Da'eef (weak) hadeeths, Dought & clear, - * A false and fabricated hadith about the virtue of reciting Aayat al-Kursiy immediately after doing wudoo’

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How sound is this hadith?
“Whoever recites Aayat al-Kursiy after doing wudoo’, Allah will raise him forty degrees in status, and for each letter of its verses He will create for him an angel who will pray for forgiveness for him until the Day of Resurrection, and he will divert from him one thousand harms in this world and one thousand harms in the hereafter.”.
Praise be to Allah.
This hadith is false and fabricated. This report was narrated by ad-Daylami inMusnad al-Firdaws, and a similar report was narrated inKanz al-‘Ummaal(9/465), via Muqaatil ibn Sulaymaan: Fadl ibn ‘Ubayd told us, from Sufyaan ath-Thawri, from ‘Ubaydullah al-‘Umari, from Naafi‘, from Ibn ‘Umar, and attributed to the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him): “Whoever recites Aayat al-Kursiy after doing wudoo’, Allah will give him the reward of forty scholars, and raise him forty degrees in status, and give him in marriage forty of al-hoor al-‘iyn.” This is a fabricated isnaad. Muqaatil ibn Sulaymaan was a well-known liar. An-Nasaa’i said: The liars who were well known for fabricating hadith were: Ibn Abi Yahya in Madinah, al-Waaqidi in Baghdad, Muqaatil ibn Sulaymaan in Khurasaan, and Muhammad ibn Sa‘eed in Syria.
End quote fromMizaan al-I‘tidaal(3.562)
See:al-Fawaa’id al-Majmoo‘ah(p. 312);Tadhkirat al-Mawdoo‘aat(p. 79)
It was also narrated by Ibn Baabawayh inal-Majlis al-Haadi wa’l-‘Ishreen min Amaalihi(p. 7). He said:
Al-Husayn ibn Ahmad ibn Idrees told us: My father told me, from Muhammad ibn al-Husayn ibn Abi’l-Khattaab, from Muhammad ibn Abi ‘Umayr, from Ja‘far al-Azdi, from ‘Amr ibn Abi’l-Miqdaam: I heard Abu Ja‘far al-Baaqir (peace be upon him) say: “Whoever recites Aayat al-Kursiy once, Allah will divert from him one thousand harms of this world and one thousand harms of the hereafter; the easiest of harms in this world is poverty and the easiest of harms in the hereafter is the torment of the grave.”
In addition to the fact that it is not stated clearly here that these are the words of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) or of any of his companions – rather the isnaad ends with Abu Ja‘far al-Baaqir (who died sometime after 110 AH) – the isnaad t him is also worthless, as ‘Amr ibn Abi’l-Miqdaam is a worthless Raafidi. Ibn al-Ma‘een said: He is nothing. And on one occasion he said: He is not trustworthy or reliable. An-Nasaa’i said: His hadith is to be rejected. Ibn Hibbaan said: He narrates fabricated reports.
See:Mizaan al-I‘tidaal(3/249)
In addition to its isnaad being flimsy, it is also munkar (odd) in terms of its text, especially the version that was quoted by the questioner, because it contains this obvious exaggeration, and because it says in it: “and for each letter of its verses He will create for him an angel who will pray for forgiveness for him until the Day of Resurrection.”
These words are false, because the apparent meaning suggests that the Qur’an is created, but the Qur’an is the word of Allah and is not created, as is the belief ofAhl as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamaa‘ah.
The hadiths which speak of the virtues of Aayat al-Kursiy, and what is to be said following wudoo’, are very well known; they are sufficient and the Muslim has no need of these false reports.
Please see also the answers to questions no. 6092and 129501
What should be relied on in this regard is the well-known books of dhikr, such asal-Adkhaarby an-Nawawi,Saheeh al-Kalim at-Tayyibby al-Albaani, and Husn al-Muslim by al-Qahtaani [available in English asFortress of the Muslim].
No attention should be paid to that which people pass around in chat rooms and on websites, not paying attention to verification of reports.
And Allah knows best.

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Da'eef (weak) hadeeths, Dought & clear, - * The hadith about the sheep eating the page containing the verse about stoning and breast feeding in the house of‘Aa’ishah is not saheeh

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There is this hadith that a Christian is posting in Internet forums. It is hadith no. 1944 in Sunan Ibn Maajah, Kitaab an-Nikaah, which has to do with a goat eating the Qur’an. It was posted in a forum for discussion between Muslims and Christians. I would like to know the whole story about this matter and its history.
Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
Talking about the hadith mentioned in the question requires a little detail from specialists in the study of hadith. It is not sufficient to give a general answer or an answer based only on one’s personal view of the matter. Therefore we hope that the questioner will learn and pay attention to the way in which we will trace different versions of the hadith, with different chains of narrators. Thus the facts about it will become clear, in sha Allah.
All versions of the hadith are based on the following chain of narrators:
‘Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr ibn Hazm, from ‘Amrah bint ‘Abd ar-Rahmaan, from ‘Aa’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her). The isnaad ends with her and does not go back to the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah upon him).
The hadith was taken from ‘Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr by a number of narrators and their narrations are as follows:
1.
It was narrated by Yahya ibn Sa‘eed al-Ansaari. His version says: It was revealed in the Qur’an that ten definite breastfeedings are required (to establish the relationship of mahram), then it was also revealed that five definite breastfeedings are required.
This was narrated by Imam Muslim in hisSaheeh(no. 1452) and others. We may note that this version does not say anything about the story of the goat or tame sheep eating any of the pages of the Holy Qur’an.
2.
It was narrated by Imam Maalik (may Allah have mercy on him). His version says: Among that which was revealed of the Qur’an was the ruling that those ten definite breastfeedings are required to establish the relationship of mahram, then that was abrogated and replaced with five definite breastfeedings. When the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) died, this was among the things that were recited in the Qur’an.
This was narrated by Maalik inal-Muwatta’(Kitaab ar-Ridaa‘, hadith no. 17), and via him by Imam Muslim (1452) and others. We may note here that the report of Imam Maalik from ‘Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr also does not include any mention of the story of the goat or tame sheep eating anything of the Mus-haf. Rather one sentence is added to it at the end: When the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) died, this was among the things that were recited in the Qur’an.
3.
It was narrated by Muhammad ibn Ishaaq. His version says: The verse of stoning and breastfeeding of an adult ten times was revealed, and it was written on a leaf that was kept beneath a bed in my [‘Aa’ishah’s] house. When the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) fell sick, we were preoccupied with his situation, and a little animal of ours came in and ate it.
This was narrated by Imam Ahmad inal-Musnad(43/343), and Ibn Maajah inas-Sunan(no. 1944); the latter version says: When the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) died, we were preoccupied with his death, and a tame sheep came in and ate it.
As you can see, this version does mention the odd phrase that is additional to what was narrated by the two great imams, Yahya ibn Sa‘eed al-Ansaari and Maalik ibn Anas (may Allah have mercy on them both). This is what the questioner referred to in his question. In this version of the hadith it says that a tame sheep – which is a sheep that people feed in their homes – came in and ate the page that contained the verse of stoning and the verse of breastfeeding an adult.
This difference was sufficient for the scholars of hadith to rule that the version narrated by Muhammad ibn Ishaaq was da‘eef (weak), and that it was to be rejected and regarded as odd. In their view, the odd hadith is any hadith in which a trustworthy narrator differed with that which was narrated by other trustworthy narrators who were more accurate than him in the narration or were greater in number. This is a sound academic principle, because how can one narrator have additional wording in a hadith that others also narrated from the original narrators, when the latter are greater in number, more accurate in memory and narration, and of higher status in knowledge of hadith? Why didn’t they also narrate this additional or different material? Is there any other way to understand what happened, except by referring to that rule in order to know where some narrators differed in their narration and included some odd material in it? If that is not the case (and you do not want to refer to that rule), then how could this debater convince us that Muhammad ibn Ishaaq learned of the hadith of ‘Aa’ishah that which both Yahya ibn Sa‘eed al-Ansaari and Maalik ibn Anas had forgotten, when they were both leading scholars and senior figures in their field? In fact Sufyaan ath-Thawri (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Yahya ibn Sa‘eed al-Ansaari was, in the view of the people of Madinah, of a higher standard in the field of hadith than az-Zuhri. ‘Ali ibn al-Madeeni regarded him as one of the most authentic and trustworthy narrators of hadith, and one of those concerning whom one would have no sense of unease with their hadith at all. Ahmad ibn Hanbal said concerning him: He is one of the most accurate in narration. Wuhayb said: I came to Madinah and I did not see anyone but you might feel comfortable with some of what they narrated and have reservations about other reports of theirs, except Maalik and Yahya ibn Sa‘eed (i.e., all of their reports could be accepted without reservation).
See:Tahdheeb at-Tahdheeb(11/223)
So how about if we know that Muhammad ibn Ishaaq is criticised by some scholars of hadith, and there were some mistakes that were noted in his narrations, and it was noted that he differed in some of his narrations from the narration of some leading trustworthy scholars? We cannot accept the narration of such a person if it differs from the narration of other trustworthy narrators, and we do not accept from him any weird or odd wording that other trustworthy narrators did not narrate.
Hanbal ibn Ishaaq said: I heard Abu ‘Abdullah say: The narration of Ibn Ishaaq cannot be used as proof.
‘Abdullah ibn Ahmad said: He – i.e., Ahmad ibn Hanbal – did not use his reports as evidence when discussing what is Sunnah.
Ayyoob ibn Ishaaq said: I asked Ahmad ibn Hanbal: O Abu ‘Abdullah, if Ibn Ishaaq is the only narrator of the hadith, will you accept it? He said: No, by Allah, for I have seen him putting together the words of many narrators in a single hadith, and not separating the narration of one person from that of another.
Yahya ibn Ma‘een classed him as da‘eef in one report narrated from him. An-Nasaa’i said: He is not qawiy (strong). Ad-Daaraqutni said: The leading scholars differed concerning him, and he is not an authority; rather his narration may be taken into consideration (alongside others)
See:Tahdheeb at-Tahdheeb(9/45).
We have previously discussed Muhammad ibn Ishaaq in detail in fatwa no. 148009
What will make the matter clearer is the fact that al-Qaasim ibn Muhammad, like ‘Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr, narrated the hadith without the additional material of Muhammad ibn Ishaaq.
At-Tahhaawi narrated inSharh Mushkil al-Athaar(11/486): Muhammad ibn Khuzaymah told us: al-Hajjaaj ibn Minhaal told us: Hammaad ibn Salamah told us, from ‘Abd ar-Rahmaan ibn al-Qaasim, from al-Qaasim ibn Muhammad, from ‘Amrah, that ‘Aa’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: Among the things that were revealed in the Qur’an, then abrogated, was that the relationship of mahram cannot be established except by ten breastfeedings, then after that it was revealed: or five breastfeedings.
To sum up, the story of the sheep eating a page of the Holy Qur’an in the house of ‘Aa’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) is da‘eef (weak) and is not proven.
Ibn Qutaybah ad-Daynoori (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
The versions of the hadith narrated by Maalik are different to those narrated by Muhammad ibn Ishaaq, and Maalik is more accurate, according to the scholars of hadith, than Muhammad ibn Ishaaq.
End quote fromTa’weel Mukhtalif al-Hadith(p. 443)
The commentators on theMusnadof Imam Ahmad said:
Its isnaad is da‘eef because the only one who narrated it was Muhammad ibn Ishaaq, and its text contains something odd.
End quote from the Mu’sasat ar-Risaalah edn (43/343)
Al-Aloosi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
With regard to the additional material having been on a page that was kept with ‘Aa’ishah and was eaten by the tame sheep, it is a fabrication and lie of the heretics that this was lost as the result of being eaten by a tame sheep without being abrogated. This is what it says inal-Kashshaaf.
End quote fromRooh al-Ma‘aani(11/140)
Ibn Hazm (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
It was proven that the wording was abrogated, but the sheet on which it was written remained, as ‘Aa’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said – then it was eaten by the tame sheep; but no one needs it (that verse). Something similar may be said with regard to the verse on breastfeeding, and there is no difference between the two. The proof of that is that they memorised (the verse) as we have mentioned. So if it was confirmed as being part of the Qur’an, the fact that the sheep ate it would not have changed the fact that it was part of the Qur’an, based on the fact that they had memorised it.
Thus we may conclude with certainty that no two Muslims differ concerning the fact that Allah, may He be exalted, enjoined upon His Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) the conveying of the message, and that he (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) conveyed it as he had been instructed to do. … And we may conclude, with regard to the verses that were lost, that if the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) had been instructed to convey them, he would have done so, and if he had conveyed them they would have been memorised, and if they had been memorised then the death of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) would not affect the matter at all, just as the fact that he (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) died did not affect anything else of what he had conveyed of the Qur’an.
End quote fromal-Muhalla(12/177)
Al-Baaqilaani (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
There is no one on the face of the earth more ignorant than one who thinks that the Messenger and the Sahaabah were all careless with regard to the Qur’an and that they would not memorise it and learn it by heart, and that they would rely for confirming it on a sheet that was placed under the bed of ‘Aa’ishah only, a sheet that was thrown on the floor and disrespected, until the neighbourhood sheep came in and ate it, resulting in the loss of that sheet and whatever was written on it!
We wonder what it was that could have allegedly led the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) to such negligence, helplessness and carelessness, when he had been entrusted with the religion and had been instructed to protect it and preserve it, and to appoint scribes to write it, as he had a large number of people who were skilled in the field of writing, whose main task was to write down the Qur’an that was revealed to him, and to write down covenants, deeds, trusts and other matters that might occur or be connected to the Messenger, especially since there was a need to keep a record of it.
The main task of the Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) was only to explain and protect the Qur’an, and protect the religion; he had no occupation or any other worldly concerns to distract him from that, except some efforts he might undertake to support and reinforce the religion, and to promote and explain the Qur’an. Otherwise, how could it be possible that all of these people and all of the Sahaabah would not be aware of the verses about breastfeeding and stoning, so that no one would know about them or refer to them, except ‘Aa’ishah alone?
Therefore, based on what we have described about how the Messenger was devoted to conveying the message, and the Sahaabah were keen to learn and memorise it, it is not possible that they could have lost something of the Book of Allah, may He be exalted, whether it was small or great; people of such calibre should be the greatest of people in memorising it and preserving what was revealed of it and what happened concerning it, such as the dates when it was revealed, the reasons for revelation, and what abrogated and was abrogated.
End quote fromal-Intisaar li’l-Qur’an(1/412-418)
Whatever the case, what the Muslim is required to do is to constantly be aware and careful, so he should not believe everyone who makes some claim, and he should not follow every rumour, myth or story that is narrated here or there, especially in Internet chat rooms and forums, because they may be visited by knowledgeable and ignorant people alike, both speakers of truth and liars, sincere people and hateful hypocrites. Such matters require investigation and verification, by asking knowledgeable people and referring to authentic Islamic books; many such resources are widely available, praise be to Allah. Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):“And follow not (O man i.e., say not, or do not or witness not, etc.) that of which you have no knowledge (e.g. ones saying: ‘I have seen,’ while in fact he has not seen, or ‘I have heard,’ while he has not heard). Verily! The hearing, and the sight, and the heart, of each of those you will be questioned (by Allah)” [al-Isra’ 17:36].
And Allah knows best.

Plural marriage and fair treatment of co-wives, Dought & clear, - * One of the wives is seeking the help of un just laws to cause harm to the other wife; what is the ruling?

I am the second wife of a righteous man, and I love him very much.
Since weve got married, his first wife has thrown him out, and demands
to be divorced. She has a terrible temper and jealosy, which makes it
basicly impossible for her to accept this marriage. She demands him to
divorce me, and he does'nt have the niya to do this. She has asked the
kafir government for help, and even the police.
When she accepts, she says that she will have 3 days, and I will have
1 day . My husband works 8 hours a day so this gives me basically 8
hours with my husband before he has to go to her for her 3 days again.
Sometimes she puts the condition of me having 1 day and she has to
have 2 days and my husband wants me to accept this so that she doesn't
divorce him. its hard for me as my heart is not content with this. I
have given up so many rights as it is so that she might come back to
him. She says that he has kids with her therefore she has right to
more days. wallahi this is opression . I dont have any other option
than accepting this in order for her not to divorce him. what advice
could you give me? it hurts so much. Many brothers have been tested
with divorce, and if that is his qadr he should accept it. oppressing
my rights will not give him sweetness in his first marriage.
Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
Undoubtedly if one of the wives, whether it is the first wife or
otherwise, strives to bring about the divorce of the other wife, that
is haraam and is striving for the sake of falsehood, and for that
which angers the Most Merciful and pleases the Shaytaan. This comes
under the heading of covetousness and selfishness. Allah, may He be
glorified and exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):"And
whosoever is saved from his own covetousness, such are they who will
be the successful" [al-Hashr 59:9]. This indicates that the one who is
motivated by covetousness and pursues his whims and desires is a
loser.
It also comes under the heading of thinking negatively of Allah, may
He be glorified and exalted, and of weak faith in His will and decree,
for all provision is in the hand of Allah, including the love of a
husband for his wife, the time he spends with her, and his interest in
her. All of that is included in the provision that is granted by
Allah, and that which is with Allah cannot be attained by disobeying
Him.
Al-Bukhaari (5152) and Muslim (1408) narrated from Abu Hurayrah (may
Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) said: "It is not permissible for a woman to ask for
her sister to be divorced so as to deprive her of what is rightfully
hers and take it for herself; rather she will have what has been
decreed for her."
Ibn 'Abd al-Barr (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
From this report we understand that it is not appropriate for a woman
to ask her husband to divorce her co-wife so that she can have him to
herself; rather she will have what has already been decreed for her,
and the divorce of her co-wife will not detract anything from that
which has been decreed for her, or add to it.
Al-Akhfash said: It is as if he meant that she seeks to deprive her of
her husband's goodness so that she can have it all to herself.
Abu 'Umar said: This hadith is one of the best hadiths about the
divine decree, according to the scholars who have knowledge of the
Sunnah. It indicates that no one will obtain anything except that
which has been decreed for him.
Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, says (interpretation of the
meaning):"Say: 'Nothing shall ever happen to us except what Allah has
ordained for us'" [at-Tawbah9:51]. So this matter is quite clear to
the one whom Allah has guided, praise be to Allah.
End quote fromat-Tamheed(18/165)
Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
This indicates that it is emphatically prohibited for a woman to seek
the divorce of a co-wife, and emphasises that she should be content
with whatever Allah has decreed for her.
End quote fromFath al-Baari(9/127)
Secondly:
Undoubtedly her efforts to harm her husband, and her seeking help from
the kaafir police against him are also obviously haraam. It is not
permissible for a woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day to do
such a thing, which is the result of the Shaytaan toying with her.
The same applies to her efforts to cause harm to her co-wife with
regard to division of the husband's time, and to make the husband give
her less than is her right, or to make him incline towards the first
wife, either for fear of her efforts to seek divorce from him, relying
on the kaafir laws that will help her to do that, or to put pressure
on the husband because of his children, or other similar reasons, or
abusing other weak points that she sees in her husband and is
exploiting in order to get something that is not permissible for her,
such as her husband being more inclined towards her or favouring her
with regard to division of his time, or trying to bring about the
divorce of her co-wife.
The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
said: "Whoever harms others, Allah will harm him, and whoever causes
hardship to others Allah will cause hardship to him."
Narrated by Imam Ahmad (15755), Abu Dawood (3635), at-Tirmidhi (1940)
and Ibn Maajah (2342); classed as saheeh by al-Albaani.
It is not permissible for the husband to respond to her covetousness
or her wishes; rather he must strive to treat his wives equitably as
much as he can. However we do not think that he should let the matter
go as far as divorce; rather he should try to ward that off and put
things straight, and he should be keen to keep his wife and look after
his children, and spare them from living without a father, especially
in that kaafir land.
If it is not possible for him to treat his wives equitably, because of
the circumstances mentioned, or for other reasons that may prevent him
from doing that, then we do not advise you to let your relationship
with your husband reach the level of all or nothing, by saying "Either
me or her", or "Either give me my rights in full or divorce me," or
"Either this or that," and so on.
Rather the wise person tries to achieve the best of two options and
ward off the greater of two evils, to achieve whatever he can of that
which serves the best interests and ward off whatever he can of harm,
to the best of his ability.
Undoubtedly staying with a husband whom you love and he loves you, and
who finds comfort in you and you in him, even if that is once every
three or four days, is better for you than striving to seek divorce
and live without a husband, especially in a country like yours.
The worst-case scenario is: imagine if your husband had four wives,
not just two, what would you do? Would you ask him to divorce all his
other wives, so that he would have more time for you, as his first
wife is doing? Or what would you do?
Be tolerant with your husband and give him a break, so that he can
manage the situation and solve the problem, for kindness is never
introduced into a thing but it makes it more fair-seeming, and it is
never removed from a thing but it makes it ill-seeming. When Allah
wills good for the people of a household, He introduces kindness among
them, and if He wills ill for them, He removes kindness from among
them. Faith is based on two strong foundations: patience and
tolerance. Patience enables a man to bear what he faces of the pains
and troubles of life, and helps him to cope with religious duties, and
to resist the whims and desires of the self and natural impulses.
Through tolerance one will be able to show one's good side and will be
able to resist whims and desires, and will strive to purify oneself
and increase one's faith.
May Allah make things easy for you, set things straight between you
and your husband, suffice you against the evil of that which is
worrying you, and reconcile you and your husband on the basis of the
best of that which Allah loves and is pleased with.
And Allah knows best.

Plural marriage and fair treatment of co-wives, Dought & clear, - * The attitudes of the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) towards his wives and his good treatment of them

It was narrated from Sayyidah 'Aa'ishah (may Allah be pleased with
her) that she said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) came to me when it was not my day. He knocked at
the door and I heard his knock, then I went out and opened the door
for him, and he said: "Did you not hear me knock?" I said: Yes, but I
wanted the other wives to know that you came to me on a day other than
my day. Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah narrated to us: Shabaabah ibn Siwaar
narrated to us: Sulaymaan ibn al-Mugheerah narrated to us, from
Thaabit, from Anas, who said: The Prophet (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) had nine wives, and when he divided his time among
them, he did not come back to the first one until the ninth day. Every
night they used to gather in the house of the one whose night it was.
He was in 'Aa'ishah's house, and Zaynab came and he reached out his
hand towards her. 'Aa'ishah said: This is Zaynab, and the Prophet
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) withdrew his hand.
My question is: why did the Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) come to Sayyidah 'Aa'ishah when it was not her day, whereas
in the second hadith it says that he did not shake hands with Sayyidah
Zaynab so as to please Sayyidah 'Aa'ishah because it was her day? It
was narrated that 'Aa'ishah said: The wives of the Prophet (blessings
and peace of Allah be upon him) sent his daughter Faatimah to him. She
asked for permission to enter upon him when he was lying down with me
under my cover, and he gave her permission. She said: O Messenger of
Allah, your wives have sent me to you to ask you to be just with
regard to the daughter of Abu Quhaafah (i.e., Abu Bakr). I ['Aa'ishah]
kept quiet. The Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
said to her: "O my daughter, do you not love that which I love?" She
said: Of course. He said: "Then love this one" – i.e., 'Aa'ishah.
Faatimah got up when she heard that from her father, and she went back
to the wives of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
and told them what the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) had said to her. They said to her: We do not think
that you have helped us in any way. Go back to the Messenger of Allah
and say to him: Your wives adjure you to be just with regard to the
daughter of Abu Quhaafah. Faatimah said: By Allah, I will never speak
to him about her. Then the wives of the Prophet (blessings and peace
of Allah be upon him) sent Zaynab bint Jahsh – who was the one who was
the closest of them to me in status, i.e., in terms of beauty and the
love of the Messenger for her. She asked permission to enter upon the
Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) when the
Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) was with
'Aa'ishah beneath her cover, as he was when Faatimah had come in. The
Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) gave her
permission and she said: O Messenger of Allah, your wives have sent me
to you to ask you to be just with regard to the daughter of Abu
Quhaafah. … 'Aa'ishah said: Then she showed harshness towards me and
insulted me, and I was watching the Messenger of Allah (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) to see if he would allow me to respond.
This went on until I realized that the Messenger would not object if I
responded. When I started responding, I answered back to everything
that she had said, until I got the upper hand. And the Messenger of
Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said, smiling, "She
is the daughter of Abu Bakr."
My question is: I know that what is meant by their asking for justice
was justice with regard to emotion, but that was beyond the control of
the Messenger; rather that was in the hand of Allah, may He be
glorified… But why did the Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) take the side of Sayyidah 'Aa'ishah instead of trying to
reassure his other wives?
Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) treated his
wives well, give them good company and was dignified. He used to sit
with them, keep them company, talk to them, chat with them at night
and treat them fairly in every way he could.
There happened between his wives, who were the mothers of the
believers (may Allah be pleased with them), that which usually happens
between co-wives, but nevertheless they would soon calm down and go
back to their usual way of conduct, which was based on faith,
restraint, dignity and religious commitment.
What a believing woman may say or do out of jealousy may be tolerated,
in contrast to others, because of her faith and because she will go
back to her original way of good character and religious commitment.
In fact, when the believer who is pious and pure of heart reads the
verse in which Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the
meaning):"The Prophet is closer to the believers than their ownselves,
and his wives are their (believers') mothers" [al-Ahzaab 33:6], he
will adhere to proper etiquette and protect his inner thoughts lest
they be overtaken by insinuating thoughts and bad ideas. Do you not
see how a man behaves with his mother, compromising a great deal,
overlooking a great deal, and not picking on every word she says and
every action she does? The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) and the members of his household are more deserving
of all respect and veneration, and are deserving of all good treatment
and attitudes.
Secondly:
With regard to the hadith narrated from 'Aa'ishah (may Allah be
pleased with her), according to which she said: The Messenger of Allah
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) came to me when it was not
my day. He knocked at the door and I heard his knock, then I went out
and opened the door for him, and he said: "Did you not hear me knock?"
I said: Yes, but I wanted the other wives to know that you came to me
on a day other than my day,
This hadith was quoted by adh-Dhahabi inSiyar A'laam an-Nubala'(2/174)
via Ahmad ibn 'Ubaydullah an-Nursi: Yahya al-Khawwaas narrated to us:
Muhaadir narrated to us, from Hishaam ibn 'Urwah, from his father,
from 'Aa'ishah.
This is a da'eef isnaad and cannot be used as evidence.
Shaykh 'Abd al-Qaadir al-Arna'oot (may Allah have mercy on him) said
in his commentary onas-Siyar:
Yahya al-Qawwaas: I did not find any biography for him. Muhaadir is
Ibn al-Moori'. Abu Haatim said concerning him: He is not strong. Imam
Ahmad said: He was very naïve. End quote.
Such a report is not reliable and cannot be quoted as evidence.
With regard to the second hadith, it was narrated by Muslim (1462)
from Anas (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: The Prophet
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) had nine wives, and when he
divided his time among them, he did not come back to the first one
until the ninth day. Every night they used to gather in the house of
the one whose night it was. He was in 'Aa'ishah's house, and Zaynab
came and he reached out his hand towards her. 'Aa'ishah said: This is
Zaynab, and the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
withdrew his hand. They argued and raised their voices, and the
iqaamah for prayer was given. Abu Bakr came past at that point and
heard their voices, so he said: Come out for the prayer, O Messenger
of Allah, and throw dust in their mouths. The Prophet (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) came out, and 'Aa'ishah said: Now the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) will finish his
prayer and come, and Abu Bakr will come and do such and such to me.
When the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) had
finished his prayer, Abu Bakr came to her and spoke sternly to her,
and said: Do you behave like this?
An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
This gathering took place with their consent.
With regard to him reaching out his hand towards Zaynab, and 'Aa'ishah
saying: This is Zaynab, it was said that this action was not
deliberate; rather he thought that she was 'Aa'ishah, whose turn it
was, because that was at night and there were no lamps in the houses.
And it was suggested that that was with their consent.
In this hadith we see the good conduct of the Prophet (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) and his gentleness towards all.
Al-Bukhaari (2581) and Muslim (2442) narrated from 'Aa'ishah (may
Allah be pleased with her) that she said: The wives of the Prophet
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) sent Faatimah the daughter
of the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
to the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him).
She asked permission to enter when he was lying down with me under my
cover, and he gave her permission. She said: O Messenger of Allah,
your wives have sent me to you to ask you to be just with regard to
the daughter of Abu Quhaafah.
I ['Aa'ishah] kept quiet.
The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said
to her: "O my daughter, do you not love that which I love?"
She said: Of course.
He said: "Then love this one."
Faatimah got up when she heard that from the Messenger of Allah
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), and she went back to the
wives of the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon
him) and told them what she had said and what the Messenger of Allah
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) had said to her. They said
to her: You have been of no avail for us. Go back to the Messenger of
Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and say to him: Your
wives adjure you to be just with regard to the daughter of Abu
Quhaafah.
Faatimah said: By Allah, I will never speak to him about her.
'Aa'ishah said: The wives of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah
be upon him) sent Zaynab bint Jahsh, the wife of the Prophet
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), who was the one who was
the closest of them to me in status before the Messenger of Allah
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). I have never seen any
woman who was better in religious commitment than Zaynab, more fearing
of Allah, more truthful in speech, more keen to uphold family ties,
more generous in giving charity, or more keen to draw close to Allah,
but she had a quick temper, although she would calm down quickly.
She asked permission to enter upon the Messenger of Allah (blessings
and peace of Allah be upon him) when the Messenger of Allah (blessings
and peace of Allah be upon him) was with 'Aa'ishah beneath her cover,
as he was when Faatimah had come in. The Messenger of Allah (blessings
and peace of Allah be upon him) gave her permission and she said: O
Messenger of Allah, your wives have sent me to you to ask you to be
just with regard to the daughter of Abu Quhaafah.
Then she showed harshness towards me and insulted me, and I was
watching the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon
him) to see if he would allow me to respond.
Zaynab kept going until I realized that the Messenger of Allah
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) would not object if I
responded.
When I started responding, I answered back to everything that she had said.
And the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
said, smiling, "She is the daughter of Abu Bakr."
The questioner asked: But why did the Messenger (blessings and peace
of Allah be upon him) take the side of Sayyidah 'Aa'ishah instead of
trying to reassure his other wives?
The answer is:
Because she had not done anything or initiated anything; and he was in
her house, under her cover, on her day; and he knew that the reason
for this was no more than jealousy. Because of his good attitude and
kind treatment, he (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) put up
with that from them.
What was meant by his words, "She is the daughter of Abu Bakr" when he
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) was smiling, was that she
was his daughter and resembled him in strength of character and mature
thinking. Al-Haafiz said: That is, she was dignified, intelligent and
wise, like her father.
End quote fromFath al-Baari(5/207).
An-Nawawi said:
This was a reference to her perfect understanding and good insight.
End quote fromSharh an-Nawawi 'ala Muslim(15/207)
She did not start to answer back her sister until after she
ascertained that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon
him) would not be upset by that.
As Zaynab (may Allah be pleased with her) was the one who had started
it, the fact that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon
him) gave 'Aa'ishah permission to answer back was the means of
achieving justice between his wives. If he (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) had not allowed her to answer her sister back, soon
the ignorant would have said: This is not fair! Why did he not let her
answer her back?
An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
This indicates that she stood up for herself and answered back, and he
did not tell her not to do that.
End quote fromSharh an-Nawawi 'ala Muslim(15/207)
Al-Haafiz ibn Hajar said:
An-Nasaa'i and Ibn Maajah narrated with a hasan isnaad via at-Taymi
from 'Urwah that 'Aa'ishah said:
Zaynab bint Jahsh entered upon me and reviled me, and the Prophet
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) told her to stop, but she
refused. So he said to me: "Revile her." So I reviled her.
End quote fromFath al-Baari(5/99)
Conclusion:
The questioner and others should understand that the Messenger of
Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) was the best and
kindest of people towards his family, and the closest of people to
justice and fairness in all things, both minor and major. Think about
his response (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) to that
ill-mannered hypocrite, when he objected to the way in which the
Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) had
shared out some wealth, and he said to him: O Messenger of Allah, be
just! He (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: "Woe to you!
who will be just if I am not just? You would be lost and doomed if I
was not just."
Once the questioner has understood something of what the scholars
said, explaining the good conduct and good attitude of the Prophet
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and his good treatment of
others, what he must now do is avoid overstepping the mark, failing to
see the beautiful conduct of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah
be upon him), and opening the door to suspicion and speculation.
If he does not understand something or it is not clear to him, then he
should bear a general principle in mind: Woe to you! Who will be just,
if the Messenger of Allah was not just?!
Who is closer to doing what is right, if not the Messenger of Allah
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)?!
And Allah knows best.