Surah Al-Ahzab 33:53-58 - Quran Translation Commentary

(33:53) Believers! Do not enter the Prophet’s houses except that you should be given leave for a meal, without waiting for its preparation. But when you are invited, enter. Then, when you have eaten, disperse, without seeking to remain for conversation. Surely, that was inconvenient to the Prophet but he is shy of you. But Allah is not shy of the truth.¹³² And when you ask them for anything, ask them from behind a curtain.¹³³ That is purer for your hearts and their hearts.¹³⁴ And it is not for you to cause pain to the Prophet,¹³⁵ nor that you should ever marry his wives after him.¹³⁶ Surely, that would be, in Allah’s sight, an enormity.

(33:54) Whether you reveal a thing or conceal it, Allah is ever Knowing of all things.

(33:55) There is no sin upon them in (appearing freely before) their fathers,¹³⁷ or sons, or brothers, or sons of their brothers, or sons of the sisters,¹³⁸ or their womenfolk,¹³⁹ or whom their right hands own. And fear Allah (O wives of the Prophet).¹⁴⁰ Surely, Allah is ever a Witness over all things.

(33:56) Verily, Allah and His angels¹⁴¹ send blessings¹⁴² on the Prophet.¹⁴³ O those who have believed, invoke blessings on him and send him salutations of peace.¹⁴⁴

(33:57) Surely, Allah has cursed those who affront Allah¹⁴⁵ and His Messenger,¹⁴⁶ in the world and Hereafter. And He has prepared for them a humiliating chastisement.

(33:58) Surely those who cause pain to the believing men and believing women,¹⁴⁷ without they having earned it,¹⁴⁸ have surely borne (upon themselves) a slander and a clear sin.

Commentary

132. There are several reports explaining the context of revelation. One of them is narrated by Anas b. Malik. He said, as in a report in Bukhari, with a few details from other sources placed in brackets,

عن أَنَسُ بْنُ مَالِكٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ أَنَّهُ كَانَ ابْنَ عَشْرِ سِنِينَ مَقْدَمَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ الْمَدِينَةَ فَكَانَ أُمَّهَاتِي يُوَاظِبْنَنِي عَلَى خِدْمَةِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَخَدَمْتُهُ عَشْرَ سِنِينَ وَتُوُفِّيَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَأَنَا ابْنُ عِشْرِينَ سَنَةً فَكُنْتُ أَعْلَمَ النَّاسِ بِشَأْنِ الْحِجَابِ حِينَ أُنْزِلَ وَكَانَ أَوَّلَ مَا أُنْزِلَ فِي مُبْتَنَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ بِزَيْنَبَ بِنْتِ جَحْشٍ أَصْبَحَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ بِهَا عَرُوسًا فَدَعَا الْقَوْمَ فَأَصَابُوا مِنْ الطَّعَامِ ثُمَّ خَرَجُوا وَبَقِيَ رَهْطٌ مِنْهُمْ عِنْدَ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَأَطَالُوا الْمُكْثَ فَقَامَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَخَرَجَ وَخَرَجْتُ مَعَهُ لِكَيْ يَخْرُجُوا فَمَشَى النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَمَشَيْتُ حَتَّى جَاءَ عَتَبَةَ حُجْرَةِ عَائِشَةَ ثُمَّ ظَنَّ أَنَّهُمْ خَرَجُوا فَرَجَعَ وَرَجَعْتُ مَعَهُ حَتَّى إِذَا دَخَلَ عَلَى زَيْنَبَ فَإِذَا هُمْ جُلُوسٌ لَمْ يَقُومُوا فَرَجَعَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَرَجَعْتُ مَعَهُ حَتَّى إِذَا بَلَغَ عَتَبَةَ حُجْرَةِ عَائِشَةَ وَظَنَّ أَنَّهُمْ خَرَجُوا فَرَجَعَ وَرَجَعْتُ مَعَهُ فَإِذَا هُمْ قَدْ خَرَجُوا فَضَرَبَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ بَيْنِي وَبَيْنَهُ بِالسِّتْرِ وَأُنْزِلَ الْحِجَابُ

Anas b. Malik said that he was ten years old at the time the Prophet arrived at Madinah. “My mothers used to urge me to serve the Prophet. So I served him ten years so that I was twenty when he died. And, I know better than anyone when the Hijab (commandment) came down. The first thing that came down in connection with the Prophet’s marriage to Zaynab b. Jahsh was that the Prophet invited people to dinner (on the occasion of bringing in Zaynab bint Jahsh. I went around inviting everyone I came across). They ate (and after the dinner was over, most) people dispersed except for a few who remained with the Prophet. They lengthened the stay (conversing in a corner of the house while Zaynab sat on the other side, with her face to the wall). The Prophet stood up and I left with him hoping that they would leave. He began to stroll around, myself with him, up to the house of `A’isha (and other wives. One of them would greet him and say, ‘How did you find your new wife?’ According to some reports he would greet them first). Then he thought they had left, so he went back, myself with him. But when he entered, he found they were still sitting, not having got up. So the Prophet went back again (he was an extremely modest person), and I went back with him so far as the house of `A’isah. Then he returned, and myself with him. He found that they had left. But, as I tried to enter, he threw the curtain between me and him. (He went in alone) and (the commandment concerning) Hijab was sent down” (Ibn Jarir, Qurtubi).

The reports are in Bukhari, Muslim and in several other collection (Ibn Kathir).

133. This demonstrates, writes Qurtubi, that despite the fact that the whole of a woman is `Awrah (requiring covering) including her voice, in times of need she might interact with men from behind a curtain.

It is reported that once the Prophet was having dinner with someone - with `A’isha as the third. During the partaking, `A’isha’s hand touched that of the other man. (According to a report in Ibn Abi Hatim, the man was `Umar, and it were fingers that touched each other). The Prophet was somewhat displeased and this verse was revealed. Yet another reason cited is that `Umar used to tell the Prophet, “The good and the evil, all kinds of people enter upon you. I wish you could ask your wives to remain in hijab,” and this verse was revealed (Ibn Jarir).

Another report about `Umar is in the Sahihayn. It is as follows: He said,

قَالَ عُمَرُ بْنُ الْخَطَّابِ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ وَافَقْتُ رَبِّي فِي ثَلَاثٍ فَقُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ لَوْ اتَّخَذْنَا مِنْ مَقَامِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ مُصَلًّى فَنَزَلَتْ وَاتَّخِذُوا مِنْ مَقَامِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ مُصَلًّى وَآيَةُ الْحِجَابِ قُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ لَوْ أَمَرْتَ نِسَاءَكَ أَنْ يَحْتَجِبْنَ فَإِنَّهُ يُكَلِّمُهُنَّ الْبَرُّ وَالْفَاجِرُ فَنَزَلَتْ آيَةُ الْحِجَابِ وَاجْتَمَعَ نِسَاءُ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فِي الْغَيْرَةِ عَلَيْهِ فَقُلْتُ لَهُنَّ عَسَى رَبُّهُ إِنْ طَلَّقَكُنَّ أَنْ يُبَدِّلَهُ أَزْوَاجًا خَيْرًا مِنْكُنَّ فَنَزَلَتْ هَذِهِ الآيَةُ (الصحيحين)

“I concurred with my Lord on three occasions. First, when I suggested that the Prophet take the Station of Ibrahim (as a place for Prayers). Allah revealed, ‘And take (O believers) Station of Ibrahim (as a place) for Prayer.’ Second, I said to the Prophet, ‘Messenger of Allah, good and evil, all kinds of people enter upon you, so, if you could ask your wives to observe hijab.’ Allah revealed verses concerning hijab. And (some) of his wives got together because of their jealousy (against a wife of his) so I said to them, ‘If he divorced you all, Allah would replace you with those better than you,’ and Allah revealed this verse” (Ibn Kathir).

There are other reports which say that `Umar disapproved of the Prophet’s wives leaving their houses at all. Once he spotted Sawdah. Although well-clad, he recognized her from her size: she was a big woman. He called out, “Sawdah. You cannot conceal yourself. So, look how you go out.” Sawdah immediately returned to the Prophet. He was having dinner and had soup-bowl in his hand. She told him what had happened. He received revelation. When it was over, he said, “Allah has allowed that you go out for your needs” (Ibn Jarir, Qurtubi).

The report is in Bukhari (Ibn Kathir), and it is said that `Umar had said those words in the hope of hastening Allah’s revelation concerning hijab (other commentators).

The Prophet of course was better knowing of the prevalent social conditions than `Umar, and knew of the need, but did not wish to act without a specific commandment from on High (Alusi).

134. If that was with ref. to the wives of the Prophet, then, how much more should it not be applicable to those lesser than them? (Shafi`).

135. Asma’ bint `Umays reports (a widow of `Ali’s brother Ja`far b. Abi Talib: Zamakhshari), that “`Ali wished to marry me while he already had Fatimah in his marriage. When she learnt of it, she (Fatimah) went to the Prophet (saws) and complained. He said, ‘It is not for her (i.e., bint Qays) to annoy Allah and His Messenger.’”

The report is in Ibn Marduwayh (Shawkani).

(But Haythami did not approve it (Au.).

Similarly, `Ali wished to marry another woman, `Ikrimah’s sister, Abu Jahl’s daughter. The Prophet disapproved of that marriage also, and `Ali remained with one wife until Fatimah remained alive, i.e., a little more than six months after the Prophet (Au.).

136. The immediate cause of revelation of this part is that someone used to say that he would marry one of the wives of the Prophet after his death, naming her (Ibn Jarir).

The person who said so was identified as Talha b. `Ubaydullah, and the woman he named was, most probably, `A’isha (Ibn Kathir).

However, `Atiyyah reported that it seems there was an error in the identification. A man like him could not have said such a thing (Shawkani).

Qurtubi, who raised the issue of the reliability of `Atiyyah’s report, adds that the implication is that Ibn `Abbas also said this; and strongly refutes that Talha could have said such a thing. In all likelihood, it was one of the hypocrites.

In any case, one other reason why no one was allowed to marry any of his wives after him was that they had chosen him and Allah over all else, and would be his spouses in Paradise since the rule is that, in Paradise, a woman will get the last man she lived with in spousal relationship in this world. Accordingly, Hudhayfah told his wife not to marry anyone after him if she wished to be his wife in Paradise (Qurtubi).

It is also reported of Abu Darda’s wife that when she was proposed after Abu Darda’s death, she declined on grounds that she wished to be Abu Darda’s spouse in Paradise also (Au.).

It is also reported that the Prophet had taken a slave-girl called Qutaylah bint Qays al-Ash`ash. Although married to the Prophet, (she was still in Yemen: Alusi), someone married her after his death. Abu Bakr was greatly disturbed. But `Umar pointed out that she was not of those who had been given choice and had chosen Allah and His Messenger. In fact, she was no wife at all, only a slave-girl. Moreover, she was one of a tribe which had turned apostate after the Prophet’s death. Finally, consummation had not occurred. That calmed Abu Bakr (Ibn Jarir).

The authenticity of the narration could not be verified (Au.).

To sum up this difficult passage, at least from one point of view, we might state briefly the notes of Ashraf `Ali Thanwi and Mufti Shafi` about a few specialties the Prophet (saws) enjoyed in reference to family affair, which the Ummah did not share with him:

(a) He was allowed to have more than four wives. (At the time of the revelation of this verse, the Prophet either had four wives, or had just married a fifth – Zaynab bint Jahsh: Mawdudi, reworded).

(b) He had the right to choose a captive woman for himself after a battle. Such a one was called “safiyy” (the chosen one) such as Safiyyah bint Huyayy whom he chose for himself (because she was the daughter of a chieftain: Au.).

(c) He was allowed to keep a slave-girl gifted to him, instead of making her a property of the state, which is the rule in Islam. That is, whatever is gifted to the head of an Islamic state belongs to the treasury and is not the personal gift to the ruler. But, when the ruler of Egypt sent him a slave girl Mairyyah, he kept her for himself and Allah allowed it.

(d) He was allowed to marry only those of the believing women who had migrated to Madinah. Those who did not were not lawful. This was the point Umm Hani had brought to remembrance. However, such condition was for the women of the Quraysh, not those who were from among the common Muslims.

(e) Women of the unbelievers, even though of the people of the Book, were not allowable to him as against his followers who can marry them.

(f) A believing woman could gift herself to him which is not allowed to the Ummah at large.

(g) He could temporarily or permanently cease giving conjugal rights to any of his spouses, but retaining them as his wives. This too is not allowed to his Ummah. His followers must provide their wives their conjugal rights: food, clothing, shelter, health-care, etc., and marital obligations, in an equitable manner. It is another thing that except for Sawdah, the Prophet did not exercise his right, but rather, treated them all equally.

(h) He was not allowed to divorce those wives that had chosen him and Allah - the nine that he had. (If this is accepted as the correct opinion, then, as Asad has pointed out, the ayah in question must have been revealed not in the 5th year as assumed by some, but in the 7th year after hijrah, since it is then that he married Safiyyah of Khyber, to complete the nine: Au.).

(j) His wives were not allowed to marry after him.

Wives of the Prophet

Herewith a short account of the Prophet’s marriages.

Peninsula Arabs mature earlier than other races and their sexual activities last longer, almost up to eighty. Girls as low as six year old are reported having matured. For boys the average is around thirteen or fourteen. (It could be as well earlier, but they are not likely to report). The urge picks up from sixteen onward and the peak lasts up to almost fifty when the decline begins. It is remarkable that the Prophet remained single until twenty-five, never having gone near a woman.

He remained with a single wife, for twenty-five years after the first marriage, although there was nothing in the social laws of the time to prevent him from having more wives, or slave-girls. In fact, he broke the norm when he chose not to take more. During his peak years, and his wife’s decline years, a dramatic change occurred in his attitudes. Instead of adding wives, he took to solitude in caves. If his wife had expected him to bring home contenders, she must have been surprised that he did not seem to even need her. For weeks he stayed away in solitude. His next marriage was only after the first wife was dead: when he was around ##50. It is from this time onward – the decline time - that he began to take wives at a regular pace, adding ten until his death.

It might be relevant to note at the start that other explanations apart, it is a fair guess to say that he was fond of widows. But for a sole exception, all his wives were widows, or, divorced spinsters. This acquires a special significance when we consider that when he was told by Jabir b. `Abdullah that he had married a previously married woman (older than him), he remarked, “Why not a virgin who could play with you, and you with her?” (Jabir had explained that he had little sisters and so preferred a woman who could be motherly to them).

That to the Prophet his mission came first, even in conjugal matters, is apparent from the reply he made to `A’isha’s criticism of Khadijah. She said, “Will you not give up remembering an old woman, when Allah has bestowed on you better than her?” He snapped back strongly, “No, by Allah, He did not bestow on me anyone better than her. She believed in me when people rejected, testified while the people laid the lie, supported me with her wealth when the people denied, and she gave me children when no one else did.”

The Prophet’s contemporaneous adversaries thought he must be mad, under magical spell, a poet, sorcerer, and therefore, not a true Prophet. But no one ever said he was sensual, licentious, libertine, or erotic. This is because whatever else is said about the Arabs contemporary to him, no one has doubted that they were scrupulously honest, and a straightforward people. It was left to the ethical uprightness of the Western scholars and clergymen to use such appellations for the Prophet as the Arabs did not use. If the Prophet’s contemporaries knew that he had nine wives, then they judged him by surrounding facts, and not by the harem size (a word his modern adversaries love to use). They took account of the facts of his own age and that of his wives. They knew that he fasted for days and weeks on, that half the time of his life he was in campaigns, that his meager diet, both by choice as well as chance, was at times a cup of milk in place of a full meal (after a previous missed meal), that he gave away on a hungry day what could buy him a meal, and that he stood long hours at night for his wives to remind him that his swollen feet perhaps indicated that he had taken things a bit too far, and that, fed up with hunger, they protested, to be firmly told that they could leave, if they so wished, for, he had nothing better to offer. His contemporaries knew all this, as do the Western scholars. But, what can be done if a people choose fiction over facts, or create them out of their hooky brains?

The Prophet’s first marriage was to Khadijah, a woman who proved to be an outstanding personality. Of course she could have had no difficulty in accepting her husband as a Prophet since she, more than anyone else, had observed him in all circumstances of life. But credit must be given to her for the moral and material support that she extended through and through their 25 years of life together. Consequently she was one of those whom the Prophet respected and loved. He held fond memories of her all his life. Many years after her death, in Madinah, he continued to send gifts to her friends. He used to mention her so often that once `Ayesha felt irked and said something to the effect that she saw no point in recalling the memory of an old woman who had lost her teeth. The Prophet expressed his displeasure at the remark.

When she died, the Prophet was passing through the most difficult phase of his mission. Opposition to what he had brought was at its zenith. He did not have the right even to spell out his message within Makkan boundaries. With her gone, he had lost the comfort that a faithful wife provides a man who could draw little comfort from the events outside. He did not miss a supporter, comforter, and a friend alone, but he also missed the mother of his children. He had to fill the vacant house, even if he could not his vacant heart. But the choice of the next wife is completely intriguing. The person he chose, Sawdah, was over fifty years old, in fact, older than him and heavy of body. If the only reason to take in a woman of that age was that she was a strong follower, who, having lost two husbands was now alone, and faced the prospect of lonely years the rest of her life, then, obviously, it was a magnanimous move on his part, for, marrying a youngish woman, he could have easily made other arrangements for Sawda. Was his personal sacrifice necessary? This is the question that makes the marriage intriguing.

Later, in Makkah itself, the Prophet married a girl, the only virgin that he married. This was `Ayesha, either six or nine years old at the time of the engagement. She was the daughter of the first Muslim and a beloved childhood friend Abu Bakr. She did not enter the Prophet’s household until she was either twelve or fifteen. This marriage seemingly served no immediate purpose since `A’isha remained with her parents for three to six years after engagement. But it proved to be the most fruitful for the mission. If her father laid down the foundation stones of an earthly empire, it was she who became one of the pillars of its intellectual and spiritual mansion. In the Prophet’s company `Ayesha grew into a lady of exceptionally rich qualities, who looked at every aspect of his private and public life with a keen eye, and reported such details as were essential for the later scholars to work out the Law for generations to follow until the end of the world.

`A’isha is in her own person a testimony to the authenticity of the Prophet. She became a wife when she was just nine, or maybe twelve, while the Prophet was around fifty-four. If one follows the way in which the mind of the detractors of Islam works (recently an American priest has publicly referred to the Prophet as a pedophile), then, she should have borne a life-long grudge against the Prophet. Granted she accepted the custom of the time and could not protest at the time of marriage, but she must have felt bitter that she was left a widow at 18, and, to add salt to injury, disallowed to marry after him. If she had resented being placed in such a position, and, had the Prophet been a false Messenger, she could have invented a verse, abrogating the Qur’anic verse which prohibited her and other wives from marrying after the death of the Prophet. If the Prophet had forged the Qur’an, as the Western scholars allege, then `A’isha was no less incapable of the feat. Indeed, except that she did not say poetry, she was a literary giant of her time. Perhaps apart from `Ali, another expert at eloquence, she had no equal in literary qualities. Forging a single verse, if the whole of the Qur’an was forged, could not have posed any difficulty to her. Yet, if a person of her intellectual capabilities accepted her lot as a spinster from eighteen until death fifty years later, choosing to sleep alone by the side of her husband’s grave, then, it could not have been without a firm conviction in the Messengership of the Prophet. This is what we mean by saying that she herself is a proof of the Prophet’s authenticity.

The next lady the Prophet took into marriage was Hafsa, the twenty-seven year old daughter of his most powerful supporter after his uncle Hamza, and the second caliph after him, `Umar ibn al-Khattab. She had lost her husband at Badr and `Umar had failed to find a suitable match for her. The Prophet rescued her. At one time, however, the Prophet wished to divorce her, although she was quite friendly to `A’isha. But Jibril came down directing him to retain her because of her piety: ‘She prays a lot and fasts much,’ said Jibril.

Another lady that the Prophet married was the widow of another of his Companion, `Ubaydah b. al-Harith. He was sent with `Ali and Hamza to face three of the challenging Quraysh fighters in duels at Badr. `Ali and Hamza slew their opponents but `Ubayda received a serious wound. When he was picked up and brought to the Prophet, he placed his chin on the Prophet’s foot and asked if he would be considered a martyr. He died a few minutes later. The Prophet married his widow: Zaynab bint Khuzaymah. This was her third marriage and some reports suggest she was around sixty years old. The Prophet had once predicted that of his wives the one with the longest arm would die first. A statement of this sort about one of today’s believers will drive them, (not to speak of the critics of the Prophet’s plural wives), to recurring attacks of melancholy; but the ladies began to measure each other’s arms to guess who would go first! Those were the Prophet’s wives, high above aspersion of any kind by the meanly antagonists of the Final Messenger. It was Zaynab anyway, who died first - within a few months of the marriage - not because of a lengthy limb, but because of her long arm in charities. She had always been known, even before marriage, as Umm al-Masakin (mother of the destitute) because of her extensive charitable activities.

The next lady that he brought into his household was Umm Salamah. She had migrated to Abyssinia with her husband Abu Salamah. There they received false news of the acceptance of Islam by the Quraysh and returned. Back at Makkah once again they became the target of brutal persecution. They decided to get away to Madinah. But hardly was the couple with its single child out of town, when the Makkans separated Umm Salamah and her child from Abu Salamah, saying he did not have them when he had entered Makkah several years ago. Undeterred, Abu Salamah left the wife and child behind and continued with his journey. A few months later, Umm Salamah managed to join him. At Badr, Abu Salamah received a wound. He recovered from it but at Uhud he was struck at the same spot. The Prophet (saws) visited him at his house after the battle. To his grief, he died in front of him. He had special regard for him and offered special burial-prayers for him. Some time later he sent word to his widow that he desired to take her into wedlock. She expressed her doubts and fears by saying that she suffered from jealousy (ghirah), was quite old, and had little children who would bother him. He waved away her concerns by saying, “As for your jealousy, Allah will cure it, as for your age, I am not young either, and as for the children, they belong to Allah and His Messenger.”

The next woman, Zaynab bint Jahsh, was given to him in marriage by Allah Most High. She was the divorced wife of his adopted son, but to remove the social ban on marriage with an adopted son’s wife, Allah married her in the heavens.

The Prophet’s marriage to Umm Habibah is another example of chivalry. Daughter of Abu Sufyan the staunch antagonist of the Prophet, she had entered Islam in its early days. She migrated to Abyssinia along with her husband to escape persecution - despite the fact that she was the daughter of a leader of Quraysh. Such was the frenzy against Islam at that time. In Abyssinia however, her husband turned Christian. They were separated and Umm Habibah was left destitute with a child in a land where, as Asma’, her companion later described, each day was spent in fear of life. She could not return to the parents of the kind she had: Abu Sufyan and Hind. Hind was the woman who had chewed Hamza’s heart at Uhud. When the Prophet, who was then in Madinah, learned of her plight, he sent a Companion to convey his offer of marriage. It was as brilliant a move as it was compassionate, the gesture of a person who was a father to his followers. The attractions of a husband who converted to Christianity, coupled with the daily worries of how to feed herself and conduct the affairs of life in an honorable manner, all alone, in a foreign Christian land, could not be ruled out as causes of a woman’s possible loss to Islam. The Prophet’s offer certainly saved a soul. The offer pleased even the king of the land, Najashi, so much that he himself performed the matrimonial ceremony and offered a dower from his purse. Thus Umm Habibah became his wife while her father was leading the Makkans against the Prophet, in all their battles after Badr. It was her father who had inflicted the terrible defeat at Uhud. But, on hearing of how the Prophet came to his daughter’s rescue, even he was moved and the remark: “He is the honorable one who can not be put to blush,” escaped him. She joined the Prophet in Madinah only three or four years prior to his death. Those Westerners, and their foolhardy eastern slaves and parrots, who believe the Prophet created a harem, clearly need to see a doctor for sanity check. Fanaticism is quite close to insanity after all. And, it might further increase their frustration to know that after his own conversion to Islam in the 8th year after hijrah, Abu Sufyan offered his second daughter’s hand also to the Prophet, but the offer was turned down on grounds that Islam did not allow a man two sisters in wedlock at one time.

The Prophet married three more women. One was Juwayriyyah who was taken prisoner in a battle, but he took her in marriage instead of taking her a slave. The result was that a whole clan comprising of over a hundred families (perhaps a thousand souls) that had been taken slaves was redeemed by the masters because they could not bear to keep any member of a clan as slave which was related to the Prophet. It is strongly suspected that he had married her for this reason. Another lady he married was Safiyyah, the former wife of a Jewish chief Kinanah, slain because the treasures of Banu Nadir were too dear to him. When captured after the battle, the Prophet asked him about where had he concealed it. Kinanah expressed complete ignorance. The Prophet asked him if he was prepared to die if it was found that he had knowledge of it. He said yes. It was found in his premises and he was executed. (He was also ordered killed because he had killed a Companion of the Prophet some time back). His wife Safiyyah was taken prisoner, but the Prophet married this diminutive woman and then redeemed her. She was so short that she could not fit into the eyes of some the Prophet’s wives. May Allah be pleased with her. Another lady whom he married was Maymunah bint al-Harith a 27 year old widow. He married her when he was in Makkah to perform `Umrah in the 7th year after hijrah. `Abbas, the Prophet’s uncle, had suggested the alliance, perhaps to strengthen the family ties and win some Makkan families to the cause of Islam. The Prophet complied and requested the Makkans that they allow him to extend his stay for him to arrange his marriage-feast (walimah). They gallantly refused and insisted that he leave the city within the three stipulated days of the Treaty.

137. It is said that when the earlier verses concerning the veil came, some people went up to the Prophet to ask whether their sons and fathers were also to deal with their women from behind a curtain. In response, this verse was revealed (Ibn Jarir, Kashshaf, Qurtubi).

138. Alusi writes: This list does not mention paternal and maternal uncles because they are like the parents of a woman or perhaps they have been left out because there was no need to mention them after mentioning their sons.

139. That is, believing women.

140. That is, fear Allah and do not cross the boundaries of hijab set forth for you (Qurtubi).

141. It might be noticed that Allah (swt) combined Himself and the angels in one pronoun: “(they) send blessing.” This is despite the fact that when a man combined the Prophet and Allah in one pronoun in his presence, he cut him short by saying, “Sit down. You are a poor speaker.” The man had said, “Whoever obeyed Allah and His Messenger found the true path, and whoever disobeyed the two, lost the way.” It has been suggested as an answer that Allah combined Himself and the angels under one pronoun in this ayah by saying, “yusallun” to honor the angels. They are, so to say, so close to Allah that they could be mentioned together with Allah in one pronoun. Another answer is that it is for Allah to do as He will, but not allowable to His creations. Hence the Prophet interrupted the man who did so (Qurtubi).

Alusi adds that on one occasion the Prophet had also brought together his name and that of Allah in one pronoun. He said (in a trustworthy report of Tirmidhi and Ahmad: Au.),

ثَلَاثٌ مَنْ كُنَّ فِيهِ وَجَدَ حَلَاوَةَ الْإِيمَانِ مَنْ كَانَ اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ أَحَبَّ إِلَيْهِ مِمَّا سِوَاهُمَا وَمَنْ أَحَبَّ عَبْدًا لَا يُحِبُّهُ إِلَّا لِلَّهِ وَمَنْ يَكْرَهُ أَنْ يَعُودَ فِي الْكُفْرِ بَعْدَ إِذْ أَنْقَذَهُ اللَّهُ كَمَا يَكْرَهُ أَنْ يُلْقَى فِي النَّارِ - صحيح البخاري

“Whoever possessed these three (qualities) tasted the sweetness of faith through them: He to whom Allah and His Messenger are dearer than all else besides the two…”

142. Earliest scholars have said that “salah” from Allah is His mercy for His creation, while that of the angels for humans refers to their seeking forgiveness for them. As for “salah” of the humans when sought in favor of the Prophets, it connotes seeking Allah’s peace and blessing for them (Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir, Shafi` and others).

143. Allah wished to create a confluence of blessings on the Prophet. Hence, after “salah” of those on High (`alam al-`ulwi), He ordered “salah” of those of the lower world (`alam al-sufli) – Ibn Kathir.

Allah’s salah for His creation, adds Ibn Kathir, is not infrequent in the Qur’an. Allah said (in this surah itself 33: 41-43),

{ يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اذْكُرُوا اللَّهَ ذِكْرًا كَثِيرًا (41) وَسَبِّحُوهُ بُكْرَةً وَأَصِيلًا (42) هُوَ الَّذِي يُصَلِّي عَلَيْكُمْ وَمَلَائِكَتُهُ لِيُخْرِجَكُمْ مِنَ الظُّلُمَاتِ إِلَى النُّورِ وَكَانَ بِالْمُؤْمِنِينَ رَحِيمًا} [الأحزاب: 41 - 43]

“O you who have believed, remember Allah with much remembering. [42] And glorify Him morning and evening. [43] He it is who confers blessing on you, and His angels (also), to bring you out from darknesses into light; and He was ever Kind upon the believers.”

He also said (2: 155-157),

{وَلَنَبْلُوَنَّكُمْ بِشَيْءٍ مِنَ الْخَوْفِ وَالْجُوعِ وَنَقْصٍ مِنَ الْأَمْوَالِ وَالْأَنْفُسِ وَالثَّمَرَاتِ وَبَشِّرِ الصَّابِرِينَ (155) الَّذِينَ إِذَا أَصَابَتْهُمْ مُصِيبَةٌ قَالُوا إِنَّا لِلَّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَ (156) أُولَئِكَ عَلَيْهِمْ صَلَوَاتٌ مِنْ رَبِّهِمْ وَرَحْمَةٌ وَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْمُهْتَدُونَ } [البقرة: 155 - 157]

“We shall surely try you with some fear, hunger, loss of wealth, lives, and fruits. Give glad tidings then to those who endure in fortitude. Such as those who, when visited by an affliction say, ‘To Allah we belong and to Him we return.’ It is these on whom descends peace and mercy from their Lord. It is these (indeed) who are rightly guided.”

To add an example from a Prophetic statement,

إِنَّ اللَّهَ وَمَلاَئِكَتَهُ يُصَلُّونَ عَلَى مَيَامِنِ الصُّفُوفِ

“Allah and His angels send peace upon the right hand side of the rows (in Prayers).”

[Suyuti declared it sahih in his Jami` al-Saghir: Au.].

According to another report, (in Bukhari and others), `Abdullah ibn Abi Awfa narrates that:

كَانَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ إِذَا أَتَاهُ قَوْمٌ بِصَدَقَةٍ قَالَ اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلَيْهِمْ فَأَتَاهُ أَبِي بِصَدَقَتِهِ فَقَالَ اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلَى آلِ أَبِي أَوْفَى

Whenever some people brought their charity to him (for distribution), he would say, “O Allah send peace on such and such a folk.” Once, my father went up to him with his charity. (On that occasion also) he said, “O Allah send peace upon Abu Awfa’s household.”

Thus we see that the word “salah” has been used in the sense of peace and blessing in favor of other than our Prophet.

144. Ibn Jarir reports Qatadah, Ibrahim and others as having said that when the verse, “Verily, Allah and His angels send blessings on the Prophet. O those who have believed, invoke blessings on him and send him salutations of peace” was revealed, his Companions asked, “Messenger of Allah, we know how to invoke peace upon you (as in tashahhud: Au.), but how do we invoke blessings on you?” (That is, they understood how salam was said, but did not know how salah was to be said: Au.). He was quiet for a while (until we wished we hadn’t asked him the question) and then answered,

اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ ، وَعَلَى آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ كَمَا صَلَّيْتَ عَلَى إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَبَارِكْ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ وَعَلَى آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ كَمَا بَارَكْتَ عَلَى إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَعَلَى آلِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ فِي الْعَالَمِينَ إِنَّكَ حَمِيدٌ مَجِيدٌ

“Say, “O Allah send Your blessing upon Muhammad and upon the family of Muhammad, as You sent peace upon Ibrahim and upon the family of Ibrahim. Indeed, you are Praiseworthy, Most Glorious. O Allah send Your benedictions upon Muhammad and upon the family of Muhammad, as You sent benedictions upon Ibrahim and upon the family of Ibrahim. Indeed, you are Praiseworthy, Most Glorious” (Ibn Jarir, Qurtubi).

Alusi adds: It might be noticed that Allah (swt) urged the believers to send peace and blessing. But when they asked how it was to be done, the Prophet told them to ask Allah to do it: “O Allah send Your blessing …” This is because firstly, we humans have no means to send peace and blessing, and, secondly, left to ourselves, we could not have done it as perfectly as Allah can do, and hence, “O Allah send Your blessing..” Therefore, some scholars have said that it is not allowed to say, “I send peace and blessing to the Prophet.”

The hadith above is in Bukhari coming through Ka`b b. `Ujrah. Other Sunan works have Ibn Abi Layla as saying, “Once, Ka`b b. `Ujrah met me and said, ‘May I not gift you something?’ And then narrated the above hadith” (Ibn Kathir).

There are many other reports on the virtues of sending peace greetings to the Prophet. One in Ahmad says that a man said to the Prophet,

أَجْعَلُ لَكَ صَلَاتِي كُلَّهَا ؟ قَالَ:{ إِذًا تُكْفَى هَمَّكَ ، وَيُغْفَرُ لَكَ ذَنْبُكَ }.

“Messenger of Allah. How would it be if I made all my salah (i.e., peace formula) for you?” He answered, “In that case, Allah will take care of all your worries )of the world(, and your sins will be forgiven.”

The report is also in Tirmidhi who declared it trustworthy.

Another narrative in Ahmad has `Abdul Rahman ibn `Awf say,

خَرَجَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَاتَّبَعْتُهُ حَتَّى دَخَلَ نَخْلًا فَسَجَدَ فَأَطَالَ السُّجُودَ حَتَّى خِفْتُ أَوْ خَشِيتُ أَنْ يَكُونَ اللَّهُ قَدْ تَوَفَّاهُ أَوْ قَبَضَهُ قَالَ فَجِئْتُ أَنْظُرُ فَرَفَعَ رَأْسَهُ فَقَالَ مَا لَكَ يَا عَبْدَ الرَّحْمَنِ قَالَ فَذَكَرْتُ ذَلِكَ لَهُ فَقَالَ إِنَّ جِبْرِيلَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَام قَالَ لِي أَلَا أُبَشِّرُكَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ يَقُولُ لَكَ مَنْ صَلَّى عَلَيْكَ صَلَّيْتُ عَلَيْهِ وَمَنْ سَلَّمَ عَلَيْكَ سَلَّمْتُ عَلَيْهِ - فسجدتُ لله عز وجل، شكرا"

“The Prophet came out (of his house) and I followed him as he entered an orchard. He went into prostration and made it so long that I began to wonder whether he was dead. So I closed in on him to find out what was happening. He raised his head and asked, “What’s the matter with you O `Abdul Rahman?" I told him of my fears. He said, “Jibril came to me and said, ‘May I not give you the glad tiding? Allah has said, ‘Whoever sent peace to you, I shall send peace to him, and whoever greeted you with blessings, I shall greet him with blessing.’ And, so I made this (long) prostration in gratitude.”

Nasa’i’s report has Allah saying:

عَنْ عُبَيْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ أَبِي طَلْحَةَ عَنْ أَبِيهِ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ جَاءَ ذَاتَ يَوْمٍ وَالسُّرُورُ يُرَى فِي وَجْهِهِ فَقَالُوا يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ إِنَّا لَنَرَى السُّرُورَ فِي وَجْهِكَ فَقَالَ إِنَّهُ أَتَانِي مَلَكٌ فَقَالَ يَا مُحَمَّدُ أَمَا يُرْضِيكَ أَنَّ رَبَّكَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ يَقُولُ إِنَّهُ لَا يُصَلِّي عَلَيْكَ أَحَدٌ مِنْ أُمَّتِكَ إِلَّا صَلَّيْتُ عَلَيْهِ عَشْرًا وَلَا يُسَلِّمُ عَلَيْكَ أَحَدٌ مِنْ أُمَّتِكَ إِلَّا سَلَّمْتُ عَلَيْهِ عَشْرًا قَالَ بَلَى

“Abu Talha’s father reported that one day the Prophet emerged with a joyful face. They said, ‘Messenger of Allah, we see joy in our face?’ He answered, ‘An angel came down from the heavens and said, “Muhammad! Does it not please you that Allah Most High says, ‘None will send peace to you from among your followers but I shall send him peace ten times, and none will send salam but I shall greet him with ten salams?” I said, ‘Yes it does.’”

Haythamiyy remarked that the narrators of this hadith are trustworthy (Au.).

Another narrative is in Tirmidhi, who declared it Hasan Gharib Sahih, as also in Ahmad, which reports the Prophet as having said,

الْبَخِيلُ مَنْ ذُكِرْتُ عِنْدَهُ فَلَمْ يُصَلِّ عَلَيَّ

“A miser is one before whom I was mentioned but he did not say the peace formula for me.”

Yet another report in Ahmad has Abu Hurayrah transmit the Prophet’s words,

مَا جَلَسَ قَوْمٌ مَجْلِسًا لَمْ يَذْكُرُوا فِيهِ رَبَّهِمْ وَلَمْ يُصَلُّوا عَلَى نَبِيِّهِمْ -صلى الله عليه وسلم- إِلاَّ كَانَ تِرَةً عَلَيْهِمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ إِنْ شَاءَ أَخَذَهُمُ اللَّهُ وَإِنْ شَاءَ عَفَا عَنْهُمْ

“No people got together in a gathering, without mentioning Allah’s name therein, nor sending peace to their Prophet (peace be upon him), but it will be a source of grief on the Day of Judgment. If He wished He will forgive them, or if He wished He will punish them.”

Tirmidhi rated it as Hasan Sahih (Au.).

In view of the above ahadith, it has been said that to say the peace formula is obligatory at least once in a lifetime, just like the testimony. (Others have held that it is wajib to send peace in a gathering at least once when his name is pronounced, even if repeatedly: Kashshaf, Mufti Shafi`). Further, there are moments at which it is all the more becoming of a Muslim that he should send him peace. A report in Muslim, Tirmidhi, Abu Da’ud and Nasa’i has `Abdullah ibn `Amr say that he heard the Prophet say,

إِذَا سَمِعْتُمُ الْمُؤَذِّنَ فَقُولُوا مِثْلَ مَا يَقُولُ ثُمَّ صَلُّوا عَلَىَّ فَإِنَّهُ مَنْ صَلَّى عَلَىَّ صَلاَةً صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ بِهَا عَشْرًا ثُمَّ سَلُوا اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ لِىَ الْوَسِيلَةَ فَإِنَّهَا مَنْزِلَةٌ فِى الْجَنَّةِ لاَ تَنْبَغِى إِلاَّ لِعَبْدٍ مِنْ عِبَادِ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى وَأَرْجُو أَنْ أَكُونَ أَنَا هُوَ فَمَنْ سَأَلَ اللَّهَ لِىَ الْوَسِيلَةَ حَلَّتْ عَلَيْهِ الشَّفَاعَةُ

“When you hear the callers call (for Prayers), repeat his words. Thereafter, send your peace greeting to me. For, whoever sent peace to me will have Allah send him peace ten times over. Subsequent to that, you should ask Allah for the means of access (wasilah) for me. It is a rank in Paradise which does not behoove anyone but a single person. And I hope to be that person. Therefore, whoever asked the means of access for me, will enjoy my intercession.”

(Another occasion to say the salam is while entering the mosque and leaving it). The Prophet (saws) himself used to say the peace formula when entering or leaving the mosque. And yet another occasion for saying salam is when one spots a Masjid. `Ali ibn Abi Talib said, “When you see a mosque, send peace greeting to the Prophet.” It is also desirable that one starts one’s supplications with peace formula and end with the peace formula. `Umar ibn al-Khattab said, “A supplication is hung between the earth and the heaven until you send peace to your Prophet.” The narrative is preserved by Tirmidhi.

So also, Friday is a special occasion to say the peace formula. The Prophet said, as in a report of Ahmad,

إِنَّ مِنْ أَفْضَلِ أَيَّامِكُمْ يَوْمَ الْجُمُعَةِ فِيهِ خُلِقَ آدَمُ ، وَفِيهِ قُبِضَ ، وَفِيهِ النَّفْخَةُ ، وَفِيهِ الصَّعْقَةُ ، فَأَكْثِرُوا عَلَيَّ مِنَ الصَّلاةِ فِيهِ ، فَإِنَّ صَلاتَكُمْ مَعْرُوضَةٌ عَلَيَّ ، قَالُوا : يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ، وَكَيْفَ تُعْرَضُ عَلَيْكَ صَلاتُنَا وَقَدْ أَرَمْتَ ؟ يَقُولُونَ قَدْ بَلِيتَ ، قَالَ : إِنَّ اللَّهَ حَرَّمَ عَلَى الأَرْضِ أَنْ تَأْكُلَ أَجْسَادَ الأَنْبِيَاءِ

“The best of your days is Friday. It is on this day that Adam took birth, and it is on this day that he died. The Trumpet will be blown on this day, and mankind will swoon. Therefore, say the peace formula a lot in it. Your salam is presented to me.” They asked, “Messenger of Allah. How can the greeting be presented to you when you would have become dust and perished?” He answered, “Allah has made it unlawful for the earth to decay the bodies of Prophets.”

This is a trustworthy narrative preserved by Abu Da’ud, Nasa’i, and Ibn Majah.

Abu Da’ud has preserved another narrative. The Prophet said,

لا تَجْعَلُوا بُيُوتَكُمْ قُبُورًا، وَلا تَجْعَلُوا قَبْرِي عِيدًا، وَصَلَّوْا عَلَيَّ، فَإِنَّ صَلاتَكُمْ تَبْلُغُنِي حَيْثُ مَا كُنْتُمْ

“Do not render your homes graves (meaning, where no Qur’an is recited, no Prayer is offered: Au.). And do not make my grave a place of regular visit. However, send peace to me, for your peace salutation reaches me wherever you might be.”

(The hadith is weak, but seems to gather strength from similar weak reports as in `Awn al-Ma`bud: Au.).

Then there are angels who go about picking up peace greetings addressed to him. Imam Ahmad has on the authority of Ibn Mas`ud recorded that the Prophet said,

إِنَّ لِلَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ مَلائِكَةً سَيَّاحِينَ فِي الأَرْضِ يُبَلِّغُونِي عَنْ أُمَّتِي السَّلامَ

“Allah has angels who go around in the land, conveying the salam of my Ummah to me.”

Nasa’i also preserved it. Hayathmi traced it as also in Al-Bazzar and declared its narrators as worth trusting (Au.).

Nevertheless, the following narrative, says Ibn Kathir, is not trustworthy. It says,

من صلى علىَّ عند قبرى سمعته ومن صلى على من بعيد بُلِّغْتُه

“I hear the peace greeting of one of you near my grave, while he who does it from a distance, has it conveyed to me.”

But Ibn Hajr writes in Fath that it is a trustworthy report, and offers one or two other equally authentic traditions in support (Au.).

There is another hadith worth reporting on this topic. It says,

مَا مِنْ أَحَدٍ يُسَلِّمُ عَلَىَّ إِلاَّ رَدَّ اللَّهُ عَلَىَّ رُوحِى حَتَّى أَرُدَّ عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمَ

“No Muslim sends me salam but Allah restores my soul so that I can respond with a salam to him.”

The report is in Abu Da’ud and Nawawi declared it Sahih in his al-Adhkar.

Significantly, continues Ibn Kathir, it is reported of Hasan b. Al-Hasan b. `Ali that when he saw someone frequenting visits to the Prophet’s grave, he remarked, “Man, you and someone in Spain are not but equal with reference to him.” That is, the Salah wa Salam of everyone – no matter where he is - is conveyed to him.

We might also convey, says Ibn Kathir, Khatib al-Baghdadi’s note. He said, “I have seen the writings of Imam Ahmad. He wrote the Prophet’s name so often but without writing the peace formula. I am told that he used to say out the words by mouth.”

We may also point out that although in general terms there is no sin in sending peace to other than a Prophet in those specific words, such as to say,

قال أبو بكر صلى الله عليه

“Abu Bakr said, Allah’s peace be upon him.”

But, by consensus, such usage is undesirable to the point of being forbidden.

So also, it is not desirable to say when `Ali’s name is spelled:

عليه السلام

“On him be peace,” but rather, should say,

رضي الله عنه

“May Allah be pleased with him,” since, this is the formula in use for all Companions, including those who were senior and superior to him: Abu Bakr, `Umar and `Uthman.

In practice, the peace formula has been reserved for Prophets (Kashshaf). Finally, it is also said that one might not say when a Prophet’s name is spelled,

"صلى الله عليه" - فقط

nor,

"عليه السلام" - فقط

but rather, he should say,

صلى الله عليه و سلَّم

or,

عليه الصلاة والسلام

That is, one should combine the words of salah and salam.

Additionally, the following hadith is reported but it is either forged or untrustworthy:

من صلى عليّ في كتاب، لم تزل الصلاة جارية له ما دام اسمي في ذلك الكتاب

“Whoever mentioned salam in a book, the salam will be perpetually written in his favor so long as my name remains in the book.”

Ibn Kathir’s comments end here, some of which had been quoted by Qurtubi.

The above however, of combination of salah and salam is not a strict requirement. One could say for instance:

اللهم صل على محمد

“O Allah send peace to Muhammad.”

This is based on notes in Alusi, Thanwi, and Shafi’ - who quotes Nawawi.

As for salah on the Prophet during the sitting posture (tashahhud) in the Prayers, apart from Shafe`i, who declared it wajib, most other scholars have considered it strongly desirable, but not wajib (Qurtubi, Shafi`).

Finally, in our times an innovation is spreading around in the Indo-Pak area. They say to a person traveling to Madinah, ‘Say my salam to him.’ Or, ‘say salam to the Prophet on my behalf.’ This is out of ignorance that his or her salam is conveyed to the Prophet whenever he or she says the peace formula (Au.).

145. How could one affront Allah? It is to say, writes Zamakhshari, as the pagans said, “Angels are Allah’s daughters,” or, as the Jews said, “Allah’s hands are bound,” or, as the Christians said, “Allah is one of the three,” or, “the Messiah was the son of God.”

A hadith of the Sahihyan expounds this issue further.

قَالَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ يُؤْذِينِى ابْنُ آدَمَ يَسُبُّ الدَّهْرَ ، وَأَنَا الدَّهْرُ بِيَدِى الأَمْرُ أُقَلِّبُ اللَّيْلَ وَالنَّهَارَ

Allah (swt) said, “Adam’s son affronts Me. He curses the time while I am the Time. I interchange its nights and days” (Zamakhshari, Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir).

146. Ibn `Abbas and others said that the allusion by pain to the Messenger was to the criticism leveled against the Prophet for marrying Safiyyah b. Huyayy b. Akhtab (Ibn Jarir). Ibn Kathir adds that that might be true, but the application is general.

The Orientalists would not deny themselves their share of Allah’s anger. To this day they raise questions concerning the legitimacy of the Prophet choosing Rayhana for himself after the Banu Nadir affair, saying he took a captive from among the women-captives, while, moments ago, so to say, her men had been slaughtered. But they fail to understand Arab character of quickly forgetting the past, and adjusting to the present, stoically. Rayhana, an Arab, although Jewish, was no exception. Sirah books are full of such practical ways of dealing with life’s misfortunes. A quick example is that of Abu Jahl. When Ibn Mas`ud went up to behead him, he instructed him to slit the neck in a way that when kept among heads, it should stand high!

There were other instances of annoyance to the Prophet. When he sent an expedition placing Usama bin Zayd at the head, he was criticized (because of Zayd’s youth – he was just 18 – and because there were senior Companions in the expedition force). The Prophet (saws) ascended the mimber and said, “If you object to Usamah as the leader, then, you had also objected to his father (Zayd, his freed slave) as a leader. By Allah, he deserved to be an Amir and was the dearest of people to me. And surely, this one (Usama) is also dearest of people to me.” It is reported by scholars such as Ahmad, Abu Da’ud and others that while Zayd was as fair as cotton, Usama was extremely dark. When he was little, the Prophet used to clean his nose and mouth. It is said that Usamah was (one of) the causes of apostasy of the Arabs (of the outlying areas). During the Farewell Hajj, the Prophet stopped for a while at `Arafat, waiting for Usamah to join. When Usamah appeared, they said, “Is this the one he was waiting for?” – belittling him. They became apostates immediately upon the death of the Prophet. `Umar used to grant Usamah 5000 Dirham while to his own son `Abdullah he would allot 2000. Once `Abdullah protested, saying, “You do that while I have been in more battles than he.” `Umar answered, “Usamah was dearer to the Prophet than you were, and his father was dearer to him than your father was” (Qurtubi).

(Zayd had married others earlier to marrying Zaynab. It is possible that Usamah’s mother was dark: Au.).

147. Ahmad and Tirmidhi have preserved a report from the Prophet, which was declared Hasan Gharib by Tirmidhi. It says,

عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ مُغَفَّلٍ الْمُزَنِيِّ قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ اللَّهَ اللَّهَ فِي أَصْحَابِي اللَّهَ اللَّهَ فِي أَصْحَابِي لَا تَتَّخِذُوهُمْ غَرَضًا بَعْدِي فَمَنْ أَحَبَّهُمْ فَبِحُبِّي أَحَبَّهُمْ وَمَنْ أَبْغَضَهُمْ فَبِبُغْضِي أَبْغَضَهُمْ وَمَنْ آذَاهُمْ فَقَدْ آذَانِي وَمَنْ آذَانِي فَقَدْ آذَى اللَّهَ وَمَنْ آذَى اللَّهَ أَوْشَكَ أَنْ يَأْخُذَهُ

“Allah, Allah, in reference to my Companions. Allah, Allah, in reference to my Companions. Do not take to criticizing them after me. Whoever loved them, loved them in my love. Whoever, hated them, hated them in my hatred. Whoever hurt them, hurt me. Whoever hurt me, hurt Allah. And whoever hurt Allah, is likely that He will be taken to task” (Ibn Kathir).

Bazzar has reported the Prophet (saws) as having said,

دعوا لي أصحابي لا تسبوا أصحابي

“Leave alone my Companions, do not curse them.”

Haythami said its narrators are those of the Sahih collections (Au.).

`A’isha has been preserved by Ibn Abi Hatim as reporting that once the Prophet addressed his Companions and asked,

عن عائشة قالت: قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم لأصحابه "أي الربا أربى عند الله ؟" قالوا الله ورسوله أعلم قال: "أربى الربا عند الله استحلال عرض امرىء مسلم"

“Which is the worst of usury?” They said, “Allah and His Messenger know best.” He said, “The worst of usury in the sight of Allah is to attack the honor of a Muslim without right” (Ibn Kathir).

While the first half could not be traced, this second half of the narrative has the approval of Haythami (Au.).

148. Fudayl has said, “Look! It is not allowable that you should hurt a dog or a pig. What then is your opinion about believers in Allah?” (Zamakhshari).