The Messenger of Allah (saws) made a decision about a man who had intercourse with his wife's slave-girl as follows. If he forced her, she is free, and he shall give her mistress a slave-girl similar to her; if she asked him to have intercourse voluntarily, she will belong to him, and he shall give her mistress a slave-girl similar to her.

Abu Dawud said: This tradition has been transmitted by Yunus b. 'Ubaid, 'Amr b. Dinar, Mansur b. Zadhan and Salam from al-Hasan to the same effect. But yunus and Mansur did not mention Qabisah.

'Umar asked about the decision of the Prophet (saws) about that (i.e. abortion). Haml b. Malik b. al-Nabhigah got up and said: I was between two women. One of them struck another with a rolling-pin killing both her and what was in her womb. So the Messenger of Allah (saws) gave judgement that the bloodwit for the unborn child should be a male or a female slave of the best quality and the she should be killed.

Abu Dawud said: Al-Nadr b. Shumail said: Mistah means a rolling-pin.

Abu Dawud said: Abu 'Ubaid said: Mistah means a pole from the tent-poles.

This Verse: 'Verily We have sent you (O Muhammad) as a witness, as a bringer of glad tidings and as a warner.' (48.8) which is in the Qur'an, appears in the Torah thus: 'Verily We have sent you (O Muhammad) as a witness, as a bringer of glad tidings and as a warner, and as a protector for the illiterates (i.e., the Arabs.) You are my slave and My Apostle, and I have named you Al-Mutawakkil (one who depends upon Allah). You are neither hard-hearted nor of fierce character, nor one who shouts in the markets. You do not return evil for evil, but excuse and forgive. Allah will not take you unto Him till He guides through you a crocked (curved) nation on the right path by causing them to say: "None has the right to be worshipped but Allah." With such a statement He will cause to open blind eyes, deaf ears and hardened hearts.'

Yazid Maula Al-Munba'ith heard Zaid bin Khalid al-Juham saying, "The Prophet was asked about Luqata. He said, 'Remember the description of its container and the string it is tied with, and announce it publicly for one year.' " Yazid added, "If nobody claims then the person who has found it can spend it, and it is regarded as a trust entrusted to him." Yahya said, "I do not know whether the last sentences were said by the Prophet or by Yazid." Zaid further said, "The Prophet was asked, 'What about a lost sheep?' The Prophet said, 'Take it, for it is for you or for your brother (i.e. its owner) or for the wolf." Yazid added that it should also be announced publicly. The man then asked the Prophet about a lost camel. The Prophet said, "Leave it, as it has its feet, water container (reservoir), and it will reach a place of water and eat trees till its owner finds it."

`Uthman bin `Affan was afflicted with severe nose-bleeding in the year when such illness was prevelant and that prevented him from performing Hajj, and (because of it) he made his will. A man from Quraish came to him and said, "Appoint your successor." `Uthman asked, "Did the people name him? (i.e. the successor) the man said, "Yes." `Uthman asked, "Who is that?" The man remained silent. Another man came to `Uthman and I think it was Al-Harith. He also said, "Appoint your successor." `Uthman asked, "Did the people name him?" The man replied "Yes." `Uthman said, "Who is that?" The man remained silent. `Uthman said, "Perhaps they have mentioned Az-Zubair?" The man said, "Yes." `Uthman said, "By Him in Whose Hands my life is, he is the best of them as I know, and the dearest of them to Allah's Apostle ."

In Surat al-Muzzammil (73), the verse: "Keep vigil at night but a little, a half thereof" (2-3) has been abrogated by the following verse: "He knoweth that ye count it not, and turneth unto you in mercy. Recite then of the Qur'an that which is easy for you" (v.20). The phrase "the vigil of the night" (nashi'at al-layl) means the early hours of the night. They (the companions) would pray (the tahajjud prayer) in the early hours of the night.

He (Ibn Abbas) says: It is advisable to offer the prayer at night (tahajjud), prescribed by Allah for you (in the early hours of the night). This is because when a person sleeps, he does not know when he will awake. The words "speech more certain" (aqwamu qilan) means that this time is more suitable for the understanding of the Qur'an. He says: The verse: "Lo, thou hast by day a chain of business" (v.7) means engagement for long periods (in the day's work).

The Messenger of Allah (saws) sent us on foot to get spoil, but we returned without getting any. When he saw the signs of distress on our faces, he stood up on our faces and said: O Allah, do not put them under my care, for I would be too weak to care for them; do not put them in care of themselves, for they would be incapable of that, and do not put them in the care of men, for they would choose the best things for themselves. He then placed his hand on my head and said: Ibn Hawalah, when you see the caliphate has settled in the holy land, earthquakes, sorrows and serious matters will have drawn near and on that day the Last Hour will be nearer to mankind than this hand of mine is to your head.

Abu Dawud said: 'Abd Allah b. Hawalah belongs to Hims.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: An oath or a vow about something over which a human being has no control, and to disobey Allah, and to break ties of relationship is not binding. If anyone takes an oath and then considers something else better than it, he should give it up, and do what is better, for leaving it is its atonement.

Abu Dawud said: All sound traditions from the Prophet (saws) say: "He should make atonement for his oath," except those versions which are not reliable.

Abu Dawud said: I said to Ahmad: Yahya b. Sa'id (al-Qattan) has transmitted this tradition from Yahya b. 'Ubaid Allah. He (Ahmad b. Hanbal) said: But he gave it up after that, and he was competent for doing it. Ahmad said: His (Yahya b. 'Ubaid Allah's) tradition are munkar (rejected) and his father is not known.

Once I went with `Umar bin Al-Khattab to the market. A young woman followed `Umar and said, "O chief of the believers! My husband has died, leaving little children. By Allah, they have not even a sheep's trotter to cook; they have no farms or animals. I am afraid that they may die because of hunger, and I am the daughter of Khufaf bin Ima Al-Ghafari, and my father witnessed the Pledge of allegiance) of Al-Hudaibiya with the Prophet.' `Umar stopped and did not proceed, and said, "I welcome my near relative." Then he went towards a strong camel which was tied in the house, and carried on to it, two sacks he had loaded with food grains and put between them money and clothes and gave her its rope to hold and said, "Lead it, and this provision will not finish till Allah gives you a good supply." A man said, "O chief of the believers! You have given her too much." "`Umar said disapprovingly. "May your mother be bereaved of you! By Allah, I have seen her father and brother besieging a fort for a long time and conquering it, and then we were discussing what their shares they would have from that war booty."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr from his father that Abu Salama ibn Abd ar-Rahman told him that Umm Sulaym bint Milhan asked the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, for advice one time when she had begun menstruating, or had given birth to a child after she had done tawaf al-ifada on the Day of Sacrifice. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, gave her permission to leave.

Malik said, "A woman menstruating at Mina stays until she has done tawaf of the House. There is no escape from that for her. If she has already done the tawaf al-ifada and she starts to menstruate afterwards, she may leave for her country, since permission for the menstruating women to leave has been transmitted to us from the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace."

He added, "If a woman starts her period at Mina before she does the tawaf al-ifada, and the period lasts longer than usual, she has to stay longer than the time that bleeding would usually detain women."

Yahya related to me from Malik that Yahya ibn Said said that Muhammad ibn Ibrahim at-Taymi had informed him that Abu Salama ibn Abd ar-Rahman said "Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Aswad ibn Abdal-Yaghuth used to sit with us and he had a white beard and hair. One day he came to us and he had dyed them red, and the people said to him, 'This is better.' He said. 'A'isha the wife of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, sent her slave girl Nukhayla to me yesterday. She swore that my hair would be dyed and she informed me that Abu Bakr as- Siddiq used to dye his hair.' "

Yahya said that he heard Malik say about dyeing the hair black, 'I have not heard anything certain on that, and other colours than that are preferable to me."

Yahya said, "Not to dye at all is permitted, Allah willing, and there is no constraint on people concerning it."

Yahya said that he had heard Malik say, "There is no clear indication in this hadith that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, did not dye his hair. Had the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, dyed his hair, A'isha would have sent a message to that effect to Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Aswad."

When the Prophet came to Medina, he stayed first with his grandfathers or maternal uncles from Ansar. He offered his prayers facing Baitul-Maqdis (Jerusalem) for sixteen or seventeen months, but he wished that he could pray facing the Ka'ba (at Mecca). The first prayer which he offered facing the Ka'ba was the 'Asr prayer in the company of some people. Then one of those who had offered that prayer with him came out and passed by some people in a mosque who were bowing during their prayers (facing Jerusalem). He said addressing them, "By Allah, I testify that I have prayed with Allah's Apostle facing Mecca (Ka'ba).' Hearing that, those people changed their direction towards the Ka'ba immediately. Jews and the people of the scriptures used to be pleased to see the Prophet facing Jerusalem in prayers but when he changed his direction towards the Ka'ba, during the prayers, they disapproved of it.

Al-Bara' added, "Before we changed our direction towards the Ka'ba (Mecca) in prayers, some Muslims had died or had been killed and we did not know what to say about them (regarding their prayers.) Allah then revealed: And Allah would never make your faith (prayers) to be lost (i.e. the prayers of those Muslims were valid).' " (2:143).

That the Prophet inspected him on the day of Uhud while he was fourteen years old, and the Prophet did not allow him to take part in the battle. He was inspected again by the Prophet on the day of Al- Khandaq (i.e. battle of the Trench) while he was fifteen years old, and the Prophet allowed him to take Part in the battle.

On the day of Badr, Al-Miqdad said, "O Allah's Apostle! We do not say to you as the children of Israel said to Moses, 'Go you and your Lord and fight you two; we are sitting here, (5.24) but (we say). "Proceed, and we are with you." That seemed to delight Allah's Apostle greatly.

Once Allah's Apostle went out to answer the call of nature and I followed him with a tumbler containing water, and when he finished, I poured water and he performed ablution and passed wet hands over his Khuffs (socks made from thick fabric or leather).

On the day of Al-Hudaibiya, Allah's Apostle said to us' "You are the best people on the earth!" We were 1400 then. If I could see now, I would have shown you the place of the Tree (beneath which we gave the Pledge of Allegiance)." Salim said, "Our number was 1400."

Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that a man sneezed on the day of jumua while the imam was giving the khutba, and a man by his side asked Allah to bless him. Said ibn al Musayyab was asked about it and he forbade the man to do what he had done and said, "Don't do it again."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Hisham ibn Urwa from his father that A'isha, umm al-muminin said, "The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, used to pray thirteen rakas in the night and then would pray two rakas when he heard the adhan for the subh prayer."

`Abdullah bin `Umar said, "Allah's Apostle said, "Eat of the meat of sacrifices (of `Id al Adha) for three days." When `Abdullah departed from Mina, he used to eat (bread with) oil, lest he should eat of the meat of Hadi (which is regarded as unlawful after the three days of the `Id).

Allah's Apostle ordered us to do seven things and forbade us to do seven other things. He forbade us to wear gold rings, silk, Dibaj, Istabriq, Qissy, and Maithara; and ordered us to accompany funeral processions, visit the sick and greet everybody. (See Hadith No. 104)

We were in the company of the Prophet on the day (of the battle) of Al-Khandaq (the Trench). The Prophet said, "May Allah fill their (the infidels') graves and houses with fire, as they have kept us so busy that we could not offer the middle prayer till the sun had set; and that prayer was the `Asr prayer."

We were in the company of Allah's Apostle in (the battle of) Al-Khandaq, and he was digging the trench while we were carrying the earth away. He looked at us and said, "O Allah! There is no life worth living except the life of the Hereafter, so (please) forgive the Ansar and the Emigrants."

The companions of the Prophet said, "Some men from my companions will come to my Lake-Fount and they will be driven away from it, and I will say, 'O Lord, my companions!' It will be said, 'You have no knowledge of what they innovated after you left: they turned apostate as renegades (reverted from Islam).

An-Nu`man or the son of An-Nu`man was brought to the Prophet in a state of intoxication. The Prophet felt it hard (was angry) and ordered all those who were present in the house, to beat him. And they beat him, using palm-leaf stalks and shoes, and I was among those who beat him.

The Prophet (p.b.u.h) said, "It is better for anyone of you to take a rope (and cut) and bring a bundle of wood (from the forest) over his back and sell it and Allah will save his face (from the Hell-Fire) because of that, rather than to ask the people who may give him or not."

`Abdullah bin `Umar said, "Allah's Apostle said, 'The people of Medina should assume lhram from Dhul-Hulaifa; the people of Sham from Al-Juhfa; and the people of Najd from Qarn." And `Abdullah added, "I was informed that Allah's Apostle had said, 'The people of Yemen should assume Ihram from Yalamlam.' "

`Ali and `Uthman differed regarding Hajj-at-Tamattu` while they were at 'Usfan (a familiar place near Mecca). `Ali said, "I see you want to forbid people to do a thing that the Prophet did?" When `Ali saw that, he assumed Ihram for both Hajj and `Umra.

`Abdullah bin `Umar used to offer the Maghrib and `Isha' prayers together at Jam' (Al-Muzdalifa). But he used to pass by that mountain pass where Allah's Apostle went, and he would enter it and answer the call of nature and perform ablution, and would not offer any prayer till he had prayed at Jam.'

When `Abdullah, reached the big Jamra (i.e. Jamrat-ul-Aqaba) he kept the Ka`ba on the left side and Mina on his right side and threw seven pebbles (at the Jamra) and said, "The one on whom Surat-al- Baqara was revealed (i.e. the Prophet) had done the Rami similarly."

Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz decided in a case to make a reduction for crop damage.

Malik said, "That is what we do in the situation."

Malik added, "Crop damage is whatever causes loss of a third or more for the purchaser. Anything less is not counted as crop damage."

Malik related to me that he had heard that Fadala ibn Ubayd al- Ansari who was one of the companions of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was asked whether it was permissible for a man who had to free a slave to free an illegitimate child. He said, "Yes, That will give satisfaction for him."

Malik related to me from Nafi that a slave was in charge of the slaves in the khumus and he forced a slave-girl among those slaves against her will and had intercourse with her. Umar ibn al-Khattab had him flogged and banished him, and he did not flog the slave-girl because the slave had forced her.

[Abu 'Eisa said:] This Hadith is Hasan, we do not know it except from this route, a narration of Ath-Thawri from Abu Hamzah. Abu Hamzah's name is 'Abdullah bin Jabir, and he is a Shaikh from Al-Basrah.

That the Messenger of Allah (saws) said: "Whoever dies and he is free of three: Kibr (Pride), Ghulul, and debt, he will enter paradise."

There are narrations on this topic from Abu Hurairah and Zaid bin Khalid Al-Juhni

Footnote: Ghulul refers to goods stolen from the spoils of war, or concealed, before it is divided among the soldiers

I spent a night with my maternal aunt Maymunah. The Prophet (saws) got up to pray at night. He prayed thirteen rak'ahs including two rak'ahs of the dawn prayer. I guessed that he stood in every rak'ah as long as one could recite Surah al-Muzzammil (73).

I heard the Messenger of Allah (saws) say: The witr is a duty, so he who does not observe it does not belong to us; the witr is a duty, so he who does not observe it does not belong to us; the witr is a duty, so he who does not observe it does not belong to us.

I came to the Messenger of Allah (saws) when he was at Mina, or at Arafat. He was surrounded by the people. When the bedouins came and saw his face, they would say: This is a blessed face. He said: He (the Prophet) appointed Dhat Irq as the place of putting on ihram for the people of Iraq.