The Prophet was carrying earth on the day of Al-Khandaq till his `Abdomen was fully covered with dust, and he was saying, "By Allah, without Allah we would not have been guided, neither would we have given in charity, nor would we have prayed. So (O Allah), please send Sakina (i.e. calmness) upon us, and make our feet firm if we meet the enemy as the enemy have rebelled against us, and if they intended affliction, (i.e. want to frighten us and fight against us then we would not flee but withstand them)." The Prophet used to raise his voice saying, "Abaina! Abaina! (i.e. would not, we would not).

We used to participate in the holy wars carried on by the Prophet and we had no women (wives) with us. So we said (to the Prophet ). "Shall we castrate ourselves?" But the Prophet forbade us to do that and thenceforth he allowed us to marry a woman (temporarily) by giving her even a garment, and then he recited: "O you who believe! Do not make unlawful the good things which Allah has made lawful for you."

During the time of Messenger of Allah (saws) we used to buy grain, and he sent a man to us who ordered us to move it from the spot where we had bought it to some other place, before we sold it without weighing or measuring it.

We entered upon 'Ubada bin As-Samit while he was sick. We said, "May Allah make you healthy. Will you tell us a Hadith you heard from the Prophet and by which Allah may make you benefit?" He said, "The Prophet called us and we gave him the Pledge of allegiance for Islam, and among the conditions on which he took the Pledge from us, was that we were to listen and obey (the orders) both at the time when we were active and at the time when we were tired, and at our difficult time and at our ease and to be obedient to the ruler and give him his right even if he did not give us our right, and not to fight against him unless we noticed him having open Kufr (disbelief) for which we would have a proof with us from Allah."

We used to practice coitus interrupt us while the Qur'an was being revealed. Jabir added: We used to practice coitus interrupt us during the lifetime of Allah's Apostle while the Qur'an was being Revealed.

The Prophet once stayed for nineteen days and prayed shortened prayers. So when we travel led (and stayed) for nineteen days, we used to shorten the prayer but if we traveled (and stayed) for a longer period we used to offer the full prayer.

We used to greet the Prophet while he was praying and he used to answer our greetings. When we returned from An-Najashi (the ruler of Ethiopia), we greeted him, but he did not answer us (during the prayer) and (after finishing the prayer) he said, "In the prayer one is occupied (with a more serious matter)."

Ibn Umar was sent with a detachment of the Messenger of Allah (saws). The people wheeled round in flight. He said: I was one of those who wheeled round in flight. When we stopped, we said (i.e. thought): How should we do? We have run away from the battlefield and deserve Allah's wrath. Then we said (thought): Let us enter Medina, stay there, and go there while no one sees us. So we entered (Medina) and thought: If we present ourselves before the Messenger of Allah (saws), and if there is a change of repentance for us, we shall stay; if there is something else, we shall go away. So we sat down (waiting) for the Messenger of Allah (saws) before the dawn prayer. When he came out, we stood up to him and said: We are the ones who have fled. He turned to us and said: No, you are the ones who return to fight after wheeling away. We then approached and kissed his hand, and he said; I am the main body of the Muslims.

We got the news of the migration of the Prophet while we were in Yemen, so we set out migrating to him. We were, I and my two brothers, I being the youngest, and one of my brothers was Abu Burda and the other was Abu Ruhm. We were over fifty (or fifty-three or fifty two) men from our people. We got on board a ship which took us to An-Najashi in Ethiopia, and there we found Ja`far bin Abu Talib and his companions with An-Najaishi. Ja`far said (to us), "Allah's Apostle has sent us here and ordered us to stay here, so you too, stay with us." We stayed with him till we all left (Ethiopia) and met the Prophet at the time when he had conquered Khaibar. He gave us a share from its booty (or gave us from its booty). He gave only to those who had taken part in the Ghazwa with him. but he did not give any share to any person who had not participated in Khaibar's conquest except the people of our ship, besides Ja`far and his companions, whom he gave a share as he did them (i.e. the people of the ship).

Sahl said, "We used to feel happy on Fridays." I asked Sahl, "Why?" He said, "There was an old woman of our acquaintance who used to send somebody to Buda'a (Ibn Maslama said, "Buda'a was a garden of date-palms at Medina). She used to pull out the silq (a kind of vegetable) from its roots and put it in a cooking pot, adding some powdered barley over it (and cook it). After finishing the Jumua (Friday) prayer we used to (pass by her and) greet her, whereupon she would present us with that meal, so we used to feel happy because of that. We used to have neither a midday nap, nor meals, except after the Friday prayer." (See Hadith No. 60, Vol.2)

A man asked the Messenger of Allah (saws): Messenger of Allah, we travel on the sea and take a small quantity of water with us. If we use this for ablution, we would suffer from thirst. Can we perform ablution with sea water? The Messenger (saws) replied: Its water is pure and what dies in it is lawful food.

We used to work on the fields more than the other Ansar, and we used to rent the land (for the yield of a specific portion of it). But sometimes that portion or the rest of the land did not give any yield, so we were forbidden (by the Prophet ) to follow such a system, but we were allowed to rent the land for money.

I asked `Abdullah bin `Umar, "O Abu `Abdur-Rahman! I saw you doing four things which I never saw being done by anyone of you companions?" `Abdullah bin `Umar said, "What are those, O Ibn Juraij?" I said, "I never saw you touching any corner of the Ka`ba except these (two) facing south (Yemen) and I saw you wearing shoes made of tanned leather and dyeing your hair with Hinna (a kind of red dye). I also noticed that whenever you were in Mecca, the people assume Ihram on seeing the new moon crescent (1st of Dhul-Hijja) while you did not assume the Ihlal (Ihram) -(Ihram is also called Ihlal which means 'Loud calling' because a Muhrim has to recite Talbiya aloud when assuming the state of Ihram) - till the 8th of Dhul-Hijja (Day of Tarwiya). `Abdullah replied, "Regarding the corners of Ka`ba, I never saw Allah's Apostle touching except those facing south (Yemen) and regarding the tanned leather shoes, no doubt I saw Allah's Apostle wearing non-hairy shoes and he used to perform ablution while wearing the shoes (i.e. wash his feet and then put on the shoes). So I love to wear similar shoes. And about the dyeing of hair with Hinna; no doubt I saw Allah's Apostle dyeing his hair with it and that is why I like to dye (my hair with it). Regarding Ihlal, I did not see Allah's Apostle assuming Ihlal till he set out for Hajj (on the 8th of Dhul-Hijja).

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 .

The Prophet was carrying earth with us on the day of the battle of Al-Ahzab (confederates) and I saw that the dust was covering the whiteness of his `Abdomen, and he (the Prophet ) was saying, "(O Allah) ! Without You, we would not have been guided, nor would we have given in charity, nor would we have prayed. So (O Allah!) please send tranquility (Sakina) upon us as they, (the chiefs of the enemy tribes) have rebelled against us. And if they intend affliction (i.e. want to frighten us and fight against us) then we would not (flee but withstand them). And the Prophet used to raise his voice with it. (See Hadith No. 430 and 432, Vol. 5)

We used to worship stones, and when we found a better stone than the first one, we would throw the first one and take the latter, but if we could not get a stone then we would collect some earth (i.e. soil) and then bring a sheep and milk that sheep over it, and perform the Tawaf around it. When the month of Rajab came, we used (to stop the military actions), calling this month the iron remover, for we used to remove and throw away the iron parts of every spear and arrow in the month of Rajab. Abu Raja' added: When the Prophet sent with (Allah's) Message, I was a boy working as a shepherd of my family camels. When we heard the news about the appearance of the Prophet, we ran to the fire, i.e. to Musailima al-Kadhdhab.

Riders would pass us when we accompanied the Messenger of Allah (saws) while we were in the sacred state (wearing ihram). When they came by us, one of us would let down her outer garment from her head over her face, and when they had passed on, we would uncover our faces.

"We were in Medina with some of the Iraqi people, and we were struck with famine and Ibn Az- Zubair used to give us dates. Ibn `Umar used to pass by and say, "The Prophet forbade us to eat two dates at a time, unless one takes the permission of one's companions."

Whenever Allah's Apostle intended to go on a journey, he used to draw lots amongst his wives, and Allah's Apostle used to take with him the one on whom lot fell. He drew lots amongst us during one of the Ghazwat which he fought. The lot fell on me and so I proceeded with Allah's Apostle after Allah's order of veiling (the women) had been revealed. I was carried (on the back of a camel) in my howdah and carried down while still in it (when we came to a halt). So we went on till Allah's Apostle had finished from that Ghazwa of his and returned. When we approached the city of Medina he announced at night that it was time for departure. So when they announced the news of departure, I got up and went away from the army camps, and after finishing from the call of nature, I came back to my riding animal. I touched my chest to find that my necklace which was made of Zifar beads (i.e. Yemenite beads partly black and partly white) was missing. So I returned to look for my necklace and my search for it detained me. (In the meanwhile) the people who used to carry me on my camel, came and took my howdah and put it on the back of my camel on which I used to ride, as they considered that I was in it. In those days women were light in weight for they did not get fat, and flesh did not cover their bodies in abundance as they used to eat only a little food. Those people therefore, disregarded the lightness of the howdah while lifting and carrying it; and at that time I was still a young girl. They made the camel rise and all of them left (along with it). I found my necklace after the army had gone. Then I came to their camping place to find no call maker of them, nor one who would respond to the call. So I intended to go to the place where I used to stay, thinking that they would miss me and come back to me (in my search). While I was sitting in my resting place, I was overwhelmed by sleep and slept. Safwan bin Al-Muattal As-Sulami Adh-Dhakwani was behind the army. When he reached my place in the morning, he saw the figure of a sleeping person and he recognized me on seeing me as he had seen me before the order of compulsory veiling (was prescribed). So I woke up when he recited Istirja' (i.e. "Inna li l-lahi wa inna llaihi raji'un") as soon as he recognized me. I veiled my face with my head cover at once, and by Allah, we did not speak a single word, and I did not hear him saying any word besides his Istirja'. He dismounted from his camel and made it kneel down, putting his leg on its front legs and then I got up and rode on it. Then he set out leading the camel that was carrying me till we overtook the army in the extreme heat of midday while they were at a halt (taking a rest). (Because of the event) some people brought destruction upon themselves and the one who spread the Ifk (i.e. slander) more, was `Abdullah bin Ubai Ibn Salul." (Urwa said, "The people propagated the slander and talked about it in his (i.e. `Abdullah's) presence and he confirmed it and listened to it and asked about it to let it prevail." `Urwa also added, "None was mentioned as members of the slanderous group besides (`Abdullah) except Hassan bin Thabit and Mistah bin Uthatha and Hamna bint Jahsh along with others about whom I have no knowledge, but they were a group as Allah said. It is said that the one who carried most of the slander was `Abdullah bin Ubai bin Salul." `Urwa added, "`Aisha disliked to have Hassan abused in her presence and she used to say, 'It was he who said: My father and his (i.e. my father's) father and my honor are all for the protection of Muhammad's honor from you."). `Aisha added, "After we returned to Medina, I became ill for a month. The people were propagating the forged statements of the slanderers while I was unaware of anything of all that, but I felt that in my present ailment, I was not receiving the same kindness from Allah's Apostle as I used to receive when I got sick. (But now) Allah's Apostle would only come, greet me and say,' How is that (lady)?' and leave. That roused my doubts, but I did not discover the evil (i.e. slander) till I went out after my convalescence, I went out with Um Mistah to Al-Manasi' where we used to answer the call of nature and we used not to go out (to answer the call of nature) except at night, and that was before we had latrines near our houses. And this habit of our concerning evacuating the bowels, was similar to the habits of the old 'Arabs living in the deserts, for it would be troublesome for us to take latrines near our houses. So I and Um Mistah who was the daughter of Abu Ruhm bin Al-Muttalib bin `Abd Manaf, whose mother was the daughter of Sakhr bin 'Amir and the aunt of Abu Bakr As-Siddiq and whose son was Mistah bin Uthatha bin `Abbas bin Al-Muttalib, went out. I and Um Mistah returned to my house after we finished answering the call of nature. Um Mistah stumbled by getting her foot entangled in her covering sheet and on that she said, 'Let Mistah be ruined!' I said, 'What a hard word you have said. Do you abuse a man who took part in the battle of Badr?' On that she said, 'O you Hantah! Didn't you hear what he (i.e. Mistah) said? 'I said, 'What did he say?' Then she told me the slander of the people of Ifk. So my ailment was aggravated, and when I reached my home, Allah's Apostle came to me, and after greeting me, said, 'How is that (lady)?' I said, 'Will you allow me to go to my parents?' as I wanted to be sure about the news through them. Allah's Apostle allowed me (and I went to my parents) and asked my mother, 'O mother! What are the people talking about?' She said, 'O my daughter! Don't worry, for scarcely is there a charming woman who is loved by her husband and whose husband has other wives besides herself that they (i.e. women) would find faults with her.' I said, 'Subhan-Allah! (I testify the uniqueness of Allah). Are the people really talking in this way?' I kept on weeping that night till dawn I could neither stop weeping nor sleep then in the morning again, I kept on weeping. When the Divine Inspiration was delayed. Allah's Apostle called `Ali bin Abi Talib and Usama bin Zaid to ask and consult them about divorcing me. Usama bin Zaid said what he knew of my innocence, and the respect he preserved in himself for me. Usama said, '(O Allah's Apostle!) She is your wife and we do not know anything except good about her.' `Ali bin Abi Talib said, 'O Allah's Apostle! Allah does not put you in difficulty and there are plenty of women other than she, yet, ask the maid-servant who will tell you the truth.' On that Allah's Apostle called Barira (i.e. the maid-servant) and said, 'O Barira! Did you ever see anything which aroused your suspicion?' Barira said to him, 'By Him Who has sent you with the Truth. I have never seen anything in her (i.e. Aisha) which I would conceal, except that she is a young girl who sleeps leaving the dough of her family exposed so that the domestic goats come and eat it.' So, on that day, Allah's Apostle got up on the pulpit and complained about `Abdullah bin Ubai (bin Salul) before his companions, saying, 'O you Muslims! Who will relieve me from that man who has hurt me with his evil statement about my family? By Allah, I know nothing except good about my family and they have blamed a man about whom I know nothing except good and he used never to enter my home except with me.' Sa`d bin Mu`adh the brother of Banu `Abd Al-Ashhal got up and said, 'O Allah's Apostle! I will relieve you from him; if he is from the tribe of Al-Aus, then I will chop his head off, and if he is from our brothers, i.e. Al-Khazraj, then order us, and we will fulfill your order.' On that, a man from Al-Khazraj got up. Um Hassan, his cousin, was from his branch tribe, and he was Sa`d bin Ubada, chief of Al-Khazraj. Before this incident, he was a pious man, but his love for his tribe goaded him into saying to Sa`d (bin Mu`adh). 'By Allah, you have told a lie; you shall not and cannot kill him. If he belonged to your people, you would not wish him to be killed.' On that, Usaid bin Hudair who was the cousin of Sa`d (bin Mu`adh) got up and said to Sa`d bin 'Ubada, 'By Allah! You are a liar! We will surely kill him, and you are a hypocrite arguing on the behalf of hypocrites.' On this, the two tribes of Al-Aus and Al Khazraj got so much excited that they were about to fight while Allah's Apostle was standing on the pulpit. Allah's Apostle kept on quietening them till they became silent and so did he. All that day I kept on weeping with my tears never ceasing, and I could never sleep. In the morning my parents were with me and I wept for two nights and a day with my tears never ceasing and I could never sleep till I thought that my liver would burst from weeping. So, while my parents were sitting with me and I was weeping, an Ansari woman asked me to grant her admittance. I allowed her to come in, and when she came in, she sat down and started weeping with me. While we were in this state, Allah's Apostle came, greeted us and sat down. He had never sat with me since that day of the slander. A month had elapsed and no Divine Inspiration came to him about my case. Allah's Apostle then recited Tashah-hud and then said, 'Amma Badu, O `Aisha! I have been informed so-andso about you; if you are innocent, then soon Allah will reveal your innocence, and if you have committed a sin, then repent to Allah and ask Him for forgiveness for when a slave confesses his sins and asks Allah for forgiveness, Allah accepts his repentance.' (continued...) (continuing... 1): -5.462:... ... When Allah's Apostle finished his speech, my tears ceased flowing completely that I no longer felt a single drop of tear flowing. I said to my father, 'Reply to Allah's Apostle on my behalf concerning what he has said.' My father 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 on my behalf concerning what he has said.' She said, 'By Allah, I do not know what to say to Allah's Apostle.' In spite of the fact that I was a young girl and had a little knowledge of Qur'an, I said, 'By Allah, no doubt I know that you heard this (slanderous) speech so that it has been planted in your hearts (i.e. minds) and you have taken it as a truth. Now if I tell you that I am innocent, you will not believe me, and if confess to you about it, and Allah knows that I am innocent, you will surely believe me. By Allah, I find no similitude for me and you except that of Joseph's father when he said, '(For me) patience in the most fitting against that which you assert; it is Allah (Alone) Whose Help can be sought.' Then I turned to the other side and lay on my bed; and Allah knew then that I was innocent and hoped that Allah would reveal my innocence. But, by Allah, I never thought that Allah would reveal about my case, Divine Inspiration, that would be recited (forever) as I considered myself too unworthy to be talked of by Allah with something of my concern, but I hoped that Allah's Apostle might have a dream in which Allah would prove my innocence. But, by Allah, before Allah's Apostle left his seat and before any of the household left, the Divine inspiration came to Allah's Apostle. So there overtook him the same hard condition which used to overtake him, (when he used to be inspired Divinely). The sweat was dropping from his body like pearls though it was a wintry day and that was because of the weighty statement which was being revealed to him. When that state of Allah's Apostle was over, he got up smiling, and the first word he said was, 'O `Aisha! Allah has declared your innocence!' Then my Mother said to me, 'Get up and go to him (i.e. Allah's Apostle). I replied, 'By Allah, I will not go to him, and I praise none but Allah. So Allah revealed the ten Verses:- - "Verily! They who spread the slander Are a gang, among you............." (24.11-20) Allah revealed those Qur'anic Verses to declare my innocence. Abu Bakr As-Siddiq who used to disburse money for Mistah bin Uthatha because of his relationship to him and his poverty, said, 'By Allah, I will never give to Mistah bin Uthatha anything after what he has said about Aisha.' Then Allah revealed:-- "And let not those among you who are good and wealthy swear not to give (any sort of help) to their kinsmen, those in need, and those who have left their homes for Allah's cause, let them pardon and forgive. Do you not love that Allah should forgive you? And Allah is oft-Forgiving Most Merciful." (24.22) Abu Bakr As-Siddiq said, 'Yes, by Allah, I would like that Allah forgive me.' and went on giving Mistah the money he used to give him before. He also added, 'By Allah, I will never deprive him of it at all.' Aisha further said:." Allah's Apostle also asked Zainab bint Jahsh (i.e. his wife) about my case. He said to Zainab, 'What do you know and what did you see?" She replied, "O Allah's Apostle! I refrain from claiming falsely that I have heard or seen anything. By Allah, I know nothing except good (about `Aisha).' From amongst the wives of the Prophet Zainab was my peer (in beauty and in the love she received from the Prophet) but Allah saved her from that evil because of her piety. Her sister Hamna, started struggling on her behalf and she was destroyed along with those who were destroyed. The man who was blamed said, 'Subhan-Allah! By Him in Whose Hand my soul is, I have never uncovered the cover (i.e. veil) of any female.' Later on the man was martyred in Allah's Cause."

Some food was presented to me and Hafsah. We were fasting, but broke our fast. Then the Messenger of Allah (saws) entered upon us. We said to him: A gift was presented to us; we coveted it and we broke our fast. The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: There is no harm to you; keep a fast another day in lieu of it.

Yahya related to me from Malik that Hisham ibn Urwa said, "My father, Urwa, used to travel in Ramadan, and we would travel with him, and he used to fast while we would break the fast, and he would not tell us to fast."

Anas said, "The Prophet used to perform ablution for every prayer." I asked Anas, "What did you used to do?' Anas replied, "We used to pray with the same ablution until we break it with Hadath."

None of us had more than a single garment and we used to have our menses while wearing it. Whenever it got soiled with blood of menses we used to apply saliva to the blood spot and rub off the blood with our nails.

There was a woman amongst us who had a farm and she used to sow Silq (a kind of vegetable) on the edges of streams in her farm. On Fridays she used to pull out the Silq from its roots and put the roots in a utensil. Then she would put a handful of powdered barley over it and cook it. The roots of the Silq were a substitute for meat. After finishing the Jumua prayer we used to greet her and she would give us that food which we would eat with our hands, and because of that meal, we used to look forward to Friday.

Ata' ibn AbuRabah said: Ibn az-Zubayr led us in the 'Id prayer on Friday early in the morning. When we went to offer the Friday, he did not come out to us. So we prayed ourselves alone. At that time Ibn Abbas was present in at-Ta'if. When he came to us, we mentioned this (incident) to him. He said: He followed the sunnah.

I went to the Prophet along with a group of Al-Ash`ariyin in order to request him to provide us with mounts. He said, "By Allah, I will not provide you with mounts and I haven't got anything to mount you on." Then we stayed there as long as Allah wished us to stay, and then three very nice looking she-camels were brought to him and he made us ride them. When we left, we, or some of us, said, "By Allah, we will not be blessed, as we came to the Prophet asking him for mounts, and he swore that he would not give us any mounts but then he did give us. So let us go back to the Prophet and remind him (of his oath)." When we returned to him (and reminded him of the fact), he said, "I did not give you mounts, but it is Allah Who gave you. By Allah, Allah willing, if I ever take an oath to do something and then I find something else than the first, I will make expiation for my oath and do the thing which is better (or do something which is better and give the expiation for my oath).

We worked on farms more than anybody else in Medina. We used to rent the land and say to the owner, "The yield of this portion is for us and the yield of that portion is for you (as the rent)." One of those portions might yield something and the other might not. So, the Prophet forbade us to do so.

Abu Burda and `Abdullah bin Shaddad sent me to `Abdur Rahman bin Abza and `Abdullah bin Abi `Aufa to ask them about the Salaf (Salam). They said, "We used to get war booty while we were with Allah's Apostle and when the peasants of Sham came to us we used to pay them in advance for wheat, barley, and oil to be delivered within a fixed period." I asked them, "Did the peasants own standing crops or not?" They replied, "We never asked them about it."

We four persons, came to the Messenger of Allah (saws), and we (i.e. each one of us) had horses. He therefore, allotted one portion for each of us, and two portions for his horse.

I saw Allah's Apostle on the day (of the battle) of the Trench carrying earth till the hair of his chest were covered with dust and he was a hairy man. He was reciting the following verses of `Abdullah (bin Rawaha): "O Allah, were it not for You, We would not have been guided, Nor would we have given in charity, nor prayed. So, bestow on us calmness, and when we meet the enemy. Then make our feet firm, for indeed, Yet if they want to put us in affliction, (i.e. want to fight against us) we would not (flee but withstand them)." The Prophet used to raise his voice while reciting these verses. (See Hadith No. 432, Vol. 5).

The Prophet (saws) used to say in the morning: "O Allah, by Thee we come to the morning, by Thee we come to the evening, by Thee are we resurrected." In the evening he would say: "O Allah, by Thee we come to the evening, by Thee we die, and to Thee are we resurrected."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Nafi that Abdullah ibn Umar said, "In the time of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, we used to buy food. He sent orders for us to move our purchases from the place in which we purchased them to another place before we re-sold them."

We did not know what we should say when we sat during prayer. The Messenger of Allah (saws) was taught (by Allah). He then narrated the tradition to the same effect. Sharik reported from Jami', from AbuWa'il on the authority of Abdullah ibn Mas'ud something similar.

He said: He used to teach us also some other words, but he did not teach them as he taught us the tashahhud: O Allah, join our hearts, mend our social relationship, guide us to the path of peace, bring us from darkness to light, save us from obscenities, outward or inward, and bless our ears, our eyes, our hearts, our wives, our children, and relent toward us; Thou art the Relenting, the Merciful. And make us grateful for Thy blessing and make us praise it while accepting it and give it to us in full.

Whenever there was drought, `Umar bin Al-Khattab used to ask Allah for rain through Al-`Abbas bin `Abdul Muttalib, saying, "O Allah! We used to request our Prophet to ask You for rain, and You would give us. Now we request the uncle of our Prophet to ask You for rain, so give us rain." And they would be given rain."