Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that Abdullah ibn Abbas used to say, "The least difficult thing acceptable as a sacrificial animal is a sheep."

Malik said, "That is what I like most out of what I have heard about the matter, because Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, says in His Book, 'O you who trust, do not kill game while you are in ihram. Whoever of you kills it intentionally, there shall be repayment the like of what he has slain, from livestock, as shall be judged by two men of justice among you, a sacrificial animal which will reach the Kaba, or food for poor people, or the equivalent of that in fasting,' (Sura 5 ayat 95) and a sheep is one of the animals which is judged to be acceptable as a sacrifice. Allah has called it a sacrificial animal, and there is no dispute among us about the matter. How, indeed, could anyone be in doubt about the matter? A sheep is the kaffara for anything which does not reach the extent of something for which a camel or a cow would be the kaffara, and the kaffara for something which does not reach the extent of something for which a sheep would be the kaffara is fasting, or feeding poor people."

Whenever `Abdullah bin `Umar was asked about Salat-al-Khauf (i.e. prayer of fear) he said, "The Imam comes forward with a group of people and leads them in a one rak`a prayer while another group from them who has not prayed yet, stay between the praying group and the enemy. When those who are with the Imam have finished their one rak`a, they retreat and take the positions of those who have not prayed but they will not finish their prayers with Taslim. Those who have not prayed, come forward to offer a rak`a with the Imam (while the first group covers them from the enemy). Then the Imam, having offered two rak`at, finishes his prayer. Then each member of the two groups offer the second rak`a alone after the Imam has finished his prayer. Thus each one of the two groups will have offered two rak`at. But if the fear is too great, they can pray standing on their feet or riding on their mounts, facing the Qibla or not." Nafi` added: I do not think that `Abdullah bin `Umar narrated this except from Allah's Apostle (See Hadith No. 451, Vol 5 to know exactly "The Fear Prayer.")

Malik related to me from Humayd ibn Qays al-Makki that a son of al-Mutawakkil had a mukatab who died at Makka and left (enough to pay) the rest of his kitaba and he owed some debts to people. He also left a daughter. The governor of Makka was not certain about how to judge in the case, so he wrote to Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan to ask him about it. Abd al-Malik wrote to him, "Begin with the debts owed to people, and then pay what remains of his kitaba. Then divide what remains of the property between the daughter and the master."

Malik said, "What is done among us is that the master of a slave does not have to give his slave a kitaba if he asks for it. I have not heard of any of the Imams forcing a man to give a kitaba to his slave. I heard that one of the people of knowledge, when someone asked about that and mentioned that Allah the Blessed, the Exalted, said, 'Give them their kitaba, if you know some good in them' (Sura 24 ayat 33) recited these two ayats, 'When you are free of the state of ihram, then hunt for game.' (Sura 5 ayat 3) 'When the prayer is finished, scatter in the land and seek Allah's favour.' " (Sura 62 ayat 10)

Malik commented, "It is a way of doing things for which Allah, the Mighty, the Majestic, has given permission to people, and it is not obligatory for them." Malik said, "I heard one of the people of knowledge say about the word of Allah, the Blessed, the Exalted, 'Give them of the wealth which Allah has given you,' that it meant that a man give his slave a kitaba and then reduce the end of his kitaba for him by some specific amount."

Malik said, "This is what I have heard from the people of knowledge and what I see people doing here."

Malik said, "I have heard that Abdullah ibn Umar gave one of his slaves his kitaba for 35,000 dirhams, and then reduced the end of his kitaba by 5,000 dirhams."

Malik said, "What is done among us is that when a master gives a mukatab his kitaba, the mukatab's property goes with him but his children do not go with him unless he stipulates that in his kitaba."

Yahya said, "I heard Malik say that if a mukatab whose master had given him a kitaba had a slave- girl who was pregnant by him, and neither he nor his master knew that on the day he was given his kitaba, the child did not follow him because he was not included in the kitaba. He belonged to the master. As for the slave-girl, she belonged to the mukatab because she was his property."

Malik said that if a man and his wife's son (by another husband) inherited a mukatab from the wife and the mukatab died before he had completed his kitaba, they divided his inheritance between them according to the Book of Allah. If the slave paid his kitaba and then died, his inheritance went to the son of the woman, and the husband had nothing of his inheritance.

Malik said that if a mukatab gave his own slave a kitaba, the situation was looked at. If he wanted to do his slave a favour and it was obvious by his making it easy for him, that was not permitted. If he was giving him a kitaba from desire to find money to pay off his own kitaba, that was permitted for him.

Malik said that if a man had intercourse with a mukataba of his and she became pregnant by him, she had an option. If she liked she could be an umm walad. If she wished, she could confirm her kitaba. If she did not conceive, she still had her kitaba.

Malik said, "The generally agreed on way of doing things among us about a slave who is owned by two men is that one of them does not give a kitaba for his share, whether or not his companion gives him permission to do so, unless they both write the kitaba together, because that alone would effect setting him free. If the slave were to fulfil what he had agreed on to free half of himself, and then the one who had given a kitaba for half of him was not obliged to complete his setting free, that would be in opposition to the words of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. 'If someone frees his share in a slave and has enough money to cover the full price of the slave, justly evaluated for him, he must give his partners their shares, so the slave is completely free . ' "

Malik said, "If he is not aware of that until the mukatab has met the terms or before he has met them the owner who has written him the kitaba returns what he has taken from the mukatab to him, and then he and his partner divide him according to their original shares and the kitaba is invalid. He is the slave of both of them in his original state."

Malik spoke about a mukatab who was owned by two men and one of them granted him a delay in the payment of the right which he was owed, and the other refused to defer it, and so the one who refused to defer the payment exacted his part of the due. Malik said that if the mukatab then died and left property which did not complete his kitaba, "They divide it according to what they are still owed by him. Each of them takes according to his share. If the mukatab leaves more than his kitaba, each of them takes what remains to them of the kitaba, and what remains after that is divided equally between them. If the mukatab is unable to pay his kitaba fully and the one who did not allow him to defer his payment has exacted more than his associate did, the slave is still divided equally between them, and he does not return to his associates the excess of what he has exacted, because he only exacted his right with the permission of his associate. If one of them remits what is owed to him and then his associate exacts part of what he is owed by him and then the mukatab is unable to pay, he belongs to both of them. And the one who has exacted something does not return anything because he only demanded what he was owed. That is like the debt of two men in one writing against one man. One of them grants him time to pay and the other is greedy and exacts his due. Then the debtor goes bankrupt. The one who exacted his due does not have to return any of what he took."

When `Abdullah (my father) died, he left behind children and debts. I asked the lenders to put down some of his debt, but they refused, so I went to the Prophet to intercede with them, yet they refused. The Prophet said (to me), "Classify your dates into their different kinds: 'Adha bin Zaid, Lean and 'Ajwa, each kind alone and call all the creditors and wait till I come to you." I did so and the Prophet came and sat beside the dates and started measuring to each his due till he paid them fully, and the amount of dates remained as it was before, as if he had not touched them. (On another occasion) I took part in one of Ghazawat among with the Prophet and I was riding one of our camels. The camel got tired and was lagging behind the others. The Prophet hit it on its back. He said, "Sell it to me, and you have the right to ride it till Medina.'' When we approached Medina, I took the permission from the Prophet to go to my house, saying, "O Allah's Apostle! I have newly married." The Prophet asked, "Have you married a virgin or a matron (a widow or divorcee)?" I said, "I have married a matron, as `Abdullah (my father) died and left behind daughters small in their ages, so I married a matron who may teach them and bring them up with good manners." The Prophet then said (to me), "Go to your family." When I went there and told my maternal uncle about the selling of the camel, he admonished me for it. On that I told him about its slowness and exhaustion and about what the Prophet had done to the camel and his hitting it. When the Prophet arrived, I went to him with the camel in the morning and he gave me its price, the camel itself, and my share from the war booty as he gave the other people.

Allah's Apostle sent us who were three-hundred riders under the command of Abu Ubaida bin Al- Jarrah in order to watch the caravan of the Quraish pagans. We stayed at the seashore for half a month and were struck with such severe hunger that we ate even the Khabt (i.e. the leaves of the Salam, a thorny desert tree), and because of that, the army was known as Jaish-ul-Khabt. Then the sea threw out, an animal (i.e. a fish) called Al-`Anbar and we ate of that for half a month, and rubbed its fat on our bodies till our bodies returned to their original state (i.e. became strong and healthy). Abu Ubaida took one of its ribs, fixed it on the ground; then he went to the tallest man of his companions (to let him pass under the rib). Once Sufyan said, "He took a rib from its parts and fixed it, and then took a man and camel and they passed from underneath it (without touching it). " Jabir added: There was a man amongst the people who slaughtered three camels and then slaughtered another three camels and then slaughtered other three camels, and then Abu 'Ubaida forbade him to do so. Narrated Abu Salih: Qais bin Sa`d said to his father. "I was present in the army and the people were struck with severe hunger." He said, "You should have slaughtered (camels) (for them)." Qais said, "I did slaughter camels but they were hungry again. He said, "You should have slaughtered (camels) again." Qais said, "I did slaughter (camels) again but the people felt hungry again." He said, "You should have slaughtered (camels) again." Qais said, "I did slaughter (camels) again, but the people again felt hungry." He said, "You should have slaughtered (camels) again." Qais said, "But I was forbidden (by Abu 'Ubaida this time).

Abu Dawud said: Ibn Dawud has narrated the first part of this tradition as a statement (of the Prophet), and denied that there was any mention of performing ablution for every prayer. The weakness of the tradition reported by Habib is also indicated by the fact that the version transmuted by al-Zuhri from 'Urwah on the authority of 'Aishah says that she used to wash herself for every prayer; (these words occur) in the tradition about the woman who has a flow of blood. This tradition has been reported by Abu al-Yaqzan from 'Adi b. Thabit from his father from 'Ali, and narrated by 'Ammar, the freed salve of Banu Hashim, from Ibn 'Abbas, and transmitted by 'Abd al-Malik b. Maisarah, Bayan, al-Mughirah, Firas, on the authority of al-Sha'bi, from Qumair from 'Aishah, stating: You should perform ablution for every prayer. The version transmitted by Dawud, and 'Asim from al-Sha'bi from Qumair from 'Aishah has the words: She should take bath only once every day. The version reported by Hisham b. 'Urwah from his father has the words: The woman having a flow of blood should perform ablution for every prayer. All these traditions are weak except the tradition reported by Qumair and the tradition reported by 'Ammar, the freed slave of Banu Hashim, and the tradition narrated by Hisham b. 'Urwah on the authority of his father. What is commonly known from Ibn 'Abbas is bathing (for every prayer).

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."

The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: The first defect that permeated Banu Isra'il was that a man (of them) met another man and said: O so-and-so, fear Allah, and abandon what you are doing, for it is not lawful for you. He then met him the next day and that did not prevent him from eating with him, drinking with him and sitting with him. When they did so. Allah mingled their hearts with each other.

He then recited the verse: "curses were pronounced on those among the children of Isra'il who rejected Faith, by the tongue of David and of Jesus the son of Mary"...up to "wrongdoers".

He then said: By no means, I swear by Allah, you must enjoin what is good and prohibit what is evil, prevent the wrongdoer, bend him into conformity with what is right, and restrict him to what is right.

We went out with the Prophet to Khaibar. A man among the people said, "O 'Amir! Will you please recite to us some of your poetic verses?" So 'Amir got down and started chanting among them, saying, "By Allah! Had it not been for Allah, we would not have been guided." 'Amir also said other poetic verses which I do not remember. Allah's Apostle said, "Who is this (camel) driver?" The people said, "He is 'Amir bin Al-Akwa`," He said, "May Allah bestow His Mercy on him." A man from the People said, "O Allah's Apostle! Would that you let us enjoy his company longer." When the people (Muslims) lined up, the battle started, and 'Amir was struck with his own sword (by chance) by himself and died. In the evening, the people made a large number of fires (for cooking meals). Allah's Apostle said, "What is this fire? What are you making the fire for?" They said, "For cooking the meat of donkeys." He said, "Throw away what is in the pots and break the pots!" A man said, "O Allah's Prophet! May we throw away what is in them and wash them?" He said, "Never mind, you may do so." (See Hadith No. 509, Vol. 5).

The Messenger of Allah (saws) announced an expedition, and I was a very old man and I had no servant. I, therefore, sought a hireling who would serve instead of me, and I would give him his portion. So I found a man. When the time of departure arrived, he came to me and said: I do not know what would be the portions, and how much would be my portion. So offer something (as wages) to me, whether there would be any portion or not. I offered three dinars (as his wages) for him. When some booty arrived, I wanted to offer him his portion. But I remembered the dinars, so I went to the Prophet (saws) and mentioned the matter to him. He said: All I can find for him regarding this expedition of his in this world and the next is three dinars which were offered him.

We fought one of our battle, and encamped at a certain place. One of our companions sold a horse for a slave. After that they remained there for the rest of day and night. When the next morning came, they prepared themselves for departure. The buyer of the horse began to saddle it, but the seller was ashamed (of the transaction). He went to the man (buyer) and asked him to annul the transaction. The man refused to hand it over (the horse) to him.

He said: AbuBarzah, the companion of the Prophet (saws), is to decide between me and you. They went to AbuBarzah in the corner of the army. They related this story to him.

He said: Do you agree that I make a decision between you on the basis of the decision of the Messenger of Allah (saws)?

The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: Both parties in a business transaction have an option (right) to annul it so long as they have not separated.

Hisham to Hassan said that Jamil said in his version: "I do not think that you separated."

A man came to the Prophet on a Friday while he (the Prophet) was delivering a sermon at Medina, and said, "There is lack of rain, so please invoke your Lord to bless us with the rain." The Prophet looked at the sky when no cloud could be detected. Then he invoked Allah for rain. Clouds started gathering together and it rained till the Medina valleys started flowing with water. It continued raining till the next Friday. Then that man (or some other man) stood up while the Prophet was delivering the Friday sermon, and said, "We are drowned; Please invoke your Lord to withhold it (rain) from us" The Prophet smiled and said twice or thrice, "O Allah! Please let it rain round about us and not upon us." The clouds started dispersing over Medina to the right and to the left, and it rained round about Medina and not upon Medina. Allah showed them (the people) the miracle of His Prophet and His response to his invocation.

Once in the middle of the night Allah's Apostle (p.b.u.h) went out and prayed in the mosque and some men prayed with him. The next morning the people spoke about it and so more people gathered and prayed with him (in the second night). They circulated the news in the morning, and so, on the third night the number of people increased greatly. Allah's Apostle (p.b.u.h) came out and they prayed behind him. On the fourth night the mosque was overwhelmed by the people till it could not accommodate them. Allah's Apostle came out only for the Fajr prayer and when he finished the prayer, he faced the people and recited "Tashah-hud" (I testify that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah and that Muhammad is His Apostle), and then said, "Amma ba'du. Verily your presence (in the mosque at night) was not hidden from me, but I was afraid that this prayer (Prayer of Tahajjud) might be made compulsory and you might not be able to carry it out."

That he was informed by `Aisha, "Allah's Apostle went out in the middle of the night and prayed in the mosque and some men prayed behind him. In the morning, the people spoke about it and then a large number of them gathered and prayed behind him (on the second night). In the next morning the people again talked about it and on the third night the mosque was full with a large number of people. Allah's Apostle came out and the people prayed behind him. On the fourth night the Mosque was overwhelmed with people and could not accommodate them, but the Prophet came out (only) for the morning prayer. When the morning prayer was finished he recited Tashah-hud and (addressing the people) said, "Amma ba'du, your presence was not hidden from me but I was afraid lest the night prayer (Qiyam) should be enjoined on you and you might not be able to carry it on." So, Allah's Apostle died and the situation remained like that (i.e. people prayed individually). "

Yahya said that he heard Malik speak about a man who bought goods - animals or clothes or wares, and the sale was found not to be permitted so it was revoked and the one who had taken the goods was ordered to return the owner his goods. Malik said, "The owner of the goods only has their value on the day they were taken from him, and not on the day they are returned to him. That is because the man is liable for them from the day he took them and whatever loss is in them after that is against him. For that reason, their increase and growth are also his. A man may take the goods at a time when they are selling well and are in demand, and then have to return them at a time when they have fallen in price and no one wants them. For instance, the man may take the goods from the other man, and sell them for ten dinars or keep them while their price is that. Then he may have to return them while their price is only a dinar. He should not go off with nine dinars from the man's property. Or perhaps they are taken by the man, and he sells them for a dinar or keeps them, while their price is only a dinar, then he has to return them, and their value on the day he returns them is ten dinars. The one who took them does not have to pay nine dinars from his property to the owner. He is only obliged to pay the value of what he took possession of on the day it was taken ."

He said, "Part of what clarifies this is that when a thief steals goods, only their price on the day he stole them is looked at. If cutting off the hand is necessary because of it, that is done. If the cutting off is delayed, either because the thief is imprisoned until his situation is examined or he flees and then is caught, the delay of the cutting off of the hand does not make the hadd, which was obliged for him on the day he stole, fall from him even if those goods become cheap after that. Nor does delay oblige cutting off the hand if it was not obliged on the day he took those goods, even if they become expensive after that."

Abu Talha said to Um Sulaim, "I have heard the voice of Allah's Apostle which was feeble, and I think that he is hungry. Have you got something (to eat)?" She took out some loaves of barley bread, then took her face-covering sheet and wrapped the bread in part of it, and pushed it under my garment and turned the rest of it around my body and sent me to Allah's Apostle . I went with that, and found Allah's Apostle in the mosque with some people. I stood up near them, and Allah's Apostle asked me, "Have you been sent by Abu Talha?" I said, "Yes." He asked, "With some food (for us)?" I said, "Yes." Then Allah's Apostle said to all those who were with him, "Get up!" He set out (and all the people accompanied him) and I proceeded ahead of them till I came to Abu Talha. Abu Talha then said, "O Um Sulaim! Allah's Apostle has arrived along with the people, and we do not have food enough to feed them all." She said, "Allah and His Apostle know better." So Abu Talha went out till he met Allah's Apostle. Then Abu Talha and Allah's Apostle came and entered the house. Allah's Apostle said, "Um Sulaim ! Bring whatever you have." She brought that very bread. The Prophet ordered that it be crushed into small pieces, and Um Sulaim pressed a skin of butter on it. Then Allah's Apostle said whatever Allah wished him to say (to bless the food) and then added, "Admit ten (men)." So they were admitted, ate their fill and went out. The Prophet then said, "Admit ten (more)." They were admitted, ate their full, and went out. He then again said, "Admit ten more!" They were admitted, ate their fill, and went out. He admitted ten more, and so all those people ate their fill, and they were eighty men.

‘Ubaid Allah said “Marwan sent someone (Qabisah) to Fatimah and asked her (about the case). She said that she was the wife of Abu Hafs. The Prophet (saws) appointed ‘Ali as governor in a certain part of Yemen. Her husband also proceeded with him. From there he sent a message to her pronouncing one divorce that had yet remained. He commanded ‘Ayyash bin Abi Rabi’ah and Al Harith bin Hisham to provide maintenance to her. They said “By Allah there is no sustenance for her except in case she is pregnant.” She came to the Prophet(saws) who said “There is no sustenance for you except in case you are pregnant. She then asked permission to shift (from her house) and he gave her permission.” She asked “Where should I shift. Apostle of Allaah(saws)? The Apostle of Allaah(saws) said to Ibn Umm Maktum . He was blind. She would undress herself and he could not see her. She lived there till her waiting period passed. The Prophet (saws) married her to Usamah. Qabisah then returned to Marwan and narrated that to him. Marwan said “We did not hear this tradition except from a woman, so we shall follow the reliable practice on which we found the people”. When this reached Fatimah she said “between me and you is the Book of Allah”. Allaah the exalted said “Divorce them for their waiting period...” Thou knowest not it may be that Allaah will afterward bring some new thing to pass. She said “What a new thing will emerge after triple divorce.”

Abu Dawud said “A similar tradition has been narrated by Yunus on the authority of Al Zuhri. As for Al Zubaidi he narrated both traditions, the tradition of ‘Ubaid Allah in the version of Ma’mar and the tradition of Abu Salamah in the version of ‘Aqil.”

Abu Dawud said “Muhammad bin Ishaq narrated on the authority of Al Zuhri that Qabisah bin Dhuwaib transmitted to him the version which was narrated by ‘Ubaid Allah bin ‘Abd Allaah which has Qabisah then returned to Marwan and informed him about that.”

Allah's Apostle sent a Sariya of ten men as spies under the leadership of `Asim bin Thabit al-Ansari, the grandfather of `Asim bin `Umar Al-Khattab. They proceeded till they reached Hadaa, a place between 'Usfan, and Mecca, and their news reached a branch of the tribe of Hudhail called Bani Lihyan. About two-hundred men, who were all archers, hurried to follow their tracks till they found the place where they had eaten dates they had brought with them from Medina. They said, "These are the dates of Yathrib (i.e. Medina), "and continued following their tracks When `Asim and his companions saw their pursuers, they went up a high place and the infidels circled them. The infidels said to them, "Come down and surrender, and we promise and guarantee you that we will not kill any one of you" `Asim bin Thabit; the leader of the Sariya said, "By Allah! I will not come down to be under the protection of infidels. O Allah! Convey our news to Your Prophet. Then the infidels threw arrows at them till they martyred `Asim along with six other men, and three men came down accepting their promise and convention, and they were Khubaib-al-Ansari and Ibn Dathina and another man So, when the infidels captured them, they undid the strings of their bows and tied them. Then the third (of the captives) said, "This is the first betrayal. By Allah! I will not go with you. No doubt these, namely the martyred, have set a good example to us." So, they dragged him and tried to compel him to accompany them, but as he refused, they killed him. They took Khubaid and Ibn Dathina with them and sold them (as slaves) in Mecca (and all that took place) after the battle of Badr. Khubaib was bought by the sons of Al-Harith bin 'Amir bin Naufal bin `Abd Manaf. It was Khubaib who had killed Al-Harith bin 'Amir on the day (of the battle of) Badr. So, Khubaib remained a prisoner with those people. Narrated Az-Zuhri: 'Ubaidullah bin 'Iyyad said that the daughter of Al-Harith had told him, "When those people gathered (to kill Khubaib) he borrowed a razor from me to shave his pubes and I gave it to him. Then he took a son of mine while I was unaware when he came upon him. I saw him placing my son on his thigh and the razor was in his hand. I got scared so much that Khubaib noticed the agitation on my face and said, 'Are you afraid that I will kill him? No, I will never do so.' By Allah, I never saw a prisoner better than Khubaib. By Allah, one day I saw him eating of a bunch of grapes in his hand while he was chained in irons, and there was no fruit at that time in Mecca." The daughter of Al-Harith used to say, "It was a boon Allah bestowed upon Khubaib." When they took him out of the Sanctuary (of Mecca) to kill him outside its boundaries, Khubaib requested them to let him offer two rak`at (prayer). They allowed him and he offered Two rak`at and then said, "Hadn't I been afraid that you would think that I was afraid (of being killed), I would have prolonged the prayer. O Allah, kill them all with no exception." (He then recited the poetic verse):-- "I being martyred as a Muslim, Do not mind how I am killed in Allah's Cause, For my killing is for Allah's Sake, And if Allah wishes, He will bless the amputated parts of a torn body" Then the son of Al Harith killed him. So, it was Khubaib who set the tradition for any Muslim sentenced to death in captivity, to offer a two-rak`at prayer (before being killed). Allah fulfilled the invocation of `Asim bin Thabit on that very day on which he was martyred. The Prophet informed his companions of their news and what had happened to them. Later on when some infidels from Quraish were informed that `Asim had been killed, they sent some people to fetch a part of his body (i.e. his head) by which he would be recognized. (That was because) `Asim had killed one of their chiefs on the day (of the battle) of Badr. So, a swarm of wasps, resembling a shady cloud, were sent to hover over `Asim and protect him from their messenger and thus they could not cut off anything from his flesh.

Allah's Apostle arrived at Medina with Abu Bakr, riding behind him on the same camel. Abu Bakr was an elderly man known to the people, while Allah's Apostle was a youth that was unknown. Thus, if a man met Abu Bakr, he would say, "O Abu Bakr! Who is this man in front of you?" Abu Bakr would say, "This man shows me the Way," One would think that Abu Bakr meant the road, while in fact, Abu Bakr meant the way of virtue and good. Then Abu Bakr looked behind and saw a horse-rider pursuing them. He said, "O Allah's Apostle! This is a horse-rider pursuing us." The Prophet looked behind and said, "O Allah! Cause him to fall down." So the horse threw him down and got up neighing. After that the rider, Suraqa said, "O Allah's Prophet! Order me whatever you want." The Prophet said, "Stay where you are and do not allow anybody to reach us." So, in the first part of the day Suraqa was an enemy of Allah's Prophet and in the last part of it, he was a protector. Then Allah's Apostle alighted by the side of the Al-Harra and sent a message to the Ansar, and they came to Allah's Prophet and Abu Bakr, and having greeted them, they said, "Ride (your she-camels) safe and obeyed." Allah's Apostle and Abu Bakr rode and the Ansar, carrying their arms, surrounded them. The news that Allah's Prophet had come circulated in Medina. The people came out and were eagerly looking and saying "Allah's Prophet has come! Allah's Prophet has come! So the Prophet went on till he alighted near the house of Abu Ayub. While the Prophet was speaking with the family members of Abu Ayub, `Abdullah bin Salam heard the news of his arrival while he himself was picking the dates for his family from his family garden. He hurried to the Prophet carrying the dates which he had collected for his family from the garden. He listened to Allah's Prophet and then went home. Then Allah's Prophet said, "Which is the nearest of the houses of our kith and kin?" Abu Ayub replied, "Mine, O Allah's Prophet! This is my house and this is my gate." The Prophet said, "Go and prepare a place for our midday rest." Abu Ayub said, "Get up (both of you) with Allah's Blessings." So when Allah's Prophet went into the house, `Abdullah bin Salam came and said "I testify that you (i.e. Muhammad) are Apostle of Allah and that you have come with the Truth. The Jews know well that I am their chief and the son of their chief and the most learned amongst them and the son of the most learned amongst them. So send for them (i.e. Jews) and ask them about me before they know that I have embraced Islam, for if they know that they will say about me things which are not correct." So Allah's Apostle sent for them, and they came and entered. Allah's Apostle said to them, "O (the group of) Jews! Woe to you: be afraid of Allah. By Allah except Whom none has the right to be worshipped, you people know for certain, that I am Apostle of Allah and that I have come to you with the Truth, so embrace Islam." The Jews replied, "We do not know this." So they said this to the Prophet and he repeated it thrice. Then he said, "What sort of a man is `Abdullah bin Salam amongst you?" They said, "He is our chief and the son of our chief and the most learned man, and the son of the most learned amongst us." He said, "What would you think if he should embrace Islam?" They said, "Allah forbid! He can not embrace Islam." He said, " What would you think if he should embrace Islam?" They said, "Allah forbid! He can not embrace Islam." He said, "What would you think if he should embrace Islam?" They said, "Allah forbid! He can not embrace Islam." He said, "O Ibn Salam! Come out to them." He came out and said, "O (the group of) Jews! Be afraid of Allah except Whom none has the right to be worshipped. You know for certain that he is Apostle of Allah and that he has brought a True Religion!' They said, "You tell a lie." On that Allah's Apostle turned them out.

Yahya related to me from Malik from Nafi from Abdullah ibn Umar that Umar ibn al-Khattab saw a silk robe at the door of the mosque. He said, "Messenger of Allah, would you buy this robe and wear it on jumua and when envoys come to you?" The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Only a person who has no portion in the next world wears this." Then the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was brought some robes of the same material and gave Umar ibn al-Khattab one of the robes. Umar said, "Messenger of Allah, do you clothe me in it when you said what you said about the robe of Utarid?" The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "I did not give it to you to wear." Umar gave it to a brother of his in Makka who was still an idolater.

My father was martyred on the day (of the battle) of Uhud and his creditors demanded the debt back in a harsh manner. So I went to Allah's Apostle and informed him of that, he asked them to accept the fruits of my garden and excuse my father, but they refused. So, Allah's Apostle did not give them the fruits, nor did he cut them and distribute them among them, but said, "I will come to you tomorrow morning." So, he came to us the next morning and walked about in between the date-palms and invoked Allah to bless their fruits. I plucked the fruits and gave back all the rights of the creditors in full, and a lot of fruits were left for us. Then I went to Allah's Apostle, who was sitting, and informed him about what happened. Allah's Apostle told `Umar, who was sitting there, to listen to the story. `Umar said, "Don't we know that you are Allah's Apostle? By Allah! you are Allah's Apostle!"

Once during the lifetime of Allah's Apostle, the people of Medina suffered from drought. So while the Prophet was delivering a sermon on a Friday a man got up saying, "O Allah's Apostle! The horses and sheep have perished. Will you invoke Allah to bless us with rain?" The Prophet lifted both his hands and invoked. The sky at that time was as clear as glass. Suddenly a wind blew, raising clouds that gathered together, and it started raining heavily. We came out (of the Mosque) wading through the flowing water till we reached our homes. It went on raining till the next Friday, when the same man or some other man stood up and said, "O Allah's Apostle! The houses have collapsed; please invoke Allah to withhold the rain." On that the Prophet smiled and said, "O Allah, (let it rain) around us and not on us." I then looked at the clouds to see them separating forming a sort of a crown round Medina.

Malik said, "The generally agreed-on way of doing things among us in the case of slave whose master makes a bequest to free part of him - a third, a fourth, a half, or any share after his death, is that only the portion of him is freed that his master has named. This is because the freeing of that portion is only obliged to take place after the death of the master because the master has the option to withdraw the bequest as long as he lives. When the slave is freed from his master, the master is a testator and the testator only has access to free what he can take from his property, being the third of the property he is allowed to bequeath, and the rest of the slave is not free because the man's property has gone out of his hands. How can the rest of the slave which belongs to other people be free when they did not initiate the setting free and did not confirm it and they do not have the wala' established for them? Only the deceased could do that. He was the one who freed him and the one for whom the wala' was confirmed. That is not to be borne by another's property unless he bequeaths within the third of his property what remains of a lave to be freed. That is a request against his partners and inheritors and the partners must not refuse the slave that when it is within the third of the dead man's property because there is no harm in that to the inheritors."

Malik said, "If a man frees a third of his slave while he is critically ill, he must complete the emancipation so all of him is free from him, if it is within the third of his property that he has access to, because he is not treated in the same way as a man who frees a third of a slave after his death, because had the one who freed a third of his slave after his death lived, he could have cancelled it and the slave's being set free would be of no effect. The master who made the freeing of the third of the slave irrevocable in his illness, would still have to free all of him if he lived. If he died, the slave would be set free within the third of the bequest. That is because the command of the deceased is permissible in his third as the command of the healthy is permissible in all his property."

Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz during his khalifate, wrote to one of his governors, "Whatever a father, or guardian, who gives someone in marriage, makes a condition in the way of unreturnable gift or of favour, belongs to the woman if she wants it."

Malik spoke about a woman whose father gave her in marriage and made an unreturnable gift a condition of the bride-price which was to be given. He said, "Whatever is given as a condition by which marriage occurs belongs to the woman if she wants it. If the husband parts from her before the marriage is consummated, the husband has half of the unreturnable gift by which the marriage occurred."

Malik said about a man who married off his young son and the son had no wealth at all, that the bride- price was obliged of the father if the young man had no property on the day of marriage. If the young man did have property the bride- price was taken from his property unless the father stipulated that he would pay the bride-price. The marriage was affirmed for the son if he was a minor only if he was under the guardianship of his father.

Malik said that if a man divorced his wife before he had consummated the marriage and she was a virgin, her father returned half of the bride-price to him. That half was permitted to the husband from the father to compensate him for his expenses.

Malik said that that was because Allah, the Blessed, the Exalted, said in His Book, "Unless they (women with whom he had not consummated marriage) make remission or he makes remission to him in whose hand is the knot of marriage." (Sura 2 ayat 237). (He being the father of a virgin daughter or the master of a female slave.)

Malik said, "That is what I have heard about the matter, and that is how things are done among us."

Malik said that a jewish or christian woman who was married to a jew or christian and then became muslim before the marriage had been consummated, did not keep anything from the bride-price.

Malik said, "I do not think that women should be married for less than a quarter of a dinar. That is the lowest amount for which cutting off the hand is obliged ."

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

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

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

that his father said, "In the year of Hajjatal-Wada`, the Prophet paid me a visit while I was suffering from an ailment that had brought me to the verge of death. I said, 'O Allah's Apostle! My sickness has reduced me to the (bad) state as you see, and I am a rich man, but have no heirs except one daughter. Shall I give 2/3 of my property in charity?' He said, 'No.' I said, 'Then 1/2 of it?' He said, 'Even 1/3 is too much, for, to leave your inheritors wealthy is better than to leave them in poverty, begging from people. And (know that) whatever you spend in Allah's Cause, you will get reward for it, even for the morsel of food which you put in your wife's mouth.' I said, 'O Allah's Apostle! Will I be left behind my companions (in Mecca)?' He said, 'If you remain behind, whatever good deed you will do for Allah's Sake, will raise and upgrade you to a higher position (in Allah's Sight). May be you will live longer so that some people may benefit by you, and some e others (pagans) may get harmed by you. O Allah! Complete the migration of my companions and do not turn them on their heels; But (we pity) the poor Sa`d bin Khaula (not the above mentioned Sa`d) (died in Mecca)" Allah's Apostle lamented (or pitied) for him as he died in Mecca. (See Hadith No. 693, Vol. 5)

Once we were traveling with the Prophet and we carried on traveling till the last part of the night and then we (halted at a place) and slept (deeply). There is nothing sweeter than sleep for a traveler in the last part of the night. So it was only the heat of the sun that made us to wake up and the first to wake up was so and so, then so and so and then so and so (the narrator `Auf said that Abu Raja' had told him their names but he had forgotten them) and the fourth person to wake up was `Umar bin Al- Khattab. And whenever the Prophet used to sleep, nobody would wake up him till he himself used to get up as we did not know what was happening (being revealed) to him in his sleep. So, `Umar got up and saw the condition of the people, and he was a strict man, so he said, "Allahu Akbar" and raised his voice with Takbir, and kept on saying loudly till the Prophet got up because of it. When he got up, the people informed him about what had happened to them. He said, "There is no harm (or it will not be harmful). Depart!" So they departed from that place, and after covering some distance the Prophet stopped and asked for some water to perform the ablution. So he performed the ablution and the call for the prayer was pronounced and he led the people in prayer. After he finished from the prayer, he saw a man sitting aloof who had not prayed with the people. He asked, "O so and so! What has prevented you from praying with us?" He replied, "I am Junub and there is no water. " The Prophet said, "Perform Tayammum with (clean) earth and that is sufficient for you." Then the Prophet proceeded on and the people complained to him of thirst. Thereupon he got down and called a person (the narrator `Auf added that Abu Raja' had named him but he had forgotten) and `Ali, and ordered them to go and bring water. So they went in search of water and met a woman who was sitting on her camel between two bags of water. They asked, "Where can we find water?" She replied, "I was there (at the place of water) this hour yesterday and my people are behind me." They requested her to accompany them. She asked, "Where?" They said, "To Allah's Apostle ." She said, "Do you mean the man who is called the Sabi, (with a new religion)?" They replied, "Yes, the same person. So come along." They brought her to the Prophet and narrated the whole story. He said, "Help her to dismount." The Prophet asked for a pot, then he opened the mouths of the bags and poured some water into the pot. Then he closed the big openings of the bags and opened the small ones and the people were called upon to drink and water their animals. So they all watered their animals and they (too) all quenched their thirst and also gave water to others and last of all the Prophet gave a pot full of water to the person who was Junub and told him to pour it over his body. The woman was standing and watching all that which they were doing with her water. By Allah, when her water bags were returned the looked like as if they were more full (of water) than they had been before (Miracle of Allah's Apostle) Then the Prophet ordered us to collect something for her; so dates, flour and Sawiq were collected which amounted to a good meal that was put in a piece of cloth. She was helped to ride on her camel and that cloth full of foodstuff was also placed in front of her and then the Prophet said to her, "We have not taken your water but Allah has given water to us." She returned home late. Her relatives asked her: "O so and so what has delayed you?" She said, "A strange thing! Two men met me and took me to the man who is called the Sabi' and he did such and such a thing. By Allah, he is either the greatest magician between this and this (gesturing with her index and middle fingers raising them towards the sky indicating the heaven and the earth) or he is Allah's true Apostle." Afterwards the Muslims used to attack the pagans around her abode but never touched her village. One day she said to her people, "I think that these people leave you purposely. Have you got any inclination to Islam?" They obeyed her and all of them embraced Islam. Abu `Abdullah said: The word Saba'a means "The one who has deserted his old religion and embraced a new religion." Abul 'Ailya [??] said, "The S`Abis are a sect of people of the Scripture who recite the Book of Psalms."

When we were sitting with the Messenger of Allah (saws), he talked about periods of trial (fitnahs), mentioning many of them.

When he mentioned the one when people should stay in their houses, some asked him: Messenger of Allah, what is the trial (fitnah) of staying at home?

He replied: It will be flight and plunder. Then will come a test which is pleasant. Its murkiness is due to the fact that it is produced by a man from the people of my house, who will assert that he belongs to me, whereas he does not, for my friends are only the God-fearing. Then the people will unite under a man who will be like a hip-bone on a rib. Then there will be the little black trial which will leave none of this community without giving him a slap, and when people say that it is finished, it will be extended. During it a man will be a believer in the morning and an infidel in the evening, so that the people will be in two camps: the camp of faith which will contain no hypocrisy, and the camp of hypocrisy which will contain no faith. When that happens, expect the Antichrist (Dajjal) that day or the next.