Hamnah said my menstruation was great in quantity and severe. So I came to the Messenger of Allah (saws) for a decision and told him. I found him in the house of my sister, Zaynab, daughter of Jahsh.

I said: Messenger of Allah, I am a woman who menstruates in great quantity and it is severe, so what do you think about it? It has prevented me from praying and fasting.

He said: I suggest that you should use cotton, for it absorbs the blood. She replied: It is too copious for that. He said: Then take a cloth. She replied: It is too copious for that, for my blood keeps flowing. The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: I shall give you two commands; whichever of them you follow, that will be sufficient for you without the other, but you know best whether you are strong enough to follow both of them.

He added: This is a stroke of the Devil, so observe your menses for six or seven days, Allah alone knows which it should be; then wash. And when you see that you are purified and quite clean, pray during twenty-three or twenty-four days and nights and fast, for that will be enough for you, and do so every month, just as women menstruate and are purified at the time of their menstruation and their purification.

But if you are strong enough to delay the noon (Zuhr) prayer and advance the afternoon ('Asr) prayer, to wash, and then combine the noon and the afternoon prayer; to delay the sunset prayer and advance the night prayer, to wash, and then combine the two prayers, do so: and to wash at dawn, do so: and fast if you are able to do so if possible.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: Of the two commands this is more to my liking.¹

Abu Dawud said: 'Amr b. Thabit narrated from Ibn 'Aqil: Hamnah said: Of the two commands this is the one which is more to my liking.² In this version these words were not quoted as the statement of the Prophet (saws); it gives it as a statement of Hamnah.

Abu Dawud said: 'Amr b. Thabit was a Rafidi. This has been said by Yahya b. Ma'in.

Abu Dawud said: I heard Ahmad (b. Hanbal) say: I am doubtful about the tradition transmitted by Ibn 'Aqil.

While I was walking with the Prophet in the Harra of Medina, Uhud came in sight. The Prophet said, "O Abu Dhar!" I said, "Labbaik, O Allah's Apostle!" He said, "I would not like to have gold equal to this mountain of Uhud, unless nothing of it, not even a single Dinar of it remains with me for more than three days, except something which I will keep for repaying debts. I would have spent all of it (distributed it) amongst Allah's Slaves like this, and like this, and like this." The Prophet pointed out with his hand towards his right, his left and his back (while illustrating it). He proceeded with his walk and said, "The rich are in fact the poor (little rewarded) on the Day of Resurrection except those who spend their wealth like this, and like this, and like this, to their right, left and back, but such people are few in number." Then he said to me, "Stay at your place and do not leave it till I come back." Then he proceeded in the darkness of the night till he went out of sight, and then I heard a loud voice, and was afraid that something might have happened to the Prophet .1 intended to go to him, but I remembered what he had said to me, i.e. 'Don't leave your place till I come back to you,' so I remained at my place till he came back to me. I said, "O Allah's Apostle! I heard a voice and I was afraid." So I mentioned the whole story to him. He said, "Did you hear it?" I replied, "Yes." He said, "It was Gabriel who came to me and said, 'Whoever died without joining others in worship with Allah, will enter Paradise.' I asked (Gabriel), 'Even if he had committed theft or committed illegal sexual intercourse? Gabriel said, 'Yes, even if he had committed theft or committed illegal sexual intercourse."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Hisham ibn Urwa from his father fromYahyaibn Abd ar-Rahman ibn Ha ib that he had set off for Mumra with Umar ibn al-Khattab in a party of riders, among whom was Amr ibn al-As. Umar ibn al-Khattab dismounted for a rest late at night on a certain road near a certain oasis. Umar had a wet dream when it was almost dawn and there was no water among the riding party. He rode until he came to some water and then he began to wash off what he saw of the semen until it had gone. Amr ibn al-As said to him, "It is morning and there are clothes with us, so allow your garment to be washed. ''Umar ibn al-Khattab said to him, "I am surprised at you, Amr ibn al-As! Even if you could find clothes, would everybody be able to find them? By Allah, if I were to do it, it would become a sunna. No, I wash what I see, and I sprinkle with water what I do not see."

Malik spoke about a man who found traces of a wet dream on his clothes and did not know when it had occurred and did not remember anything he had seen in his sleep. He said, "Let the intention of his ghusl be from the time when he last slept, and if he has prayed since that last sleep he should repeat it. This is because often a man has a wet dream and sees nothing, and often he sees something but does not have an emission. But, if he finds liquid on his garment he must do ghusl. This is because Umar repeated what he had prayed after the time he had last slept and not what was before it."

The Messenger of Allah (saws) offered the night prayer and then prayed eight rak'ahs standing, and two rak'ahs between the two adhans (i.e. the adhan for the dawn prayer and the iqamah). He never left them.

Jaf'ar b. Musafir said in his version: (He prayed) the two rak'ahs sitting between the two adhans. He added the word "sitting".

'A'isha, the wife of the Apostle of Allah (may peace be upon him), said that between the time when the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) finished the 'Isha' prayer which is called 'Atama by the people, he used to pray eleven rak'ahs, uttering the salutation at the end of every two rak'ahs, and observing the Witr with a single one. And when the Mu'adhdhin had finished the call (for the) dawn prayer and he saw the dawn clearly and the Mu'adhdhin had come to him, he stood up and prayed two short rak'ahs. Then he lay down on his right side till the Mu'adhdhin came to him for lqama. (This hadith has been narrated with the same chain of transmitters by Ibn Shihab, but in it no mention has been made of Iqama )

The Prophet said, "The call (or the Adhan) of Bilal should not stop you from taking the Suhur-meals for Bilal calls (or pronounces the Adhan) so that the one who is offering the night prayer should take a rest, and he does not indicate the daybreak or dawn." The narrator, Yazid, described (how dawn breaks) by stretching out his hands and then separating them wide apart.

On the day of Hunayn we travelled with the Messenger of Allah (saws) and we journeyed for a long time until the evening came. I attended the prayer along with the Messenger of Allah (saws).

A horseman came and said: Messenger of Allah, I went before you and climbed a certain mountain where saw Hawazin all together with their women, cattle, and sheep, having gathered at Hunayn.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) smiled and said: That will be the booty of the Muslims tomorrow if Allah wills. He then asked: Who will be on guard tonight?

Anas ibn AbuMarthad al-Ghanawi said: I shall , Messenger of Allah. He said: Then mount your horse. He then mounted his horse, and came to the Messenger of Allah (saws).

The Messenger of Allah said to him: Go forward to this ravine till you get to the top of it. We should not be exposed to danger from your side. In the morning the Apostle of of Allah (saws) came out to his place of prayer, and offered two rak'ahs. He then said: Have you seen any sign of your horseman?

They said: We have not, Messenger of Allah. The announcement of the time for prayer was then made, and while the Messenger of Allah (saws) was saying the prayer, he began to glance towards the ravine. When he finished his prayer and uttered salutation, he said: Cheer up, for your horseman has come. We therefore began to look between the trees in the ravine, and sure enough he had come.

He stood beside the Messenger of Allah (saws), saluted him and said: I continued till I reached the top of this ravine where the Messenger of Allah (saws) commanded me, and in the morning I looked down into both ravines but saw no one.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) asked him: Did you dismount during the night?

He replied: No, except to pray or to relieve myself. The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: You have ensured your entry to (Paradise). No blame will be attached to you supposing you do not work after it.

When the delegates of the tribe of Hawazin came to the Prophet they requested him to return their property and their captives. He said to them, "This concerns also other people along with me as you see, and the best statement to me is the true one, so you may choose one of two alternatives; either the captives or the property and (I have not distributed the booty for) I have been waiting for you." When the Prophet had returned from Ta'if, he waited for them for more than ten nights. When they came to know that the Prophet would not return except one of the two, they chose their captives. The Prophet then stood up amongst the Muslims, Glorified and Praised Allah as He deserved, and then said, "Then after: These brothers of yours have come to you with repentance and I see it proper to return their captives, so whoever amongst you likes to do that as a favor, then he can do it, and whoever of you wants to stick to his share till we pay him from the very first Fai (i.e. war booty) which Allah will give us, then he can do so." The people said, "We return (the captives) to them willingly as a favor, O Allah's Apostle!" The Prophet said, "I do not know who of you has given his consent and who has not; so go back and your leaders may present your decision to me." The people went away, and their leaders discussed the matter with them, and then came to the Prophet to tell him that all of them had given their consent (to return the captives) willingly. (Az-Zuhn, the sub-narrator said, "This is what we know about the captives, of Hawazin.")

When the delegate of Hawazin came to Allah's Apostle declaring their conversion to Islam and asked him to return their properties and captives, Allah's Apostle got up and said to them, "There Is involved in this matter, the people whom you see with me, and the most beloved talk to me, is the true one. So choose one of two alternatives: Either the captives or the properties. I have been waiting for you (i.e. have not distributed the booty)." Allah's Apostle had delayed the distribution of their booty over ten nights after his return from Ta'if. So when they came to know that Allah's Apostle was not going to return to them but one of the two, they said, "We prefer to have our captives." So Allah's Apostle got up amongst the Muslims, and praising Allah as He deserved, said, "To proceed! Your brothers have come to you with repentance and I see (it logical) to return their captives. So, whoever of you likes to do that as a favor then he can do it. And whoever of you likes to stick to his share till we give him from the very first booty which Allah will give us, then he can do so." The people said, "We do that (i.e. return the captives) willingly as a favor, 'O Allah's Apostle!" Allah's Apostle said, "We do not know which of you have agreed to it and which have not; so go back and let your chiefs forward us your decision." They went back and their chief's spoke to them, and they (i.e. the chiefs) returned to Allah's Apostle and informed him that all of them had agreed (to give up their captives) with pleasure, and had given their permission (i.e. that the captives be returned to their people). (The sub-narrator said, "That is what has reached me about the captives of Hawazin tribe.")

The Prophet said, "Night prayer is offered as two rak`at followed by two rak`at and so on, and if you want to finish it, pray only one rak`a which will be witr for all the previous rak`at." Al-Qasim said, "Since we attained the age of puberty we have seen some people offering a three-rak`at prayer as witr and all that is permissible. I hope there will be no harm in it."

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.

Yahya related to me from Malik from Musa ibn Uqba that Kurayb, the mawla of Ibn 'Abbas, heard Usama ibn Zayd say, "The Messenger ofAllah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, left Arafa and then, when he reached ash-Shib, he dismounted and urinated and then did wudu, though not thoroughly. I said to him, 'It is time for the prayer, Messenger of Allah,' and he said 'The prayer is ahead of you,' and then mounted. When we arrived at Muzdalifa he dismounted and did wudu thoroughly. Then the iqama was said for the prayer and he prayed maghrib. After that everyone settled his camel in its resting-place, and then the iqama for isha was said and he prayed it, without having prayed anything between the two."

Once I went out at night and found Allah's Apostle walking all alone accompanied by nobody, and I thought that perhaps he disliked that someone should accompany him. So I walked in the shade, away from the moonlight, but the Prophet looked behind and saw me and said, "Who is that?" I replied, "Abu Dhar, let Allah get me sacrificed for you!" He said, "O Abu Dhar, come here!" So I accompanied him for a while and then he said, "The rich are in fact the poor (little rewarded) on the Day of Resurrection except him whom Allah gives wealth which he gives (in charity) to his right, left, front and back, and does good deeds with it. I walked with him a little longer. Then he said to me, "Sit down here." So he made me sit in an open space surrounded by rocks, and said to me, "Sit here till I come back to you." He went towards Al-Harra till I could not see him, and he stayed away for a long period, and then I heard him saying, while he was coming, "Even if he had committed theft, and even if he had committed illegal sexual intercourse?" When he came, I could not remain patient and asked him, "O Allah's Prophet! Let Allah get me sacrificed for you! Whom were you speaking to by the side of Al-Harra? I did not hear anybody responding to your talk." He said, "It was Gabriel who appeared to me beside Al-Harra and said, 'Give the good news to your followers that whoever dies without having worshipped anything besides Allah, will enter Paradise.' I said, 'O Gabriel! Even if he had committed theft or committed illegal sexual intercourse?' He said, 'Yes.' I said, 'Even if he has committed theft or committed illegal sexual intercourse?' He said, 'Yes.' I said, 'Even if he has committed theft or committed illegal sexual intercourse?' He said, 'Yes.' "

Anas said, 'When Allah's Apostle invaded Khaibar, we offered the Fajr prayer there (early in the morning) when it was still dark. The Prophet rode and Abu Talha rode too and I was riding behind Abu Talha. The Prophet passed through the lane of Khaibar quickly and my knee was touching the thigh of the Prophet . He uncovered his thigh and I saw the whiteness of the thigh of the Prophet. When he entered the town, he said, 'Allahu Akbar! Khaibar is ruined. Whenever we approach near a (hostile) nation (to fight) then evil will be the morning of those who have been warned.' He repeated this thrice. The people came out for their jobs and some of them said, 'Muhammad (has come).' (Some of our companions added, "With his army.") We conquered Khaibar, took the captives, and the booty was collected. Dihya came and said, 'O Allah's Prophet! Give me a slave girl from the captives.' The Prophet said, 'Go and take any slave girl.' He took Safiya bint Huyai. A man came to the Prophet and said, 'O Allah's Apostles! You gave Safiya bint Huyai to Dihya and she is the chief mistress of the tribes of Quraidha and An-Nadir and she befits none but you.' So the Prophet said, 'Bring him along with her.' So Dihya came with her and when the Prophet saw her, he said to Dihya, 'Take any slave girl other than her from the captives.' Anas added: The Prophet then manumitted her and married her." Thabit asked Anas, "O Abu Hamza! What did the Prophet pay her (as Mahr)?" He said, "Her self was her Mahr for he manumitted her and then married her." Anas added, "While on the way, Um Sulaim dressed her for marriage (ceremony) and at night she sent her as a bride to the Prophet . So the Prophet was a bridegroom and he said, 'Whoever has anything (food) should bring it.' He spread out a leather sheet (for the food) and some brought dates and others cooking butter. (I think he (Anas) mentioned As-Sawaq). So they prepared a dish of Hais (a kind of meal). And that was Walima (the marriage banquet) of Allah's Apostle ."

Sa'id said that when Abu Idris Khaulini narrated this hadith he knelt upon his knees.

(the wife of the Prophet) "Whenever Allah's Apostle intended to go on a journey, he would draw lots amongst his wives and would take with him the one upon whom the lot fell. During a Ghazwa of his, he drew lots amongst us and the lot fell upon me, and I proceeded with him after Allah had decreed the use of the veil by women. I was carried in a Howdah (on the camel) and dismounted while still in it. When Allah's Apostle was through with his Ghazwa and returned home, and we approached the city of Medina, Allah's Apostle ordered us to proceed at night. When the order of setting off was given, I walked till I was past the army to answer the call of nature. After finishing I returned (to the camp) to depart (with the others) and suddenly realized that my necklace over my chest was missing. So, I returned to look for it and was delayed because of that. The people who used to carry me on the camel, came to my Howdah and put it on the back of the camel, thinking that I was in it, as, at that time, women were light in weight, and thin and lean, and did not use to eat much. So, those people did not feel the difference in the heaviness of the Howdah while lifting it, and they put it over the camel. At that time I was a young lady. They set the camel moving and proceeded on. I found my necklace after the army had gone, and came to their camp to find nobody. So, I went to the place where I used to stay, thinking that they would discover my absence and come back in my search. While in that state, I felt sleepy and slept. Safwan bin Mu'attal As-Sulami Adh-Dhakwani was behind the army and reached my abode in the morning. When he saw a sleeping person, he came to me, and he used to see me before veiling. So, I got up when I heard him saying, "Inna lil-lah-wa inn a ilaihi rajiun (We are for Allah, and we will return to Him)." He made his camel knell down. He got down from his camel, and put his leg on the front legs of the camel and then I rode and sat over it. Safwan set out walking, leading the camel by the rope till we reached the army who had halted to take rest at midday. Then whoever was meant for destruction, fell into destruction, (some people accused me falsely) and the leader of the false accusers was `Abdullah bin Ubai bin Salul. After that we returned to Medina, and I became ill for one month while the people were spreading the forged statements of the false accusers. I was feeling during my ailment as if I were not receiving the usual kindness from the Prophet which I used to receive from him when I got sick. But he would come, greet and say, 'How is that (girl)?' I did not know anything of what was going on till I recovered from my ailment and went out with Um Mistah to the Manasi where we used to answer the call of nature, and we used not to go to answer the call of nature except from night to night and that was before we had lavatories near to our houses. And this habit of ours was similar to the habit of the old 'Arabs in the open country (or away from houses). So. I and Um Mistah bint Ruhm went out walking. Um Mistah stumbled because of her long dress and on that she said, 'Let Mistah be ruined.' I said, 'You are saying a bad word. Why are you abusing a man who took part in (the battle of) Badr?' She said, 'O Hanata (you there) didn't you hear what they said?' Then she told me the rumors of the false accusers. My sickness was aggravated, and when I returned home, Allah's Apostle came to me, and after greeting he said, 'How is that (girl)?' I requested him to allow me to go to my parents. I wanted then to be sure of the news through them I Allah's Apostle allowed me, and I went to my parents and asked my mother, 'What are the people talking about?' She said, 'O my daughter! Don't worry much about this matter. By Allah, never is there a charming woman loved by her husband who has other wives, but the women would forge false news about her.' I said, 'Glorified be Allah! Are the people really taking of this matter?' That night I kept on weeping and could not sleep till morning. In the morning Allah's Apostle called `Ali bin Abu Talib and Usama bin Zaid when he saw the Divine Inspiration delayed, to consul them about divorcing his wife (i.e. `Aisha). Usama bin Zaid said what he knew of the good reputation of his wives and added, 'O Allah's Apostle! Keep you wife, for, by Allah, we know nothing about her but good.' `Ali bin Abu Talib said, 'O Allah's Apostle! Allah has no imposed restrictions on you, and there are many women other than she, yet you may ask the woman-servant who will tell you the truth.' On that Allah's Apostle called Barirah and said, 'O Barirah. Did you ever see anything which roused your suspicions about her?' Barirah said, 'No, by Allah Who has sent you with the Truth, I have never seen in her anything faulty except that she is a girl of immature age, who sometimes sleeps and leaves the dough for the goats to eat.' On that day Allah's Apostle ascended the pulpit and requested that somebody support him in punishing `Abdullah bin Ubai bin Salul. Allah's Apostle said, 'Who will support me to punish that person (`Abdullah bin Ubai bin Salul) who has hurt me by slandering the reputation of my family? By Allah, I know nothing about my family but good, and they have accused a person about whom I know nothing except good, and he never entered my house except in my company.' Sa`d bin Mu`adh got up and said, 'O Allah's Apostle! by Allah, I will relieve you from him. If that man is from the tribe of the Aus, then we will chop his head off, and if he is from our brothers, the Khazraj, then order us, and we will fulfill your order.' On that Sa`d bin 'Ubada, the chief of the Khazraj and before this incident, he had been a pious man, got up, motivated by his zeal for his tribe and said, 'By Allah, you have told a lie; you cannot kill him, and you will never be able to kill him.' On that Usaid bin Al-Hadir got up and said (to Sa`d bin 'Ubada), 'By Allah! you are a liar. By Allah, we will kill him; and you are a hypocrite, defending the hypocrites.' On this the two tribes of Aus and Khazraj got excited and were about to fight each other, while Allah's Apostle was standing on the pulpit. He got down and quieted them till they became silent and he kept quiet. On that day I kept on weeping so much so that neither did my tears stop, nor could I sleep. In the morning my parents were with me and I had wept for two nights and a day, till I thought my liver would burst from weeping. While they were sitting with me and I was weeping, an Ansari woman asked my permission to enter, and I allowed her to come in. She sat down and started weeping with me. While we were in this state, Allah's Apostle came and sat down and he had never sat with me since the day they forged the accusation. No revelation regarding my case came to him for a month. He recited Tashah-hud (i.e. None has the right to be worshipped but Allah and Muhammad is His Apostle) and then said, 'O `Aisha! I have been informed such-and-such about you; if you are innocent, then Allah will soon reveal your innocence, and if you have committed a sin, then repent to Allah and ask Him to forgive you, for when a person confesses his sin and asks Allah for forgiveness, Allah accepts his repentance.' When Allah's Apostle finished his speech my tears ceased completely and there remained not even a single drop of it. I requested my father to reply to Allah's Apostle on my behalf. My father said, By Allah, I do not know what to say to Allah's Apostle.' I said to my mother, 'Talk to Allah's Apostle on my behalf.' She said, 'By Allah, I do not know what to say to Allah's Apostle. I was a young girl and did not have much knowledge of the Qur'an. I said. 'I know, by Allah, that you have listened to what people are saying and that has been planted in your minds and you have taken it as a truth. Now, if I told you that I am innocent and Allah knows that I am innocent, you would not believe me and if I confessed to you falsely that I am guilty, and Allah knows that I am innocent you would believe me. By Allah, I don't compare my situation with you except to the situation of Joseph's father (i.e. Jacob) who said, 'So (for me) patience is most fitting against that which you assert and it is Allah (Alone) whose help can be sought.' Then I turned to the other side of my bed hoping that Allah would prove my innocence. By Allah I never thought that Allah would reveal Divine Inspiration in my case, as I considered myself too inferior to be talked of in the Holy Qur'an. I had hoped that Allah's Apostle might have a dream in which Allah would prove my innocence. By Allah, Allah's Apostle had not got up and nobody had left the house before the Divine Inspiration came to Allah's Apostle. So, there overtook him the same state which used to overtake him, (when he used to have, on being inspired divinely). He was sweating so much so that the drops of the sweat were dropping like pearls though it was a (cold) wintry day. When that state of Allah's Apostle was over, he was smiling and the first word he said, `Aisha! Thank Allah, for Allah has declared your innocence.' My mother told me to go to Allah's Apostle . I replied, 'By Allah I will not go to him and will not thank but Allah.' So Allah revealed: "Verily! They who spread the slander are a gang among you . . ." (24.11) When Allah gave the declaration of my Innocence, Abu Bakr, who used to provide for Mistah bin Uthatha for he was his relative, said, 'By Allah, I will never provide Mistah with anything because of what he said about Aisha.' But Allah later revealed: -- "And let not those who are good and wealthy among you swear not to help their kinsmen, those in need and those who left their homes in Allah's Cause. Let them forgive and overlook. Do you not wish that Allah should forgive you? Verily! Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful." (24.22) After that Abu Bakr said, 'Yes ! By Allah! I like that Allah should forgive me,' and resumed helping Mistah whom he used to help before. Allah's Apostle also asked Zainab bint Jahsh (i.e. the Prophet's wife about me saying, 'What do you know and what did you see?' She replied, 'O Allah's Apostle! I refrain to claim hearing or seeing what I have not heard or seen. By Allah, I know nothing except goodness about Aisha." Aisha further added "Zainab was competing with me (in her beauty and the Prophet's love), yet Allah protected her (from being malicious), for she had piety."

Allah's Apostle said, "The (call for prayer) Adhan of Bilal should not stop anyone of you from taking his Suhur for he pronounces the Adhan in order that whoever among you is praying the night prayer, may return (to eat his Suhur) and whoever among you is sleeping, may get up, for it is not yet dawn (when it is like this)." (Yahya, the sub-narrator stretched his two index fingers side ways).

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."

(regarding the Verse):-- "Those of you who die and leave wives behind. They - (their wives) -- shall wait (as regards their marriage ) for four months and ten days)." (2.234) The widow, according to this Verse, was to spend this period of waiting with her husband's family, so Allah revealed: "Those of you who die and leave wives (i.e. widows) should bequeath for their wives, a year's maintenance and residences without turning them out, but if they leave (their residence), there is no blame on you for what they do with themselves provided it is honorable.' (i.e. lawful marriage) (2.240). So Allah entitled the widow to be bequeathed extra maintenance for seven months and twenty nights, and that is the completion of one year. If she wished she could stay (in her husband's home) according to the will, and she could leave it if she wished, as Allah says: "..without turning them out, but if they leave (the residence), there is no blame on you." So the 'Idda (i.e. four months and ten days as it) is obligatory for her. 'Ata said: Ibn `Abbas said, "This Verse, i.e. the Statement of Allah: "..without turning them out.." cancelled the obligation of staying for the waiting period in her dead husband's house, and she can complete this period wherever she likes." 'Ata's aid: If she wished, she could complete her 'Idda by staying in her dead husband's residence according to the will or leave it according to Allah's Statement:-- "There is no blame on you for what they do with themselves." `Ata' added: Later the regulations of inheritance came and abrogated the order of the dwelling of the widow (in her dead husband's house), so she could complete the 'Idda wherever she likes. And it was no longer necessary to provide her with a residence. Ibn `Abbas said, "This Verse abrogated her (i.e. widow's) dwelling in her dead husband's house and she could complete the 'Idda (i.e. four months and ten days) wherever she liked, as Allah's Statement says:--"...without turning them out..."

In the lifetime of Allah's Apostle (p.b.u.h) the sun eclipsed, so he led the people in prayer, and stood up and performed a long Qiyam, then bowed for a long while. He stood up again and performed a long Qiyam but this time the period of standing was shorter than the first. He bowed again for a long time but shorter than the first one, then he prostrated and prolonged the prostration. He did the same in the second rak`a as he did in the first and then finished the prayer; by then the sun (eclipse) had cleared. He delivered the Khutba (sermon) and after praising and glorifying Allah he said, "The sun and the moon are two signs against the signs of Allah; they do not eclipse on the death or life of anyone. So when you see the eclipse, remember Allah and say Takbir, pray and give Sadaqa." The Prophet then said, "O followers of Muhammad! By Allah! There is none who has more ghaira (selfrespect) than Allah as He has forbidden that His slaves, male or female commit adultery (illegal sexual intercourse). O followers of Muhammad! By Allah! If you knew that which I know you would laugh little and weep much.

My father and I went to Abi Barza Al-Aslami and my father said to him, "Tell us how Allah's Apostle used to offer the compulsory congregational prayers." He said, "He used to pray the Zuhr prayer, which you call the first prayer, as the sun declined at noon, the `Asr at a time when one of US could go to his family at the farthest place in Medina while the sun was still hot. (The narrator forgot what Abu Barza had said about the Maghrib prayer), and the Prophet preferred to pray the `Isha' late and disliked to sleep before it or talk after it. And he used to return after finishing the morning prayer at such a time when it was possible for one to recognize the person sitting by his side and he (the Prophet) used to recite 60 to 100 'Ayat' (verses) of the Qur'an in it."

Allah's Apostle said, "While a man was going on a way, he saw a thorny branch and removed it from the way and Allah became pleased by his action and forgave him for that." Then the Prophet said, "Five are martyrs: One who dies of plague, one who dies of an Abdominal disease, one who dies of drowning, one who is buried alive (and) dies and one who is killed in Allah's cause." (The Prophet further said, "If the people knew the reward for pronouncing the Adhan and for standing in the first row (in the congregational prayer) and found no other way to get it except by drawing lots they would do so, and if they knew the reward of offering the Zuhr prayer early (in its stated time), they would race for it and if they knew the reward for `Isha' and Fajr prayers in congregation, they would attend them even if they were to crawl.

Abu Dawud said: Mujahid reported on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas: When bathing became hard for her, he commanded her to combine the two prayers.

Abu Dawud said: Ibrahim reported it from Ibn 'Abbas. This is also the view of Ibrahim al-Nakha'i and 'Abd Allah b. Shaddad.

Abdullah ibn Ubaydullah ibn Umayr said: I was with my father in the time of Ibn az-Zubayr sitting beside Abdullah ibn Umar. Then Abbad ibn Abdullah ibn az-Zubayr said: We have heard that the evening meal is taken just before the night prayer. Thereupon Abdullah ibn Umar said: Woe to you! what was their evening meal? Do you think it was like the meal of your father?

Once I stayed overnight in the house of my aunt Maimuna bint Al-Harith and Allah's Apostle was with her as it was her turn. Allah's Apostle got up to offer the night prayer. I stood on his left but he took hold of my two locks of hair and made me stand on his right.

Narrated Abu Bishr:

(the above Hadith) but he quoted: Ibn `Abbas said, (took hold of) my two braids on my head."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Muhammad ibn Yusuf that as- Sa'ib ibn Yazid said, "Umar ibn al-Khattab ordered Ubayy ibn Kab and Tamim ad-Dari to watch the night in prayer with the people for eleven rakas.The reciterof the Qur'an would recite the Mi'in (a group of medium-sized suras) until we would be leaning on our staffs from having stood so long in prayer. And we would not leave until the approach of dawn."

A woman had a prolonged flow of blood in the time of the Messenger of Allah (saws). She was commanded to advance the afternoon prayer and delay the noon prayer, and to take a bath for them only once; and to delay the sunset prayer and advance the night prayer and to take a bath only once for them; and to take a bath separately for the dawn prayer.

I (Shu'bah) asked AbdurRahman: (Is it) from the Prophet (saws)? I do not report to you anything except from the Prophet (saws).

The Prophet heard a man (reciting Qur'an) in the Mosque, and he said, "May Allah bestow His Mercy upon him. No doubt, he made me remember such-and such Verses of such-and-such Sura which I dropped (from my memory). Narrated Aisha: The Prophet performed the Tahajjud prayer in my house, and then he heard the voice of `Abbad who was praying in the Mosque, and said, "O `Aisha! Is this `Abbad's voice?" I said, "Yes." He said, "O Allah! Be merciful to `Abbad!"

The commencement of the Divine Inspiration to Allah's Apostle was in the form of good righteous (true) dreams in his sleep. He never had a dream but that it came true like bright day light. He used to go in seclusion (the cave of) Hira where he used to worship(Allah Alone) continuously for many (days) nights. He used to take with him the journey food for that (stay) and then come back to (his wife) Khadija to take his food like-wise again for another period to stay, till suddenly the Truth descended upon him while he was in the cave of Hira. The angel came to him in it and asked him to read. The Prophet replied, "I do not know how to read." (The Prophet added), "The angel caught me (forcefully) and pressed me so hard that I could not bear it anymore. He then released me and again asked me to read, and I replied, "I do not know how to read," whereupon he caught me again and pressed me a second time till I could not bear it anymore. He then released me and asked me again to read, but again I replied, "I do not know how to read (or, what shall I read?)." Thereupon he caught me for the third time and pressed me and then released me and said, "Read: In the Name of your Lord, Who has created (all that exists). Has created man from a clot. Read and Your Lord is Most Generous...up to..... ..that which he knew not." (96.15) Then Allah's Apostle returned with the Inspiration, his neck muscles twitching with terror till he entered upon Khadija and said, "Cover me! Cover me!" They covered him till his fear was over and then he said, "O Khadija, what is wrong with me?" Then he told her everything that had happened and said, 'I fear that something may happen to me." Khadija said, 'Never! But have the glad tidings, for by Allah, Allah will never disgrace you as you keep good reactions with your Kith and kin, speak the truth, help the poor and the destitute, serve your guest generously and assist the deserving, calamityafflicted ones." Khadija then accompanied him to (her cousin) Waraqa bin Naufal bin Asad bin `Abdul `Uzza bin Qusai. Waraqa was the son of her paternal uncle, i.e., her father's brother, who during the Pre-Islamic Period became a Christian and used to write the Arabic writing and used to write of the Gospels in Arabic as much as Allah wished him to write. He was an old man and had lost his eyesight. Khadija said to him, "O my cousin! Listen to the story of your nephew." Waraqa asked, "O my nephew! What have you seen?" The Prophet described whatever he had seen. Waraqa said, "This is the same Namus (i.e., Gabriel, the Angel who keeps the secrets) whom Allah had sent to Moses. I wish I were young and could live up to the time when your people would turn you out." Allah's Apostle asked, "Will they turn me out?" Waraqa replied in the affirmative and said: "Never did a man come with something similar to what you have brought but was treated with hostility. If I should remain alive till the day when you will be turned out then I would support you strongly." But after a few days Waraqa died and the Divine Inspiration was also paused for a while and the Prophet became so sad as we have heard that he intended several times to throw himself from the tops of high mountains and every time he went up the top of a mountain in order to throw himself down, Gabriel would appear before him and say, "O Muhammad! You are indeed Allah's Apostle in truth" whereupon his heart would become quiet and he would calm down and would return home. And whenever the period of the coming of the inspiration used to become long, he would do as before, but when he used to reach the top of a mountain, Gabriel would appear before him and say to him what he had said before. (Ibn `Abbas said regarding the meaning of: 'He it is that Cleaves the daybreak (from the darkness)' (6.96) that Al-Asbah. means the light of the sun during the day and the light of the moon at night).

The sun eclipsed and the Prophet got up, being afraid that it might be the Hour (i.e. Day of Judgment). He went to the Mosque and offered the prayer with the longest Qiyam, bowing and prostration that I had ever seen him doing. Then he said, "These signs which Allah sends do not occur because of the life or death of somebody, but Allah makes His worshipers afraid by them. So when you see anything thereof, proceed to remember Allah, invoke Him and ask for His forgiveness."

We waited for the Prophet (saws) to offer the night prayer. He delayed until people thought that he would not come out and some of us said that he had offered the prayer. At the moment when we were in this condition the Prophet (saws) came out. People said to him as they were already saying. He said: Observe this prayer when it is dark, for by it you have been made superior to all the peoples, no people having observed it before you.

The mu'adhdhin of Ibn Umar said: prayer (i.e. the time of prayer has come). He said: Go ahead. He then alighted before the disappearance. He then offered the night prayer. He then said: When the Messenger of Allah (saws) was in a hurry about something, he would do as I did. Then he travelled and covered a distance of three days' journey on the day.

Abu Dawud said: A similar tradition has been transmitted by Ibn Jabir from Nafi' with the same chain.

The Companions during the lifetime of the messenger of Allah (May peace be upon him) used to wait for the night prayer so much so that their heads were lowered down (by dozing). Then they offered prayer and did not perform ablution.

Abu Dawud said: Shu’bah on the authority of Qatadah added: We lowered down our heads (on accounts of dozing) in the day of the Messenger of Allah (May peace be upon him).

Abu Dawud said; This tradition has been transmitted through a different chain of narrators.

Yahya related to me from Malik thatYahya ibn Said used to say, "Even if someone manages to pray before the time of the prayer has passed, the time that has passed him by is more important, or better, than his family and wealth."

Yahya said that Malik said, "If the time for a prayer comes and a traveller delays a prayer through neglect or forgetfulness until he reaches his family, he should do that prayer in full if he arrives within the time. But if he arrives when the time has past, he should do the travelling prayer. That way he only repays what he owes."

Malik said, "This is what I have found the people and men of knowledge doing in our community." Malik explained that shafaq was the redness in the sky after the sun had set, and said, "When the redness has gone then the isha prayer is due and you have left the time of maghrib."

He also said, "If people knew what there was in the call to prayer and the first row, and they could find no other way except to draw lots for it, they would draw lots for it. And if they knew what there was in doing dhuhr at its time, they would race each other to it. And if they knew what there was in the prayers of isha and maghrib, they would come to them even if they had to crawl .

I along with my father went to Abu- Barza Al-Aslami and my father asked him, "How Allah's Apostle used to offer the five compulsory congregational prayers?" Abu- Barza said, "The Prophet used to pray the Zuhr prayer which you (people) call the first one at midday when the sun had just declined The `Asr prayer at a time when after the prayer, a man could go to the house at the farthest place in Medina (and arrive) while the sun was still hot. (I forgot about the Maghrib prayer). The Prophet Loved to delay the `Isha which you call Al- `Atama [??] and he disliked sleeping before it and speaking after it. After the Fajr prayer he used to leave when a man could recognize the one sitting beside him and he used to recite between 60 to 100 Ayat (in the Fajr prayer) .

Yahya said that he heard Malik say, "Someone who eats or drinks out of neglect or forgetfulness during a voluntary fast does not have to repeat his fast, but he should continue fasting for the rest of the day in which he eats or drinks while voluntarily fasting, and not stop fasting. Someone to whom something unexpected happens which causes him to break his fast while he is fasting voluntarily does not have to repeat his fast if he has broken it for a reason, and not simply because he decided to break his fast. Just as I do not think that someone has to repeat a voluntary prayer if he has had to stop it because of some discharge which he could prevent and which meant that he had to repeat his wudu."

Malik said, "Once a man has begun doing any of the right actions (al-amal as-saliha) such as the prayer, the fast and the hajj, or similar right actions of a voluntary nature, he should not stop until he has completed it according to what the sunna for that action is. If he says the takbir he should not stop until he has prayed two rakas. If he is fasting he should not break his fast until he has completed that day's fast. If he goes into ihram he should not return until he has completed his hajj, and if he begins doing tawaf he should not stop doing so until he has gone around the Kaba seven times. He should not stop doing any of these actions once he has started them until he has completed them, except if something happens such as illness or some other matter by which a man is excused. This is because Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, says in His Book, 'And eat and drink until the white thread becomes clear to you from the black thread of dawn, (and) then complete the fast until night-time,' (Sura 2 ayat 187), and so he must complete his fast as Allah has said. Allah, the Exalted, (also) says, 'And complete the hajj and the umra for Allah,' and so if a man were to go into ihram for a voluntary hajj having done his one obligatory hajj (on a previous occasion), he could not then stop doing his hajj having once begun it and leave ihram while in the middle of his hajj. Anyone that begins a voluntary act must complete it once he has begun doing it, just as an obligatory act must be completed . This is the best of what I have heard."

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.' "