Allah's Apostle said, "Allah said:-- 'The son of Adam tells a lie against Me and he hasn't the right to do so; and he abuses me and he hasn't the right to do so. His telling a lie against Me is his saying that I will not recreate him as I created him for the first time; and his abusing Me is his saying that Allah has begotten children, while I am the self-sufficient Master, Whom all creatures need, Who begets not nor was He begotten, and there is none like unto Me."

The Prophet divided and distributed something as he used to do for some of his distributions. A man from the Ansar said, "By Allah, in this division the pleasure of Allah has not been intended." I said, "I will definitely tell this to the Prophet ." So I went to him while he was sitting with his companions and told him of it secretly. That was hard upon the Prophet and the color of his face changed, and he became so angry that I wished I had not told him. The Prophet then said, "Moses was harmed with more than this, yet he remained patient."

A bedouin came to Allah's Apostle and said, "My wife has delivered a black child." The Prophet said to him, "Have you camels?" He replied, "Yes." The Prophet said, "What color are they?" He replied, "They are red." The Prophet further asked, "Are any of them gray in color?" He replied, "Yes." The Prophet asked him, "Whence did that grayness come?" He said, "I thing it descended from the camel's ancestors." Then the Prophet said (to him), "Therefore, this child of yours has most probably inherited the color from his ancestors."

When the (following) Verse was revealed to Allah's Apostle: 'Say: He has power to send torment on you from above,'..(6.65) he said, "O Allah! I seek refuge with Your Face (from that punishment)." And when this was revealed: '..or from beneath your feet.' (6.65) he said, "O Allah! I seek refuge with Your Face (from that)." And when this Verse was revealed: '..or to cover you with confusion in partystrife, and make you to taste the violence of one another,'...(6.65) he said: "These two warnings are easier (than the previous ones).

That one night Allah's Apostle visited him and Fatima, the daughter of Allah's Apostle and said to them, "Won 't you offer (night) prayer?.. `Ali added: I said, "O Allah's Apostle! Our souls are in the Hand of Allah and when He Wishes to bring us to life, He does." Then Allah's Apostle went away when I said so and he did not give any reply. Then I heard him on leaving while he was striking his thighs, saying, 'But man is, more quarrelsome than anything.' (18.54)

Yahya related to me from Malik from Hisham ibn Urwa from his father that A'isha, the wife of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, told him that she had never seen the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, doing night prayers sitting down until he was getting on in years. He would recite sitting down until when he wanted to go into ruku, he would stand up and recite about thirty or forty ayats and then go into ruku.

Yahya related to me from Malik from Yahya ibn Said from an-Numan ibn Murra that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said,"What about drunkenness, stealing and adultery? "That was before anything had been revealed about them. They said, "Allah and His Messenger know best." He said, "They are excesses and in them is a punishment. And the worst of thieves is the one who steals his prayer." They said, "How does he steal his prayer, Messenger of Allah?" He replied, "He does not do ruku or sajda properly."

Ibn 'Abbas narrated from al-Fadl b. Abbas (Allah be pleased with them) who sat behind Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) that he (the Holy Prophet) said to the people on the evening of 'Arafa and on the morning to the gathering of people (at Muzdalifa) as they were pushing on to proceed slowly. And he himself drove his she-camel with restraint until he entered Muhassir (it is a place in Mina), and further told them to take up pebbles which were to be thrown at Jamra. And Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) continued pronouncing Talbiya till he stoned the Jamra.

From Qatadah, that Anas said: "The Messenger of Allah (saws) never ate on a table, nor on small plates, not did he eat thin bread." He (Yunus) said: "I asked Qatadah: 'So what did he eat on ?' He said: 'On these leather dining sheets.'"

[Abu 'Eisa said:] This Hadith is Hasan Gharib. Muhammad bin Bash-har said: "This Yunus is Yunus Al-Iskaf." And 'Abdul-Warith bin Sa'eed reported similarly from Sa'eed bin Abi 'Arubah, from Qatadah, from Anas [From the Prophet (saws)].

"I heard Ibn Abi Laila narrating that Hudhaifah asked for water, so someone brought him a vessel made from silver. He threw it, and said: 'I have indeed forbade him, but he refused to stop! Indeed the Messenger of Allah (saws) prohibited drinking from silver and gold vessels, and from wearing silk and Dibaj, and he (saws) said: "If is for them in this world, and for you in the Hereafter."

He said: There are narrations on this topic from Umm Salamah, Al-Bara', and 'Aishah.

[Abu 'Eisa said:] This Hadith is Hasan Sahih.

From his father, from his grandfather, that he went with the Messenger of Allah (saws) to the Musalla, and he saw the people doing business so he said: 'O people of trade!' and they replied to the Messenger of Allah (saws) turning their necks and their gazes towards him, and he said: Indeed the merchants will be resurrected on the Day of judgement with the wicked, except the one who has Taqwa of Allah, who behaves charitably and is truthful.'"

[Abu 'Eisa said:] This Hadith is Hasan Sahih. And they also say Isma'il bin 'Ubaidullah bin Rifa'ah.

"The Messenger of Allah (saws) took a camel of a particular age on loan. He gave back to him a camel of a better age than the one he was given. He said: 'The best among you is the best in repaying.'"

He said: There is something on this topic from Abu Rafi'.

[Abu 'Eisa said:] The Hadith of Abu Hurairah is a Hasan Sahih Hadith. Shu'bah and Sufyan reported it from Salamah.

This is acted upon according to some of the people of knowledge, they saw no harm is taking a camel of a particular age as a loan. This is the view of Ash-Shafi'i, Ahmad, and Ishaq. But some of them disliked that.

Marthad ibn Abdullah said: When AbuAyyub came upon us to fight the infidels and in those days Uqbah ibn Amir was the Governor of Egypt, he (Uqbah) delayed the sunset prayer. Hence AbuAyyub stood and said: What kind of prayer is this, Uqbah? He said: We were busy. He said: Did you not hear the Messenger of Allah (saws) say: My community will remain well, or he said: will remain on its natural condition, so long as it would not delay the evening prayer until the stars shine brightly just like a network.

AbuMuhammad fancies that witr prayer is essential. (Hearing this) Ubadah ibn as-Samit said: AbuMuhammad was wrong. I bear witness that I heard the Messenger of Allah (saws) say: Allah, the Exalted, has made five prayers obligatory. If anyone performs ablution for them well, offers them at their (right) time, and observes perfectly their bowing and submissiveness in them, it is the guarantee of Allah that He will pardon him; if anyone does not do so, there is no guarantee for him on the part of Allah; He may pardon him if He wills, and punish him if He wills.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) taught me and what he taught me is this: Observe the five prayers regularly. He said: I told (him): I have many works at these times; so give me a comprehensive advice which, if I follow, should be enough for me. He said: Observe the two afternoon prayers (al-asrayn). But the term al-asrayn (two afternoon prayers) was not used in our language. Hence I said: What is al-asrayn? He said: A prayer before the sunrise and a prayer before the sunset (i.e. the dawn and the afternoon prayers).

AbdurRahman ibn Ka'b ibn Malik said: When Ka'b ibn Malik heard the call to prayer on Friday, he prayed for As'ad ibn Zurarah. I asked him: What is the matter that when you hear the call to prayer, you pray for As'ad ibn Zurarah? He replied: This is because he held the Friday prayer for the first time for us at Hazm an-Nabit of Harrah belonging to Banu Bayadah in Naqi', called Naqi' al-Khadumat. I asked him: How many were you at that time ? He said: Forty.

"I saw Ibn Rafi' [and he is 'Ubaidullah bin Abi Rafi', the freed slave of the Messenger of Allah (saws) - and Aslam was the name of Ibn Abi Rafi] wearing a ring on his right, so I asked him about that. He said, 'I saw 'Abdullah bin Ja'far wearing a ring on his right hand, and he ['Abdullah bin Ja'far] said: "The Messenger of Allah (saws) wore a ring on his right hand."

He said: Muhammad [bin Isma'il] said: "This is the most correct thing related from the Prophet (saws) on this topic."

I asked `Abdullah bin `Amr, "What was the worst thing the pagans did to Allah's Apostle?" He said, "I saw `Uqba bin Abi Mu'ait coming to the Prophet while he was praying.' `Uqba put his sheet round the Prophet's neck and squeezed it very severely. Abu Bakr came and pulled `Uqba away from the Prophet and said, "Do you intend to kill a man just because he says: 'My Lord is Allah, and he has brought forth to you the Evident Signs from your Lord?"

`Umar bin Al-Khattab came on the day of Al-Khandaq after the sun had set and he was abusing the infidels of Quraish saying, "O Allah's Apostle! I was unable to offer the (`Asr) prayer till the sun was about to set." The Prophet said, "By Allah, I have not offered this (i.e. `Asr) prayer." So we came down along with the Prophet to Buthan where he performed ablution for the prayer and then we performed the ablution for it. Then he offered the `Asr prayer after the sun had set, and after it he offered the Maghrib prayer.

Whenever Ibn `Umar recited the Qur'an, he would not speak to anyone till he had finished his recitation. Once I held the Qur'an and he recited Surat-al-Baqara from his memory and then stopped at a certain Verse and said, "Do you know in what connection this Verse was revealed? " I replied, "No." He said, "It was revealed in such-and-such connection." Ibn `Umar then resumed his recitation. Nafi` added regarding the Verse:--"So go to your tilth when or how you will" Ibn `Umar said, "It means one should approach his wife in .."

Abu Talhah said “When the Apostle of Allaah(saws) prevailed on any people, he stayed three nights in the field. Ibn Al Muthanna said “When he prevailed over people, he liked to stay three nights in the field.”

Abu Dawud said “Yahya bin Sa’id used to object to this tradition for this is not from his early traditions because his memory was spoiled at the age of forty five. He narrated this tradition in the last days of his age.”

Abu Dawud said “ It is said that Waki ‘ recived this tradition from him when his memory was spoiled.”

Malik said, The best of what I have heard about a mukatab whose master frees him at death, is that the mukatab is valued according to what he would fetch if he were sold. If that value is less than what remains against him of his kitaba, his freedom is taken from the third that the deceased can bequeath. One does not look at the number of dirhams which remain against him in his kitaba. That is because had he been killed, his killer would not be in debt for other than his value on the day he killed him. Had he been injured, the one who injured him would not be liable for other than the blood-money of the injury on the day of his injury. One does not look at how much he has paid of dinars and dirhams of the contract he has written because he is a slave as long as any of his kitaba remains. If what remains in his kitaba is less than his value, only whatever of his kitaba remains owing from him is taken into account in the third of the property of the deceased. That is because the deceased left him what remains of his kitaba and so it becomes a bequest which the deceased made."

Malik said, "The illustration of that is that if the price of the mukatab is one thousand dirhams, and only one hundred dirhams remain of his kitaba, his master leaves him the one hundred dirhams which complete it for him. It is taken into account in the third of his master and by it he becomes free."

Malik said that if a man wrote his slave a kitaba at his death, the value of the slave was estimated. If there was enough to cover the price of the slave in one third of his property, that was permitted for him.

Malik said, "The illustration of that is that the price of the slave is one thousand dinars. His master writes him a kitaba for two hundred dinars at his death. The third of the property of his master is one thousand dinars, so that is permitted for him. It is only a bequest which he makes from one third of his property. If the master has left bequests to people, and there is no surplus in the third after the value of the mukatab, one begins with the mukatab because the kitaba is setting free, and setting free has priority over bequests. When those bequests are paid from the kitaba of the mukatab, they follow it. The heirs of the testator have a choice. If they want to give the people with bequests all their bequests and the kitaba of the mukatab is theirs, they have that. If they refuse and hand over the mukatab and what he owes to the people with bequests they can do that, because the third commences with the mukatab and because all the bequests which he makes are as one."

If the heirs then say, "What our fellow bequeathed was more than one third of his property and he has taken what was not his," Malik said, "His heirs choose. It is said to them, 'Your companion has made the bequests you know about and if you would like to give them to those who are to receive them according to the deceased's bequests, then do so. If not, hand over to the people with bequests one third of the total property of the deceased.' "

Malik continued, "If the heirs surrender the mukatab to the people with bequests, the people with bequests have what he owes of his kitaba. If the mukatab pays what he owes of his kitaba, they take that in their bequests according to their shares. If the mukatab cannot pay, he is a slave of the people with bequests and does not return to the heirs because they gave him up when they made their choice, and because when he was surrendered to the people with bequests, they were liable. If he died, they would not have anything against the heirs. If the mukatab dies before he pays his kitaba and he leaves property which is more than what he owes, his property goes to the people with bequests. If the mukatab pays what he owes, he is free and his wala' returns to the paternal relations of the one who wrote the kitaba for him."

Malik spoke about a mukatab who owed his master ten thousand dirhams in his kitaba, and when he died he remitted one thousand dirhams from it. He said, "The mukatab is valued and his value is taken into consideration. If his value is one thousand dirhams and the reduction is a tenth of the kitaba, that portion of the slave's price is one hundred dirhams. It is a tenth of the price. A tenth of the kitaba is therefore reduced for him. That is converted to a tenth of the price in cash. That is as if he had had all of what he owed reduced for him. Had he done that, only the value of the slave - one thousand dirhams - would have been taken into account in the third of the property of the deceased. If that which he had remitted is half of the kitaba, half the price is taken into account in the third of the property of the deceased. If it is more or less than that, it is according to this reckoning."

Malik said, "When a man reduces the kitaba of his mukatab by one thousand dirhams at his death from a kitaba of ten thousand dirhams, and he does not stipulate whether it is from the beginning or the end of his kitaba, each instalment is reduced for him by one tenth."

Malik said, "If a man remits one thousand dirhams from his mukatab at his death from the beginning or end of his kitaba, and the original basis of the kitaba is three thousand dirhams, the mukatab's cash value is estimated. Then that value is divided. That thousand which is from the beginning of the kitaba is converted into its portion of the price according to its proximity to the term and its precedence and then the thousand which follows the first thousand is according to its precedence also until it comes to its end, and every thousand is paid according to its place in advancing and deferring the term because what is deferred of that is less in respect of its price. Then it is placed in the third of the deceased according to whatever of the price befalls that thousand according to the difference in preference of that, whether it is more or less, then it is according to this reckoning."

Malik spoke about a man who willed a man a fourth of a mukatab or freed a fourth, and then the man died and the mukatab died and left a lot of property, more than he owed. He said, "The heirs of the first master and the one who was willed a fourth of the mukatab are given what they are still owed by the mukatab. Then they divide what is left over, and the one willed a fourth has a third of what is left after the kitaba is paid. The heirs of his master gets two-thirds. That is because the mukatab is a slave as long as any of his kitaba remains to be paid. He is inherited from by the possession of his person."

Malik said about a mukatab whose master freed him at death, "If the third of the deceased will not cover him, he is freed from it according to what the third will cover and his kitaba is decreased according to that. If the mukatab owed five thousand dirhams and his value is two thousand dirhams cash, and the third of the deceased is one thousand dirhams, half of him is freed and half of the kitaba has been reduced for him." Malik said about a man who said in his will, "My slave so-and-so is free and write a kitaba for so-and- so", that the setting free had priority over the kitaba.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) commissioned me as a collector of zakat. I visited a man. When he had collected his property of camels, I found that a she-camel in her second year was due from him.

I said to him: Pay a she-camel in her second year, for she is to be paid as sadaqah (zakat) by you.

He said: That one is not worthy of milking and riding. Here is another she-camel which is young, grand and fat. So take it.

I said to him: I shall not take an animal for which I have not been commanded. The Messenger of Allah (saws) is here near to you. If you like, go to him, and present to him what you presented to me. Do that; if he accepts it from you, I shall accept it; if he rejects it, I shall reject it.

He said: I shall do it. He accompanied me and took with him the she-camel which he had presented to me. We came to the Messenger of Allah (saws). He said to him: Prophet of Allah, your messenger came to me to collect zakat on my property. By Allah, neither the Messenger of Allah nor his messenger has ever seen my property before. I gathered my property (camels), and he estimated that a she-camel in her second year would be payable by me. But that has neither milk nor is it worth riding. So I presented to him a grand young she-camel for acceptance as zakat. But he has refused to take her. Look, she is here; I have brought her to you, Messenger of Allah. Take her.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: That is what is due from you. If you give voluntarily a better (animal) Allah will give a reward to you for it. We accept her from you.

She is here, Messenger of Allah; I have brought her to you. So take her. The Messenger of Allah (saws) then ordered me to take possession of it, and he prayed for a blessing on his property.

(This is Ma'mar's version which is more accurate.) A man and a woman of the Jews committed fornication.

Some of them said to the others: Let us go to this Prophet, for he has been sent with an easy law. If he gives a judgment lighter than stoning, we shall accept it, and argue about it with Allah, saying: It is a judgment of one of your prophets. So they came to the Prophet (saws) who was sitting in the mosque among his companions.

They said: AbulQasim, what do you think about a man and a woman who committed fornication? He did not speak to them a word till he went to their school.

He stood at the gate and said: I adjure you by Allah Who revealed the Torah to Moses, what (punishment) do you find in the Torah for a person who commits fornication, if he is married?

They said: He shall be blackened with charcoal, taken round a donkey among the people, and flogged. A young man among them kept silent.

When the Prophet (saws) emphatically adjured him, he said: By Allah, since you have adjured us (we inform you that) we find stoning in the Torah (is the punishment for fornication).

The Prophet (saws) said: So when did you lessen the severity of Allah's command? He said:

A relative of one of our kings had committed fornication, but his stoning was suspended. Then a man of a family of common people committed fornication. He was to have been stoned, but his people intervened and said: Our man shall not be stoned until you bring your man and stone him. So they made a compromise on this punishment between them.

The Prophet (saws) said: So I decide in accordance with what the Torah says. He then commanded regarding them and they were stoned to death.

Az-Zuhri said: We have been informed that this verse was revealed about them: "It was We Who revealed the Law (to Moses): therein was guidance and light. By its standard have been judged the Jews, by the Prophet who bowed (as in Islam) to Allah's will.

On the authority of his father (Sa'd) and his grandfather (Dumayrah) (according to Musa's version) who were present in the battle of Hunayn with the Messenger of Allah (saws): After the advent of Islam, Muhallam ibn Jaththamah al-Laythi killed a man of Ashja'.

That was the first blood-money decided by the Messenger of Allah (saws) (for payment). Uyaynah spoke about the killing of al-Ashja'i, for he belonged to Ghatafan, and al-Aqra' ibn Habis spoke on behalf of Muhallam, for he belonged to Khunduf. The voices rose high, and the dispute and noise grew.

So the Messenger of Allah (saws) said: Do you not accept blood-money, Uyaynah?

Uyaynah then said: No, I swear by Allah, until I cause his women to suffer the same fighting and grief as he caused my women to suffer. Again the voices rose high, and the dispute and noise grew.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: Do you not accept the blood-money Uyaynah? Uyaynah gave the same reply as before, and a man of Banu Layth called Mukaytil stood up. He had a weapon and a skin shield in his hand.

He said: I do not find in the beginning of Islam any illustration for what he has done except the one that "some sheep came on, and those in the front were shot; hence those in the rear ran away". (The other example is that) "make a law today and change it."

The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: Fifty (camels) here immediately and fifty when we return to Medina. This happened during some of his journeys. Muhallam was a tall man of dark complexion. He was with the people. They continued (to make effort for him) until he was released. He sat before the Messenger of Allah (saws), with his eyes flowing.

He said: Messenger of Allah! I have done (the act) of which you have been informed. I repent to Allah, the Exalted, so ask Allah's forgiveness for me. Messenger of Allah!

The Messenger of Allah (saws) then said: Did you kill him with your weapon at the beginning of Islam. O Allah! do not forgive Muhallam. He said these words loudly.

AbuSalamah added: He (Muhallam) then got up while he was wiping his tears with the end of his garment.

Ibn Ishaq said: His people alleged that the Messenger of Allah (saws) asked forgiveness for him after that.

Abu Dawud said: Al-Nadr b. Shumail said: al-ghiyar means blood-wit.

Yahya related to me from Malik that it reached him that a slave of Abdullah ibn Umar escaped and one of his horses wandered off, and the idol worshippers seized them. Then the Muslims recaptured them, and they were returned to Abdullah ibn Umar, before the division of the spoils took place.

I heard Malik say about muslim property that had been seized by the enemy, "If it is noticed before the distribution, then it is returned to itsowner. Whatever has already been distributed is not returned to anyone."

Malik, when asked about a man whose young male slave was taken by the idol worshippers and then the Muslims re-captured him, said, "The owner is more entitled to him without having to pay his price or value or having to incur any loss before the distribution takes place. If the distribution has already taken place then I think that the slave belongs to his master for his price if the master wants him back."

Regarding an umm walad of a Muslim man who has been taken by the idol worshippers and then recaptured by the Muslims and allotted in the distribution of spoils and then recognised by her master after the distribution, Malik said, "She is not to be enslaved. I think that the Imam should pay a ransom for her for her master. If he does not do it, then her master must pay a ransom for her and not leave her. I do not think that she should be made a slave by whoever takes her and intercourse with her is not halal. She is in the position of a free woman because her master would be required to pay compensation if she injured somebody and so she is in the same position (as a wife). He must not leave the mother of his son to be enslaved nor may intercourse with her be made halal."

Malik was asked about a man who went to enemy territory to pay ransom or to trade, and he bought a free man or a slave, or they were given to him. He said, "As for the free man, the price he buys him for is a debt against the man and he is not made a slave. If the captive is given to him freely, he is free and owes nothing unless the man gave something in recompense for him. That is a debt against the free man, the same as if a ransom had been paid for him. As for a slave, his former master can choose to take him back and pay his price to the man who bought him or he can choose to leave him, as he wishes. If he was given to the man, the former master is more entitled to him, and he owes nothing for him unless the man gave something for him in recompense. Whatever he gave for him is a loss against the master if he wants him back."

Ahmad and Ishaq said: "When a man stands up after two Rak'ah, then he performs the prostrations for As-Sahw before the Salam according to the Hadith of Ibn Buhainah."

'Abdullah bin Buhainah is 'Abdullah bin Malik [so he is] Ibn Buhainah (because) Malik is his father and Buhainah is his mother.

I was informed of this by Ishaq bin Mansur from 'Ali [bin 'Abdullah] bin Al-Madini.

Abu 'Eisa said: The people of knowledge differ over when a man is to perform the prostrations of As-Sahw, is it before the Salam or after it. Some of them thought that her performs them after the Salam. This is the view of Sufyan Ath-Thawri and the people of Al-Kufah. Some of them said he performs them before the Salam. This is the view of most of the Fuqaha among the people of Al-Madinah, like Yahya bin Sa'eed, Rabi'ah, and others. This is also the saying of Ash-Shafi'i.

Some of them said when he adds to the Salat, then it is after the Salam, and when he leaves something out, then before the Salam. This is the view of Malik bin Anas.

Ahmad said: "Whatever is reported from the Prophet (saws) about the prostrations from As-Sahw then it is acted upon in either case." He saw that when one stands after Rak'ah then according to the Hadith of Ibn Buhainah, he is to perform the prostrations before the Salam. When he prays five for Zuhr, then performs the prostrations after the Salam, and if he says Salam after two Rak'ahs of Zuhr or 'Asr then he performs the prostrations after the Salam. All of them are to be acted upon depending upon the case, and in the cases where nothing is reported from the Prophet (saws), then two prostrations are performed for As-Sahw before the Salam.

Ishaq said the same as Ahmad about all of this, with the exception that he said that for every case of As-Sahw that is not mentioned from the Prophet (saws), then if it is an addition to the Salat, then prostrations are performed after the Salam, and if it is something that was left out, then the prostrations are performed before the Salam.

Yahya related to me from Malik that he had asked Ibn Shihab whether someone doing itikaf could go into a house to relieve himself, and he said, "Yes, there is no harm in that."

Malik said, "The situation that we are all agreed upon here is that there is no disapproval of anyone doing itikaf in a mosque where jumua is held. The only reason I see for disapproving of doing itikaf in a mosque where jumua is not held is that the man doing itikaf would have to leave the mosque where he was doing itikaf in order to go to jumua, or else not go there at all. If, however, he is doing itikaf in a mosque where jumua is not held, and he does not have to go to jumua in any other mosque, then I see no harm in him doing itikaf there, because Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, says, 'While you are doing itikaf in mosques,' and refers to all mosques in general, without specifying any particular kind."

Malik continued, "Accordingly, it is permissiblefor a man to do itikaf in a mosque where jumua is not held if he does not have to leave it to go to a mosque where jumua is held."

Malik said, "A person doing itikaf should spend the night only in the mosque where he is doing itikaf, except if his tent is in one of the courtyards of the mosque. I have never heard that someone doing itikaf can put up a shelter anywhere except in the mosque itself or in one of the courtyards of the mosque.

Part of what shows that he must spend the night in the mosque is the saying of A'isha, 'When the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was doing itikaf, he would only go into the house to relieve himself.' Nor should he do itikaf on the roof of the mosque or in the minaret."

Malik said, "The person who is going to do itikaf should enter the place where he wishes to do itikaf before the sun sets on the night when he wishes to begin his itikaf, so that he is ready to begin the itikaf at the beginning of the night when he is going to start his itikaf. A person doing itikaf should be occupied with his itikaf, and not turn his attention to other things which might occupy him, such as trading or whatever. There is no harm, however, if some one doing itikaf tells some one to do something for him regarding his estate, or the affairs of his family, or tells someone to sell some property of his, or something else that does not occupy him directly. There is no harm in him arranging for someone else to do that for him if it is a simple matter."

Malik said, "I have never heard any of the people of knowledge mentioning any modification as far as how to do itikaf is concerned. Itikaf is an act of ibada like the prayer, fasting, the hajj, and such like acts, whether they are obligatory or voluntary. Anyone who begins doing any of these acts should do them according to what has come down in the sunna. He should not start doing anything in them that the muslims have not done, whether it is a modification that he imposes on others, or one that he begins doing himself. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, practised itikaf, and the muslims know what the sunna of itikaf is."

Malik said, "Itikaf and jiwar are the same, and Itikaf is the same for a village-dweller as it is for a nomad."

The Prophet (saws) said: If the property of anyone is designed to be taken away without any right and he fights and is killed, he is a martyr.