We fought along with AbdurRahman ibn Khalid ibn al-Walid. Four infidels from the enemy were brought to him. He commanded about them and they were killed in confinement.

Abu Dawud said: The narrators other than Sa'id reported from Ibn Wahb in this tradition: "(killed him) with arrows in confinement." When Abu Ayyub al-Ansari was informed about it, he said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (saws) prohibiting to kill in confinement. By Him in Whose hands my soul is, if there were a hen, I would not kill it in confinement. 'Abd al-Rahman b. Khalid b. al-Walid was informed about it (the Prophet's prohibition). He set four slaves free.

I then asked: Messenger of Allah, (what should we do), if the people are assembled together?

He replied: If it is within your power that no one looks at it, then no one should look at it.

I then asked: Messenger of Allah if one of us is alone, (what should he do)?

He replied: Allah is more entitled than people that bashfulness should be shown to him.

Yahya related to me from Malik from Humayd ibn Qays al-Makki that Mujahid said, "I was with Abdullah ibn Umar and an artisan came to him and said, 'Abu Abd ar-Rahman - I fashion gold and then sell what I have made for more than its weight. I take an amount equivalent to the work of my hand.' Abdullah forbade him to do that, so the artisan repeated the question to him, and Abdullah continued to forbid him until he came to the door of the mosque or to an animal that he intended to mount. Then Abdullah ibn Umar said, 'A dinar for a dinar, and a dirham for a dirham. There is no increase between them. This is the command of ourProphet to us and our advice to you.' "

Malik related to me that he had heard that Abdullah ibn Masud used to say, "If someone makes a loan, they should not stipulate better than it. Even if it is a handful of grass, it is usury."

Malik said, "The generally agreed on way of doing things among us is that there is no harm in borrowing any animals with a set description and itemisation, and one must return the like of them. This is not done in the case of female slaves. It is feared about that that it will lead to making halal what is not halal, so it is not good. The explanation of what is disapproved of in that, is that a man borrow a slave-girl and have intercourse with her as seems proper to him. Then he returns her to her owner. That is not good and it is not halal. The people of knowledge still forbid it and do not give an indulgence to any one in it."

that he came to `Aisha and said to her, "O Mother of the Believers! There is a man who sends a Hadi to Ka`ba and stays in his city and requests that his Hadi camel be garlanded while he remains in a state of Ihram from that day till the people finish their Ihram (after completing all the ceremonies of Hajj)" (What do you say about it?) Masruq added, I heard the clapping of her hands behind the curtain. She said, "I used to twist the garlands for the Hadi of Allah's Apostle and he used to send his Hadi to Ka`ba but he never used to regard as unlawful what was lawful for men to do with their wives till the people returned (from the Hajj).

`Abdullah the slave of Asma bint Abu Bakr, told me that he used to hear Asma', whenever she passed by Al-Hajun, saying, "May Allah bless His Apostle Muhammad. Once we dismounted here with him, and at that time we were traveling with light luggage; we had a few riding animals and a little food ration. I, my sister, `Aisha, Az-Zubair and such and such persons performed `Umra, and when we had passed our hands over the Ka`ba (i.e. performed Tawaf round the Ka`ba and between As-Safa and Al- Marwa) we finished our lhram. Later on we assumed Ihram for Hajj the same evening."

Allah's Apostle said, "Fasting is a shield (or a screen or a shelter). So, the person observing fasting should avoid sexual relation with his wife and should not behave foolishly and impudently, and if somebody fights with him or abuses him, he should tell him twice, 'I am fasting." The Prophet added, "By Him in Whose Hands my soul is, the smell coming out from the mouth of a fasting person is better in the sight of Allah than the smell of musk. (Allah says about the fasting person), 'He has left his food, drink and desires for My sake. The fast is for Me. So I will reward (the fasting person) for it and the reward of good deeds is multiplied ten times."

I saw `Uthman performing ablution; he washed his hands thrice, rinsed his mouth and then washed his nose, by putting water in it and then blowing it out, and washed his face thrice, and then washed his right forearm up to the elbow thrice, and then the left-forearm up to the elbow thrice, then smeared his head with water, washed his right foot thrice, and then his left foot thrice and said, "I saw Allah's Apostle performing ablution similar to my present ablution, and then he said, 'Whoever performs ablution like my present ablution and then offers two rak`at in which he does not think of worldly things, all his previous sins will be forgiven."

We were in the company of Allah's Apostle on a journey. He said to a man, "Get down and mix Sawiq (powdered barley) with water for me." The man said, "The sun (has not set yet), O Allah's Apostle." The Prophet again said to him, "Get down and mix Sawiq with water for me." The man again said, "O Allah's Apostle! The sun!" The Prophet said to him (for the third time) "Get down and mix Sawiq with water for me." The man dismounted and mixed Sawiq with water for him. The Prophet drank it and then beckoned with his hand (towards the East) and said, "When you see the night falling from this side, then a fasting person should break his fast."

The Messenger of Allah (saws) used to come to us. He once said: Pour ablution water on me. She then described how the Prophet (saws) performed ablution saying: He washed his hands up to wrist three times and washed his face three times, and rinsed his mouth and snuffed up water once. Then he washed his forearms three times and wiped his head twice beginning from the back of his head, then wiped its front. He wiped his ears outside and inside. Then he washed his feet three times.

Abu Dawud said: The tradition narrated by Musaddad carries the same meaning.

that his mother Zainab bint Humaid took him to the Prophet and said, "O Allah's Apostle! Take the pledge of allegiance from him." But he said, "He is still too young for the pledge," and passed his hand on his (i.e. `Abdullah's) head and invoked for Allah's blessing for him. Zuhra bin Ma`bad stated that he used to go with his grandfather, `Abdullah bin Hisham, to the market to buy foodstuff. Ibn `Umar and Ibn Az-Zubair would meet him and say to him, "Be our partner, as the Prophet invoked Allah to bless you." So, he would be their partner, and very often he would win a camel's load and send it home.

My mother asked my father to present me a gift from his property; and he gave it to me after some hesitation. My mother said that she would not be satisfied unless the Prophet was made a witness to it. I being a young boy, my father held me by the hand and took me to the Prophet . He said to the Prophet, "His mother, bint Rawaha, requested me to give this boy a gift." The Prophet said, "Do you have other sons besides him?" He said, "Yes." The Prophet said, "Do not make me a witness for injustice." Narrated Ash-Shu`bi that the Prophet said, "I will not become a witness for injustice."

That Ka`b bin Malik told him that in the lifetime of Allah's Apostle he demanded his debt from Ibn Abu Hadrad in the Mosque. Their voices grew louder till Allah's Apostle heard them while he was in his house. So he lifted the curtain of his room and called Ka`b bin Malik saying, "O Ka`b!" He replied, "Labbaik! O Allah's Apostle!" He beckoned to him with his hand suggesting that he deduct half the debt. Ka`b said, "I agree, O Allah's Apostle!" Allah's Apostle then said (to Ibn Abu Hadrad), "Get up and pay him the rest."

Allah's Apostle said. "While (in a dream), I was standing by a well, drawing water from it. Abu Bakr and `Umar came to me. Abu Bakr took the bucket (from me) and drew one or two buckets of water, and there was some weakness in his drawing. May Allah forgive him. Then Ibn Al-Khattab took the bucket from Abu Bakr, and the bucket turned into a very large one in his hands. I had never seen such a mighty person amongst the people as him in performing such hard work. He drew so much water that the people drank to their satisfaction and watered their camels." (Wahab, a sub-narrator said, "till their camels drank and knelt down.")

Abu Bakr had a slave who used to give him some of his earnings. Abu Bakr used to eat from it. One day he brought something and Abu Bakr ate from it. The slave said to him, "Do you know what this is?" Abu Bakr then enquired, "What is it?" The slave said, "Once, in the pre-Islamic period of ignorance I foretold somebody's future though I did not know this knowledge of foretelling but I, cheated him, and when he met me, he gave me something for that service, and that is what you have eaten from." Then Abu Bakr put his hand in his mouth and vomited whatever was present in his stomach.

Al-Mughira bin Shu`ba, said, "The Prophet went out to answer the call of nature and (when he had finished) I got up to pour water for him." I think that he said that the event had taken place during the Ghazwa of Tabuk. Al-Mughira added. "The Prophet washed his face, and when he wanted to wash his forearms, the sleeves of his cloak became tight over them, so he took them out from underneath the cloak and then he washed them (i.e. his forearms) and passed wet hands over his Khuffs (socks made from thick fabric or leather)."

Two women were stitching shoes in a house or a room. Then one of them came out with an awl driven into her hand, and she sued the other for it. The case was brought before Ibn `Abbas, Ibn `Abbas said, "Allah's Apostle said, 'If people were to be given what they claim (without proving their claim) the life and property of the nation would be lost.' Will you remind her (i.e. the defendant), of Allah and recite before her:--"Verily! Those who purchase a small gain at the cost of Allah's Covenant and their oaths..."(3.77) So they reminded her and she confessed. Ibn `Abbas then said, "The Prophet said, 'The oath is to be taken by the defendant (in the absence of any proof against him).

'Umar consulted the people about the compensation of abortion of woman. Al-Mughirah b. Shu'bah said: I was present with the Messenger of Allah (saws) when he gave judgement that a male or female slave should testify you. So he brought Muhammad b. Maslamah to him. Harun added: He then testified him.

Imlas means a man striking the belly of his wife.

Abu Dawud said: I have been informed that Abu 'Ubaid said: It (abortion) is called imlas because the woman causes it to slip before the time of delivery. Similarly, anything which slips from the hand or from some other thing is called malasa (slipped).

The Messenger of Allah (saws) was with one of his wives. One of the Mothers of faithful sent a bowl containing food through a servant of hers. She struck with her hand and broke the bowl. Ibn al-Muthanna's version has: The Prophet (saws) took the pieces of the bowl, and joined one with the other, and began to collect the food in it, saying: Your mother is jealous. Ibn al-Muthanna added: Eat. They ate till a bowl of the one in whose house he was brought.

Abu Dawud said: We then returned to the version of the tradition of Musaddad: He said: Eat. He detained the servant and the bowl till they were free. Then he returned the sound bowl to the messenger and detained the broken one (bowl) in his house.

Abu Dawud said: This is also transmitted by Waki' from al-A'mash from Salamah b. Kuhail from 'Abd al-Rahman b. Abza.

It is also transmitted through a different chain by Jarir from al-A'mash from Salamah from Sa'id b. 'Abd al-Rahman b. Abza from his father.

Allah's Apostle said, " Horses are kept for one of three purposes: A man may keep them (for Allah's Cause) to receive a reward in the Hereafter; another may keep them as a means of protection; and a third may keep them to be a burden for him. As for the man for whom the horse is a source of reward, he is the one who ties it for Allah's Cause, and he ties it with a long rope in a pasture or a garden, then, whatever it eats or drinks in that pasture or garden will be added to his good deeds. And if it breaks its rope and jumps over one or two hills, then, for all its footsteps and its manure, good deeds will be written for him. And if it passes by a river and drinks of its water though its owner had no intention to water it from that river, even then he will have good deeds written for him. So that horse will be (a source of) reward for such a man. If a man ties a horse for earning his livelihood and abstaining from asking others for help and he does not forget Allah's right, i.e. pays its Zakat and gives it to be used in Allah's Cause, then that horse will be a means of protection for him. But if a man ties it out of pride and to show off and to excite others, then that horse will be a burden (of sins) for him." Then Allah's Apostle was asked regarding donkeys. He replied, "Nothing has been revealed to me except this comprehensive Verse which includes everything: 'So whoever does good equal to the weight of an atom (or a smallest ant) shall see it; and whoever does evil equal to the weight of an atom (or a smallest ant) shall see it.' (99.7-8)

that he asked `Aisha regarding the Verse: 'If you fear that you shall not be able to deal justly with the orphans (4.3) She said, "O my nephew! This Verse refers to the orphan girl who is under the guardianship of her guardian who likes her beauty and wealth and wishes to (marry her and) curtails her Mahr. Such guardians have been forbidden to marry them unless they do justice by giving them their full Mahr, and they have been ordered to marry other than them. The people asked for the verdict of Allah's Apostle after that, so Allah revealed: 'They ask your instruction concerning the women . . . whom you desire to marry.' (4.127) So Allah revealed to them that if the orphan girl had beauty and wealth, they desired to marry her and for her family status. They can only marry them if they give them their full Mahr. And if they had no desire to marry them because of their lack of wealth and beauty, they would leave them and marry other women. So, as they used to leave them, when they had no interest, in them, they were forbidden to marry them when they had such interest, unless they treated them justly and gave them their full Mahr Apostle said, 'If at all there is evil omen, it is in the horse, the woman and the house." a lady is to be warded off. And the Statement of Allah: 'Truly, among your wives and your children, there are enemies for you (i.e may stop you from the obedience of Allah)' (64.14)

Allah's Apostle said, "Horses may be used for three purposes: For a man they may be a source of reward (in the Hereafter); for another, a means of protection; and for another, a source of sin. The man for whom they are a source of reward, is the one who keeps them for Allah's Cause and ties them with long ropes and lets them graze in a pasture or garden. Whatever those long ropes allow them to eat of that pasture or garden, will be written as good deeds for him and if they break their ropes and run one or two rounds, then all their footsteps and dung will be written as good deeds for him, and if they pass a river and drink from it though he has had no intention of watering them, even then, that will be written as good deeds for him. So such horses are a source of reward for that man. For the man who keeps horses for his livelihood in order not to ask others for help or beg his bread, and at the same time he does not forget Allah's right of what he earns through them and of their backs (that he presents it to be used in Allah's Cause), such horses are a shelter for him (from poverty). For the man who keeps them just out of pride and for showing off, they are a source of sin." Then Allah's Apostle was asked about donkeys. He said, "Allah has not revealed anything to me regarding them except this comprehensive Verse: "Then anyone who has done good, equal to the weight of an atom (or a small ant) shall see it, and any one who has done evil, equal to the weight of an atom (or a small ant) shall see it." (99.7-8)

Yahya related to me from Malik from Zayd ibn Aslam from Abu Salih as-Samman from Abu Hurayra that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Horses are a reward for one man, a protection for another, a burden for another. The one who has them as a reward is the one who dedicates them for use in the way of Allah, and tethers them in a meadow or grassland. Whatever the horse enjoys of the grassland or meadow in the length of its tether are good deeds for him. If it breaks its tether and goes over a hillock or two, its tracks and droppings are good deeds for him. If it crosses a river and drinks from it while he did not mean to allow it to drink it, that counts as good deeds for him, and the horse is a reward for him.

Another man uses his horse to gain self reliance and up- standingness and does not forget Allah's right on their necks and backs (i.e. he does not ill treat or over-work them). Horses are a protection for him .

Another man uses them out of pride to show them off and in hostility to the people of Islam. They are a burden on that man."

The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was asked about donkeys, and he said, "Nothing has been revealed to me about them except this single all- inclusive ayat, 'Whoever does an atom of good will see it, and whoever does an atom of evil, will see it.' " (Sura 99 Ayats 7,8) .

Allah's Apostle said, "Keeping horses may be a source of reward to some (man), a shelter to another (i.e. means of earning one's living), or a burden to a third. He to whom the horse will be a source of reward is the one who keeps it in Allah's Cause (prepare it for holy battles) and ties it by a long rope in a pasture (or a garden). He will get a reward equal to what its long rope allows it to eat in the pasture or the garden, and if that horse breaks its rope and crosses one or two hills, then all its footsteps and its dung will be counted as good deeds for its owner; and if it passes by a river and drinks from it, then that will also be regarded as a good deed for its owner even if he has had no intention of watering it then. Horses are a shelter from poverty to the second person who keeps horses for earning his living so as not to ask others, and at the same time he gives Allah's right (i.e. rak`at) (from the wealth he earns through using them in trading etc.,) and does not overburden them. He who keeps horses just out of pride and for showing off and as a means of harming the Muslims, his horses will be a source of sins to him." When Allah's Apostle was asked about donkeys, he replied, "Nothing particular was revealed to me regarding them except the general unique verse which is applicable to everything: "Whoever does goodness equal to the weight of an atom (or small ant) shall see it (its reward) on the Day of Resurrection."

I called on Jabir bin `Abdullah Al-Ansari and said to him, "Relate to me what you have heard from Allah's Apostle ." He said, "I accompanied him on one of the journeys." (Abu `Aqil said, "I do not know whether that journey was for the purpose of Jihad or `Umra.") "When we were returning," Jabir continued, "the Prophet said, 'Whoever wants to return earlier to his family, should hurry up.' We set off and I was on a black red tainted camel having no defect, and the people were behind me. While I was in that state the camel stopped suddenly (because of exhaustion). On that the Prophet said to me, 'O Jabir, wait!' Then he hit it once with his lash and it started moving on a fast pace. He then said, 'Will you sell the camel?' I replied in the affirmative when we reached Medina, and the Prophet went to the Mosque along with his companions. I, too, went to him after tying the camel on the pavement at the Mosque gate. Then I said to him, 'This is your camel.' He came out and started examining the camel and saying, 'The camel is ours.' Then the Prophet sent some Awaq (i.e. an amount) of gold saying, 'Give it to Jabir.' Then he asked, 'Have you taken the full price (of the camel)?' I replied in the affirmative. He said, 'Both the price and the camel are for you.' ''

Allah's Apostle said, "(The Prophet) Moses was a shy person and used to cover his body completely because of his extensive shyness. One of the children of Israel hurt him by saying, 'He covers his body in this way only because of some defect in his skin, either leprosy or scrotal hernia, or he has some other defect.' Allah wished to clear Moses of what they said about him, so one day while Moses was in seclusion, he took off his clothes and put them on a stone and started taking a bath. When he had finished the bath, he moved towards his clothes so as to take them, but the stone took his clothes and fled; Moses picked up his stick and ran after the stone saying, 'O stone! Give me my garment!' Till he reached a group of Bani Israel who saw him naked then, and found him the best of what Allah had created, and Allah cleared him of what they had accused him of. The stone stopped there and Moses took and put his garment on and started hitting the stone with his stick. By Allah, the stone still has some traces of the hitting, three, four or five marks. This was what Allah refers to in His Saying:-- "O you who believe! Be you not like those Who annoyed Moses, But Allah proved his innocence of that which they alleged, And he was honorable In Allah's Sight." (33.69)

Once I set out to visit `Umar (bin Al-Khattab). (While I was sitting there with him his gate-keeper, Yarfa, came and said, "Uthman `AbdurRahman (bin `Auf), Az-Zubair and Sa`d (bin Abi Waqqas) are seeking permission (to meet you)." `Umar said, "Yes. So he admitted them and they entered, greeted, and sat down. After a short while Yarfa came again and said to `Umar 'Shall I admit `Ali and `Abbas?" `Umar said, "Yes." He admitted them and when they entered, they greeted and sat down. `Abbas said, "O Chief of the Believers! Judge between me and this (`Ali)." The group, `Uthman and his companions Sa`d, 'O Chief of the Believers! Judge between them and relieve one from the other." `Umar said. Wait! I beseech you by Allah, by Whose permission both the Heaven and the Earth stand fast ! Do you know that Allah's Apostle said. 'We (Apostles) do not bequeath anything to our heirs, but whatever we leave is to be given in charity.' And by that Allah's Apostles meant himself?" The group said, "He did say so." `Umar then turned towards 'All and `Abbas and said. "I beseech you both by Allah, do you know that Allah's Apostle said that?" They said, 'Yes " `Umar said, "Now, let me talk to you about this matter. Allah favored His Apostle with something of this property (war booty) which He did not give to anybody else. And Allah said:-- 'And what Allah has bestowed on His Apostle (as Fai Booty) from them for which you made no expedition with either cavalry or camelry . . . Allah is Able to do all things.' (59.6) So this property was especially granted to Allah's Apostle. But by Allah he neither withheld it from you, nor did he keep it for himself and deprive you of it, but he gave it all to you and distributed it among you till only this remained out of it. And out of this property Allah's Apostle used to provide his family with their yearly needs, and whatever remained, he would spend where Allah's Property (the revenues of Zakat) used to be spent. Allah's Apostle kept on acting like this throughout his lifetime. Now I beseech you by Allah, do you know that?" They said, "Yes." Then `Umar said to `Ali and `Abbas, "I beseech you by Allah, do you both know that?" They said, "Yes." `Umar added, "When Allah had taken His Apostle unto Him, Abu Bakr said, 'I am the successor of Allah's Apostle. So he took charge of that property and did with it the same what Allah's Apostle used to do, and both of you knew all about it then." Then `Umar turned towards `Ali and `Abbas and said, "You both claim that Abu- Bakr was so-and-so! But Allah knows that he was honest, sincere, pious and right (in that matter). Then Allah caused Abu Bakr to die, and I said, 'I am the successor of Allah's Apostle and Abu Bakr.' So I kept this property in my possession for the first two years of my rule, and I used to do the same with it as Allah's Apostle and Abu Bakr used to do. Later both of you (`Ali and `Abbas) came to me with the same claim and the same problem. (O `Abbas!) You came to me demanding your share from (the inheritance of) the son of your brother, and he (`Ali) came to me demanding his wives share from (the inheritance of) her father. So I said to you, 'If you wish I will hand over this property to you, on condition that you both promise me before Allah that you will manage it in the same way as Allah's Apostle and Abu Bakr did, and as I have done since the beginning of my rule; otherwise you should not speak to me about it.' So you both said, 'Hand over this property to us on this condition.' And on this condition I handed it over to you. I beseech you by Allah, did I hand it over to them on that condition?" The group said, "Yes." `Umar then faced `Ali and `Abbas and said, "I beseech you both by Allah, did I hand it over to you both on that condition?" They both said, "Yes." `Umar added, "Do you want me now to give a decision other than that? By Him with Whose permission (order) both the Heaven and the Earth stand fast, I will never give any decision other than that till the Hour is established! But if you are unable to manage it (that property), then return it to me and I will be sufficient for it on your behalf . "

Men from the companions of Allah's Apostle used to see dreams during the lifetime of Allah's Apostle and they used to narrate those dreams to Allah's Apostle. Allah's Apostle would interpret them as Allah wished. I was a young man and used to stay in the mosque before my wedlock. I said to myself, "If there were any good in myself, I too would see what these people see." So when I went to bed one night, I said, "O Allah! If you see any good in me, show me a good dream." So while I was in that state, there came to me (in a dream) two angels. In the hand of each of them, there was a mace of iron, and both of them were taking me to Hell, and I was between them, invoking Allah, "O Allah! I seek refuge with You from Hell." Then I saw myself being confronted by another angel holding a mace of iron in his hand. He said to me, "Do not be afraid, you will be an excellent man if you only pray more often." So they took me till they stopped me at the edge of Hell, and behold, it was built inside like a well and it had side posts like those of a well, and beside each post there was an angel carrying an iron mace. I saw therein many people hanging upside down with iron chains, and I recognized therein some men from the Quraish. Then (the angels) took me to the right side. I narrated this dream to (my sister) Hafsa and she told it to Allah's Apostle. Allah's Apostle said, "No doubt, `Abdullah is a good man." (Nafi` said, "Since then `Abdullah bin `Umar used to pray much.)

`Abdullah bin `Umar said, "Once Allah's Apostle was busy (at the time of the `Isha'), so the prayer was delayed so much so that we slept and woke up and slept and woke up again. The Prophet came out and said, 'None amongst the dwellers of the earth but you have been waiting for the prayer." Ibn `Umar did not find any harm in praying it earlier or in delaying it unless he was afraid that sleep might overwhelm him and he might miss the prayer, and sometimes he used to sleep before the `Isha' prayer. Ibn Juraij said, "I said to `Ata', 'I heard Ibn `Abbas saying: Once Allah's Apostle delayed the `Isha' prayer to such an extent that the people slept and got up and slept again and got up again. Then `Umar bin Al-Khattab I, stood up and reminded the Prophet I of the prayer.' `Ata' said, 'Ibn `Abbas said: The Prophet came out as if I was looking at him at this time, and water was trickling from his head and he was putting his hand on his head and then said, 'Hadn't I thought it hard for my followers, I would have ordered them to pray (`Isha' prayer) at this time.' I asked `Ata' for further information, how the Prophet had kept his hand on his head as he was told by Ibn `Abbas. `Ata' separated his fingers slightly and put their tips on the side of the head, brought the fingers downwards approximating them till the thumb touched the lobe of the ear at the side of the temple and the beard on the face. He neither slowed nor hurried in this action but he acted like that. The Prophet said: "Hadn't I thought it hard for my followers I would have ordered them to pray at this time."

There was a dispute amongst the people of the tribe of Bani `Amr bin `Auf. The Prophet went to them along with some of his companions in order to make peace between them. The time for the prayer became due but the Prophet did not turn up; Bilal pronounced the Adhan (i.e. call) for the prayer but the Prophet did not turn up, so Bilal went to Abu Bakr and said, "The time for the prayer is due and the Prophet i detained, would you lead the people in the prayer?" Abu Bakr replied, "Yes, you wish." So, Bilal pronounced the Iqama of the prayer and Abu Bakr went ahead (to lead the prayer), but the Prophet came walking among the rows till he joined the first row. The people started clapping and they clapped too much, and Abu Bakr used not to look hither and thither in the prayer, but he turned round and saw the Prophet standing behind him. The Prophet beckoned him with his hand to keep on praying where he was. Abu Bakr raised his hand and praised Allah and then retreated till he came in the (first) row, and the Prophet went ahead and lead the people in the prayer. When the Prophet finished the prayer, he turned towards the people and said, "O people! When something happens to you during the prayer, you start clapping. Really clapping is (permissible) for women only. If something happens to one of you in his prayer, he should say: 'Subhan Allah', (Glorified be Allah), for whoever hears him (saying so) will direct his attention towards him. O Abu Bakr! What prevented you from leading the people in the prayer when I beckoned to you (to continue)?" Abu Bakr replied, "It did not befit the son of Abu Quhafa to lead the prayer in front of the Prophet.

Safinah AbuAbdurRahman said that a man prepared food for Ali ibn AbuTalib who was his guest, and Fatimah said: I wish we had invited the Messenger of Allah (saws) and he had eaten with us. They invited him, and when he came he put his hands on the side-ports of the door, but when he saw the figured curtain which had been put at the end of the house, he went away. So Fatimah said to Ali: Follow him and see what turned him back. I (Ali) followed him and asked: What turned you back, Messenger of Allah? He replied: It is not fitting for me or for any Prophet to enter a house which is decorated.

Zaynab, the wife of Abdullah ibn Mas'ud, told that Abdullah said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (saws) saying: spells, charms and love-potions are polytheism.

I asked: Why do you say this? I swear by Allah, when my eye was discharging I used to go to so-and-so, the Jew, who applied a spell to me. When he applied the spell to me, it calmed down. Abdullah said:

That was just the work of the Devil who was picking it with his hand, and when he uttered the spell on it, he desisted. All you need to do is to say as the Messenger of Allah (saws) used to say: Remove the harm, O Lord of men, and heal. Thou art the Healer. There is no remedy but Thine which leaves no disease behind.