who was one of the companions of Allah's Apostle and one of the Ansar's who took part in the battle of Badr: I came to Allah's Apostle and said, "O Allah's Apostle I have weak eyesight and I lead my people in prayers. When it rains the water flows in the valley between me and my people so I cannot go to their mosque to lead them in prayer. O Allah's Apostle! I wish you would come to my house and pray in it so that I could take that place as a Musalla. Allah's Apostle said. "Allah willing, I will do so." Next day after the sun rose high, Allah's Apostle and Abu Bakr came and Allah's Apostle asked for permission to enter. I gave him permission and he did not sit on entering the house but said to me, "Where do you like me to pray?" I pointed to a place in my house. So Allah's Apostle stood there and said, 'Allahu Akbar', and we all got up and aligned behind him and offered a two-rak`at prayer and ended it with Taslim. We requested him to stay for a meal called "Khazira" which we had prepared for him. Many members of our family gathered in the house and one of them said, "Where is Malik bin Al-Dukhaishin or Ibn Al-Dukhshun?" One of them replied, "He is a hypocrite and does not love Allah and His Apostle." Hearing that, Allah's Apostle said, "Do not say so. Haven't you seen that he said, 'None has the right to be worshipped but Allah' for Allah's sake only?" He said, "Allah and His Apostle know better. We have seen him helping and advising hypocrites." Allah's Apostle said, "Allah has forbidden the (Hell) fire for those who say, 'None has the right to be worshipped but Allah' for Allah's sake only."

Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that once in the time of Uthman ibn Affan the new moon had been seen in the afternoon and Uthman did not break his fast until evening had come and the sun had set.

Yahya said that he had heard Malik say that some one who sees the new moon of Ramadan when he is on his own should start the fast and not break it if he knows that that day is part of Ramadan. He added, "Some one who sees the new moon of Shawwal when he is on his own does not break the fast, because people suspect the reliability of someone among them who breaks the fast. Such people should say, when they sight the new moon, 'We have seen the new moon.' Whoever sees the new moon of Shawwal during the day should not break his fast but should continue fasting for the rest of that day. This is because it is really the new moon of the night that is coming ."

Yahya said that he heard Malik say, "If people are fasting on the day of Fitr thinking that it is still Ramadan and then definite evidence comes to them that the new moon of Ramadan had been seen one day before they began to fast and that they are now into the thirty- first day, then they should break the fast on that day at whatever time the news comes to them. However, they do not pray the id prayer if they hear the news after the sun has begun to decline."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Abd ar-Rahman ibn Said from Amr ibn Shuayb that when the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, came back from Hunayn heading for al-Jiirrana, the people crowded around so much to question him that his she-camel backed into a tree, which became entangled in his cloak and pulled it off his back. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Return my cloak to me. Are you afraid that I will not distribute among you what Allah has given you as spoils. By He in whose hand my self is! Had Allah given you spoils equal to the number of acacia trees on the plain of Tihama, I would have distributed it among you. You will not find me to be miserly, cowardly, or a liar." Then the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, got down and stood among the people, and said, "Hand over even the needle and thread, for stealing from the spoils is disgrace, fire, ignominy on the Day of Rising for people who do it." Then he took a bit of camel fluff or something from the ground and said, "By He in whose hand my self is! What Allah has made spoils for you is not mine - even the like of this! - except for the tax of one fifth, and the tax of one fifth is returned to you."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Abu Bakr ibn Nafi from his father that the daughter of one of Safiyya bint Abi Ubayd's brothers was bleeding after she had given birth to a child at Muzdalifa. She and Safiyya were delayed and did not arrive at Mina until after the sun had set on the day of sacrifice. Abdullah ibn Umar told them both to stone the jamra at the time they arrived and he did not think that they owed anything.

Yahya said that Malik was asked about some one who forgot to stone one of the jamras on one of the days of Mina until it was evening and he said, "He should throw the stones at whatever time of day or night he remembers, just as he would pray the prayer if he forgot it and then remembered it at any time of day or night. If he remembers (that he has not done the stoning) after he has returned to Makka, or after he has left, he must sacrifice an animal."

that he remembered Allah's Apostle and he also remembered a mouthful of water which he had thrown on his face, after taking it from a well that was in their house. Mahmud said that he had heard `Itban bin Malik, who was present with Allah's Apostle in the battle of Badr saying, "I used to lead my people at Bani Salim in the prayer and there was a valley between me and those people. Whenever it rained it used to be difficult for me to cross it to go to their mosque. So I went to Allah's Apostle and said, 'I have weak eyesight and the valley between me and my people flows during the rainy season and it becomes difficult for me to cross it; I wish you would come to my house and pray at a place so that I could take that place as a praying place.' Allah's Apostle said, 'I will do so.' So Allah's Apostle and Abu Bakr came to my house in the (next) morning after the sun had risen high. Allah's Apostle asked my permission to let him in and I admitted him. He did not sit before saying, 'Where do you want us to offer the prayer in your house?' I pointed to the place where I wanted him to pray. So Allah's Apostle stood up for the prayer and started the prayer with Takbir and we aligned in rows behind him; and he offered two rak`at, and finished them with Taslim, and we also performed Taslim with him. I detained him for a meal called "Khazir" which I had prepared for him.--("Khazir" is a special type of dish prepared from barley flour and meat soup)-- When the neighbors got the news that Allah's Apostle was in my house, they poured it till there were a great number of men in the house. One of them said, 'What is wrong with Malik, for I do not see him?' One of them replied, 'He is a hypocrite and does not love Allah and His Apostle.' On that Allah's Apostle said, 'Don't say this. Haven't you seen that he said, 'None has the right to be worshipped but Allah for Allah's sake only.' The man replied, 'Allah and His Apostle know better; but by Allah, we never saw him but helping and talking with the hypocrites.' Allah's Apostle replied, 'No doubt, whoever says. None has the right to be worshipped but Allah, and by that he wants the pleasures of Allah, then Allah will save him from Hell." Mahmud added, "I told the above narration to some people, one of whom was Abu Aiyub, the companion of Allah's Apostle in the battle in which he (Abu Aiyub) died and Yazid bin Mu'awiya was their leader in Roman Territory. Abu Aiyub denounced the narration and said, 'I doubt that Allah's Apostle ever said what you have said.' I felt that too much, and I vowed to Allah that if I remained alive in that holy battle, I would (go to Medina and) ask `Itban bin Malik if he was still living in the mosque of his people. So when he returned, I assumed Ihram for Hajj or `Umra and then I proceeded on till I reached Medina. I went to Bani Salim and `Itban bin Malik, who was by then an old blind man, was leading his people in the prayer. When he finished the prayer, I greeted him and introduced myself to him and then asked him about that narration. He told that narration again in the same manner as he had narrated it the first time."

The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: The best day on which the sun has risen is Friday; on it Adam was created, on it he was expelled (from Paradise), on it his contrition was accepted, on it he died, and on it the Last Hour will take place. On Friday every beast is on the lookout from dawn to sunrise in fear of the Last Hour, but not jinn and men, and it contains a time at which no Muslim prays and asks anything from Allah but He will give it to him. Ka'b said: That is one day every year. So I said: It is on every Friday. Ka'b read the Torah and said: The Messenger of Allah (saws) has spoken the truth. AbuHurayrah said: I met Abdullah ibn Salam and told him of my meeting with Ka'b. Abdullah ibn Salam said: I know what time it is. AbuHurayrah said: I asked him to tell me about it. Abdullah ibn Salam said: It is at the very end of Friday. I asked: How can it be when the Messenger of Allah (saws) has said: "No Muslim finds it while he is praying...." and this is the moment when no prayer is offered. Abdullah ibn Salam said: Has the Messenger of Allah (saws) not said: "If anyone is seated waiting for the prayer, he is engaged in the prayer until he observes it." I said: Yes, it is so.

The Jew could not help shouting at the top of his voice, "O you 'Arabs! Here is your great man whom you have been waiting for!" So all the Muslims rushed to their arms and received Allah's Apostle on the summit of Harra. The Prophet turned with them to the right and alighted at the quarters of Bani 'Amr bin 'Auf, and this was on Monday in the month of Rabi-ul-Awal. Abu Bakr stood up, receiving the people while Allah's Apostle sat down and kept silent. Some of the Ansar who came and had not seen Allah's Apostle before, began greeting Abu Bakr, but when the sunshine fell on Allah's Apostle and Abu Bakr came forward and shaded him with his sheet only then the people came to know Allah's Apostle. Allah's Apostle stayed with Bani 'Amr bin 'Auf for ten nights and established the mosque (mosque of Quba) which was founded on piety. Allah's Apostle prayed in it and then mounted his she-camel and proceeded on, accompanied by the people till his she-camel knelt down at (the place of) the Mosque of Allah's Apostle at Medina. Some Muslims used to pray there in those days, and that place was a yard for drying dates belonging to Suhail and Sahl, the orphan boys who were under the guardianship of 'Asad bin Zurara. When his she-camel knelt down, Allah's Apostle said, "This place, Allah willing, will be our abiding place." Allah's Apostle then called the two boys and told them to suggest a price for that yard so that he might take it as a mosque. The two boys said, "No, but we will give it as a gift, O Allah's Apostle!" Allah's Apostle then built a mosque there. The Prophet himself started carrying unburnt bricks for its building and while doing so, he was saying "This load is better than the load of Khaibar, for it is more pious in the Sight of Allah and purer and better rewardable." He was also saying, "O Allah! The actual reward is the reward in the Hereafter, so bestow Your Mercy on the Ansar and the Emigrants." Thus the Prophet recited (by way of proverb) the poem of some Muslim poet whose name is unknown to me.

(Ibn Shibab said, "In the Hadiths it does not occur that Allah's Apostle

recited a complete poetic verse other than this one.")

Allah's Apostle sent some men from the Ansar to ((kill) Abu Rafi`, the Jew, and appointed `Abdullah bin Atik as their leader. Abu Rafi` used to hurt Allah's Apostle and help his enemies against him. He lived in his castle in the land of Hijaz. When those men approached (the castle) after the sun had set and the people had brought back their livestock to their homes. `Abdullah (bin Atik) said to his companions, "Sit down at your places. I am going, and I will try to play a trick on the gate-keeper so that I may enter (the castle)." So `Abdullah proceeded towards the castle, and when he approached the gate, he covered himself with his clothes, pretending to answer the call of nature. The people had gone in, and the gate-keeper (considered `Abdullah as one of the castle's servants) addressing him saying, "O Allah's Servant! Enter if you wish, for I want to close the gate." `Abdullah added in his story, "So I went in (the castle) and hid myself. When the people got inside, the gate-keeper closed the gate and hung the keys on a fixed wooden peg. I got up and took the keys and opened the gate. Some people were staying late at night with Abu Rafi` for a pleasant night chat in a room of his. When his companions of nightly entertainment went away, I ascended to him, and whenever I opened a door, I closed it from inside. I said to myself, 'Should these people discover my presence, they will not be able to catch me till I have killed him.' So I reached him and found him sleeping in a dark house amidst his family, I could not recognize his location in the house. So I shouted, 'O Abu Rafi`!' Abu Rafi` said, 'Who is it?' I proceeded towards the source of the voice and hit him with the sword, and because of my perplexity, I could not kill him. He cried loudly, and I came out of the house and waited for a while, and then went to him again and said, 'What is this voice, O Abu Rafi`?' He said, 'Woe to your mother! A man in my house has hit me with a sword! I again hit him severely but I did not kill him. Then I drove the point of the sword into his belly (and pressed it through) till it touched his back, and I realized that I have killed him. I then opened the doors one by one till I reached the staircase, and thinking that I had reached the ground, I stepped out and fell down and got my leg broken in a moonlit night. I tied my leg with a turban and proceeded on till I sat at the gate, and said, 'I will not go out tonight till I know that I have killed him.' So, when (early in the morning) the cock crowed, the announcer of the casualty stood on the wall saying, 'I announce the death of Abu Rafi`, the merchant of Hijaz. Thereupon I went to my companions and said, 'Let us save ourselves, for Allah has killed Abu Rafi`,' So I (along with my companions proceeded and) went to the Prophet and described the whole story to him. "He said, 'Stretch out your (broken) leg. I stretched it out and he rubbed it and it became All right as if I had never had any ailment whatsoever."

During the lifetime of the Prophet some people said, : O Allah's Apostle! Shall we see our Lord on the Day of Resurrection?" The Prophet said, "Yes; do you have any difficulty in seeing the sun at midday when it is bright and there is no cloud in the sky?" They replied, "No." He said, "Do you have any difficulty in seeing the moon on a full moon night when it is bright and there is no cloud in the sky?" They replied, "No." The Prophet said, "(Similarly) you will have no difficulty in seeing Allah on the Day of Resurrection as you have no difficulty in seeing either of them. On the Day of Resurrection, a call-maker will announce, "Let every nation follow that which they used to worship." Then none of those who used to worship anything other than Allah like idols and other deities but will fall in Hell (Fire), till there will remain none but those who used to worship Allah, both those who were obedient (i.e. good) and those who were disobedient (i.e. bad) and the remaining party of the people of the Scripture. Then the Jews will be called upon and it will be said to them, 'Who do you use to worship?' They will say, 'We used to worship Ezra, the son of Allah.' It will be said to them, 'You are liars, for Allah has never taken anyone as a wife or a son. What do you want now?' They will say, 'O our Lord! We are thirsty, so give us something to drink.' They will be directed and addressed thus, 'Will you drink,' whereupon they will be gathered unto Hell (Fire) which will look like a mirage whose different sides will be destroying each other. Then they will fall into the Fire. Afterwards the Christians will be called upon and it will be said to them, 'Who do you use to worship?' They will say, 'We used to worship Jesus, the son of Allah.' It will be said to them, 'You are liars, for Allah has never taken anyone as a wife or a son,' Then it will be said to them, 'What do you want?' They will say what the former people have said. Then, when there remain (in the gathering) none but those who used to worship Allah (Alone, the real Lord of the Worlds) whether they were obedient or disobedient. Then (Allah) the Lord of the worlds will come to them in a shape nearest to the picture they had in their minds about Him. It will be said, 'What are you waiting for?' Every nation have followed what they used to worship.' They will reply, 'We left the people in the world when we were in great need of them and we did not take them as friends. Now we are waiting for our Lord Whom we used to worship.' Allah will say, 'I am your Lord.' They will say twice or thrice, 'We do not worship any besides Allah.' "