Home > The 40 Hadith of Nawawi > Hadith 6 of Nawawi
Hadith number 6 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.
[Of the two matters:] matters confusing many people: lawful or unlawful; the firmly rooted in knowledge: confused not: knowing of which kind they are.
As for the pure lawful: like eating good things of crops, fruits and cattle; drinking good drinks; wearing needed cotton, linen, wool and hair: likewise marriage, manumission and other: when acquired by valid contract: like sale: or inheritance, gift or spoils.
The pure unlawful: like eating carrion, blood, swine-flesh, drinking wine, marrying forbidden women, men wearing silk: like unlawful acquisition: usury, gambling, unsellable's price, wealth seized by theft, usurpation or deception, and such.
The ambiguous: like eating some disputed lawful or unlawful: of objects: horses, mules, donkeys, dabb-lizard; drinking disputed forbidden: naqi juices many-enervating; wearing disputed permissible: fierce-beast skins and such; disputed earnings: ayna and tawarruq questions: and such: Ahmad, Ishaq and other imams explained ambiguities herein.
The gist herein
The gist: Allah, the Most High, sent down upon His prophet the book: explaining therein the community's needed lawful and unlawful: as the Most High says:
"We sent down upon you the book: explaining everything."
An-Nahl, 89
Mujahid and others say: everything commanded or prohibited. Allah, the Most High, says, at women-sura's end wherein He explains many wealth- and wives-rulings:
"Allah explains you, lest you stray: and Allah everything-Knowing."
An-Nisa, 176
and the Most High says:
"Why eat you not of that Allah's name mentioned upon: detailed you what He prohibited, except what compelled to."
Al-An'am, 119
and the Most High says:
"Allah erred not a people after guiding them: till explaining what they guard against."
At-Tawba, 115
Clarifying the descent's ambiguous entrusted to the Messenger: as the Most High says:
"We sent down to you the reminder: explaining the people what descended them."
An-Nahl, 44
Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) died not till completing for him and community religion: hence descended at Arafat, little before death:
"Today completed I your religion, perfected My grace upon you, and approved Islam your religion."
Al-Ma'ida, 3
He said (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): "I left you upon the clear white path: its night like its day: deviating only perishing." Abu Dharr, may Allah be pleased with him, said: "Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) died: no sky-wing-flapping bird but mentioned us knowledge thereof." People doubting his death (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): uncle al-Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said: "By Allah: Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) died not leaving the way clearly traced: lawfying lawful, forbidding unlawful: marrying, divorcing, fighting, peacing: not like a shepherd following sheep, hitting mountain-tops with his staff: watering his trough by hand: like Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) among you."
[Allah and messenger left lawful and unlawful nothing unexplained:] In sum: Allah and His messenger left lawful nothing unexplained: unlawful unexplained: some more apparent-explained: explained, famous, necessarily-religion-known: no doubt remaining: none excused ignorance in Islam-appearing land.
Lesser-explained: some spreading only Law-bearers: scholars consensus licensing or forbidding: hidden to non-them some. Some spreading not Law-bearers: diverged licensing forbidding: causes: text hidden, few transmitting: knowledge-bearers' all reached not; two texts transmitting: licensing, prohibiting: one group one reached: holding theirs: or both reached, abrogating-unknown: suspending; no explicit text: generality, implication, analogy taken: scholars' understandings differing much; command and prohibition: scholars' understandings diverging command obligation-recommendation, prohibition forbiddance-disapproval.
Community needs truth-saying scholar
Divergence-causes more than mentioned: yet community needs truth-word scholar: he the ruling's scholar: others ambiguous: not knowing: community error-gathered not: false-folk over right-folk appearing not: truth not abandoned un-acted all lands and eras: hence he said (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) of ambiguities: "many people know them not": indicating people knowing: ambiguous only non-knowers: ambiguous not in the affair: the sufficient cause of some things confusing many scholars.
Lawful-unlawful ambiguity causes
Scholars' and others' lawful-unlawful confusion may arise otherwise: things licensing-cause known: certain ownership; prohibition-cause known: other's ownership established. First: licensing lifts not but ownership-removal certainty: except wives with Malik's doubt-divorce: or Ishaq ibn Rahuwayh's preponderance. Second: prohibition lifts not but ownership-transfer certainty.
Ownership-root unknown
Ownership-root unknown: man's house-found, his or other's unknowing: ambiguous: taking prohibited not: apparent: house-content his: hand-established. Scrupulousness: avoiding: Prophet's (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) word: "I return to my family: finding a date fallen on my bed: lifting eating: fearing charity: casting." Both report in authentic collections.
Forbidden-kind present, doubting thereof: doubt intensifying. Amr ibn Shu'ayb's hadith, from father, grandfather, may Allah please him: the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) night-insomnia-struck: wives saying: O Messenger of Allah! Sleepless tonight? He said: "a date found my side: eating: charity-dates with us: fearing thereof: guarding." Hereof: licensing-root (water, garment, earth purity) origin-removal uncertain: using permitted: prohibition-root (wives, animal-meat): licensing only slaughter and contract-certainty.
Scientist hesitating ruling?
Hesitating by another-cause appearance: returns to root: building prohibition-root on prohibition: hence the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) prohibited eating game with hunter-found other-arrow trace, other-dog, water-fallen: not knowing licit-cause death or other.
Licensing-root returns licensing: water, earth, garment impure not by mere impurity-conjecture: likewise body: purity-verified, hadath-nullification doubted: scholars' majority: against Malik, mercy on him: prayer-entered not. Authenticated of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): man complained imagining prayer-finding: he said: "retire not till hearing sound, smelling odor." Versions: "in the mosque": replacing "prayer": generalizing prayer and other.
Strong cause found preponderating impurity-opinion of purity-rooted: careless disbeliever-garment: confusion-place. Scholars permitting: root-taking; disliking: disapproval; prohibiting impurity-conjecture-strengthening: un-slaughter-permitted disbeliever, private-exposing: trousers, shirts.
These and such return origin-apparent conflict rule: origin purity, apparent impurity.
Proofs conflicted: purity-sayers: Allah, the Most High, permitted People-of-Book food: their-hands their-vessels-made: Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) answered Jew's invitation: companions wearing using disbeliever-woven clothes vessels: campaigns sharing vessels-clothes: polytheist-waterskin water used. Impurity-sayers: authenticated Prophet's (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) People-of-Book vessels-question: pork-eating, wine-drinking: "finding none else: wash water: eat therein."
Imam Ahmad explained doubt: between pure-lawful pure-unlawful: saying: "avoiding: purified his religion." Sometimes explained: lawful-unlawful mixing. Mixed-wealth-doer consequence: haram-more: avoid, Ahmad saying: except little, unknown; our companions: disliked or prohibited: two ways. Licit-more: dealing, eating permitted.
Al-Harith reports Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, of sultan-gifts: "no harm: licit-giving more than unlawful."
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and companions dealt polytheists, People-of-Book: knowing all-unlawful-avoiding not.
Ambiguous: doubt: scrupulousness: leaving. Sufyan said: "displeasing: leaving pleasing more." Az-Zuhri, Makhul: eating harm-none: specifically-unlawful unknown; shubha-knowing: eating harm-none: Ahmad explicit in Hanbal narration. Ishaq ibn Rahuwayh: Ibn Mas'oud's, Salman's, others' license-reported: al-Hasan's, Ibn Sirin's usury-gambling-judgment-taking permitting: Ibn Mansur transferring.
Imam Ahmad said wealth licit-illicite-mixed: "much: haram-measure extracting: rest disposing; little: avoiding all." Little: taking: haram-safety hard: unlike much. Our companions: scrupulousness not prohibition carried: little-much extraction-after disposal permitted: Hanafis', others': scrupulousness-folk taking: Bishr al-Hafi. Predecessors permitting haram-knowing eating: specifically-unknown: Makhul, az-Zuhri preceded: al-Fudayl ibn Iyad like-reported. Predecessor-effects: Humayd ibn Zanjawayh's adab-book, al-Khallal's collection-book, Abd ar-Razzaq's, Ibn Abi Shayba's collections, others: Ibn Mas'oud authenticated: asked of riba-publicly-eating, impure-wealth-unashamed, food-inviting neighbor: "answer: ease yours, sin his." Version: told: naught but impure, unlawful knowing: "answer." Imam Ahmad authenticated of Ibn Mas'oud: contradicting his "sin hearts'-scratcher"-reported. Salman like Ibn Mas'oud's first saying: Sa'id ibn Jubayr, al-Hasan al-Basri, Murriq al-Ijli, Ibrahim an-Nakha'i, Ibn Sirin, others. Effects: Humayd ibn Zanjawayh's adab-book, al-Khallal's Jami', Abd ar-Razzaq's, Ibn Abi Shayba's collections.
Thing-itself unlawful-knowing: unlawful-view taking?
Thing-itself unlawful-knowing: unlawful-view taken: taking prohibited: consensus reported Ibn Abd al-Barr, others. Ibn Sirin reported of riba-judging man: "harm-none": gambling-judging: "harm-none." Al-Khallal reports authentic chain. Al-Hasan contrary-reported: earnings corrupted: need-like taking. Ibn Mas'oud's, Salman's reported: Abu Bakr as-Siddiq's, may Allah be pleased with him, eating, unlawful-told: vomiting, contradicted.
Ruling ambiguity may occur fruit floating attracting-roots: man's wife-prohibition: li'an-presentation prohibition major-expiation-lifting: one-divorce prohibition idda-end: wife new-contract-lawful: triple-divorce prohibition: wife-lawful-not: food-drink prohibition Allah-licenced: not prohibiting: minor-expiation or naught: diverged: divergence multiplied Companions' era, after.
In any case: ambiguous matters many-people unclear lawful-unlawful: Prophet's (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) informing: some apparent lawful-unlawful: extra-knowledge.
The many knowing not
Prophet's word (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) indicates ambiguities: people-knowing, many-knowing-not: non-knowers two kinds: suspending ambiguity; believing otherwise: his word others-knowing indicating: knowing reality: licensing, forbidding: strongest proofs: ambiguous disputed lawful-unlawful correct with Allah one, the Mighty and Majestic: others unknowing: Allah's-ruling-attaining not: belief conjecture-proof-deemed: ijtihad-rewarded: error-unreliance-forgiven.
His saying: "doubt-avoider purified religion and honor"
His saying: "doubt-avoider: purified religion, honor: doubt-faller: unlawful-fallen": people ambiguity-divided two: ambiguity-holder, non-knower. Knower, knowledge-following: third unmentioned category: ruling-apparent: best three: Allah's ambiguous-ruling knowing: knowledge-following: Allah's ruling unknowing: two: doubt-avoiding ambiguity-holder: religion, honor purified: istibra: religion, honor deficiency-disgrace-innocence-seeking: honor: praise-blame place: good-mention praised, ugly-mention faulted: self, predecessors, family sometimes: ambiguity-avoiding: honor non-avoider's faulting-disgrace protected: doubt-committing: faulting, reproach exposing: predecessors: "suspicion-exposing: ill-thinking blamer blame-not." At-Tirmidhi version: "istibra-purpose leaving: saved." Meaning: innocence-intent leaving: corruption-purpose display not. Honor-innocence-seeking praised: religion-like: "honor-protecting all: charity." Authentic collections' version: "sin-ambiguous leaver: clear-leaver worthier": sin-leaving ambiguity-undetermined: clearer-leaving worthier: sin-guarding: people-display-sinner: pleasing-leaving only.
Second kind: doubt-comer ambiguity-knowing
Doubt-deeming-comer, really-lawful-knowing: Allah-burden-none: people-reproach-fearing: leaving honor-istibra: good: Prophet's (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) Safiyya-seer word: "she is Safiyya, Huwayy's daughter." Anas Friday-out: prayed-people seeing: shamed: unseen-place entering: "people-shameless: Allah-shameless." At-Tabarani reports raised: unauthentic.
Lawfulness-believing-comer: sound ijtihad or imitation, erring-belief: predecessor's ruling: weak ijtihad, impermissible imitation, mere whim-following: ambiguity-comer's ruling.
Doubt-comer ambiguity-knowing: Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) informed unlawful-falling: two meanings: doubt-believing-committing: believed-haram gradual-committing path: authentic collections' version: "sin-doubting, unclear daring: apparent-affronting": version: "doubt-frequenter: daring-near" (meaning: approaching) "pure-unlawful." Daring: fearless, unwatching: some reporting j-jim shin-replacing: grazing, jasar, beast-grazing. Abu al-Mutawakkil an-Naji's mursal, from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): "haram-borders-pasturing: mixing-near: minor-neglecting: majors-mixing-near." Second meaning: ambiguous-comer lawful-unlawful unknowing: really-haram-unsafe: haram encountering unknowing.
Ibn Umar's hadith, may Allah be pleased with both, from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), who said: "lawful clear, unlawful clear: between ambiguities: avoider: religion, honor purest: doubt-faller: unlawful-falling-near: sanctuary-around-pasture-like: affronting-near: unfeeling." At-Tabarani and others report.
Scholars diverged: parents-obeying doubt-entering: Bishr ibn al-Harith reported: "doubt-obedience-none." Muhammad ibn Muqatil al-Abbadani: obeying. Ahmad suspending: "manage-them": answering-refusing.
Ahmad said: doubt-satiating not, doubt-adornment-garment buying not: eating, wearing lawful suspending: bird-cast date: eating not, taking not, exposing not. House-wealth discovery
ath-Thawri said house-finding coins, dirhams-man: "avoiding dearer": whence-unknown meaning. Predecessors some: whence-knowing-until eating-not: enquiring origin-standing: raised hadith reported: weak therein.
His saying: "sanctuary-around-pasture-like: pasturing-near: know: each king a sanctuary: Allah's sanctuary: His prohibitions"
Parable the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) struck doubt-faller: pure-haram-falling-near: versions: "example-striking": prohibitions kings'-protected-sanctuary-like: approach-forbidding. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) made around his Medina twelve miles: forbidden sanctuary: tree-cutting, hunting-not: Umar, Uthman protected pasture-places: charity-camels: Allah, glorified: prohibitions-protecting: servants-approach-forbidding: limits-naming: the Most High says:
"These are Allah's limits: approach not: thus Allah explains His verses people: mindful perhaps."
Al-Baqara, 187
Containing: licit, forbidden delimited: haram-approaching, licit-transgressing not: another verse likewise:
"These are Allah's limits: transgress not: transgressor Allah's limits: the unjust."
Al-Baqara, 229
Sanctuary-around or-near pasturer: entering, pasturing deserving: licit-transgressor, doubt-faller: haram-utmost-nearing: pure-haram mixing, falling: what character!
Allusion: forbidden-distancing befitting: barrier-making. Harm-veil-taking
At-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah report Abd Allah ibn Yazid's hadith, from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), who said: "servant mindful-attaining not: harmless-leaving precautionarily, harmful-what." Abu al-Darda, may Allah be pleased with him, said: "piety's completeness: Allah-fearing ant-weight: lawful-seeming some-leaving: unlawful-fearing: haram-veil." Al-Hasan said: "piety remained the mindful: much lawful-leaving haram-fearing." ath-Thawri said: "mindful-named: unfeared-fearing." Ibn Umar reported saying: "love: haram-between licit-garment leaving: un-torn." Maymun ibn Mihran said: "lawful man-granted not: haram-between licit-obstacle-making." Sufyan ibn Uyayna said: "faith-reality attaining not: haram-between licit-obstacle: sin, similar-leaving."
This hadith haram-ways-barring, means-forbidding argumenting: Sharia rules indicating: little-intoxicant much-forbidding: foreign-woman privacy-forbidding: dawn-, midday-after prayer-forbidding: sunrise-, sunset-prayer-pretext barring: faster-desire-stirring intercourse-forbidding: scholars-many menstruating woman navel-knee intercourse-forbidding: barrier-behind: Prophet's (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) wife-commanding: izar-wearing: cloth-above touching.
Examples: Prophet's parable-like: animal other-crop-sending: crop-spoil guaranteeing: day-even: correct: negligent-sending: hunting-dog sanctuary-near sending, entering, hunting: guarantee: two Ahmad narrations: always-guaranteeing said.
His saying: "body-morsel: sound: body-whole sound: corrupt: body-whole corrupt: the heart"
Allusion: servant's limb-movements rectitude, forbidden-avoiding, doubt-guarding: heart-movement rectitude-by: heart sound: Allah-love, beloved-love, Allah-fear, hated-falling-fear: limb-movements all-rectified: all-forbidden-avoiding, doubt-guarding: forbidden-falling-precaution: heart corrupt: whim-following, beloved-seeking usurping: Allah-hating though: limb-movements corrupted: sins, ambiguities-all whim-heart-following.
Hence said: "heart members'-king: rest members soldiers: obedient soldiers: obedience-rushing: command-executing: naught-contradicting." King sound: soldiers sound: corrupt: soldiers likewise: Allah-benefiting: sound heart only: the Most High says:
"The day wealth, sons benefit not: Allah-comer sound-heart only."
Ash-Shu'ara, 88-89
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said in supplication: "O Allah! Sound heart I ask." Sound heart: ills, dislikes-all safe: Allah-love, Allah-beloved-love, Allah-fear, distancing-fear only.
Imam Ahmad's Musnad, may Allah have mercy on him, from Anas, from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), who said: "servant's faith uprights: heart uprights till." Faith uprightness: limb-deeds uprightness: limb-deeds uprighting: heart-uprightness-but: heart uprightness: Allah's-love, obedience-love, disobedience-hate filling.
Al-Hasan told a man: "heart-mend: Allah's servants-need: hearts-rectitude." Meaning: His intent, sought: hearts-rectitude: hearts rectifying: Allah-knowledge, greatness, love, fear, awe, hope, trust-installing: filling.
This oneness reality: la ilaha illa Allah meaning: hearts rectifying: deity worshipping, knowing, loving, fearing: Allah alone, no partner: heavens-earth deity besides: corrupted: the Most High says:
"Deities besides Allah therein: corrupted."
Al-Anbiya, 22
Known: upper, lower world rectitude-none: people's, body movements heart-movement, will-following: Allah-alone: rectified: body-whole: other-than-Allah heart-movement: corrupted: body-movements heart-corruption-by.
Oneness: Allah-love
Al-Layth reports Mujahid, His word: "associating naught": "love-none besides Me." Hakim's Sahih, Aicha, may Allah be pleased with her, from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), who said: "association subtler ant-walk rock-upon dark-night: nearest: injustice-loving, justice-hating: religion love-hate but?" The Most High says:
"Say: Allah-loving: follow me: Allah loving you."
Al Imran, 31
Indicating: Allah-hated-loving, Allah-loved-hating: whim-following, allying, opposing: hidden association: His word indicating:
"Say: Allah-loving: follow me: Allah loving you."
Al Imran, 31
Allah made love-truth's sign messenger-following: love obedience-conformity-completing-not indicating.
Al-Hasan, may Allah have mercy on him, said: Allah's Messenger's companions (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: O Messenger of Allah! Our Lord intensely loving: Allah love-sign desiring: verse descending: "Say: Allah-loving: follow me: Allah loving you." Hence al-Hasan said: "know: Allah-loving till obedience-loving." Dhul-Nun the Egyptian asked: Lord-loving when? Said: "His-hated bitterer than bile." Bishr ibn as-Sari said: "love-signs not: beloved-hated loving." Abu Ya'qub an-Nahrajuri said: "Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, love-claiming: Allah-order conforming-not: claim invalid." Ruwaym said: "love: all-states conforming." Yahya ibn Mu'adh said: "Allah-love-claiming: limits-guarding-not: untruthful." Predecessors: "ancient books read: Allah-loving: satisfaction-preferring-naught: world-loving: soul-desire-preferring-naught."
Sunan, from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), who said: "Allah-giving, Allah-withholding, Allah-loving, Allah-hating: faith completed." Meaning: heart, limb-movements all-Allah: faith completed: outward, inward.
Heart-movement rectitude: limb-movement rectitude-necessitating: heart sound: Allah's-will, His-will-only: limbs His-willed-only-erupting: pleasure-racing: hated, suspected-withholding: uncertain-though.
Al-Hasan, may Allah be pleased with him, said: "sight-directing, tongue-speaking, hand-striking, foot-rising never: considering: obedience, disobedience: obedience-advancing, disobedience-retreating." Muhammad ibn al-Fadl al-Balkhi said: "forty years a step non-Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, walking-not." Dawud at-Ta'i told: "shadow-sun moving?" Saying: "steps written-how unknowing." These folk: hearts rectified: will non-Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, remaining-naught: limbs rectified: Allah, the Mighty and Majestic-only moving: satisfaction-containing: Allah, the Most High, knows best.