: Wash the perfume which is on you, or he said: (Wash) the mark of saffron (the narrator is doubtful), take off the tunic, then do in your umrah as you do in your hajj.

Mansur al-Kalbi said: Dihyah ibn Khalifah once went out from a village of Damascus at as much distance as it measures between Aqabah and al-Fustat during Ramadan; and that is three miles. He then broke his fast and the people broke their fast along with him. But some of them disliked to break their fast. When he came back to his village, he said: I swear by Allah, today I witnessed a thing of which I could not even think to see. The people detested the way of the Messenger of Allah (saws) and his Companions. He said this to those who fasted. At this moment he said: O Allah, make me die.

The Prophet (saws) said: When your brethren were smitten at the battle of Uhud, Allah put their spirits in the crops of green birds which go down to the rivers of Paradise, eat its fruit and nestle in lamps of gold in the shade of the Throne. Then when they experienced the sweetness of their food, drink and rest, they asked: Who will tell our brethren about us that we are alive in Paradise provided with provision, in order that they might not be disinterested in jihad and recoil in war? Allah Most High said: I shall tell them about you; so Allah sent down; "And do not consider those who have been killed in Allah's path." till the end of the verse.

When the Messenger of Allah (saws) gained booty he ordered Bilal to make a public announcement. He made a public announcement, and when the people brought their booty, he would take a fifth and divide it. Thereafter a man brought a halter of hair and said: Messenger of Allah, this is a part of the booty we got. He asked: Have you heard Bilal making announcement three times? He replied: Yes. He asked: What did prevent you from bringing it? He made some excuse, to which he said: Be (as you are), you may bring it on the Day of Judgment, for I shall not accept it from you.

AbulJuwayriyyah al-Jarmi said: I found a red pitcher containing dinars in Byzantine territory during the reign of Mu'awiyah. A man from the Companions of the Prophet (saws) belonging to Banu Sulaym was our ruler. He was called Ma'an ibn Yazid. I brought it to him. He apportioned it among the Muslims. He gave me the same portion which he gave to one of them. He then said: Had I not heard the Messenger of Allah (saws) say: There is no reward except after taking the fifth (from the booty), I would have given you (the reward). He then presented his own share to me, but I refused.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) enjoined upon us to pay great attention to the eye and both ears, and not to sacrifice a one-eyed animal, and an animal with a slit which leaves something hanging at the front or back of the ear, or with a lengthwise slit with a perforation in the ear. I asked AbuIshaq: Did he mention an animal with broken horns and uprooted ears? He said: No. I said: 'What is the Muqabalah ?' He replied: 'It has been cut from the back of its ear.' I said: 'What about the Sharqa'? He replied: 'The ear has been split.' I said: 'What about the Kharqa'? He replied: 'A hole is made (in its ears) as a distinguishing mark.'"

A man of Kindah and a man of Hadramawt brought their dispute to the Prophet (saws) about a land in the Yemen. Al-Hadrami said: Messenger of Allah, the father of this (man) usurped my land and it is in his possession.

The Prophet asked: Have you any evidence?

Al-Hadrami replied: No, but I make him swear (that he should say) that he does not know that it is my land which his father usurped from me.

Al-Kindi became ready to take the oath.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: If anyone usurps the property by taking an oath, he will meet Allah while his hand is mutilated.

Al-Kindi then said: It is his land.

The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) came to my father and he was a guest with him. He offered food to him and brought hais. He then brought a drink which he drank and he gave it to the one on his right. He ate dried dates and began to put the kernels on the back of his ring finger and middle finger. When he got up, my father also got up, and held the rein of his mount. He said : Pray to Allah for me. He said : O Allah, bless them in what you provided them, and have mercy on them.

Adam and Moses held a disputation. Moses said : Adam you are our father. You deprived us and caused us to come out from Paradise. Adam said : You are Moses Allah chose you for his speech and wrote the Torah for you with his hand. Do you blame me for doing a deed which Allah had decreed that I should do forty year before he created me? So Adam got the better of Moses in argument.

Ahmad b. Salih said from 'Amr from Tawus who heard Abu Hurairah.

I saw the Messenger of Allah (saws) sitting neat the Black stone (or at a corner of the Ka'bah). He said: He (the Prophet) raised his eyes towards the heaven, and laughed, and he said: May Allah curse the Jews! He said this three times. Allah declared unlawful for them the fats (of the animals which died a natural death); they sold them and they enjoyed the price they received for them. When Allah declared eating of thing forbidden for the people, He declares it price also forbidden for them. The version of Khalid b. 'Abd Allah al-Tahhan does not have the words "I saw". It has: "May Allah destroy the Jews!"

I asked Rafi' b. Khadij about the lease of land for gold and silver (i.e. for dinars and dirhams). There is no harm in it, for the people used to let out land in the time of the Messenger of Allah (saws) for what grew by the current of water and at the banks of streamlets and at the places of cultivation. So sometimes this (portion) perished and that (portion) was saved, and sometimes this remained intact and that perished. There was no (form of) lease among the people except this. Therefore, he forbade it. But if there is something which is secure and known, then there is no harm in it. The tradition of Ibrahim is more perfect. Qutaibah said: "from Hanzalah on the authority of Rafi' ".

Abu Dawud said: A similar tradition has been transmitted by Yahya b. Sa'id from Hanzalah.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) went out to visit 'Abd Allah b. Ubayy during his illness of which he died. When he entered upon him, he realised death on him. He said: I used to forbid you from the love of Jews. He ('Abd Allah) said: As'ad b. Zurarah hated them. So what (the benefited) ? When he died, his son came and said: Prophet of Allah, 'Abd Allah b. Ubayy has died, give me your shirt, so that I shroud him in it. The Messenger of Allah (saws) took off his shirt and gave it to him.

When we were in the Suffah, the Messenger of Allah (saws) asked: Which of you would like to go out every morning to Buthan or Al-'Aqiq and bring two large humped and fat she-camels without being guilty of sin and severing ties of relationship ? They (the people) said: Messenger of Allah, we would all like that. He said: If any one of you goes out in the morning to the mosque and learns two verses of the Book of Allah, the Exalted, it is better for him than two she-camels, and three verses are better for him than three she-camels, and so on than their numbers in camels.

‘Abd Allah b. ‘Umar saw me playing with pebbles during prayer. When he finished his prayer, he forbade me (to do so) and said: Do as the Apostle (may peace be upon him) used to do. I asked him: How would the Messenger of Allah(may peace be upon him) do? He said: When he sat during the prayer (for reciting the tashahhud), he placed his right hand on his right thigh, and clenched all his fingers, and pointed with the finger which is adjacent to the thumb, and he placed his left hand on his left thigh.

“On the day when He created the heavens and the earth, Allah created one hundred (degrees of) mercy, of which He placed one on earth, by virtue of which mothers show compassion to their children and animals as well as the birds show compassion to one another. And He kept back ninety-nine (degrees of) mercy. When the Day of Resurrection comes, Allah will complete this mercy.”

Yahya related to me from Malik from Hisham ibn Urwa that his father used to say to his sons, "My sons, let none of you sacrifice any animal which he would be ashamed to sacrifice for a noble woman, for surely Allah is the noblest of noble ones, and the most deserving of those for whom things are chosen."

Malik related to me from Nafi from Sa'iba, the female mawla of A'isha, that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, forbade killing the snakes which were in the houses except those with two white stripes on their back and the short ones. They made one go blind and caused miscarriages in women.