I said: Messenger of Allah, teach me a supplication.

He said: Say: "O Allah, I seek refuge in Thee from the evil of what I hear, from the evil of what I see, from the evil of what I speak, from the evil of what I think, and from the evil of my semen" (i.e. sexual passion).

`Abdullah (bin Masud) said. "Allah curses those ladies who practice tattooing and those who get themselves tattooed, and those ladies who remove the hair from their faces and those who make artificial spaces between their teeth in order to look more beautiful whereby they change Allah's creation." His saying reached a lady from Bani Asd called Um Yaqub who came (to `Abdullah) and said, "I have come to know that you have cursed such-and-such (ladies)?" He replied, "Why should I not curse these whom Allah's Apostle has cursed and who are (cursed) in Allah's Book!" Um Yaqub said, "I have read the whole Qur'an, but I did not find in it what you say." He said, "Verily, if you have read it (i.e. the Qur'an), you have found it. Didn't you read: 'And whatsoever the Apostle gives you take it and whatsoever he forbids you, you abstain (from it). (59.7) She replied, "Yes, I did," He said, "Verily, Allah's Apostle forbade such things." "She said, "But I see your wife doing these things?" He said, "Go and watch her." She went and watched her but could not see anything in support of her statement. On that he said, "If my wife was as you thought, I would not keep her in my company."

I said, "O Allah's Apostle! I am a young man and I am afraid that I may commit illegal sexual intercourse and I cannot afford to marry." He kept silent, and then repeated my question once again, but he kept silent. I said the same (for the third time) and he remained silent. Then repeated my question (for the fourth time), and only then the Prophet said, "O Abu Huraira! The pen has dried after writing what you are going to confront. So (it does not matter whether you) get yourself castrated or not."

Abu Dawud said: This tradition has been narrated by 'Abd al-Wahid from Khusaif, but he did not report it as a statement of the Prophet (saws). The version of 'Abd al-Wahid has been corroborated by Sufyan, Sharik, and Isra'il. They differed amongst themselves about the text of the tradition and they did not narrate it with the continuous chain up to the Prophet (saws).

Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that Abdullah ibn Umar said, "O Allah, make me one of the leaders of the people of taqwa ."

Allahumma jalniy min a'imati'l-mutaqin.

From Sa'eed bin Al-Musayyab, from Ma'mar bin 'Abdullah bin Nadlah who said: "I heard the Messenger of Allah (saws) saying: 'Hoarding is nothing but sin.' So I (Muhammad) said to Sa'eed: "O Abu Muhammad! You hoard?" He said: "And Ma'mar would hoard."

It is also been reported that Sa'eed bin Musayyab would hoard oil, (camel) fodder, and the like.

[Abu 'Eisa said:] There are narrations on this topic from 'Umar, 'Ali, Abu Umamah, and Ibn 'Umar. The Hadith of Ma'mar is a Hasan Sahih Hadith. This is acted upon according to the people of knowledge, they dislike hoarding food, and some of them make a concession for hoarding things other than food. Ibn Al-Mubarak said: "There is no harm in hoarding cotton, goat pelts and like."

I heard the truthful and trusted by Allah (i.e., the Prophet ) saying, "The destruction of my followers will be through the hands of young men from Quraish."

Malik related to me from Abd ar-Rahman ibn Muhammad ibn Abdullah ibn Abd al-Qari that his father said, "A man came to Umar ibn al- Khattab from Abu Musa al-Ashari. Umar asked after various people, and he informed him. Then Umar inquired, 'Do you have any recent news?' He said, 'Yes. A man has become a kafir after his Islam.' Umar asked, 'What have you done with him?' He said, 'We let him approach and struck off his head.' Umar said, 'Didn't you imprison him for three days and feed him a loaf of bread every day and call on him to tawba that he might turn in tawba and return to the command of Allah?' Then Umar said, 'O Allah! I was not present and I did not order it and I am not pleased since it has come to me!' "

There was a Jew in Medina who used to lend me money up to the season of plucking dates. (Jabir had a piece of land which was on the way to Ruma). That year the land was not promising, so the payment of the debt was delayed one year. The Jew came to me at the time of plucking, but gathered nothing from my land. I asked him to give me one year respite, but he refused. This news reached the Prophet whereupon he said to his companions, "Let us go and ask the Jew for respite for Jabir." All of them came to me in my garden, and the Prophet started speaking to the Jew, but he Jew said, "O Abu Qasim! I will not grant him respite." When the Prophet saw the Jew's attitude, he stood up and walked all around the garden and came again and talked to the Jew, but the Jew refused his request. I got up and brought some ripe fresh dates and put it in front of the Prophet. He ate and then said to me, "Where is your hut, O Jabir?" I informed him, and he said, "Spread out a bed for me in it." I spread out a bed, and he entered and slept. When he woke up, I brought some dates to him again and he ate of it and then got up and talked to the Jew again, but the Jew again refused his request. Then the Prophet got up for the second time amidst the palm trees loaded with fresh dates, and said, "O Jabir! Pluck dates to repay your debt." The Jew remained with me while I was plucking the dates, till I paid him all his right, yet there remained extra quantity of dates. So I went out and proceeded till I reached the Prophet and informed him of the good news, whereupon he said, "I testify that I am Allah's Apostle."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Zayd ibn Aslam from Ata ibn Yasar that a man of the Banu Asad said, "My family and I dismounted to rest at Baqi. My family said to me, 'Go to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and ask him for something that we can eat,' and they began to mention their need. I went to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and found that a man was asking for something, and the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was saying, 'I do not have anything to give you.' The man turned away from him in anger, saying, 'By my life! You give to whomever you wish.' The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, 'He is angry with me because I do not have anything to give him. Whoever asks of you while he has an uqiya or its like, has asked with importunity.' "

The man continued, "I said to myself about a camel that we had, 'It is better than an uqiya.' (Malik explained that an uqiya was forty dirhams.) So I returned and did not ask him for anything, and the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, sent me barley and raisins after that. He gave us from his share until Allah, the Mighty, the Majestic gave us relief."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Hisham ibn Urwa that Abdullah ibn az-Zubayr used to say, "Know that the whole of Arafa is a standing-place except for the middle of Urana, and that the wholeof Muzdalifa is a standing-place except for the middle of Muhassir."

Malik said, "Allah, the Blessed and Exalted says, 'There is to be no rafath, no fusuq and no jidal during the hajj.' " (Sura 2 ayat 197).

He added, "Rafath is sexual relations with women, and Allah knows best. Allah, the Blessed and Exalted says, 'Rafath with your women is permitted to you on the night of the fast.' (Sura 2 ayat 197). Fusuq are sacrifices made to idols, and Allah knows best. Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, says, 'Or a fisq offered up to other than Allah.' (Sura 2 ayat 197) Jidal (arguing) during the hajj refers to when the Quraysh used to stand near the mashar al-haram at Quzah in Muzdalifa, while the Arabs and others would stand at Arafa, and they would argue about who was the more correct. Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, says, 'And we appointed a method of sacrifice for every nation, which they followed, so let them not dispute with you about the matter, and call to your Lord. Surely you are on a straight guidance.' (Sura 22 ayat 67) This is what jidal refers to in our opinion, and Allah knows best. This I have heard from the people of knowledge."

I saw `Umar bin Al-Khattab a few days before he was stabbed in Medina. He was standing with Hudhaifa bin Al-Yaman and `Uthman bin Hunaif to whom he said, "What have you done? Do you think that you have imposed more taxation on the land (of As-Swad i.e. 'Iraq) than it can bear?" They replied, "We have imposed on it what it can bear because of its great yield." `Umar again said, "Check whether you have imposed on the land what it can not bear." They said, "No, (we haven't)." `Umar added, "If Allah should keep me alive I will let the widows of Iraq need no men to support them after me." But only four days had elapsed when he was stabbed (to death ). The day he was stabbed, I was standing and there was nobody between me and him (i.e. `Umar) except `Abdullah bin `Abbas. Whenever `Umar passed between the two rows, he would say, "Stand in straight lines." When he saw no defect (in the rows), he would go forward and start the prayer with Takbir. He would recite Surat Yusuf or An-Nahl or the like in the first rak`a so that the people may have the time to Join the prayer. As soon as he said Takbir, I heard him saying, "The dog has killed or eaten me," at the time he (i.e. the murderer) stabbed him. A non-Arab infidel proceeded on carrying a double-edged knife and stabbing all the persons he passed by on the right and left (till) he stabbed thirteen persons out of whom seven died. When one of the Muslims saw that, he threw a cloak on him. Realizing that he had been captured, the non-Arab infidel killed himself, `Umar held the hand of `Abdur-Rahman bin `Auf and let him lead the prayer. Those who were standing by the side of `Umar saw what I saw, but the people who were in the other parts of the Mosque did not see anything, but they lost the voice of `Umar and they were saying, "Subhan Allah! Subhan Allah! (i.e. Glorified be Allah)." `Abdur-Rahman bin `Auf led the people a short prayer. When they finished the prayer, `Umar said, "O Ibn `Abbas! Find out who attacked me." Ibn `Abbas kept on looking here and there for a short time and came to say. "The slave of Al Mughira." On that `Umar said, "The craftsman?" Ibn `Abbas said, "Yes." `Umar said, "May Allah curse him. I did not treat him unjustly. All the Praises are for Allah Who has not caused me to die at the hand of a man who claims himself to be a Muslim. No doubt, you and your father (Abbas) used to love to have more non-Arab infidels in Medina." Al-Abbas had ...

I came to `Aisha during the solar eclipse. The people were standing (offering prayer) and she too, was standing and offering prayer. I asked, "What is wrong with the people?" She pointed towards the sky with her hand and said, Subhan Allah!'' I asked her, "Is there a sign?" She nodded with her head meaning, yes. When Allah's Apostle finished (the prayer), he glorified and praised Allah and said, "There is not anything that I have not seen before but I have seen now at this place of mine, even Paradise and Hell. It has been revealed to me that you people will be put to trial nearly like the trial of Ad-Dajjal, in your graves. As for the true believer or a Muslim (the sub-narrator is not sure as to which of the two (words Asma' had said) he will say, 'Muhammad came with clear signs from Allah, and we responded to him (accepted his teachings) and believed (what he said)' It will be said (to him) 'Sleep in peace; we have known that you were a true believer who believed with certainty.' As for a hypocrite or a doubtful person, (the sub-narrator is not sure as to which word Asma' said) he will say, 'I do not know, but I heard the people saying something and so I said the same.' "

Mutayr said: I heard a man say: I heard the Messenger of Allah (saws) in the Farewell Pilgrimage. He was commanding and prohibiting them (the people). He said: O Allah, did I give full information? They said: Yes. He said: When the Quraysh quarrel about the rule among themselves, and the presents become bribery, them leave them. The people were asked: Who was he (who narrated this tradition)? They said: This was Dhul-Zawa'id, a Companion of the Messenger of Allah (saws).

I then went with Abu Bakr into his home (carrying that saddle) and there I saw his daughter `Aisha Lying in a bed because of heavy fever and I saw her father Abu Bakr kissing her cheek and saying, "How are you, little daughter?"

The Prophet sent (an army unit under the command of) Khalid bin Al-Walid to fight against the tribe of Bani Jadhima and those people could not express themselves by saying, "Aslamna," but they said, "Saba'na! Saba'na! " Khalid kept on killing some of them and taking some others as captives, and he gave a captive to everyone of us and ordered everyone of us to kill his captive. I said, "By Allah, I shall not kill my captive and none of my companions shall kill his captive!" Then we mentioned that to the Prophet and he said, "O Allah! I am free from what Khalid bin Al-Walid has done," and repeated it twice.

His uncle (Anas bin An-Nadr) was absent from the battle of Badr and he said, "I was absent from the first battle of the Prophet (i.e. Badr battle), and if Allah should let me participate in (a battle) with the Prophet, Allah will see how strongly I will fight." So he encountered the day of Uhud battle. The Muslims fled and he said, "O Allah ! I appeal to You to excuse me for what these people (i.e. the Muslims) have done, and I am clear from what the pagans have done." Then he went forward with his sword and met Sad bin Mu'adh (fleeing), and asked him, "Where are you going, O Sad? I detect a smell of Paradise before Uhud." Then he proceeded on and was martyred. No-body was able to recognize him till his sister recognized him by a mole on his body or by the tips of his fingers. He had over 80 wounds caused by stabbing, striking or shooting with arrows.

Yahya related to me from Malik that he heard Ibn Shihab say that if a man said to his wife, "You are free of me, and I am free of you, " it counted as three pronouncements of divorce as if it were an 'irrevocable' divorce.

Malik said that if a man made any strong statement such as these to his wife, it counted as three pronouncements of divorce for a woman whose marriage had been consummated, or it was written as one of three for a woman whose marriage had not been consummated, whichever the man wished. If he said he intended only one divorce he swore to it and he became one of the suitors because, whereas a woman whose marriage had been consummated was made inaccessible by three pronouncements of divorce, the woman whose marriage had not been consummated was made inaccessible by only one pronouncement.

Malik said, "That is the best of what I have heard."

(the wife of the Prophet) When Allah's Apostle was in good health, he used to say, "No prophet's soul is ever captured unless he is shown his place in Paradise and given the option (to die or survive)." So when the death of the Prophet approached and his head was on my thigh, he became unconscious for a while and then he came to his senses and fixed his eyes on the ceiling and said, "O Allah (with) the highest companions." (See Qur'an 4:69). I said' "Hence he is not going to choose us." And I came to know that it was the application of the narration which he (the Prophet) used to narrate to us. And that was the last statement of the Prophet (before his death) i.e., "O Allah! With the highest companions." (See Qur'an 4:69)

That Al-Miqdad bin `Amr Al-Kindi, who was an ally of Bani Zuhra and one of those who fought the battle of Badr together with Allah's Apostle told him that he said to Allah's Apostle, "Suppose I met one of the infidels and we fought, and he struck one of my hands with his sword and cut it off and then took refuge in a tree and said, "I surrender to Allah (i.e. I have become a Muslim),' could I kill him, O Allah's Apostle, after he had said this?" Allah's Apostle said, "You should not kill him." Al- Miqdad said, "O Allah's Apostle! But he had cut off one of my two hands, and then he had uttered those words?" Allah's Apostle replied, "You should not kill him, for if you kill him, he would be in your position where you had been before killing him, and you would be in his position where he had been before uttering those words."