One of the daughters of `Uthman died at Mecca. We went to attend her funeral procession. Ibn `Umar and Ibn `Abbas were also present. I sat in between them (or said, I sat beside one of them. Then a man came and sat beside me.) `Abdullah bin `Umar said to `Amr bin `Uthman, "Will you not prohibit crying as Allah's Apostle has said, 'The dead person is tortured by the crying of his relatives.?" Ibn `Abbas said, "`Umar used to say so." Then he added narrating, "I accompanied `Umar on a journey from Mecca till we reached Al-Baida. There he saw some travelers in the shade of a Samura (A kind of forest tree). He said (to me), "Go and see who those travelers are." So I went and saw that one of them was Suhaib. I told this to `Umar who then asked me to call him. So I went back to Suhaib and said to him, "Depart and follow the chief of the faithful believers." Later, when `Umar was stabbed, Suhaib came in weeping and saying, "O my brother, O my friend!" (on this `Umar said to him, "O Suhaib! Are you weeping for me while the Prophet said, "The dead person is punished by some of the weeping of his relatives?" Ibn `Abbas added, "When `Umar died I told all this to Aisha and she said, 'May Allah be merciful to `Umar. By Allah, Allah's Apostle did not say that a believer is punished by the weeping of his relatives. But he said, Allah increases the punishment of a non-believer because of the weeping of his relatives." Aisha further added, "The Qur'an is sufficient for you (to clear up this point) as Allah has stated: 'No burdened soul will bear another's burden.' " (35.18). Ibn `Abbas then said, "Only Allah makes one laugh or cry." Ibn `Umar did not say anything after that.

Yahya related to me from Malik that he had asked Ibn Shihab whether someone doing itikaf could go into a house to relieve himself, and he said, "Yes, there is no harm in that."

Malik said, "The situation that we are all agreed upon here is that there is no disapproval of anyone doing itikaf in a mosque where jumua is held. The only reason I see for disapproving of doing itikaf in a mosque where jumua is not held is that the man doing itikaf would have to leave the mosque where he was doing itikaf in order to go to jumua, or else not go there at all. If, however, he is doing itikaf in a mosque where jumua is not held, and he does not have to go to jumua in any other mosque, then I see no harm in him doing itikaf there, because Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, says, 'While you are doing itikaf in mosques,' and refers to all mosques in general, without specifying any particular kind."

Malik continued, "Accordingly, it is permissiblefor a man to do itikaf in a mosque where jumua is not held if he does not have to leave it to go to a mosque where jumua is held."

Malik said, "A person doing itikaf should spend the night only in the mosque where he is doing itikaf, except if his tent is in one of the courtyards of the mosque. I have never heard that someone doing itikaf can put up a shelter anywhere except in the mosque itself or in one of the courtyards of the mosque.

Part of what shows that he must spend the night in the mosque is the saying of A'isha, 'When the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was doing itikaf, he would only go into the house to relieve himself.' Nor should he do itikaf on the roof of the mosque or in the minaret."

Malik said, "The person who is going to do itikaf should enter the place where he wishes to do itikaf before the sun sets on the night when he wishes to begin his itikaf, so that he is ready to begin the itikaf at the beginning of the night when he is going to start his itikaf. A person doing itikaf should be occupied with his itikaf, and not turn his attention to other things which might occupy him, such as trading or whatever. There is no harm, however, if some one doing itikaf tells some one to do something for him regarding his estate, or the affairs of his family, or tells someone to sell some property of his, or something else that does not occupy him directly. There is no harm in him arranging for someone else to do that for him if it is a simple matter."

Malik said, ...

Yahya related to me from Malik from Ziyad ibn Sad that Ibn Shihab said, "Neither jurur, nor musran al-fara, nor adhq ibn hubayq should be taken as zakat from dates. They should be included in the assessment but not taken as zakat. "

Malik said, "This is the same as with sheep and goats, whose young are included in the assessment but are not (actually) taken as zakat. There are also certain kinds of fruit which are not taken as zakat, such as burdi dates (one of the finest kinds of dates), and similar varieties.

Neither the lowest quality (of any property) nor the highest should be taken. Rather, zakat should be taken from average quality property."

Malik said, "The position that we are agreed upon concerning fruit is that only dates and grapes are estimated while on the tree. They are estimated when their usability is clear and they are halal to sell. This is because the fruit of date-palms and vines is eaten straightaway in the form of fresh dates and grapes, and so the assessment is done by estimation to make things easier for people and to avoid causing them trouble. Their produce is estimated and then they are given a free hand in using their produce as they wish, and later they pay the zakat on it according to the estimation that was made."

Malik said, "crops which are not eaten fresh, such as grains and seeds, which are only eaten after they have been harvested, are not estimated. The owner, after he has harvested, threshed and sifted the crop, so that it is then in the form of grain or seed, has to fulfil his trust himself and deduct the zakat he owes if the amount is large enough for him to have to pay zakat. This is the position that we are all agreed upon here (in Madina)."

Malik said, "The position that we are all agreed upon here (in Madina) is that the produce of date palms is estimated while it is still on the tree, after it has ripened and become halal to sell, and the zakat on it is deducted in the form of dried dates at the time of harvest. If the fruit is damaged after it has been estimated and the damage affects all the fruit then no zakat has to be paid. If some of the fruit remains unaffected, and this fruit amounts to five awsuq or more using the sa of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, then zakat is deducted from it. Zakat does not have to be paid, however, on the fruit that was damaged . Grapevines are dealt with in the same way.

If a man owns various pieces ...

Allah's Apostle got up when the Verse:--'And warn your tribe of near kindred...." (26.214) was revealed and said, "O Quraish people! (or he said a similar word) Buy yourselves! I cannot save you from Allah (if you disobey Him) O Bani Abu Manaf! I cannot save you from Allah (if you disobey Him). O `Abbas! The son of `Abdul Muttalib! I cannot save you from Allah (if you disobey Him) O Safiya, (the aunt of Allah's Apostle) I cannot save you from Allah (if you disobey Him). O Fatima, the daughter of Muhammad ! Ask what you wish from my property, but I cannot save you from Allah (if you disobey Him).

When Allah revealed the Verse: "Warn your nearest kinsmen," Allah's Apostle got up and said, "O people of Quraish (or said similar words)! Buy (i.e. save) yourselves (from the Hellfire) as I cannot save you from Allah's Punishment; O Bani `Abd Manaf! I cannot save you from Allah's Punishment, O Safiya, the Aunt of Allah's Apostle! I cannot save you from Allah's Punishment; O Fatima bint Muhammad! Ask me anything from my wealth, but I cannot save you from Allah's Punishment."

The Prophet said, "Whoever said "None has the right to be worshipped but Allah and has in his heart good (faith) equal to the weight of a barley grain will be taken out of Hell. And whoever said: "None has the right to be worshipped but Allah and has in his heart good (faith) equal to the weight of a wheat grain will be taken out of Hell. And whoever said, "None has the right to be worshipped but Allah and has in his heart good (faith) equal to the weight of an atom will be taken out of Hell."

There were good relations and brotherhood between this tribe of Jurm and the Ash`ariyyin. Once, while we were sitting with Abu Musa Al-Ash`ari, there was brought to him a meal which contained chicken meat, and there was sitting beside him, a man from the tribe of Bani Taimul-lah who looked like one of the Mawali. Abu Musa invited the man to eat but the man said, "I have seen chicken eating some dirty things, and I have taken an oath not to eat chicken." Abu Musa said to him, "Come along, let me tell you something in this regard. Once I went to the Prophet with a few men from Ash`ariyyin and we asked him for mounts. The Prophet said, By Allah, I will not mount you on anything; besides I do not have anything to mount you on.' Then a few camels from the war booty were brought to the Prophet, and he asked about us, saying, 'Where are the group of Ash`ariyyin?' So he ordered for five fat camels to be given to us and then we set out. We said, 'What have we done? Allah's Apostle took an oath that he would not give us anything to ride and that he had nothing for us to ride, yet he provided us with mounts. We made Allah's Apostle forget his oath! By Allah, we will never be successful.' So we returned to him and reminded him of his oath. He said, 'I have not provided you with the mount, but Allah has done so. By Allah, I may take an oath to do something, but on finding something else which is better, I do that which is better and make the expiation for my oath.' "

The Messenger of Allah (saws) used to say: "O Allah, I seek refuge in Thee from four things: Knowledge which does not profit, a heart which is not submissive, a soul which has an insatiable appetite, and a supplication which is not heard."

There was a relation of love and brotherhood between this tribe of Jarm and Al-Ash`ariyin. Once we were with Abu Musa Al-Ash`ari, and then a meal containing chicken was brought to Abu Musa, and there was present, a man from the tribe of Taimillah who was of red complexion as if he were from non-Arab freed slaves. Abu Musa invited him to the meal. He said, "I have seen chickens eating dirty things, so I deemed it filthy and took an oath that I would never eat chicken." On that, Abu Musa said, "Get up, I will narrate to you about that. Once a group of the Ash`ariyin and I went to Allah's Apostle and asked him to provide us with mounts; he said, 'By Allah, I will never give you any mounts nor do I have anything to mount you on.' Then a few camels of war booty were brought to Allah's Apostle , and he asked about us, saying, 'Where are the Ash-'ariyin?' He then ordered five nice camels to be given to us, and when we had departed, we said, 'What have we done? Allah's Apostle had taken the oath not to give us any mounts, and that he had nothing to mount us on, and later he gave us that we might ride? Did we take advantage of the fact that Allah's Apostle had forgotten his oath? By Allah, we will never succeed.' So we went back to him and said to him, 'We came to you to give us mounts, and you took an oath that you would not give us any mounts and that you had nothing to mount us on.' On that he said, 'I did not provide you with mounts, but Allah did. By Allah, if I take an oath to do something, and then find something else better than it, I do that which is better and make expiation for the dissolution of the oath.' "

While I was sitting with some people from Quraish, a man with very rough hair, clothes, and appearance came and stood in front of us, greeted us and said, "Inform those who hoard wealth, that a stone will be heated in the Hell-fire and will be put on the nipples of their breasts till it comes out from the bones of their shoulders and then put on the bones of their shoulders till it comes through the nipples of their breasts the stone will be moving and hitting." After saying that, the person retreated and sat by the side of the pillar, I followed him and sat beside him, and I did not know who he was. I said to him, "I think the people disliked what you had said." He said, "These people do not understand anything, although my friend told me." I asked, "Who is your friend?" He said, "The Prophet said (to me), 'O Abu Dhar! Do you see the mountain of Uhud?' And on that I (Abu Dhar) started looking towards the sun to judge how much remained of the day as I thought that Allah's Apostle wanted to send me to do something for him and I said, 'Yes!' He said, 'I do not love to have gold equal to the mountain of Uhud unless I spend it all (in Allah's cause) except three Dinars (pounds). These people do not understand and collect worldly wealth. No, by Allah, Neither I ask them for worldly benefits nor am I in need of their religious advice till I meet Allah, The Honorable, The Majestic." '

Sometimes Allah's Apostle would not fast (for so many days) that we thought that he would not fast that month and he sometimes used to fast (for so many days) that we thought he would not leave fasting throughout that month and (as regards his prayer and sleep at night), if you wanted to see him praying at night, you could see him praying and if you wanted to see him sleeping, you could see him sleeping.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) used to sit with us in meetings and talk to us. When he stood up we also used to stand up and see him entering the house of one of his wives. One day he talked to us and we stood up as he stood up and we saw that an Arabi (a nomadic Arab) caught hold of him and gave his cloak a violent tug making his neck red.

AbuHurayrah said: The cloak was coarse. He turned to him and the Arabi said to him: Load these two camels of mine, for you do not give me anything from your property or from your father's property.

The Prophet (saws) said to him: No, I ask Allah's forgiveness; no, I ask Allah's forgiveness; no, I ask Allah's forgiveness. I shall not give you the camel-load until you make amends for the way in which you tugged at me.

Each time the Arabi said to him: I swear by Allah, I shall not do so.

He then mentioned the rest of the tradition. He (the Prophet), then called a man and said to him: Load these two camels of his: one camel with barley and the other with dates. He then turned to us and said: Go on your way with the blessing of Allah.

The Prophet (saws) said: If anyone applies collyrium, he should do it an odd number of times. If he does so, he has done well; but if not, there is no harm. If anyone cleanses himself with pebbles, he should use an odd number. If he does so, he has done well; but if not, there is no harm.

If anyone eats, he should throw away what he removes with a toothpick and swallow what sticks to his tongue. If he does so, he has done well; if not, there is no harm. If anyone goes to relieve himself, he should conceal himself, and if all he can do is to collect a heap of send, he should sit with his back to it, for the devil makes sport with the posteriors of the children of Adam. If he does so, he has done well; but if not, there is no harm.

When Abu Musa arrived (at Kufa as a governor) he honored this family of Jarm (by paying them a visit). I was sitting near to him, and he was eating chicken as his lunch, and there was a man sitting amongst the people. Abu Musa invited the man to the lunch, but the latter said, "I saw chickens (eating something (dirty) so I consider them unclean." Abu Musa said, "Come on! I saw the Prophet eating it (i.e. chicken)." The man said "I have taken an oath that I will not ea (chicken)" Abu Musa said." Come on! I will tell you about your oath. We, a group of Al-Ash`ariyin people went to the Prophet and asked him to give us something to ride, but the Prophet refused. Then we asked him for the second time to give us something to ride, but the Prophet took an oath that he would not give us anything to ride. After a while, some camels of booty were brought to the Prophet and he ordered that five camels be given to us. When we took those camels we said, "We have made the Prophet forget his oath, and we will not be successful after that." So I went to the Prophet and said, "O Allah' Apostle ! You took an oath that you would not give us anything to ride, but you have given us." He said, "Yes, for if I take an oath and later I see a better solution than that, I act on the later (and gave the expiation of that oaths"

Allah's Apostle used to leave fasting in a certain month till we thought that he would not fast in that month, and he used to fast in another month till we thought he would not stop fasting at all in that month. And if one wanted to see him praying at night, one could see him (in that condition), and if one wanted to see him sleeping at night, one could see him (in that condition) too.

Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard the same as that from al-Qasim ibn Muhammad from Ibn Muayqib ad-Dawsi.

Malik said, "This is the way of doing things among us . "

Malik said, "The generally agreed on way of doing things among us is that wheat is not sold for wheat, dates for dates, wheat for dates, dates for raisins, wheat for raisins, nor any kind of food sold for food at all, except from hand to hand. If there is any sort of delayed terms in the transaction, it is not good. It is haram. Condiments are not bartered except from hand to hand."

Malik said, "Food and condiments are not bartered when they are the same type, two of one kind for one of the other. A mudd of wheat is not sold for two mudds of wheat, nor a mudd of dates for two mudds of dates, nor a mudd of raisins for two mudds of raisins, nor is anything of that sort done with grains and condiments when they are of one kind, even if it is hand to hand.

"This is the same position as silver for silver and gold for gold. No increase is halal in the transaction, and only like for like, from hand to hand is halal."

Malik said, "If there is a clear difference in foodstuffs which are measured and weighed, there is no harm in taking two of one kind for one of another, hand to hand. There is no harm in taking a sa of dates for two sa of wheat, and a sa of dates for two sa of raisins, and a sa of wheat for two sa of ghee. If the two sorts in the transaction are different, there is no harm in two for one or more than that from hand to hand. If delayed terms enter into the sale, it is not halal ."

Malik said, "It is not halal to trade a heap of wheat for a heap of wheat. There is no harm in a heap of wheat for a heap of dates, from hand to hand. That is because there is no harm in buying wheat with dates without precise measurement."

Malik said, "With kinds of foods and condiments that differ from each other, and the difference is clear, there is no harm in bartering one kind for another, without precise measurement from hand to hand. If delayed terms enter into the sale, there is no good in it. Bartering such things without precise measurement is like buying it with gold and silver without measuring precisely."

Malik said, "That is because you buy wheat with silver without measuring precisely, and dates with gold without measuring precisely, and it is halal. There is no harm in it."

Malik said, "It is not good ...

Yahya related to me from Malik from Nafi that Abdullah ibn Umar would say, "A man should not have intercourse with a slave girl except one whom, if he wished, he could sell, if he wished, he could give away, if he wished, he could keep, if he wished, he could do with her what he wanted ."

Malik said that a man who bought a slave- girl on condition that he did not sell her, give her away, or do something of that nature, was not to have intercourse with her. That was because he was not permitted to sell her or to give her away, so if he did not own that from her, he did not have complete ownership of her because an exception had been made concerning her by the hand of someone else. If that sort of condition entered into it, it was a messy situation, and the sale was not recommended.

Malik related to me from Ibn Shihab from Sulayman ibn Yasar that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, used to send Abdullah ibn Rawaha to Khaybar, to assess the division of the fruit crop between him and the jews of Khaybar.

The jews collected for Abdullah pieces of their women's jewellery and said to him, "This is yours. Go light on us and don't be exact in the division!"

Abdullah ibn Rawaha said, "O tribe of jews! By Allah! You are among the most hateful to me of Allah's creation, but it does not prompt me to deal unjustly with you. What you have offered as a bribe is forbidden. We will not touch it." They said, "This is what supports the heavens and the earth."

Malik said, "If a share-cropper waters the palms and between them there is some uncultivated land, whatever he cultivates in the uncultivated land is his."

Malik said, "If the owner of the land makes a condition that he will cultivate the uncultivated land for himself, that is not good because the sharecropper does the watering for the owner of the land and so he increases the owner of the land in property (without any return for himself)."

Malik said, "If the owner stipulates that the fruit crop is to be shared between them, there is no harm in that if all the maintenance of the property - seeding, watering and case, etc. - are the concern of the sharecropper.

If the share-cropper stipulates that the seeds are the responsibility of the owner of the property - that is not permitted because he has stipulated an outlay against the owner of the property. Share-cropping is conducted on the basis that all the care and expense is outlayed by the share-cropper, and the owner of the property is not obliged anything. This is the accepted method of share-cropping."

Malik spoke about a spring which was shared between two men, and then the water dried up and one of them wanted to work on the spring and the other said, "I don't have the means to work on it." He said, "Tell the one who wants to work on the spring, 'Work and expend. All the water will be yours. You will have its water until your companion brings you half of what you have spent. If he brings you half of what you have spent, he can take his share of the water.' The first one is given all the water, because he has spent on it, and if he does not reach anything by his work, the other has not incurred any expense."

Malik said, "It is not good for ...

Some people said, "O Allah's Apostle! Shall we see our Lord on the Day of Resurrection?" He said, "Do you crowd and squeeze each other on looking at the sun when it is not hidden by clouds?" They replied, "No, Allah's Apostle." He said, "Do you crowd and squeeze each other on looking at the moon when it is full and not hidden by clouds?" They replied, No, O Allah's Apostle!" He said, "So you will see Him (your Lord) on the Day of Resurrection similarly Allah will gather all the people and say, 'Whoever used to worship anything should follow that thing. 'So, he who used to worship the sun, will follow it, and he who used to worship the moon will follow it, and he who used to worship false deities will follow them; and then only this nation (i.e., Muslims) will remain, including their hypocrites. Allah will come to them in a shape other than they know and will say, 'I am your Lord.' They will say, 'We seek refuge with Allah from you. This is our place; (we will not follow you) till our Lord comes to us, and when our Lord comes to us, we will recognize Him. Then Allah will come to then in a shape they know and will say, "I am your Lord.' They will say, '(No doubt) You are our Lord,' and they will follow Him. Then a bridge will be laid over the (Hell) Fire." Allah's Apostle added, "I will be the first to cross it. And the invocation of the Apostles on that Day, will be 'Allahumma Sallim, Sallim (O Allah, save us, save us!),' and over that bridge there will be hooks Similar to the thorns of As Sa'dan (a thorny tree). Didn't you see the thorns of As-Sa'dan?" The companions said, "Yes, O Allah's Apostle." He added, "So the hooks over that bridge will be like the thorns of As-Sa-dan except that their greatness in size is only known to Allah. These hooks will snatch the people according to their deeds. Some people will be ruined because of their evil deeds, and some will be cut into pieces and fall down in Hell, but will be saved afterwards, when Allah has finished the judgments among His slaves, and intends to take out of the Fire whoever He wishes to take out from among those who used to testify that none had the right to be worshipped but Allah. We will order the angels to take them out and the angels will know them by the mark of the traces of prostration (on their foreheads) for Allah banned the f ire to consume the traces of prostration on the body of Adam's son. So they will take them out, and by then they ...

Malik related to me that he had heard that Abdullah ibn Masud used to say, "If someone makes a loan, they should not stipulate better than it. Even if it is a handful of grass, it is usury."

Malik said, "The generally agreed on way of doing things among us is that there is no harm in borrowing any animals with a set description and itemisation, and one must return the like of them. This is not done in the case of female slaves. It is feared about that that it will lead to making halal what is not halal, so it is not good. The explanation of what is disapproved of in that, is that a man borrow a slave-girl and have intercourse with her as seems proper to him. Then he returns her to her owner. That is not good and it is not halal. The people of knowledge still forbid it and do not give an indulgence to any one in it."

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

[Al-Bukhari].

Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "No one calls to guidance without having the same reward as those who follow him without diminishing their rewards at all. And no one calls to error without having the same burdens as they do without diminishing their burdens at all."

Malik said that Ibn Shihab said, "The precedent of the sunna in the intentional murder is that when the relatives of the murdered person relinquish retaliation, the blood-money is owed by the murderer from his own property unless the tribe helps him with it willingly."

Malik said, "What is done in our community is that the blood- money is not obliged against the tribe until it has reached a third of the full amount and upwards. Whatever reaches a third is against the tribe, and whatever is below a third, is against the property of the one who did the injury."

Malik said, "The way of doing things about which there is no dispute among us, in the case of someone who has the blood-money accepted from him in intentional murder or in any injury in which there is retaliation, is that that blood-money is not due from the tribe unless they wish it. The blood-money for that is from the property of the murderer or the injurer if he has property. If he does not have any property, it is a debt against him, and none of it is owed by the tribe unless they wish."

Malik said, "The tribe does not pay blood-money to anyone who injures himself, intentionally or accidentally. This is the opinion of the people of fiqh in our community. I have not heard that anyone has made the tribe liable for any blood-money incurred by intentional acts. Part of what is well-known of that is that Allah, the Blessed, and the Exalted, said in His Book, 'Whoever has something pardoned him by his brother, should follow it with what is accepted and pay it with good will' (Sura 2 ayat 178) The commentary on that - in our view - and Allah knows best, is that whoever gives his brother something of the blood- money, should follow it with what is accepted and pay him with good will."

Malik spoke about a child who had no property and a woman who had no property. He said, "When one of them causes an injury below a third of the blood-money, it is taken on behalf of the child and woman from their personal property, if they have property from which it may be taken. If not, the injury which each of them has caused is a debt against them. The tribe does not have to pay any of it and the father of a child is not liable for the blood-money of an injury caused by the child and he is not responsible for it."

Malik said, "The way of doing things in our community about which there is no dispute, is that when a slave is killed, the value for him is that of the day on which ...

Yahya related to me from Malik from a reliable source of his who had heard Said ibn al-Musayyab say, ''Umar ibn al-Khattab refused to let anyone inherit from the non-arabs except for one who was born among the arabs."

Malik said, "If a pregnant woman comes from the land of the enemy and gives birth in arab land so that he is her (an arab) child, he inherits from her if she dies, and she inherits from him if he dies, by the Book of Allah."

Malik said, "The generally agreed on way of doing things among us and the sunna in which there is no dispute, and what I saw the people of knowledge in our city doing, is that a Muslim does not inherit from a kafir by kinship, clientage (wala'), or maternal relationship, nor does he (the Muslim) overshadow any (of the kafirs) from his inheritance.

Malik said, "Similarly, someone who forgoes his inheritance when he is the chief heir does not overshadow anyone from his inheritance."

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

We were in the company of Abu Musa Al-Ash`ari and there were friendly relations between us and this tribe of Jarm. Abu Musa was presented with a dish containing chicken. Among the people there was sitting a red-faced man who did not come near the food. Abu Musa said (to him), "Come on (and eat), for I have seen Allah's Apostle eating of it (i.e. chicken)." He said, "I have seen it eating something (dirty) and since then I have disliked it, and have taken an oath that I shall not eat it ' Abu Musa said, "Come on, I will tell you (or narrate to you). Once I went to Allah s Apostle with a group of Al-Ash`ariyin, and met him while he was angry, distributing some camels of rak`at. We asked for mounts but he took an oath that he would not give us any mounts, and added, 'I have nothing to mount you on' In the meantime some camels of booty were brought to Allah's Apostle and he asked twice, 'Where are Al-Ash`ariyin?" So he gave us five white camels with big humps. We stayed for a short while (after we had covered a little distance), and then I said to my companions, "Allah's Apostle has forgotten his oath. By Allah, if we do not remind Allah's Apostle of his oath, we will never be successful." So we returned to the Prophet and said, "O Allah's Apostle! We asked you for mounts, but you took an oath that you would not give us any mounts; we think that you have forgotten your oath.' He said, 'It is Allah Who has given you mounts. By Allah, and Allah willing, if I take an oath and later find something else better than that. then I do what is better and expiate my oath.' "

Once we were in the house of Abu Musa who presented a meal containing cooked chicken. A man from the tribe of Bani Taim Allah with red complexion as if he were from the Byzantine war prisoners, was present. Abu Musa invited him to share the meal but he (apologised) saying. "I saw chickens eating dirty things and so I have had a strong aversion to eating them, and have taken an oath that I will not eat chickens." Abu Musa said, "Come along, I will tell you about this matter (i.e. how to cancel one's oath). I went to the Prophet in the company of a group of Al-Ashariyin, asked him to provide us with means of conveyance. He said, 'By Allah, I will not provide you with any means of conveyance and I have nothing to make you ride on.' Then some camels as booty were brought to Allah's Apostle and he asked for us saying. 'Where are the group of Al-Ash`ariyun?' Then he ordered that we should be given five camels with white humps. When we set out we said, 'What have we done? We will never be blessed (with what we have been given).' So, we returned to the Prophet and said, 'We asked you to provide us with means of conveyance, but you took an oath that you would not provide us with any means of conveyance. Did you forget (your oath when you gave us the camels)? He replied. 'I have not provided you with means of conveyance, but Allah has provided you with it, and by Allah, Allah willing, if ever I take an oath to do something, and later on I find that it is more beneficial to do something different, I will do the thing which is better, and give expiation for my oath."

When the Verse:--"Not equal are those of the believers who sit (at home)," (4.95) was revealed, the Prophet said, "Call so-and-so." That person came to him with an ink-pot and a wooden board or a shoulder scapula bone. The Prophet said (to him), "Write: 'Not equal are those believers who sit (at home) and those who strive and fight in the Cause of Allah." Ibn Um Maktum who was sitting behind the Prophet then said, "O Allah's Apostle! I am a blind man." So there was revealed in the place of that Verse, the Verse:--"Not equal are those of the believers who sit (at home) except those who are disabled (by injury, or are blind or lame etc.) and those who strive and fight in the Cause of Allah." (4.95)