There was a leather or wood container full of water in front of Allah's Apostle (at the time of his death). He would put his hand into the water and rub his face with it, saying, "None has the right to be worshipped but Allah! No doubt, death has its stupors." Then he raised his hand and started saying, "(O Allah!) with the highest companions." (See Qur'an 4:69) (and kept on saying it) till he expired and his hand dropped."

Aisha said, "Barira came to me and said, 'I have agreed with my masters to pay them nine Uqiyas (of gold) (in installments) one Uqiya per year; please help me.' I said, 'I am ready to pay the whole amount now provided your masters agree that your Wala' will be for me.' So, Barira went to her masters and told them about that offer but they refused to accept it. She returned, and at that time, Allah's Apostle was sitting (present). Barira said, 'I told them of the offer but they did not accept it and insisted on having the Wala'.' The Prophet heard that." `Aisha narrated the whole story to the Prophet. He said to her, "Buy her and stipulate that her Wala' would be yours as the Wala' is for the manumitter." `Aisha did so. Then Allah's Apostle stood up in front of the people, and after glorifying Allah he said, "Amma Ba`du (i.e. then after)! What about the people who impose conditions which are not in Allah's Book (Laws)? Any condition that is not in Allah's Book (Laws) is invalid even if they were one hundred conditions, for Allah's decisions are the right ones and His conditions are the strong ones (firmer) and the Wala' will be for the manumitter."

A woman presented herself to the Prophet (for marriage). A man said to him, "O Allah's Apostle! (If you are not in need of her) marry her to me." The Prophet said, "What have you got?" The man said, "I have nothing." The Prophet said (to him), "Go and search for something) even if it were an iron ring." The man went and returned saying, "No, I have not found anything, not even an iron ring; but this is my (Izar) waist sheet, and half of it is for her." He had no Rida' (upper garment). The Prophet said, "What will she do with your waist sheet? If you wear it, she will have nothing over her; and if she wears it, you will have nothing over you." So the man sat down and when he had sat a long time, he got up (to leave). When the Prophet saw him (leaving), he called him back, or the man was called (for him), and he said to the man, "How much of the Qur'an do you know (by heart)?" The man replied I know such Sura and such Sura (by heart)," naming the Suras The Prophet said, "I have married her to you for what you know of the Qur'an ."

Allah's Apostle neither talked in an insulting manner nor did he ever speak evil intentionally. He used to say, "The most beloved to me amongst you is the one who has the best character and manners." He added, " Learn the Qur'an from (any of these) four persons. `Abdullah bin Mas`ud, Salim the freed slave of Abu Hudhaifa, Ubai bin Ka`b, and Mu`adh bin Jabal."

`Imran bin Husain said: The Prophet said, "Haya' (pious shyness from committing religeous indiscretions) does not bring anything except good." Thereupon Bashir bin Ka`b said, 'It is written in the wisdom paper: Haya' leads to solemnity; Haya' leads to tranquility (peace of mind)." `Imran said to him, "I am narrating to you the saying of Allah's Apostle and you are speaking about your paper (wisdom book)?"

I divorced my wife. I then came to Medina to sell my land that was there so that I could buy arms and fight in battle. I met a group of the Companions of the Prophet (saws). They said: Six persons of us intended to do so (i.e. divorce their wives and purchase weapons), but the Prophet (saws) prohibited them. He said: For you in the Messenger of Allah there is an excellent model. I then came to Ibn 'Abbas and asked him about the witr observed by the Prophet (saws). He said: I point to you a person who is most familiar with the witr observed by the Messenger of Allah (saws). Go to 'Aishah. While going to her I asked Hakim b. Aflah to accompany me. He refused, but I adjured him. He, therefore, went along with me. We sought permission to enter upon 'Aishah. She said: Who is this ? He said: Hakim b. Aflah. She asked: Who is with you ? He replied: Sa'd b. Hisham. She said: Hisham son of 'Amir who was killed in the Battle of Uhud. I said: Yes. She said: What a good man 'Amir was! I said: Mother of faithful, tell me about the character of the Messenger of Allah (saws). She asked: Do you not recite the Quran ? The character of Messenger of Allah (saws) was the Qur'an. I asked: Tell me about his vigil and prayer at night. She replied: Do you not recite: "O thou folded in garments" (73:1). I said: Why not ?

When the opening of this Surah was revealed, the Companions stood praying (most of the night) until their fett swelled, and the concluding verses were not revealed for twelve months from heaven. At last the concluding verses were revealed and the prayer at night became voluntary after it was obligatory. I said: Tell me about the witr of the Prophet (saws). She replied: He used to pray eight rak'ahs, sitting only during the eighth of them. Then he would stand up and pray another rak'ahs. He would sit only after the eighth and the ninth rak'ahs. He would utter salutation only after the ninth rak'ah. He would then pray two rak'ahs sitting and that made eleven rak'ahs, O my son. But when he grew old and became fleshy he observed a witr of seven, sitting only in sixth and seventh rak'ahs, and would utter salutation only after the seventh rak'ah. He would then pray two rak'ahs sitting, and that made nine rak'ahs, O my son. The Messenger of Allah (saws) would not pray through a whole night, or recite the whole Qur'an in a night or fast a complete month except in Ramadan. When he offered prayer, he would do that regularly. When he was overtaken by sleep at night, he would pray twelve rak'ahs.

The narrator said: I came to Ibn 'Abbas and narrated all this to him. By Allah, this is really a tradition. Has I been on speaking terms with her, I would have come to her and heard it from her mouth. I said: If I knew that you were not on speaking terms with her, I would have never narrated it to you.

Usama bin Zaid said, "The Prophet rode over a donkey with a saddle underneath which there was a thick soft Fadakiya velvet sheet. Usama bin Zaid was his companion rider, and he was going to pay a visit to Sa`d bin Ubada (who was sick) at the dwelling place of Bani Al-Harith bin Al-Khazraj, and this incident happened before the battle of Badr. The Prophet passed by a gathering in which there were Muslims and pagan idolators and Jews, and among them there was `Abdullah bin Ubai bin Salul, and there was `Abdullah bin Rawaha too. When a cloud of dust raised by the animal covered that gathering, `Abdullah bin Ubai covered his nose with his Rida (sheet) and said (to the Prophet), "Don't cover us with dust." The Prophet greeted them and then stopped, dismounted and invited them to Allah (i.e., to embrace Islam) and also recited to them the Holy Qur'an. `Abdullah bin Ubai' bin Salul said, "O man! There is nothing better than what you say, if what you say is the truth. So do not trouble us in our gatherings. Go back to your mount (or house,) and if anyone of us comes to you, tell (your tales) to him." On that `Abdullah bin Rawaha said, "(O Allah's Apostle!) Come to us and bring it(what you want to say) in our gatherings, for we love that." So the Muslims, the pagans and the Jews started quarreling till they were about to fight and clash with one another. The Prophet kept on quietening them (till they all became quiet). He then rode his animal, and proceeded till he entered upon Sa`d bin 'Ubada, he said, "O Sa`d, didn't you hear what Abu Habbab said? (He meant `Abdullah bin Ubai). He said so-and-so." Sa`d bin 'Ubada said, "O Allah's Apostle! Excuse and forgive him, for by Allah, Allah has given you what He has given you. The people of this town decided to crown him (as their chief) and make him their king. But when Allah prevented that with the Truth which He had given you, it choked him, and that was what made him behave in the way you saw him behaving." So the Prophet excused him.

Allah's Apostle came to me and I told him about the slave-girl (Barirah) Allah's Apostle said, "Buy and manumit her, for the Wala is for the one who manumits." In the evening the Prophet got up and glorified Allah as He deserved and then said, "Why do some people impose conditions which are not present in Allah's Book (Laws)? Whoever imposes such a condition as is not in Allah's Laws, then that condition is invalid even if he imposes one hundred conditions, for Allah's conditions are more binding and reliable."

Abu Jahl said, "O Allah! If this (Qur'an) is indeed the Truth from You), then rain down on us a shower of stones from the sky or bring on us a painful punishment." So there was revealed:-- 'But Allah would not punish them while you (Muhammad) were amongst them, nor will He punish them while they seek (Allah's) Forgiveness. And why Allah should not punish them while they stop (men) from Al-Masjid-al-Haram ..' (8.33-34)

Once `Abdullah bin Mas`ud delivered a sermon before us and said, "By Allah, I learnt over seventy Suras direct from Allah's Apostle . By Allah, the companions of the Prophet came to know that I am one of those who know Allah's Book best of all of them, yet I am not the best of them." Shaqiq added: I sat in his religious gathering and I did not hear anybody opposing him (in his speech).

Allah has cursed those women who practise tattooing and those who get themselves tattooed, and those who remove their face hairs, and those who create a space between their teeth artificially to look beautiful, and such women as change the features created by Allah. Why then should I not curse those whom the Prophet has cursed? And that is in Allah's Book. i.e. His Saying: 'And what the Apostle gives you take it and what he forbids you abstain (from it).' (59.7)

Yahya related to me from Malik from Abd al-Malik ibn Qurayr from Muhammad ibn Sirin that a man came to Umar ibn al-Khattab and said, "I was racing a friend on horseback towards a narrow mountain trail and we killed a gazelle accidently and we were in ihram. What is your opinion?" Umar said to a man by his side, "Come, so that you and I may make an assessment." They decided on a female goat for him, and the man turned away saying, "This amir al-muminin cannot even make an assessment in the case of a gazelle until he calls a man to decide with him." Umar overheard the man's words and called him and asked him, "Do you recite surat al-Ma'ida?" and he said, "No." He said, "Then do you recognize this man who has taken the decision with me?" and he said, "No." He said, "If you had told me that you did recite surat al-Ma'ida, I would have dealt you a blow." Then he said, "Allah the Blessed, the Exalted says in His Book, 'as shall be judged by two men of justice among you, a sacrificial animal to reach the Kaba' (Sura 5 ayat 95), and this is Abd ar-Rahman ibn Awf."

When Allah's Apostle emigrated to Medina, Abu Bakr and Bilal had a fever. I entered upon them and said, "O my father! How are you? O Bilal! How are you?" Whenever Abu Bakr got the fever he used to say, "Everybody is staying alive with his people, yet death is nearer to him than his shoe laces." And when fever deserted Bilal, he would recite (two poetic verses): "Would that I could stay overnight in a valley wherein I would be surrounded by Idhkhir and Jalil (two kinds of good smelling grass). Would that one day I could drink of the water of Majinna, and would that Shama and Tafil (two mountains at Mecca) would appear to me!" I went to Allah's Apostle and informed him about that. He said, "O Allah! Make us love Medina as much or more than we love Mecca, and make it healthy, and bless its Sa and its Mudd, and take away its fever and put it in Al-Juhfa." (See Hadith No 558) .

While we were in the mosque, Allah's Apostle came out to us and said, "Let us proceed to the Jews." So we went along with him till we reached Bait-al-Midras (a place where the Torah used to be recited and all the Jews of the town used to gather). The Prophet stood up and addressed them, "O Assembly of Jews! Embrace Islam and you will be safe!" The Jews replied, "O Aba-l-Qasim! You have conveyed Allah's message to us." The Prophet said, "That is what I want (from you)." He repeated his first statement for the second time, and they said, "You have conveyed Allah's message, O Aba-l- Qasim." Then he said it for the third time and added, "You should Know that the earth belongs to Allah and His Apostle, and I want to exile you fro,,, this land, so whoever among you owns some property, can sell it, otherwise you should know that the Earth belongs to Allah and His Apostle." (See Hadith No. 392, Vol. 4)

While I was (sitting) among the people in the company of Allah's Apostle a woman stood up and said, "O Allah's Apostle! She has given herself in marriage to you; please give your opinion of her." The Prophet did not give her any reply. She again stood up and said, "O Allah's Apostle! She has given herself (in marriage) to you; so please give your opinion of her. The Prophet did not give her any reply. She again stood up for the third time and said, "She has given herself in marriage to you: so give your opinion of her." So a man stood up and said, "O Allah's Apostle! Marry her to me." The Prophet asked him, "Have you got anything?" He said, "No." The Prophet said, "Go and search for something, even if it were an iron ring." The man went and searched and then returned saying, "I could not find anything, not even an iron ring." Then the Prophet said, "Do you know something of the Qur'an (by heart)?" He replied, "I know (by heart) such Sura and such Sura." The Prophet said, "Go! I have married her to you for what you know of the Qur'an (by heart).

A woman came to the Prophet and said, "I have come to present myself to you (for marriage)." She kept standing for a long period during which period the Prophet looked at her carefully. When she stayed for a Long period, a man said to the Prophet "If you are not in need of her, then marry her to me." The Prophet said, "Have you got anything to give her (as Mahr)?" The man said, "No." The Prophet said, "Go (to your house) and search for something." The man went and came back to say, "By Allah, I could not find anything." The Prophet said, "Go again and search for something, even if it be an iron ring." He went again and came back saying, "No, by Allah, I could not get even an iron ring." The man had only an Izar and had no Rida' (upper garment). He said, "I will give her my Izar as Mahr." On that the Prophet said, "Your Izar? If she wears it, nothing of it will remain on you, and if you wear it nothing of it will be on her" The man went aside and sat down When the Prophet saw him leaving (after a while), he called back and asked. "How much Qur'an do you know (by heart)? He said, 'I know such and such Suras," naming some Suras. The Prophet said, "I marry her to you for the amount of Qur'an you know (by heart).

Sa'd ibn Hisham said: I came to Medina and called upon Aisha, and said to her: Tell me about the prayer of the Messenger of Allah (saws).

She said: The Messenger of Allah (saws) used to lead the people in the night prayer, and then go to his bed and sleep. When midnight came he got up, went to answer the call of nature and to perform ablution with water. Having performed ablution, he entered the mosque and prayed eight rak'ahs.

To my mind he performed the recitation of the Qur'an, bowing and prostrating equally. He then observed witr with one rak'ah and prayed two rak'ahs sitting. Then he lay down on the ground. Sometimes Bilal came to him and called him for prayer. He then dozed, and sometimes I doubted whether he dozed or not, till he (Bilal) called him for prayer.

This is the prayer he offered till he grew old or put on weight. She then mentioned how he put on weight as Allah wished.

Abu Jahl said, "O Allah! If this (Qur'an) is indeed the Truth from You, then rain down on us a shower of stones from the sky or bring on us a painful torment." So Allah revealed:-- "But Allah would not punish them while you were amongst them, nor He will punish them while they seek (Allah's) forgiveness..." (8.33) And why Allah should not punish them while they turn away (men) from Al- Masjid-al-Haram (the Sacred Mosque of Mecca)..." (8.33-34)

Yahya related to me from Malik from Yahya ibn Said from Muhammad ibn Ibrahim ibn al-Harith at-Taymi from Abu Salama ibn Abd ar Rahman that Abu Said said that he had heard the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, say, "A group of people will appear among you whose prayer, fasting and deeds will make you think little of your own prayer, fasting and deeds. They will recite the Qur'an, but it wil not get past their throats, and they will pass through the deen like an arrow passes through game. You look at the arrowhead, and you see nothing, and you look at the shaft, and you see nothing, and you look at the flights, and you see nothing. And you are in doubt about the notch."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Nafi that Abdullah ibn Umar used to pray dhuhr, asr, maghrib, isha and subh at Mina. Then in the morning, after the sun had risen, he would go to Arafa .

Malik said, "What we are all agreed upon here (in Madina) is that the imam does not recite the Qur'an out loud in dhuhr on the day of Arafa, and that he gives a khutba to the people on that day, and that the prayer on the day of Arafa is really a dhuhr prayer, and even if it coincides with a jumua it is still a dhuhr prayer, but one which has been shortened because of travelling."

Malik said that the imam of the pilgrims should not pray the jumua prayer if the day of Arafa, the day of sacrifice or one of the three days after the day of sacrifice, was a Friday.