Home > The 40 Hadith of Nawawi > Hadith 5 of Nawawi
Hadith number 5 of the collection of the 40 hadiths of Imam an-Nawawi, in a faithful English translation.
Updated on 10 September 2026 at 2:45 AM
📖 14 min readThis hadith belongs to the collection of the 40 hadiths of Imam an-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him), the most studied hadith compilation in the world: foundations of faith, worship and character, all authentic narrations.
after me: you will see much divergence: hold to my Sunna and the rightly guided successors' Sunna after me; biting it with the molars; and beware innovations of matters: every innovation is misguidance, every misguidance error."
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said in his sermon: "The truest speech is Allah's book; the best guidance Muhammad's (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him); the worst of matters the new ones."
We defer innovated-matters discourse to al-Irbad's indicated hadith's mention. We speak here of deeds without the Lawgiver's command and their rejection. This hadith indicates, by its wording, every deed without the Lawgiver's command rejected; by its implication every deed with His command unrejected. His command here means His religion and Law: like His word in the other narration: "Whoever introduces into this matter of ours what is not of it: rejected." The meaning: whoever's deed is outside the Law, unbound by it: rejected.
His word "without our command": allusion that all actors' deeds should be under the Sharia's rulings: its rulings judging them by command and prohibition: whoever's deed runs under the Sharia's rulings, conforming: accepted; whoever outside that: rejected.
Deeds are two kinds: worship and transactions. Worship outside Allah's and His messenger's ruling wholly: rejected upon its doer: its doer entering His word:
"Have they partners legislating them a religion Allah permitted not?"
Ash-Shura, 21
[Drawing near Allah by music or dancing: unlawful innovation:] Whoever draws near Allah by a deed Allah and His messenger made not nearness-cause: his deed invalid, rejected upon him: like those whose prayer at the House was whistling and clapping.
Like whoever draws near Allah, the Most High, by listening to music, dancing, head-uncovering outside ihram, and such innovations Allah and His messenger legislated not nearness by at all.
Nearness in one worship may not be in another
Nearness in one worship is not necessarily nearness in another. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) saw a man standing in the sun: asked: told: he vowed standing without sitting, without shading, and fasting. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) commanded sitting, shading, completing his fast: making not his standing and sun-exposure nearness-cause fulfilling his vow. It is reported it was a Friday, at the Prophet's sermon hearing (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): upon the pulpit: he vowed standing, sitting not, shading not, so long as the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) preached: magnifying the Prophet's sermon hearing (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) made it not nearness fulfilling his vow, though standing worship in other places: prayer, call, Arafat-invocation: sun-exposure muhrim-nearness: indicating not every place-nearness is all-places: following therein what the Law came with in its places. Likewise whoever draws near by worship specifically prohibited: Eid-day fasting, prohibited-time prayer.
Mixing lawful and unlawful in a deed
Whoever does a deed lawful-rooted, nearness-cause, then introduces unlawful, or omits lawful: contradicts the Law by his omission or introduction measure: his root-deed rejected upon him or not? Not stated rejection or acceptance: examined. Omission of deed-parts or conditions necessitating Law-invalidity: omitting prayer's purity with ability, bowing, prostration or their stillness: rejected: repetition obligatory if obligatory. Omission not necessitating invalidity: congregational prescribed prayer omission with those obliging without conditioning: not rejected rootly: deficient. Adding to the lawful deed unlawful: addition rejected upon him, no nearness nor reward: sometimes invalidating rootly: rejected, deliberately adding a rak'a; sometimes not: not root-rejected: four-four ablution, day-night fasting continuing.
Replacing the commanded with the prohibited
Some worship-commanded may be replaced by prohibited: covering his private in prayer with forbidden garment, ablution by usurped water, praying on usurped ground: scholars diverged: his deed root-rejected, or unrejected, obligation-discharge freed? Most jurists: not root-rejected.
Prayer in unlawful garment
Abd ar-Rahman ibn Mahdi reports of a dialectician folk called the Shimriyya, Abu Shimr's companions, saying: whoever prays in a garment whose price had an unlawful dirham: prayer-repetition obligatory upon him: saying: "never heard an uglier saying: we ask Allah wellbeing." Abd ar-Rahman ibn Mahdi is of the hadith folk's great jurists, knowing the predecessors' sayings: disapproved this saying, making it innovation: indicating no predecessor known saying repetition in such.
Pilgrimage with unlawful wealth
Like this: pilgrimage with unlawful wealth: a hadith came rejected upon its holder: unestablished hadith: scholars diverged: waives the obligation or not?
Slaughtering with a forbidden tool
Near it: slaughtering with a forbidden tool, or by one slaughtering unlawfully: like the thief: most scholars: the slaughtered permitted thereby; some: forbidden: likewise the muhrim's hunting-slaughter divergence: prohibition-view more famous and apparent: specifically prohibited.
Hence distinguishing scholars distinguished prohibition meaning worship-specific invalidating, and non-specific: not invalidating.
Prayer with impurity or on usurped land
Prayer with impurity, without purification, cover, wrong direction: invalidated: prohibition prayer-specific: unlike usurped-ground prayer.
The faster's fornicator and backbiter
Witnessing: fasting invalidated only by its-specific prohibited: eating, drinking, intercourse kind: unlike the faster's non-specific prohibition: lying, backbiting, majority.
Pilgrimage between fornicator and thief
Likewise pilgrimage invalidated only by ihram-prohibited: intercourse: not invalidated by non-ihram prohibitions: killing, theft, wine.
Likewise retreat annulled only by its-specific prohibited: intercourse. Annulled by drunkenness with us and majority: the drunkard's mosque-approach and entry prohibition, by one of His word's two senses: "approach not prayer drunk": prayer-places meant: becoming like menstruant: not annulled by other major-commitment, us and many scholars. Some predecessors contradicted: Ata, az-Zuhri, ath-Thawri, Malik: reported of others too.
Transactions: contracts, rescissions and such: what changes legal situations: like making fornication's punishment financial: rejected rootly: no ownership transferring: uncustomary in Islam's rulings. Indicated by the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) telling the asker: my son was so-and-so's servant: fornicated with his wife: ransomed him a hundred sheep and a servant: the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "the hundred sheep and servant returned you: upon your son a hundred lashes and a year's exile." Prohibited-law contracts: invalid object, missing condition, contracting-party injustice, dhikr-occupying at tight time, or other: contract rejected wholly no ownership-transfer, or not?
Narrations' divergence therein
This place: people greatly troubled: some images: rejected, no ownership: some: ownership: trouble thereby. [Nearest: distinguishing Allah's right and the human's:] Nearest, Allah willing: prohibition for Allah's right: ownership never: Allah's right: contracting-consent waived not. Prohibition for a human's right, consent-waivable: stands on his consent: consenting: contract binding, ownership continuing; dissenting: rescission due. Harmed one consent-unconsidered: wife, slave, divorce, manumission: consent or displeasure unregarded. Prohibition leniency toward the prohibited one only, no hardship: contradicting, committing hardship: deed not annulled.
The first many images: marrying marriage-prohibited: permanently by cause or kin, combining: or unwaivable missing condition: waiting-woman, forbidden one, guardianless marriage and such. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is reported separating a man and woman he married pregnant: marriage returned for waiting-entry. Of it: usury contracts: no ownership: returning commanded: the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) commanded the date-measure two-for-one seller returning. Of it: wine, carrion, swine, idols, dog selling, and all sale-prohibited: consent-selling unlawful.
The second many images: guardian marrying permission-required without permission. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) rejected the reluctant thiby woman's father-marriage. Reported from him (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) offering choice to permissionlessly-married woman: marriage invalidity or authorization-suspension: two Ahmad narrations. Some scholars held: disposing other's wealth permissionlessly: not root-invalid: stands on authorization: granting: lawful: rejecting: invalid. Argued by Urwa ibn al-Ja'd's hadith buying the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) two sheep: one-sheep command: selling one: Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) accepting. Imam Ahmad restricted it, famous of him, to authorized dispenser exceeding authorization.
The sick one's wealth-disposal
Of it: sick one's whole-wealth disposal: root-invalid, or two-thirds upon heirs' authorization? Famous jurists' divergence: Ahmad's school and others'. Authenticated: the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): reported a man freeing six slaves at death: no other wealth: he called them, divided three parts: freed two, enslaved four: harsh word: perhaps heirs authorized not all-freeing: Allah knows better. Of it: deceptive sale and like: honey-extractor, najash-sale, rider-waiting: famous divergence in Ahmad's school. Some hadith folk: invalid rejected. Correct: valid, stands on the harmed one's authorization. Authenticated of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): honey-extractor buyer given option: riders given option market-descending: all indicating not root-rejected. Argued against invalidity-sayers by honey-extractor hadith: no answer mentioned. Present-for-absent sale: authenticators: of this kind; invalidators: right to all town-folk: unenumerable: rights-unwaivable inconceivable: like Allah's right, the Mighty and Majestic. Of it: selling slaves separation-forbidden, separating: mother-child: invalid-rejected or consent-standing? The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is reported commanding this sale's return. Ahmad explicit: separation impermissible though consenting. Some permitted consent-separation: an-Nakha'i, Ubayd Allah ibn al-Hasan al-Anbari. Hereon: valid, consent-standing conceivable.
Privileging some children by gift
Of it: privileging some children by gift without others: authenticated of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) commanding Bashir ibn Sa'd, privileging his son an-Nu'man by gift: returning. Indicating not ownership-not-transferring: gift valid with consideration: equalizing children in gift: retrieving given: permitted; dying without: Mujahid said: inheritance. Ahmad reported like: gift annuls: majority: annuls not. Heirs' return due or not? Two famous views: two Ahmad narrations.
Of it: prohibited divorce: menses-time divorce: prohibited for the husband's right: fearing regret-following. Leniency-prohibited, committing hardship: deed not judged invalid: sickness or travel-fasting, fasting-continuing, all-wealth-spending begging, standing-praying with illness-hardship, harm-fearing washing no tayammum, perpetual fasting, sleepless night-standing: likewise triple-divorce gathering upon its prohibition-view. Said: menses-divorce prohibited woman's-right only: no idda-lengthening harm, though consenting: menses-compensation divorce-asking: prohibition lifted thereby? Two famous scholars' views: famous of our school and al-Shafi'i's: prohibition lifted thereby.
Were the prohibition the husband's right only: engaging: right renounced: falling: woman's-right explanation: occurrence prevented not: woman's divorce-consent occurrence-considered not by all Muslims: contradicted only small Rawafid-band and such: slave's manumission-consent unconsidered though harmed. Woman harmed, divorce remaining: husband ordered returning (Ibn Umar's wife): harm-averting her, haram-divorce averting: her separation not haram-divorce-born: lawful-divorce enabling: separation thus obtained.
Abu az-Zubayr's report
Reported from Abu az-Zubayr, from Ibn Umar, may Allah be pleased with both: the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) returned her him: seeing her not. Abu az-Zubayr's alone: all Ibn Umar's companions: son Salim, freedman Nafi', Anas, Ibn Sirin, Tawus, Yunus ibn Jubayr, Abd Allah ibn Dinar, Sa'id ibn Jubayr, Maymun ibn Mihran, others. Scholars' imams, traditionists and jurists denied this wording to Abu az-Zubayr: singularity contradicting trustworthy: unaccepted: the group's Ibn Omar narration indicates the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) counting him the divorce by many routes. Ibn Umar said divorce-during-menses askers: "divorced once or twice: the Messenger of Allah ordered me returning"; "thrice: disobeyed my Lord: wife separated." Abu az-Zubayr's narration: addition none following: his word: then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) recited:
"O prophet! When you divorce women: divorce them for their period: and count the period."
At-Talaq, 1
None of Ibn Omar's reporters mentioning. But Abd Allah ibn Dinar reports Ibn Omar: reciting this verse at the hadith's narration: the correct. People deemed Ibn Umar's divorce triple: the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) returning her only menses-divorce not-occurring: reported from Abu az-Zubayr too, from Mu'awiya ibn Ammar ad-Duhni's narration: perhaps Abu az-Zubayr truly deemed: reporting that wording in understood meaning. Ibn Lahi'a reports this hadith from Abu az-Zubayr, saying of Jabir: Ibn Umar divorced his wife menstruating: the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "let him return her: she is his wife": erring mentioning Jabir in this isnad: singularizing his word: she is his wife: indicating divorce non-occurrence only triple-supposing. This hadith denied to Abu az-Zubayr: Ibn Omar's trustworthy traditionist-knowledgeable attached companions: uncontradicted. Ayyub reports Ibn Sirin saying: I waited twenty years: told by unsuspicious that Ibn Umar divorced his wife thrice, menstruating: the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) commanded returning: I ceased not unsuspecting, hadith-unknowing: meeting Abu Ghalib: Yunus ibn Jubayr: trustworthy: informing asking Ibn Omar: once-divorced. Muslim reports it. A version: Ibn Sirin said: I ceased not hadith-face unknowing, un-understanding. Indicating: spread among trustworthy non-fiqh-knowledge folk: Ibn Umar's divorce triple: Abu az-Zubayr perhaps such: hence Nafi' often asked Ibn Umar's divorce: thrice or once. Nafi' Mecca-coming: Ata's session sending asking: this doubt: Ibn Sirin's triple-narration denial indicates: no considered saying prohibited-divorce non-occurring: that saying no face. Imam Ahmad said, in Abu al-Harith's narration: asked whoever says: prohibited divorce occurs not, contradicting command: said: "an ugly, bad saying." Mentioning Ibn Umar's story: counting his menses-divorce. Abu Ubayd said: "occurrence is the scholars' consensus, all lands: Hijaz, Tihama, Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Egypt." Ibn al-Mundhir reports it of all science-folk preserving saying: except some unconsidered innovators.
Ibn Hazm's view
As for Ibn Hazm reporting Ibn Umar: menses-divorce not occurring: leaning on his Muhammad ibn Abd as-Salam al-Khushani al-Andalusi route: Muhammad ibn Bashshar informed us: Abd al-Wahhab ath-Thaqafi informed us, from Ubayd Allah ibn Umar, from Nafi', from Ibn Omar, of the man divorcing his wife menstruating: he said: counted not. By his Khalas chain likewise: this report lost its end's wording: he said: "that menstruation counted not." Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shayba reports it likewise in his book, from Abd al-Wahhab ath-Thaqafi. Yahya ibn Ma'in reports it likewise from Abd al-Wahhab: saying: singular: none reporting but Abd al-Wahhab: Ibn Umar's intent: divorce-time menstruation counted not as purity-period: Khalas' and others' intent. Reported too from some predecessors: Zayd ibn Thabit, Sa'id ibn al-Musayyib: some exegetes and others erred: like Ibn Hazm erred: reporting named some: menses-divorce not occurring: both's doubt-cause: Allah knows better.
This hadith al-Qasim ibn Muhammad reported only asked: a man with houses: bequeathing three houses' third: combined one house? He said: all combines one house: Aicha, may Allah be pleased with her, informed me the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "Whoever does a deed without our command: rejected." Muslim reports it.
Its intent: changing the testator's bequest to what is dearer to Allah and more useful: permitted: reported of Ata and Ibn Jurayj. Some adopting argue His word:
"Whoever fears the testator's deviation or sin: reconciling: no sin upon him."
An-Nisa, 12
Perhaps taken from freeing's combining: authentic: a man freeing six slaves at death: no other wealth: the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) called them: divided three parts: freed two: enslaved four. Muslim reports it. The hadith jurists went to it: completing slave-freedom worthier than fractionating. Hence delegation and walking legislated: partner freeing his slave-share: he said (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) of partial-freer: "he is freed wholly: Allah no partner." Most scholars against al-Qasim's view: testator's bequest combined not: wording followed: freeing specifically: combining-meaning absent other wealths: acting thereby testator's bequest requirement. Some jurists held freeing: freeing each slave's third: remainder granted. Following Allah's messenger's judgment (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) worthier. Al-Qasim deemed testator's heir-sharing all houses: harm: repelled: bequest combined one house: Allah conditioned bequest non-harm, by His word:
"without harm, as Allah's bequest."
An-Nisa, 12
Whoever harms in his bequest: deed rejected upon: contradicting Allah's, the Most High, bequest-condition.
Were he to bequeath his houses' third
Some jurists held: bequeathing all houses' third: two-thirds perishing: third remaining: all given: some Abu Hanifa companions' view. Reported of Abu Yusuf and Muhammad: Qadi Abu Ya'la, of our companions, in his divergence: concurring. Built upon joint houses compulsory division: Malik's view. Ibn Abi Musa's speech apparent, famous of our companions: multiple houses compulsory division not: Abu Hanifa's and al-Shafi'i's view, may Allah have mercy on them both. [Some Malikis interpreted al-Qasim's mentioned fatwas in this hadith: either party of heirs and bequeathed requesting houses' division: houses near joining in division: division answered, their view. This interpretation far: contradicting apparent: Allah knows better.]