Biography of Aisha bint Abi Bakr (Mother of the Believers)

No. 19: Aisha bint as-Siddiq Abou Bakr at-Taymiyya, Mother of the Believers, may Allah be pleased with her.

Daughter of the Imam as-Siddiq al-Akbar, successor of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, Abou Bakr Abdallah ibn Abi Qouhafa Othmane ibn 'Amir ibn 'Amr ibn Ka'b ibn Sa'd ibn Taym ibn Mourra ibn Ka'b ibn Lou'ayy al-Qourachiyya, at-Taymiyya, the Meccan, the Medinan, Mother of the Believers, wife of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, the most learned of all the women of the community.

Her mother was Oumm Roumane bint 'Amir ibn 'Uwaymir ibn Abd Chams ibn 'Attab ibn Oudhayna al-Kinaniyya.

Her parents emigrated with Aisha, and the prophet of Allah married her before his emigration, after the death of as-Siddiqa Khadija bint Khouwaylid, that is about eleven months before the Hijra; some say: two years.

He consummated the marriage with her in Shawwal of the year two, on his return, peace and blessings be upon him, from the expedition of Badr, and she was nine years old.

She reported from him an abundant, pure and blessed knowledge.

She reported from her father.

And from: Omar, Fatima, Sa'd, Hamza ibn 'Amr al-Aslami, and Joudama bint Wahb.

Narrated from her: Ibrahim ibn Yazid an-Nakha'i, in relay; Ibrahim ibn Yazid at-Taymi, likewise; Ishaq ibn Talha, Ishaq ibn Omar, al-Aswad ibn Yazid, Ayman the Meccan, Thumama ibn Hazn.

Joubeir ibn Nufayr, and Joumay' ibn 'Oumayr.

Al-Harith ibn Abdallah ibn Abi Rabi'a al-Makhzoumi, al-Harith ibn Nawfal, al-Hasan, Hamza ibn Abdallah ibn Omar, Khalid ibn Sa'd, Khalid ibn Ma'dan, and it is said: he did not hear from her; Khabbab, author of "the Maqsoura"; Khoubayb ibn Abdallah ibn az-Zoubeir, Khilllas al-Hajari, Khiyar ibn Salama, Khaythama ibn Abd ar-Rahman.

Dhakwan as-Samman, and his freedman Dhakwan; Rabi'a al-Jourachi, who was a Companion; Zadhan Abou 'Omar al-Kindi, Zourara ibn Awfa, Zirr ibn Hubaych, Zayd ibn Aslam.

Salim ibn Abi al-Ja'd, who did not hear from her; Zayd ibn Khalid al-Jouhani, Salim ibn Abdallah, Salim Sabalan, as-Sa'ib ibn Yazid, Sa'd ibn Hicham, Sa'id al-Maqburi, Sa'id ibn al-As, Sa'id ibn al-Moussayib, Soulayman ibn Yasar, Soulayman ibn Bourayda.

Chourayh ibn Arta'a, Chourayh ibn Hani', Chariq al-Hawzani, Chaqiq Abou Wail, Chahr ibn Houchab.

Salih ibn Rabi'a ibn al-Hadir, Sa'sa'a, the uncle of al-Ahnaf, Tawous, Talha ibn Abdallah at-Taymi.

Abis ibn Rabi'a, 'Asim ibn Houmayd as-Sakouni, 'Amir ibn Sa'd, ach-Cha'bi, 'Ibbad ibn Abdallah ibn az-Zoubeir, 'Ubada ibn al-Walid, Abdallah ibn Bourayda, Abou al-Walid Abdallah ibn al-Harith the Basrian, Ibn az-Zoubeir, her maternal nephew; Ourwa, her brother; Abdallah ibn Chaddad al-Laythi, Abdallah ibn Chaqiq, Abdallah ibn

Chihab al-Khawlani, Abdallah ibn 'Amir ibn Rabi'a, Ibn Omar, Ibn Abbas, Abdallah ibn Farrroukh, Abdallah ibn Abi Moulayka, Abdallah ibn Ubayd ibn 'Oumayr, her father; Abdallah ibn 'Oukaym, Abdallah ibn Abi Qays, the two sons of her sister: Abdallah and al-Qasim, sons of Muhammad; Abdallah ibn Abi 'Atiq Muhammad, her nephew Abd ar-Rahman; Abdallah ibn Waqid al-'Omari, her wet nurse Abdallah ibn Yazid, Abdallah al-Bahi, Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Aswad, Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Harith ibn Hicham, Abd ar-Rahman ibn Sa'id ibn Wahb al-Hamdani, Abd ar-Rahman ibn Chumasa, Abd ar-Rahman ibn Abdallah ibn Sabit al-Joumahi, Abd al-Aziz, father of Ibn Jourayj; Ubaydallah ibn Abdallah, Ubaydallah ibn 'Iyad; Iraq, who did not meet her; Ourwa al-Mouzani, 'Ata' ibn Abi Rabah, 'Ata' ibn Yasar, 'Ikrima, 'Alqama, 'Alqama ibn Waqqas, Ali ibn al-Husayn, 'Amr ibn Sa'id al-Achdaq, 'Amr ibn Chourahbil, 'Amr ibn Ghalib, 'Amr ibn

Maymoun, 'Imran ibn Hittan, 'Awf ibn al-Harith, her fosterling; 'Iyad ibn Ourwa, 'Isa ibn Talha, Ghoudhayf ibn al-Harith.

Farwa ibn Nawfal, al-Qa'qa' ibn Hakim, Qays ibn Abi Hazim, Kathir ibn 'Oubayd the Kufan,

her fosterling; and Kourayb.

Malik ibn Abi 'Amir, Moujahid, Muhammad ibn Ibrahim at-Taymi, if he met her; Muhammad ibn al-Ach'ath, Muhammad ibn Ziyad al-Joumahi, Ibn Sirin, Muhammad ibn Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Harith ibn Hicham, Abou Ja'far al-Baqir, who did not meet her; Muhammad ibn Qays ibn Makhrama, Muhammad ibn al-Mountachir, Muhammad ibn al-Mounkadir, who may be a relay; Marwan al-'Ouqayli Abou Loubaba, Masrouq, Misd'ab Abou Yahya, Mou'tarif ibn ach-Chikhhir, Miqsam, freedman of Ibn Abbas; al-Mouttalib ibn Abdallah ibn Hantab, Mak'houl, who did not reach her; Moussa ibn Talha, Maymoun ibn Abi Chabib, Maymoun ibn Mihran.

Nafi' ibn Joubeir, Nafi' ibn 'Ata', Nafi' al-'Omari, an-Nou'man ibn Bachir, Hammam ibn al-Harith, and Hilal ibn Yisaf.

Yahya ibn al-Jazzar, Yahya ibn Abd ar-Rahman ibn Hatib, Yahya ibn Ya'mar, Yazid ibn Babanous, Yazid ibn ach-Chikhhir, Ya'la ibn 'Oqba, and Youssouf ibn Mahak.

Abou Oumama ibn Sahl, Abou Bourda ibn Abi Moussa, Abou Bakr ibn Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Harith, Abou al-Jawza' ar-Raba'i,

Abou Houdayfa al-Arhabi, Abou Hafsa, her freedman; Abou az-Zoubeir the Meccan, who may be a relay; Abou Salama ibn Abd ar-Rahman, Abou ach-Cha'tha' al-Mouharibi, Abou as-Siddiq an-Naji, Abou Dhibyan al-Janbi, Abou al-'Ala' Rufay' ar-Riyahi, Abou Abdallah al-Jadali, Abou Ubayda ibn Abdallah ibn Mas'oud, Abou Othmane an-Nahdi, Abou 'Atiyya al-Wadi'i, Abou Qilaba al-Jarmi, who did not meet her; Abou al-Malih al-Houdhali, Abou Moussa, Abou Hourayra, Abou Nawfal ibn Abi 'Aqrab, and Abou Younous, her freedman.

Bouhayya, freedwoman of as-Siddiq; Jasra bint Dijaja, Hafsa bint Ourwa, her brother Abd ar-Rahman; Khayra, mother of al-Hasan al-Basri; Dhifra bint Ghalib, Zaynab bint Abi Salama, Zaynab bint Nasr, Zaynab as-Sahmiyya, Soumayya the Basrian, Choumayssa al-'Atkiyya, Safiyya bint Chayba, Safiyya bint Abi Ubayda, Aisha bint Talha, 'Amra bint Abd ar-Rahman, Marjana, mother of 'Alqama ibn Abi 'Alqama; Mou'adha al-'Adawiyya, Oumm Koultoum at-Taymiyya, her sister; Oumm Muhammad, wife of the father of Ali ibn Zayd ibn Jou'dan; and a group other than these.

"The Musnad of Aisha" contains two thousand two hundred and twelve hadiths.

Al-Boukhari and Mouslim agreed upon one hundred and seventy-four of her hadiths.

Al-Boukhari reported exclusively fifty-four.

Mouslim reported exclusively sixty-nine.

Aisha is among those who were born in Islam; she was eight years younger than Fatima, and she said: "I never knew my parents while they did not practice the religion."

She mentioned that she saw in Mecca at the age of seven a blind old man who begged.

She was a white and beautiful woman; hence she was called al-Houmayra; the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, never married a virgin other than her, never loved any woman with the love he bore her, and I know of none, in the community of Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, no, nor among women in general, of a woman more learned than her.

Some scholars hold that she was better than her father: this is rejected; Allah gave each thing its measure. We rather attest that she is the wife of our Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, in this world and the Hereafter: is there above that any greater honor? And if as-Siddiqa Khadija has an unequalled rank, I halt as to which of the two is the better: yes, I asserted the superiority of Khadija over her, for reasons out of place here.

Hicham ibn Ourwa reported, from his father, from Aisha, who said:

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: "I saw you in a dream three nights: an angel was bringing you in a silken cloth and saying: this is your wife.

I would uncover your face: and behold, it was you. I would say: if this comes from Allah, He will accomplish it."

at-Tirmidhi reported it, from the hadith of Abdallah ibn 'Amr ibn 'Alqama the Meccan, from Ibn Abi Husayn, from Ibn Abi Moulayka, from Aisha:

that Jibril brought her image

in a piece of green silk to the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and said: "This is your wife in this world and the Hereafter."

at-Tirmidhi judged it hasan and said: "We know it only from the hadith of Abdallah."

Abd ar-Rahman ibn Mahdi reported it from him in relay.

Bachr ibn al-Walid the judge said: 'Omar ibn Abd ar-Rahman narrated to us, from Soulayman ach-Chaybani, from Ali ibn Zayd ibn Jou'dan, from his grandmother, from Aisha, who said:

"I was given nine things that no woman received after Maryam bint 'Imran: Jibril descended with my image in his palm, until the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, ordered that I be married; he married me a virgin, and married no virgin other than me; he passed away with his head in my lap; I buried him in my house; the angels encircled my house; revelation descended upon him while I was with him under his cover; I am the daughter of his successor and his truthful one; my innocence descended from heaven; I was created pure beside a pure one; and I was promised forgiveness and a generous reward."

Abou Bakr al-Ajourri reported it, from Ahmad ibn Yahya al-Houlwani, from him.

Its chain is good, and he has another route that will come.

The marriage of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, with her took place after the death of Khadija: he married her and Sawda at the same time; then he consummated with Sawda, remaining alone with her three years, until he consummated with Aisha in Shawwal, after

the battle of Badr. He never married a virgin other than her, and he loved her with an ardent love of which he boasted, to the point that 'Amr ibn al-'As, who was among those who embraced Islam in the year eight of the Hijra, asked the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him:

"Who is the dearest of people to you, O Messenger of Allah?"

He said: "Aisha."

He said: "And among men?"

He said: "Her father."

This is an established account, despite the snouts of the Rafidites; and the Prophet, peace be upon him, loved only the pure.

He also said: "Were I to take an intimate friend from this community, I would have taken Abou Bakr as intimate friend; but the brotherhood of Islam is better."

He therefore loved the best of the men of his community, and the best of the women of his community: whoever takes umbrage at the two beloved ones of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, deserves to be in disfavor with Allah and His Messenger.

His love, peace be upon him, for Aisha was a thing well known: do you not see them, how they vied with their gifts on the day of Aisha, to draw near to His good pleasure?

Hammad ibn Zayd said, from Hicham ibn Ourwa, from his father, from Aisha, who said:

The people vied with their gifts on the day of Aisha.

She said: my companions gathered with Oumm Salama and said to her:

"The people vie with their gifts on the day of Aisha, and we want the good as Aisha wants it: speak then to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, so that he orders the people to offer him gifts wherever he may be."

Oumm Salama mentioned it to him: he was silent and did not answer her. She returned a second time: he did not answer her.

At the third time, he said: "O Oumm Salama, do not vex me concerning Aisha: for, by Allah, revelation never descended upon me while I was under the cover of any of you, except her."

Mouslim and al-Boukhari agreed upon its authenticity.

This answer of his indicates that the preference of Aisha over the rest of the mothers of the believers is by divine decree, beneath his love for her, and that this decree is among the causes of his love for her.

Isma'il ibn Abi Oways said: my brother Abou Bakr narrated to us, from Soulayman ibn Bilal, from Hicham, from his father, from Aisha:

that the wives of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, were two parties: one party comprising Aisha, Hafsa, Safiyya and Sawda; and the other party: Oumm Salama and the rest of his wives.

The Muslims had known the love of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, for Aisha; when one of them had a gift he wished to offer to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, he delayed it until it was the turn of Aisha, then sent it to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, in the house of Aisha.

The party of Oumm Salama spoke of it, and said to her: "Speak to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him: let him speak to the people and say: whoever wishes to offer a gift to the Messenger of Allah, let him offer it to him, wherever he may be among his wives."

Oumm Salama spoke to him of it as they had said: he said nothing to her. They asked her: she said: "He said nothing to me."

They said: "Speak to him."

She said: she spoke to him when he turned toward her: he said nothing to her. They asked her: she said: "He said nothing to me."

They said to her: "Speak to him."

He turned toward her: she spoke to him, and he said to her: "Do not vex me concerning Aisha: revelation never comes to me while I am in the garment

of a woman, except Aisha."

She said: "I seek refuge in Allah from that, O Messenger of Allah."

Then they called Fatima, daughter of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, who sent word to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, saying: "Your wives ask you for fairness concerning the daughter of Abou Bakr."

She spoke to him, and he said: "O my daughter, do you not love what I love?"

She said: "Yes."

She returned to them and informed them; they said: "Return to him."

She refused to return; they sent Zaynab bint Jahch, who came, spoke harshly and said:

"Your wives adjure you by Allah for fairness concerning the daughter of Abi Qouhafa."

She raised her voice to the point of insulting Aisha who was sitting there: she insulted her, until the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, looked at Aisha to see whether she would answer.

He said: Aisha answered Zaynab until she silenced her; the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, looked at Aisha and said: "This one is the daughter of Abou Bakr."

Another virtue:

Isma'il ibn Ja'far said: Abdallah ibn Abd ar-Rahman informed us: he heard Anas say:

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: "The superiority of Aisha over women is like the superiority of tharid over all other food."

Mouslim and al-Boukhari agreed upon its authenticity, through routes, from Abou Moussa.

Chou'ba reported, from 'Amr ibn Mourra, from Mourra, from Abou Moussa:

from the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, who said: "Many men reached perfection, but among women only Maryam bint 'Imran and Asiya the wife of Pharaoh reached perfection; and the superiority of Aisha over women is like the superiority of tharid over all other food."

Another virtue:

al-Hakim reported it in "his Moustadrak", through the route of Youssouf ibn Madijn, who said:

my father narrated to me, from Abd ar-Rahman ibn Ka'b ibn Malik, from Aisha, who said:

"I said: O Messenger of Allah, which of your wives is in Paradise?"

He said: "You are one of them."

She said: "It was suggested to me because he had married no virgin but me."

Moussa, who is al-Jouhani, reported, from Abou Bakr ibn Hafs, from Aisha:

that she came with her parents, who said: "We would like you to invoke for Aisha an invocation while we listen."

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: "O Allah, forgive Aisha bint Abi Bakr as-Siddiq a certain forgiveness, apparent and hidden."

Her parents marveled at it; he said: "Do you marvel? This is my invocation for whoever testifies that there is no deity but Allah and that I am the Messenger of Allah."

al-Hakim reported it in "his Moustadrak", through the route of Soufyan ibn 'Ouyayna, from Moussa. It is very gharib.

Another virtue:

Her virtues and her rank

Chou'ayb reported, from az-Zouhri: Abou Salama narrated to me that Aisha said:

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: "O Aisha, here is Jibril: he conveys to you his salam."

She said: "And upon him the salam and the mercy of Allah: you see what we do not see, O Messenger of Allah."

Zakariyya ibn Abi Za'ida reported, from 'Amir, from Abou Salama, that Aisha narrated to him:

that the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said to her: "Jibril conveys to you his salam."

She said: "And upon him the salam and the mercy of Allah."

an-Nasa'i reported it, through the route of Ma'mar, from az-Zouhri, from Ourwa, from Aisha, similar to the first.

And in "the Musnad of Ahmad": from Soufyan, from Moujalid, from ach-Cha'bi, from Abou Salama, from Aisha, who said:

"I saw you, O Messenger of Allah, standing, speaking with Dihya al-Kalbi."

He said: "So you saw him?"

She said: "Yes."

He said: "That was Jibril: he conveys to you his salam."

She said: "And upon him the salam and the mercy of Allah: may Allah reward him as visitor and as guest: what an excellent companion, what an excellent guest!"

He said: "the guest": that is the visitor.

Moujalid: he is not strong.

Kathir ibn Hicham said: al-Hakam ibn Hicham narrated to us, from Abd al-Malik ibn 'Oumayr,

who said: Aisha said to the wives of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him: "I was preferred over you by ten merits, without boasting: I was the most beloved of his wives to him; my father was the most beloved of his men to him; he married me a virgin and married no virgin other than me; he married me when I was seven and took me into his home when I was nine; my innocence descended from heaven; and the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, asked his wives, during his illness, permission

and said: "It is hard for me to visit you in turn: grant me then to remain with one of you."

Oumm Salama said: "We know well whom you want: you want Aisha. We grant it." And the last provision he took from this world was my saliva: a siwak was brought to him, and he said: "Soften it for me, O Aisha." I softened it; he died between my lap and my chest, and he was buried in my house.

This hadith has a beautiful chain, but there is a break in it.

Resplendent virtue of hers:

Khalid al-Hadhdha' reported, from Abou Othmane an-Nahdi, from 'Amr ibn al-'As:

that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, appointed him commander of the army of Dhat as-Salasil.

He said: I came to him and said: "O Messenger of Allah, who is the dearest of people to you?"

He said: "Aisha."

He said: "And among men?"

He said: "Her father."

at-Tirmidhi said: "This hadith is hasan."

I say: al-Boukhari and Mouslim reported it.

Ibn al-Moubarak and Yahya ibn Sa'id al-Oumawi reported, from Isma'il ibn Abi Khalid, from Qays ibn Abi Hazim, from 'Amr ibn al-'As:

that he said to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him: "Who is the dearest of people to you?"

He said: "Aisha."

He said: "And among men?"

He said: "Her father."

This hadith is authentic.

an-Nasa'i and at-Tirmidhi reported it; he judged it hasan and declared it gharib.

at-Tirmidhi said: Ahmad ibn 'Abda narrated to us; al-Mu'tamir ibn Sulayman narrated to us, from Houmayd, from Anas, who said:

It was said: "O Messenger of Allah, who is the dearest of people to you?"

He said: "Aisha."

It was said: "And among men?"

He said: "Her father."

He said: "This hadith is hasan gharib."

Her marriage to the Prophet

Hicham reported, from his father, from Aisha, who said:

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, married me shortly after Khadija had died, and I was six years old; and I was brought to him at nine years. Women came to me while I was playing on a swing, and I was made up; they prepared me and beautified me, then brought me to him, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.

Ourwa said: she remained with him nine years.

Al-Boukhari reported it from the word of Ourwa:

that Khadija died three years before the Hijra; the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, remained two years or so, then married Aisha, aged six.

Ibn Idris reported, from Muhammad ibn 'Amr, from Yahya ibn Abd ar-Rahman ibn Hatib, who said:

Aisha said: when Khadija died, Khawla bint Hakim came and said:

"O Messenger of Allah, would you not marry?"

He said: "And whom?"

She said: "If you wish, a virgin; if you wish, one already married."

He said: "Who is the virgin, and who is the married one?"

She said: "As for the virgin: Aisha, daughter of the creature dearest to Allah to you; as for the married one: Sawda bint Zam'a, who believed in you and followed you."

He said: "Mention both to him for me."

She said: I came to Oumm Roumane and said:

"O Oumm Roumane, what good and what blessing has Allah granted you?"

She said: "What?"

She said: "The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, mentions Aisha."

She said: "Wait: Abou Bakr is coming."

Abou Bakr came; she mentioned it to him, and he said: "Would she be lawful for him, while she is the daughter of his brother?"

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: "I am his brother and he is my brother: his daughter would be lawful to me."

Abou Bakr rose, and Oumm Roumane said to me:

"Al-Mu'tim ibn Adi had mentioned her for his son; and by Allah, I never break a promise."

She said: Abou Bakr went to al-Mu'tim and said: "What do you say of the affair of this young girl?"

He said: he turned to his wife and said: "What do you say?"

She turned to Abou Bakr and said: "Perhaps, if we join this young boy to you, you will bring him into your religion."

Abou Bakr turned to him and said: "And what do you say?"

He said: "She says what she means."

Abou Bakr rose, no longer having in his heart anything of the engagement, and said to him:

"Tell the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, to come." He came

and married her.

She said: then I went to Sawda, whose father was a very aged old man: and she mentions the hadith.

Hicham reported, from his father, from Aisha, who said:

"I was brought to the prophet of Allah at nine years. Women came to me while I was playing on a swing, and I was made up: they prepared me and beautified me, then brought me to him."

Hicham reported, from his father, from her, that she said:

"I played with dolls, that is, toys; my companions would come, and they scattered at the sight of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him; the Messenger of Allah would go out, and they entered upon me: he would let them into my house, and they played with me."

In another wording: "And they were servant girls who came to play with me; when they saw the Messenger of Allah, they froze, and he let them into my house."

From Aisha, who said:

"The Messenger of Allah entered upon me while I was playing with dolls, and he said:

"What is this, O Aisha?"

I said: "The horses of Souleyman, and they have wings."

He laughed.

az-Zouhri reported, from Ourwa, from Aisha, who said:

"I saw the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, standing at the door of my chamber, while the Abyssinians played with their spears in the mosque; he covered me with his cloak so that I might watch their play, then remained standing for me until it was I who withdrew. Judge then the case of the young girl of tender age, eager for entertainment."

In the wording of Ma'mar, from az-Zouhri:

"I did not cease watching until it was I who withdrew: judge then the case of the young girl of tender age who hears the entertainment."

And in the wording of al-Awza'i, from az-Zouhri, in this hadith, she said:

"A delegation from Abyssinia came to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him: they began to play in the mosque. I saw the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, cover me with his cloak, and I watched them until it was I who grew weary of it."

In the hadith of Sa'id ibn al-Moussayib, from Abou Hourayra:

that Omar found them playing and rebuked them.

The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: "Leave them: they are the sons of Arfida."

al-Waqidi said: Moussa ibn Muhammad ibn Abd ar-Rahman narrated to me, from Haritha, from 'Amra, from Aisha, who said:

"When the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, emigrated to Medina, he left us, my sisters and me. When he arrived in Medina, he sent to us Zayd ibn Haritha and Abou Rafi', gave them two camels and five hundred dirhams he had taken from Abou Bakr, so that they might buy what we needed in mounts. Abou Bakr sent with them Abdallah ibn Ourayqit al-Laythi with two or three camels, and wrote to his son Abdallah, ordering him to travel with his family: Oumm Roumane, me, and my sister Asma."

"They set out; upon reaching Qoudayd, Zayd bought with those dirhams three camels; then they entered Mecca and met there Talha who wished to emigrate with the family of Abou Bakr. We all set out, and Zayd and Abou Rafi' went out with Fatima, Oumm Koultoum, Sawda, Oumm Ayman and Oussama: they escorted us all. Upon reaching al-Bayda, my camel knelt: before me was a cushion in which

was my mother, who began to cry: O my daughter! O my bride!"

"Until our camel was caught up. We arrived while the mosque was being built": and he mentions the hadith.

The affair of the iffk

It was during the expedition of al-Mourayssi', in the year five of the Hijra, and her age, may Allah be pleased with her, that day was twelve years.

Hammad ibn Zayd reported, from Ma'mar and an-Nou'man ibn Rachid, from az-Zouhri, from Ourwa, from Aisha:

that the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, whenever he wished to travel, drew lots among his wives; he drew lots among us during the expedition of al-Mourayssi', and my lot came out: and whatever of me was to perish, perished.

Likewise mentioned: Ibn Ishaq, al-Waqidi and more than one other, that the iffk took place during the expedition of al-Mourayssi'.

Younous reported, from Ibn Chihab: Ourwa informed me, as did Ibn al-Moussayib, 'Alqama ibn Waqqas, and Ubaydallah ibn Abdallah:

of the account of Aisha, when the people of the iffk said to her what they said, and Allah, the Most High, declared her innocent; each of them narrated to me a part of her account, and they corroborated one another, though some were more complete. She said:

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, whenever he wished to travel, drew lots among his wives: she whose lot came out went with him. He drew lots among us during an expedition he led, and my lot came out: I therefore went with him, after the imposition of the veil. I was carried in a hawdaj and placed within it.

We marched until the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, had completed that expedition and set out back; as we drew near to Medina, he announced departure one night: I rose then and walked until I passed beyond the army. Having answered my need, I was returning toward my mount: and behold, a necklace of zafar beads had broken. I searched for it, and its search detained me.

The men who traveled with me arrived: they loaded my hawdaj upon my camel and departed, believing me within it. Now the women of that time were light: flesh did not weigh them down; they ate only a morsel of food. They therefore found nothing strange in the lightness of the load when they lifted it. I was a girl of tender age. They sent off the camel and marched; I found my necklace after the army had departed.

I came to their camps: there was neither crier nor responder. I settled in the place where I was, thinking they would notice my absence and come back to me.

While I sat, sleep overcame me: I fell asleep. Safwan ibn al-Mu'attal as-Soulami, become adh-Dhakwani, was in the rearguard of the army: he marched by night, arrived at my camp, saw the silhouette of a sleeping human. He approached, recognized me at the moment

he saw me, and he had seen me before the veil: he pronounced the formula of return to Allah.

I awoke at his formula the moment he recognized me; I veiled my face with my jilbab, and by Allah he did not say to me a single word, and I heard from him no word other than his formula. He made his mount kneel, placed his foot upon its neck, and I mounted: he set out, leading me by the mount, until we rejoined the army, which had encamped, plundering the milans of the lizard: and whatever of me was to perish, perished. And the greatest promoter of it was Abdallah ibn Oubayy ibn Saloul.

We arrived at Medina: I fell ill for a month, while the people raged over the words of the people of the iffk; I was conscious of none of it. What worried me in my illness was that I no longer recognized in the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, the gentleness I used to see when I was ill: he would enter only to greet, then say: "How are you?", then go away.

That is what worried me; and I became conscious of the evil only upon going out after my convalescence.

I went out with Oumm Mistah toward al-Manasi', which was our place of relief: we went out only by night to the desert lands, and that before latrines had been established near our houses. Our custom was the custom of the early Arabs, to go to the desert lands for relief, and we were inconvenienced by latrines being set up near our houses.

I set out, I and Oumm Mistah bint Abi Rouhm ibn Abd Manaf, whose mother was the daughter of Sakhr ibn 'Amir, aunt of Abou Bakr as-Siddiq; her son was Mistah ibn Outhatha ibn al-Mouttalib. She and I were heading toward my house, having finished our business, when Oumm Mistah stumbled in her mirt.

She said: "Perish Mistah."

I said to her: "You speak ill: do you revile a man who attended Badr?"

She said: "How so, have you not cursed him? Have you not then heard what he said?"

I said: "And what then?"

She informed me of the news: I heaped illness upon illness.

When I returned home, the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, entered and greeted, then said: "How are you?"

I said: "Permit me to go to my parents." I then wished to verify the news with both of them. He permitted me: I came to my parents.

I said: "O my mother, what are the people saying?"

She said: "O my daughter, calm yourself: by Allah, rarely has a woman beloved of her husband had rivals without their multiplying against her."

I said: "Glory to Allah: so the people speak of it!"

I wept that night until I had no tear left, nor sleep to adorn me; then I wept in the morning. The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, called Ali ibn Abi Talib and Oussama ibn Zayd when revelation delayed: he consulted them concerning separation from his family.

As for Oussama: he advised the Messenger of Allah with what he knew of the innocence of his family, and what he knew of the Prophet's affection for them. He said:

"O Messenger of Allah, they are your family: we know of them only good."

As for Ali, he said: "Allah has not shut the way before you: women other than her are many; and ask the young girl: she will tell you the truth."

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, called Bourayra and said: "O Bourayra, have you seen anything that might put you in doubt?"

She said: "By Him who sent you with the truth, were I to see in her anything to reproach, it would be that she is a young girl of tender age who falls asleep over her family's dough, and that the sheep comes to eat of it."

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, rose and sought to excuse Abdallah ibn Oubayy ibn Saloul. Upon the minbar he said: "O assembly of Muslims, who will excuse me from a man whose harm to my family has reached me? By Allah, I have known of my family only good; and they mention a man of whom I have known only good: he entered my family's house only with me."

Sa'd ibn Mu'adh rose and said: "O Messenger of Allah, I excuse you of him: if he is of the Aws, I strike his neck; and if he is of our brothers the Khazraj, command us: we will carry out your command."

Sa'd ibn 'Obada rose, he who was the lord of the Khazraj, having before been a virtuous man, but tribal zeal prevailed. Sa'd said:

"You lie, by the life of Allah: you will not kill him, nor will you be able to kill him."

Usayd ibn Houdayr rose, cousin of Sa'd ibn Mu'adh, and said:

"You lie, by the life of Allah: we will kill him: you are a hypocrite who defends hypocrites."

The two tribes, the Aws and the Khazraj, grew heated to the point of wishing to fight one another, while the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, stood upon the minbar: he did not cease calming them until they fell silent, and he fell silent.

She said: "I wept that day and that night, without a tear ceasing, nor sleep adorning me; then my parents were beside me. I had wept two nights and a day without sleeping nor holding back a tear, until I believed my weeping would split my liver."

While they sat beside me and I wept, a woman of the Ansar asked to enter: I permitted her; she sat and wept with me.

While we were thus, the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, entered and greeted, then

sat: he had not sat beside me since I had been told what I had been told; he remained a month without receiving revelation concerning me.

She said: He bore witness, then said: "O Aisha, this and that has reached me of you: if you are innocent, Allah will declare you innocent; and if you have committed a sin, ask forgiveness of Allah and turn back to Him: for the servant, when he acknowledges his sin and then repents, Allah accepts his repentance."

When he had finished his speech, my tears constricted until I felt not a drop.

I said to my father: "Answer the Messenger of Allah concerning what he has said."

He said: "By Allah, I know only to say to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him."

I said to my mother: "Answer the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him."

She said: "I know not what to say to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him."

I said, and I was that day of tender age, not reciting much of the Quran: "By Allah, I know well: you have heard this account until it settled in your souls and you believed it. If then I tell you that I am innocent, and Allah knows that I am innocent, you will not believe me; and were I to confess to you a fault, and Allah knows that I am innocent, you would believe me. By Allah, I find for myself and for you no example but the word of the father of Youssouf: {Admirable patience. Allah is the one whose help is sought against what you describe} (sourate Youssouf, verse 18)."

Then I turned away and lay down upon my bed, knowing that I was innocent, and that Allah, the Most High, would declare me innocent. But, by Allah, I did not think that Allah would send down concerning me a revelation that is recited; my affair seemed too lowly to me for Allah to speak of me by a recited revelation. I rather hoped that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, would see in sleep a vision by which Allah would declare me innocent.

She said: "By Allah, the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, did not rise, and none of the people of the house went out,

until revelation descended upon him.

There seized him the sudoration he was wont to feel: it dripped from him like pearls of sweat, on a cold day, because of the weight of the word descending upon him.

When it was withdrawn from him and he was laughing, the first word he spoke was: "O Aisha, by Allah, Allah has declared you innocent."

Her mother said: "Rise to him."

I said: "No, by Allah: I will not rise to him, and I will praise none but Allah."

Allah, the Most High, sent down: {Those who came with the lie are a group of you} (sourate an-Nour, verse 11): the ten verses in their entirety.

When Allah had sent down that concerning my innocence, Abou Bakr, who supported Mistah because of his kinship and his poverty, said:

"By Allah, I will never again support Mistah with anything, after what he said of Aisha."

There was then sent down: {Let those of you who possess fortune and ease not swear to give no more to kinsmen, the poor and those who emigrated in the path of Allah: let them pardon and forbear. Do you not love that Allah forgive you?} (sourate an-Nour, verse 22).

He said: "Yes, by Allah: I love that Allah forgive me."

He restored to Mistah the allowance he used to give him, and said: "By Allah, I will never withdraw it from him."

She said: "The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, asked Zaynab bint Jahch for news of my affair, and she said:

"I protect my hearing and my sight: I know of it only good." She it was who used to vaunt me among the wives of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him; Allah preserved her through piety; and her sister Hamna set out to war for her: she perished among those who perished of the companions of the iffk."

This hadith has routes from az-Zouhri.

Hicham ibn Ourwa reported it, from his father.

Abou Ma'shar as-Sindi said: Aflah ibn Abdallah ibn al-Moughira narrated to me, from az-Zouhri, who said:

"I was with al-Walid ibn Abd al-Malik": and he mentions the hadith of the iffk in its entirety.

It contains: that it took place during the expedition of the Banu al-Moustaliq, and that there were taken out of the booty the share belonging to Aisha and that of Oumm Salama.

Ma'mar reported, from az-Zouhri, who said:

"I was with al-Walid, who said: the one who took charge of its greatest part is Ali."

I said: "No: Sa'id, Ourwa, 'Alqama and Ubaydallah narrated to me: all of them heard Aisha say that the one who took charge of its greatest part was Abdallah ibn Oubayy."

He said to me: "What then was his crime?"

I said: "Glory to Allah! Abou Salama, of your people, and Abou Bakr ibn Abd ar-Rahman narrated to me that they heard Aisha say: he acted badly in my affair."

Younous ibn Boukayr reported, from Muhammad ibn Ishaq: Abdallah ibn Abi Bakr ibn Hazm narrated to me, from 'Amra, from Aisha, who said:

When the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, recited to the people the account by which my innocence descended, he ordered that the man and the woman who had uttered the obscenity concerning Aisha be flogged the limit: they were flogged the limit.

He said: those who accused her were: Ibn Oubayy, Mistah, Hassan, and Hamna.

Al-A'mach reported, from Abou ad-Douha, from Masrouq, who said:

Hassan ibn Thabit entered upon Aisha boasting of verses he had about her, and he said:

"Hassan, the grave, who utters no suspicion / and makes, at morning, quiver the flesh of the heedless."

She said: "I am not that."

I said: "You allow such a one to enter upon you, whereas Allah, the Most High, has sent down: {And the one who took the greatest part of it will have an immense chastisement} (sourate an-Nour, verse 11)."

She said: "And what chastisement is harder than blindness?"

Then she said: he warded off from the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, the attacks.

Ibn Ishaq said: Muhammad ibn Ibrahim at-Taymi narrated to me, who said:

Safwan ibn al-Mu'attal was much insulted by Hassan concerning Aisha, who expressed himself about it by allusions:

"The cloaks, at evening, withdrew and became many / and the son of Furayya, at evening, is the jewel of the land."

Safwan intercepted him one night as he came back from his maternal uncles the Banu Sa'ida, and struck him with the sword upon his head. They summoned Thabit ibn Qays against him: he bound his hands to his neck with a rope and led him to the house of the Banu Haritha.

Ibn Rawaha met him and said: "What is this?"

He said: "What astonishes you? He assailed Hassan with the sword: by Allah, I think he has killed him."

He said: "Does the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, know what you have done to him?"

He said: "No."

He said: "By Allah, you have committed an excess. Loose his way: we shall go at morning to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and inform him of his affair."

He loosed his way. At morning they came to the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and mentioned it to him.

He said: "Where is the son of al-Mu'attal?"

He came forward to him and said: "Here I am, O Messenger of Allah."

He said: "What led you to what you did?"

He said: "He insulted me, O Messenger of Allah, and multiplied against me, and did not cease until he spoke of me by allusions in satire: anger carried me away. Here I am: what lies upon me by right, take it from me."

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: "Call me Hassan ibn Thabit."

He was brought, and he said: "O Hassan, would you have satirized my people, whom Allah guided to Islam, he says: you breathed upon them, O Hassan, act well toward what has befallen you."

Hassan said: "It is yours, O Messenger of Allah."

The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, gave him Sirin the Copt, who bore for him Abd ar-Rahman, and gave him land that belonged to Abou Talha, which Abou Talha had given as alms to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.

Ibn Ishaq said: Hassan said about Aisha:

"I saw you, may Allah forgive you, a free woman / among chaste women, without any suspicion."

"Hassan, the grave, who utters no suspicion / and makes, at morning, quiver the flesh of the heedless."

"What has been said is not worthy / of you forever: it was said of a man who exposed himself to blame."

"If I satirize you as they transmitted to you [our verses] / may my fingers never raise toward me my whip."

"And how should I be abandoned, I who lived a defender / of the family of the Messenger of Allah, ornament of assemblies."

"They possess a glory before which men appear short / and that glory stretched beyond all length."

"Noble woman of a tribe of Lou'ayy ibn Ghalib / generous of endeavor, whose glory is unshaken."

"Refined, whose dwelling Allah has made pure / and cleansed from every evil and every falsehood."

Ibn Abi Oways reported: my brother narrated to me, from Soulayman ibn Bilal, from Hicham ibn Ourwa, from his father, from Aisha, who said:

"O Messenger of Allah, do you see: if you descended into a valley in which is a tree of which one has eaten, and you found a tree of which none has eaten, which of the two would you choose to graze your camel?"

He said: "The tree of which none has eaten."

She said: "I am that one."

She means: that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, married no virgin other than her.

Soufyan ibn 'Ouyayna reported, from Abou Sa'd, from Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Aswad, from his father, who said:

Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, said: "The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, did not marry me until Jibril came with my image and said: this is your wife."

"He married me, and I was a young girl wearing about her waist the hawf; when he married me, modesty seized me, and I was quite small."

Isolated report of Abou Sa'd, who is Sa'id ibn al-Marzaban al-Baqqaal, weak in hadith.

The hawf: that which is tied about the waist of a child, made of strips of cloth.

Yahya ibn Yaman reported, from ath-Thawri, from Isma'il ibn Oumayya, from Abdallah ibn Ourwa, from his father, from Aisha, who said:

"The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, married me in the month of Chawwal, and took me as wife in the month of Chawwal: which of his wives was more favored with him than I?"

The Arabs liked their women to enter upon their husbands in the month of Chawwal.

Aisha said: "I never felt jealousy against a woman as against Khadija, so much did the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, mention her."

I say: this is among the most astonishing things, that she felt, may Allah be pleased with her, jealousy for a woman who died old, who passed away a short time before the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, married Aisha, then that Allah preserved her from jealousy toward the many women who shared the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, with her: this is among the kindnesses of Allah toward her and toward the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, so that their life might not be darkened; and it is perhaps the love of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, for her and his inclination toward her that softened for her the lot of jealousy. May Allah be pleased with her and may she please Him.

Ma'mar reported, from az-Zouhri, from Ourwa, from Aisha:

A black woman entered upon the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and he conversed with her.

She said: "I said: O Messenger of Allah, you converse with this black woman in this manner?"

He said: "She used to enter upon Khadija: keeping faithfully one's covenants is part of faith."

Abou al-Fida Isma'il ibn Abd ar-Rahman al-Mou'addal informed us, the imam Abou Muhammad Abdallah ibn Ahmad al-Maqdisi informed us in the year sixteen and six hundred, Hiba Allah ibn al-Hasan ad-Daqqaq informed us, Abou al-Fadl Abdallah ibn Ali ibn Zakriyya informed us, Ali ibn Muhammad al-Mou'addal reported to us, who said:

Abou Ja'far Muhammad ibn 'Amr ar-Razzaz reported to us, Sa'dan ibn Nasr reported to us, Muhammad ibn Abdallah al-Ansari reported to us, from Ibn 'Awn, al-Qasim ibn Muhammad reported to us, from Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, who said:

"Whoever claims that Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, saw his Lord has committed an immense lie against Allah, the Most High; he rather saw Jibril twice, in his form and within his creation, filling the whole horizon."

This hadith has an authentic chain.

No clear text has come down to us establishing that the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, saw Allah, the Most High, with his two eyes; and this question is among those on which the Muslim may keep silence within his religion.

As for the vision in dream: it has reached us by many routes, in abundance.

As for the vision of Allah openly in the Hereafter: it is a certain reality, attested by multiplicative texts, whose hadiths were gathered by ad-Daruqutni, al-Bayhaqi and others.

Abou al-Hasan al-Mada'ini reported, from Yazid ibn Iyad, from Hicham ibn Ourwa, from his father, who said:

'Ouyayna ibn Hisn entered upon the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, with Aisha present, and that before the veil was imposed, and said:

"Who is this little fair one, O Messenger of Allah?"

He said: "This is Aisha bint Abi Bakr."

He said: "Shall I not bring you one of the most beautiful of women?"

He said: "No."

When he went out, Aisha said: "Who is this man, O Messenger of Allah?"

He said: "This is that fool who is obeyed among his people."

This hadith is mursal, Yazid is an abandoned narrator, and 'Ouyayna accepted Islam only after the veil had come down.

It has been said: every hadith in which appears "O Houmayra" is not authentic, and the weakest sign of that

is the sunning of water, and the saying of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, to her: "Do not do it, O Houmayra, for it causes leprosy": for it is a forged report.

As for the redness (al-hamra) in the eloquence of the people of the Hedjaz: it designates white tinged with ruddiness, and this is rare among them. It is found in the hadith: "a red man as if he were of the mawali": the author of the saying means that he was of the color of the mawali who were taken captive among the Christians of Syria, of the Byzantines and of the Persians.

When the Arabs say: such a one is white, they mean of wheat-like hue with a dark tinge.

If he is of the color of the people of India, they say: swarthy and dark.

If he is of deep blackness, they say: black.

Likewise, whoever is dominated by blackness: one says of him black, or very dark of complexion.

From this comes the saying of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him: "I have been sent to the red and the black."

The meaning of that is that the children of Adam cannot escape one of the two states, and every color, in this consideration, turns between blackness and the whiteness that is ruddiness.

Ahmad, in his Musnad: 'Abbad ibn 'Abbad reported to us, from Hicham, from his father, from Aisha:

that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, used to say to her: "I know your anger when you are angry, and your contentment when you are content."

She said: "How do you know it?"

He said: "When you are angry, you say: O Muhammad; and when you are content, you say: O Messenger of Allah."

This hadith is gharib.

The preserved version is that which they reported in the Two Sahihs from Abou Usama, from Hicham, with this wording: "I know well when you are content with me and when you are angry with me."

She said: "How so, O Messenger of Allah?"

He said: "When you are content with me, you say: No, by the Lord of Muhammad; and when you are angry with me, you say: No, by the Lord of Ibrahim."

She said: "Yes, by Allah: I set aside only your name."

Sustained by Ali ibn Mus-hir; an-Nasa'i reported the hadith of Ali.

Hicham ibn Ourwa reported, from his father, from Aisha:

that she borrowed a necklace during a journey with the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and it slipped from her; and that place was called as-Soulsoul.

It was mentioned to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and they searched for it until they found it; the hour of prayer arrived,

and they had no water: they prayed therefore without ablution.

Allah sent down the verse of tayammum.

Usayd ibn Houdayr said to her: "May Allah reward you with good: by Allah, no matter ever befell you that you disapproved without Allah placing in it a good for you."

Reported by Ibn Noumayr and Ali ibn Mus-hir, from him.

Malik reported, from Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Qasim, from his father, from Aisha, who said:

"We set out with the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, on one of his journeys; when we were at al-Bayda or at Dhat al-Jaych, my necklace broke. The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, halted to search for it, and the people halted with him, without water.

The people came to Abou Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, and said: what do you think of what Aisha has done: she has detained the Messenger of Allah and the people, who are without water and have no water with them!"

She said: "Abou Bakr reproached me and said what Allah willed him to say, and he kept thrusting his hand into my side; nothing prevented me from stirring but the place of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, upon my thigh.

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, slept until morning without water; Allah sent down the verse of tayammum, and they performed tayammum.

Usayd ibn Houdayr, one of the twelve chiefs, said: this is not the first blessing of your works, O family of Abou Bakr."

She said: "We sent forward the camel upon which I was, and we found the necklace beneath it." Agreed upon by both.

In the Musnad of Ahmad, by the route of Muhammad ibn Ishaq: Yahya ibn Abbad ibn Abdallah ibn az-Zoubeir reported to us, from his father, from Aisha, who said:

"We traveled with the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, until we were at Tourban (a town distant from Medina by the length of a barid, a day's post, and some miles; it is a place without water): this took place in the small hours. A necklace slipped from my neck and fell. The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was detained for me, searching for it, until dawn rose; the people had no water. I received from my father what Allah knows of rebukes and blows of the hem of his garment, and he said: in every journey of the Muslims there is from you hardship and trial. Allah then sent down the dispensation of tayammum; the people performed tayammum and prayed."

She said: "My father said, when the dispensation came from Allah for the Muslims:

By Allah, I knew not, O my little daughter, that you were blessed: what good and what ease has Allah placed for the Muslims in the fact that you detained them!"

Abou Nou'aym reported: Younous ibn Abi Ishaq narrated to us, from al-'Ayzar ibn Hourayth, from an-Nou'man ibn Bachir, who said:

Abou Bakr sought permission to enter upon the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and behold, Aisha was raising her voice against him. He said:

"O daughter of such a one, would you raise your voice against the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him?"

The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, interposed between the two of them.

Then Abou Bakr went out, and the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, began to tease her to appease her, and said: "Did you not see that I interposed myself between the man and you?"

Then Abou Bakr sought permission a second time; he heard their laughter and said:

"Let me share in your peace, as you made me share in your war."

Reported by Abou Dawoud and an-Nasa'i, through the route of Hajjaj ibn Muhammad, from Younous,

in similar terms, but he said:

from his father, from Abou Ishaq, from al-'Ayzar, from an-Nou'man.

And 'Amr al-'Anqazi reported it, from Younous, from his father, omitting al-'Ayzar.

Ahmad reported a similar account in his Musnad, from Waki', from Isra'il, from Abou Ishaq, from al-'Ayzar ibn Hourayth, from an-Nou'man.

Moussa ibn 'Oulayy ibn Rabaah: I heard my father say:

Abou Qays, mawla of 'Amr, informed me and said:

Abdallah ibn 'Amr sent me to Oumm Salama: "Ask her whether the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, used to kiss while fasting. If she says no, say to her: Aisha informs the people that he used to kiss while fasting."

She said: "Perhaps he did not withhold himself from her out of love for her; as for me, no."

Ahmad, in his Musnad: 'Outhman ibn 'Omar narrated to us, Younous al-Ayli narrated to us, Abou Chaddad narrated to us, from Moujahid, from Asma bint Oumays, who said:

"I was the companion of Aisha who prepared her and brought her in to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him; with me were women, and we found with him nothing to eat save a cup of milk: he drank of it, then handed it to Aisha.

The young girl felt shame, and we said: do not refuse the hand of the Messenger of Allah, take of it. She took of it shyly and drank. Then he said: hand it to your companions.

We said: we do not desire it.

He said: never join hunger to lying.

I said: O Messenger of Allah, if one of us says of a thing she desires that she does not desire it, is that counted as lying?

He said: lying is written down, even the little lie is written down as a little lie."

This hadith is munkar: we know it only by the route of Abou Chaddad, and it is not famous.

Ibn Jourayj reported it likewise.

Moreover, it is an error: for Asma was, at the time of the wedding of Aisha, in Abyssinia with Ja'far ibn Abi Talib; and we know of no hearing of Moujahid from Asma; or perhaps it was Asma bint Yazid, for it is she who reported the tail of this hadith.

Zakariyya ibn Abi Za'ida reported, from Khalid ibn Salama, from al-Bahi, from Ourwa, who said:

Aisha said: "I took no heed until Zaynab entered upon me without permission, angry, and said to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him: do you think that when the daughter of Abou Bakr turns her two cheeks to you? Then she turned toward me, and I turned away from her.

The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: it is yours to answer, defend yourself.

I turned toward her until I saw her saliva dry in her mouth: she answered me nothing, and I saw the face of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, light up."

Ahmad ibn 'Oubaydallah an-Narsi reported: Yahya al-Khawwas narrated to us, Mouhaddir narrated to us, from Hicham ibn Ourwa, from his father, from Aisha, who said:

"The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, came to me on a day that was not my day, seeking to lie beside me: he knocked, I heard the knock, then I went out and opened to him.

He said: were you not hearing the knock? !

I said: yes, but I wished the women to know that you had come to me on a day that was not my day."

Hicham ibn Ourwa reported, from his father, from Aisha, who said:

"The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, challenged me to race and I outstripped him as I wished; when my flesh grew heavy, he challenged me and outstripped me, and said: O Aisha, this for that."

Abou Ishaq al-Fazari reported it, from Hicham, saying: from his father, and from Abou Salama, from her.

Abou Dawoud reported it in these terms.

Abou Sa'd al-Baqqaal reported, from Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Aswad, from his father:

Aisha said: "The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, married me when Jibril came with my image, and I was a young girl wearing about her waist the hawf; when he married me, Allah cast upon me modesty, and I was quite small."

The hawf: strips of cloth about the waist.

Mis'ar reported, from al-Miqdam ibn Churayh, from his father, from Aisha, who said:

"The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, would give me a bone and I would suck it, then he would take it and turn it until he set his mouth where my mouth had been."

Reported by Shou'ba and others, from al-Miqdam.

Mouslim reported it.

Ali ibn Muhammad, Muhammad ibn Ali, Ali ibn Baqa and his people, Fatima al-Amidiyya, Ahmad ibn Ibrahim ad-Dabbagh, Abd ad-Da'im al-Wazzan, Abd as-Samad az-Zahid, Muhammad ibn Hashim al-Abbasi, Nasr ibn Abi ad-Daw', Zaynab bint Soulayman and many others informed us, saying:

al-Houssayn ibn al-Moubarak informed us, Abd al-Awwal ibn Isa informed us, Abd ar-Rahman ibn Muhammad informed us, Abdallah ibn Ahmad informed us, Muhammad ibn Youssouf informed us, Muhammad ibn Isma'il narrated to us, Abou Nou'aym narrated to us, Abd al-Wahid ibn Aymen narrated to us, Ibn Abi Moulayka narrated to me, from al-Qasim, from Aisha:

that the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, drew lots among his wives when setting out, and the lot fell to Aisha and Hafsa; when night came, he traveled with Aisha in conversation.

Hafsa said: "Would you not ride my camel tonight, and I yours: you look and I look?"

She said: yes.

She mounted; the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, came to the camel of Aisha, upon which was Hafsa, and greeted her.

Then he traveled until they encamped; Aisha missed him; when they encamped, she set her feet amid the idhkhir and said:

"O my Lord, loose upon me a scorpion or a serpent to sting me: your Messenger (is with her) and I cannot say anything to him."

Mouslim reported it, from Ishaq, from Abou Nou'aym; it came to us as a high substitute route.

Ziyad ibn Ayyoub reported: Mouss'ab ibn Sallam narrated to us, Muhammad ibn Souqa narrated to us, from 'Asim ibn Koulayb, from his father, who said:

We came to Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, and he mentioned Aisha and said:

"The intimate companion of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him."

This hadith is hasan.

Mouss'ab: a sound narrator, no objection to him. And this is what the Commander of the Believers said of Aisha, despite what occurred between the two of them, may Allah be pleased with both; and no doubt Aisha repented wholly of setting out to Bassora and of being present on the Day of the Camel, and what she thought the matter would reach, it reached.

From 'Oumara ibn 'Oumayr, from someone who heard Aisha: whenever she recited {Remain in your houses} (sourate al-Ahzab, verse 33), she wept until her veil was wet.

Ahmad said in his Musnad: Yahya al-Qattan narrated to us, from Isma'il, Qays narrated to us, who said:

When Aisha returned, and she reached the waters of the Banu 'Amir by night, the dogs began to bark.

She said: "What water is this here?"

They said: the water of al-Haw'ab.

She said: "I think but one thing: that I shall turn back."

One of those with her said: "Go rather forward, the Muslims will see you, and Allah will set right their accord."

She said: "The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said one day: how will it be with one of you against whom the dogs of al-Haw'ab will bark?"

This hadith has an authentic chain, but they did not extract it into the collections.

From Salih ibn Kaysan and others:

that Aisha did not cease saying: 'Outhman was killed wrongfully, and I call you to seek his blood and to bring back the matter to consultation.

Hilal ibn Khabbab reported, from 'Ikrima, from Ibn Abbas:

that he said to az-Zoubeir on the Day of the Camel: "Here is Aisha making ready the kingship for her kinsman Talha, and you, why do you fight your near kinsman Ali?"

Az-Zoubeir therefore turned back, and Ibn Jarmouz met him and killed him.

I say: I have presented the battle of the Camel in summarized form in the merits of Ali; Ali stood at the tent of Aisha and reproached her for her journey.

She said: "O son of Abou Talib, you have prevailed: show magnanimity."

He equipped her for Medina and gave her twelve thousand [dirhams]. May Allah be pleased with him and with her.

In the Sahih of al-Boukhari, by the route of Abou Houssayn, from Abdallah ibn Ziyad, from Ammar ibn Yasir:

he heard him upon the pulpit say: she is indeed the wife of our Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, in this world and in the Hereafter: he speaks of Aisha.

In the wording of Thabit: I bear witness by Allah that she is indeed his wife.

Shou'ba reported, from al-Hakam, from Abou Wa'il:

he heard Ammar say, when Ali sent him to Koufa to rally the people: we know well that she is the wife of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, in this world and in the Hereafter, but Allah has tried you with her: that you follow him or her.

Abou Ishaq as-Sabi'i reported, from 'Amr ibn Ghalib:

that a man insulted Aisha before Ammar, who said: "May you be bereft, wretched one: would you hurt the beloved of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him? !"

at-Tirmidhi authenticated it in certain copies.

In certain copies: this hadith is hasan.

at-Tirmidhi said: Houmayd ibn Mas'ada narrated to us, Ziyad ibn ar-Rabi' narrated to us, Khalid ibn Salama al-Makhzoumi narrated to us, from Abou Bourda, from Abou Moussa, who said:

"No hadith ever posed us difficulty, we the companions of Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, without our asking Aisha and finding with her the knowledge of it."

This hadith is hasan gharib.

Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Moubarak reported: Ziyad ibn ar-Rabi' narrated to us, Khalid ibn Abi Salama al-Makhzoumi narrated to us, from Abou Bourda, from his father, who said: no hadith ever posed us difficulty..., and he mentions it.

As for Ziyad: a trustworthy narrator.

As for Khalid, the correct form: ibn Salama: Mouslim cited him as proof.

Bichr ibn al-Moufaddal reported: Abdallah ibn 'Outhman ibn Khouthaym narrated to us, from Ibn Abi Moulayka, that Dhakwan Abou 'Amr narrated to him, and he said:

Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, came seeking permission to enter upon Aisha while she was dying.

He said: I came, and at her head was Abdallah,

son of her brother Abd ar-Rahman. I said:

Here is Ibn Abbas seeking permission to enter.

She said: "Leave me in peace from Ibn Abbas: I have no need of him, nor of his testimony of praise."

Abdallah said: "O my mother! Ibn Abbas is among the best of your children: he bids you farewell and greets you."

She said: "Give him permission then, if you wish."

He said: Ibn Abbas came; when he sat, he said:

"Receive good news: by Allah, between you and leaving every hardship and meeting Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and the beloved ones, there is nothing but that your soul depart your body."

She said: "Yes, O Ibn Abbas."

He said: "You were the most beloved of the wives of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and he loved only good: your necklace fell on the night of Abwa, and the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, halted to gather it; the people halted having no water, and Allah sent down: {perform then tayammum with clean earth} (sourate an-Nisa, verse 43): that was of your doing, and it is the dispensation Allah sent down for this community. Then Allah, the Most High, sent down your innocence from above seven heavens, and there was no mosque in which Allah is mentioned but that your innocence was recited in it night and day."

She said: "Leave me, O Ibn Abbas: by Allah, I would wish to have been a thing forgotten."

Yahya al-Qattan reported, from 'Omar ibn Sa'id, from Ibn Abi Moulayka:

that Ibn Abbas sought permission to enter upon Aisha while she was overcome, and she said:

"I fear he would make my eulogy."

It was said to her: he is the cousin of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and one of the faces of the Muslims.

She said: "Give him permission."

He said: "How do you find yourself?"

She said: "Well, if I fear Allah."

He said: You are well, Allah willing:

wife of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and he married no virgin other than you, and your innocence descended from heaven.

When Ibn az-Zoubeir came, she said to him:

Ibn Abbas came, and made my eulogy; I would have wished to have been a thing forgotten.

Al-Qasim ibn Muhammad said: Aisha fell ill; Ibn Abbas came and said:

"O Mother of the Believers, you advance toward the greatest share of truthfulness, toward the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and toward Abou Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him."

Abou Muhammad Abd al-Khaliq ibn 'Olwan informed us, Ibn Qoudama informed us in the year eleven and six hundred, Muhammad ibn al-Batti informed us, Ahmad ibn al-Hasan informed us, Abou al-Qasim ibn Bichran informed us, Abou al-Fadl ibn Khuzayma informed us, Muhammad ibn Abi al-'Awwam narrated to us, Moussa ibn Dawoud narrated to us, Abou Mas'oud al-Jarrar narrated to us, from Ali ibn al-Aqmar, who said:

Her knowledge and her eloquence

Masrouq, whenever he reported from Aisha, said:

"Reported to me the Veracious One, daughter of the Veracious One, beloved of the beloved of Allah, declared innocent from above seven heavens: I never took her for a liar."

Al-A'mach reported, from Abou ad-Douha, from Masrouq, who said:

We said to him: "Did Aisha know the shares of inheritance well?"

He said: "By Allah, I saw the great companions of Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, ask her about the shares of inheritance."

Ibn Qoudama and Ibn 'Illan informed us, who said:

Hanbal informed us, Ibn al-Houssayn informed us, Ibn al-Moudhhab informed us, Ahmad ibn Ja'far informed us, Abdallah ibn Ahmad narrated to us, my father narrated to me, Abou Mou'awiya Abdallah ibn Mou'awiya az-Zoubeiri narrated to us, who came upon us at Mecca and said:

Hicham ibn Ourwa narrated to us, who said:

Ourwa used to say to Aisha: "O my aunt, I marvel not at your fiqh: I say: you are the wife of the prophet of Allah, and daughter of Abou Bakr; and I marvel not at your knowledge of poetry and of the battles of the people: I say: you are daughter of Abou Bakr, who was the most learned of men; but I marvel at your knowledge of medicine: whence is it, or what is it? !"

He said: she struck his shoulder and said:

"O Ourayya, the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, fell ill at the end of his life, and the delegations of the Arabs came to him from every quarter, and remedies were described to him; I was the one who nursed them for him: it is from there."

I read before Muhammad ibn Qaymaz: Muhammad ibn Qiwwam informed you, Abou Sa'id ar-Rarani informed us, Abou Ali al-Haddad informed us, Abou Nou'aym informed us, Abdallah ibn

Ja'far informed us, Ahmad ibn al-Fourat informed us, Abou Usama informed us, from Hicham ibn Ourwa, from his father, who said:

"I never saw anyone more learned in medicine than Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her."

I said: "O my aunt, from whom did you learn medicine? !"

She said: "I used to hear people describe remedies one to another, and I retained them."

Sa'id ibn Soulayman reported, from Abou Usama, from Hicham, from his father, who said:

"I kept company with Aisha: I never saw anyone more learned than she about a verse that was revealed, nor about an obligatory law, nor about the Sunna, nor about poetry, nor about genealogies, nor about a day of the days of the Arabs, nor about lineage, nor about this, nor about that, nor about judgments, nor about medicine."

I said to her: "O my aunt, medicine, who taught it to you? !"

She said: "I was often ill: the remedy was described to me; a sick man fell ill, the remedy was described to him, and I heard people describe them one to another, and I retained them."

Ourwa said: the whole source of her knowledge escaped me, without my asking about it.

Ibrahim ibn al-Moundhir al-Hizami reported: 'Omar ibn 'Outhman narrated to us, from Ibn Chihab, al-Qasim ibn Muhammad narrated to us:

that Mou'awiya entered upon Aisha and conversed with her.

He said: when Mou'awiya rose, he leaned upon the hand of Dhakwan, mawla of Aisha, and said: "By Allah, I never heard an orator more eloquent than Aisha, save the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him."

'Omar ibn 'Outhman at-Taymi: not established in his narration.

Az-Zouhri, according to the narration of Ma'mar and al-Awza'i from him; and this is the wording of al-Awza'i from him, who said:

'Awf ibn at-Toufayl ibn al-Harith al-Azdi informed me, who is the son of the brother of Aisha on her mother's side:

that it reached Aisha that Abdallah ibn az-Zoubeir was in a house of hers that she was selling; Abdallah annulled the sale of that house and said:

"But yes: by Allah, Aisha shall cease selling her share, or I shall declare upon her the interdict of neighborhood."

Aisha said: "Would he have said that?"

They said: that indeed took place.

She said: "It is my obligation toward Allah never to speak to him, until death part us."

Her boycott of him lengthened, and Allah thereby diminished his authority in its entirety; he sought the intercession of everyone he saw weigh upon her, but she refused to speak to him.

When that lengthened, she permitted al-Miswar ibn Makhrama and Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Aswad ibn Abd Yaghouth to wrap each in his cloak, then to seek our permission; if she granted them permission, they would say: all of us?

until they brought him in to Aisha; and they did so.

She said: "Yes, let each of you enter, and let him not be noticed."

Ibn az-Zoubeir entered with the two of them, lifted the curtain, embraced her and wept; Aisha wept abundantly; Ibn az-Zoubeir conjured her by Allah and by the ties of kinship; al-Miswar and Abd ar-Rahman conjured her by Allah and by the ties of kinship, and recalled to her the saying of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him: "It is not lawful for a Muslim to boycott his brother more than three days."

When they had insisted much upon her, she spoke to him, after having feared never to speak to him; then she sent money to the Yemen, and forty slaves were bought for her, and she freed them.

'Awf said: then I heard her afterward recall that vow of hers, and weep until her veil was wet.

Ibn al-Madini said: thus he spoke.

The correct form in my eyes: 'Awf ibn al-Harith ibn at-Toufayl ibn Sakhbara.

Salih ibn Kaysan reported it likewise, from az-Zouhri, and Ma'mar sustained him.

'Ata ibn Abi Rabah said: Aisha was the most learned of people in fiqh, and the best of people in opinion concerning the common folk.

Az-Zouhri said: were the knowledge of Aisha joined to the knowledge of all women, the knowledge of Aisha would be superior.

Hafs ibn Ghiyath said: Isma'il narrated to us, from Abou Ishaq, who said:

Masrouq said: "Were it not for a part of the matter, I would raise for Oumm al-Mou'minin the manaha [funerary stones]: he speaks of Aisha."

And from Abdallah ibn 'Oubayd ibn 'Oumayr, who said: the very one who grieves not over her is her own mother.

Al-Qasim ibn Abd al-Wahid ibn Aymen reported: 'Omar ibn Abdallah ibn Ourwa narrated to us, from his grandfather Ourwa, from Aisha, who said:

"My father exhausted his wealth in the Jahiliya, and it was of

one hundred thousand uqiya."

The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: "O Aisha, I have been to you as Abou Zar' was to Oumm Zar'."

Thus it is in this narration: one hundred thousand uqiya.

Its chain is weak therein, and I believe the single mention of "one hundred thousand" to be false: it would be forty thousand dirhams, and that is glory enough for a trading man who spent his wealth in the path of Allah.

When he emigrated, there remained with him yet six thousand dirhams, and his Companions took them; as for one hundred thousand uqiya, they come together only for a great sovereign.

Az-Zouhri reported, from al-Qasim ibn Muhammad:

that Mou'awiya, having come on pilgrimage, entered upon Aisha, and none attended her discourse but Dhakwan, mawla of Aisha.

She said to Mou'awiya: "Are you sure I shall not hide from you a man who would kill you for Muhammad my brother?"

He said: "You have spoken true"; in another narration he said to her: "You were not of those who would do that."

She then exhorted him, and urged him to follow the Prophet.

Sa'id ibn Abd al-Aziz at-Tanoukhi said: Mou'awiya paid on behalf of Aisha eighteen thousand dinars.

This narration is discontinuous.

The authentic version is that of Ourwa ibn az-Zoubeir: that Mou'awiya

sent one day to Aisha one hundred thousand dirhams: by Allah, she did not remain seated until she had distributed them all.

Her maids said to her: "Could you not buy us, with a single dirham, some meat?"

She said: "Why did you not tell me?"

Yahya ibn Abi Za'ida reported, from Hajjaj, from 'Ata:

that Mou'awiya sent to Aisha a necklace worth one hundred thousand; she divided it among the Mothers of the Believers.

Al-A'mach reported, from Tamim ibn Salama, from Ourwa, from Aisha:

that she gave in alms seventy thousand; and she patched the side of her coat of mail, may Allah be pleased with her.

Abou Mou'awiya reported, from Hicham ibn Ourwa, from Ibn al-Mounkadir, from Oumm Dharra, who said:

Ibn az-Zoubeir sent to Aisha wealth in two sacks, amounting to one hundred thousand; she called for a tray and began distributing among the people.

When she had finished, she said: "O young handmaid, bring me my supper."

Oumm Dharra said: "O Mother of the Believers, could you not buy us meat for a dirham?"

She said: "Do not misuse me: had you reminded me, I would have done it."

Moutarrif ibn Tarif reported, from Abou Ishaq, from Mouss'ab ibn Sa'd, who said:

'Omar assigned to the Mothers of the Believers ten thousand each, and added to Aisha two thousand, and said: she is the beloved of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.

Shou'ba reported: Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Qasim informed us, from his father:

that Aisha used to fast continuously.

Ibn Jourayj reported, from 'Ata, who said:

I used to go to Aisha, I and 'Oubayd ibn 'Oumayr, and she was in retreat within the Thabir, in a cupola that had an aperture at the top, covered by its lid; and I saw her, when I was a child, clothed in a yellowed robe.

Soulayman ibn Bilal reported, from 'Amr ibn Abi 'Amr, who heard al-Qasim say:

Aisha wore the two reds: gold and saffron, while she was in a state of ihram.

Ibn Abi Moulayka said: I saw her clothed in a reddened robe.

Mou'alla ibn Asad said: al-Mou'alla ibn Ziyad narrated to us, who said:

Bakra bint 'Oqba narrated to us: that she entered upon Aisha while she sat in a yellowed robe, and asked her about henna?

She said: "A goodly tree, and purifying water."

And she asked her about the plucking of the brows?

She said to her: "If you have a husband, and you can pluck out your two brows to remake them more beautiful than they are: do it."

The two Mou'alla: trustworthy narrators.

And from Mou'adha al-'Adawiya, who said: I saw upon Aisha a yellow mantle.

Al-Waqidi reported: Ibn Abi az-Zinad narrated to us, from Hicham, from his father, who said:

Aisha would recite sometimes the qasida of sixty verses and more.

Mis'ar reported, from Hammad, from Ibrahim an-Nakha'i, who said:

Aisha said: "Would that I had been a leaf of this tree!"

Ibn 'Oulayya reported, from Ayyoub, from Ibn Abi Moulayka, who said:

Aisha said: "The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, died in my house, on my day and my night, between my small hours and my morning.

Abd ar-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr entered with a fresh siwak; he looked at it until I thought he desired it: I took it, chewed it, softened it, perfumed it, then handed it to him, and he cleansed his teeth with it as I had never seen anyone cleanse them so well.

Then he raised his hand toward me: his hand fell; I began invoking for him the invocation Jibril used to invoke for him, and which he himself used to invoke when ill, but he did not invoke it in that illness."

He raised his gaze to heaven and said: "The Companion Most High", and his soul flowed away.

Praise be to Allah who joined between my saliva and his saliva on the last day of this world.

This hadith is authentic.

'Omar ibn Sa'id ibn Abi Houssayn reported: Ibn Abi Moulayka narrated to me, Abou 'Amr Dhakwan, mawla of Aisha, narrated to me, who said:

There came from Iraq a chest containing a jewel, destined for 'Omar. He said to his companions: "Do you know its price?"

They said: no.

They knew not how to divide it, and he said: "Do you permit me to send it to Aisha, for the love of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, for her?"

They said: yes.

He sent it therefore to her, and she said: "What has been opened to Ibn al-Khattab after the Messenger of Allah? O Allah, keep me not alive as receiver of his gift."

This account is mursal.

Al-Hakim reported it in his Moustadrak, by the route of Yahya ibn Sa'id al-Oumawi: Abou al-Anbas Sa'id ibn Kathir narrated to us, from his father, who said:

Aisha reported to us that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, mentioned Fatima.

She said: I then spoke.

He said: "Would you not be content to be my wife in this world and the Hereafter?"

I said: yes, by Allah.

He said: "Then you are my wife in this world and the Hereafter."

Isma'il ibn Abi Khalid: Abd ar-Rahman ibn ad-Dahhak informed us:

that Abdallah ibn Safwan came to Aisha, and she said:

"I have nine distinctions that belonged to no one, save what Allah granted Maryam, peace be upon her: by Allah, I say not this in boasting against my companions."

Ibn Safwan said: "And what are they?"

She said: "The angel came with my image to the Messenger of Allah, and he married me; he married me a virgin; revelation came to him while he and I were under one cover; I was among the people most beloved to him; verses were sent down concerning me by which the community all but perished; I saw Jibril, and none of his wives saw him but I; and he was taken [by death] in my house, and none attended him, save the angel, but I."

Al-Hakim authenticated it.

Al-'Awwam ibn Houchab reported, from Sa'id ibn Joubayr, from Ibn Abbas: of {Those who accuse chaste women...}, the verse of sourate an-Nour, verse 23, he said: it was sent down concerning Aisha specifically.

Ali ibn 'Asim, in whom there is weakness: Khalid al-Hadhdha' narrated to us, from Ibn Sirin, from al-Ahnaf, who said:

"I heard the speeches of Abou Bakr, of 'Omar, of 'Outhman, of Ali and of the caliphs after them: I never heard from the mouth of a creature words grander and more beautiful than those from the mouth of Aisha."

Moussa ibn Talha said: I never saw anyone more eloquent than Aisha.

In the Moustadrak, by a sound chain, from Oumm Salama:

that when she heard the cry announcing [the death of] Aisha, she said: "By Allah, she was indeed the most beloved of people to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, save her father."

Her death and her burial

Ibn Sa'd said: Muhammad ibn 'Omar informed us, Ibn Abi Sabra narrated to me, from 'Outhman ibn Abi 'Atiq, from his father, who said:

"I saw, on the night Aisha died, palm branches carried with rags and oil, and fire lit; and I saw the women at al-Baqi', as on a feast day."

Muhammad ibn 'Omar said: Ibn Jourayj narrated to us, from Nafi', who said:

"I witnessed Abou Hourayra pray over Aisha at al-Baqi', and he was the deputy of Marwan over Medina, and he had performed the 'oumra in those days."

Ourwa ibn az-Zoubeir said: Aisha was buried by night.

Hicham ibn Ourwa, Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Chabab and others said: she died in the year fifty-seven.

Abou 'Oubayda Ma'mar ibn al-Mouthanna, al-Waqidi and others said: in the year fifty-eight.

Al-Waqidi said: Ibn Abi Sabra narrated to us, from Moussa ibn Maysara, from Salim Sablan:

that she died on the seventeenth night of the month of Ramadan, after the witr prayer, and she ordered that she be buried that very night.

The Ansars gathered and attended; no night was seen gathering more

people than it; the dwellers of the outskirts came down, and she was buried at al-Baqi'.

Isma'il ibn Abi Khalid reported, from Qays, who said:

Aisha said, she who used to tell herself that she be buried in her house:

"I have committed, after the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, an event: bury me with his wives."

She was therefore buried at al-Baqi', may Allah be pleased with her.

I say: she means by the event her setting out on the Day of the Camel; for she repented wholly and turned in repentance from that, given that she did that only interpreting [the texts], aiming at good, as strove Talha ibn 'Oubaydallah, az-Zoubeir ibn al-'Awwam and a group of the elders, may Allah be pleased with them all.

Isma'il ibn 'Oulayya reported, from Abou Soufyan ibn al-'Ala' al-Mazini, from Ibn Abi 'Atiq, who said:

Aisha said: "When Ibn 'Omar passes by, show him to me."

When he passed before her, it was said to her: this is Ibn 'Omar.

She said: "O Abou Abd ar-Rahman, what prevented you from forbidding me my journey?"

He said: "I saw a man who had prevailed over you": he speaks of Ibn az-Zoubeir.

It has been said that she is buried at the west of the great mosque of Damascus.

This is a flagrant error: she never went to Damascus at all, may Allah be pleased with her; it is at al-Baqi' that she is buried.

And the length of her life: sixty-three years and months.

Her hadiths of the highest chain

Abou al-Ma'ali Ahmad ibn Ishaq al-Abarqouhi informed us, more than once, Muhammad

ibn Hibatallah ibn Abi Hamid ad-Dinawari informed us in the year twenty and six hundred at Baghdad, my uncle Abou Bakr Muhammad ibn Abi Hamid informed us in the year nine and thirty and five hundred, 'Asim ibn al-Hasan al-'Asimi informed us, Abou 'Omar Abd al-Wahid ibn Muhammad informed us, al-Houssayn ibn Isma'il al-Mahamili narrated to us, Abou Moussa Muhammad ibn al-Mouthanna narrated to us, Ibn 'Ouyayna narrated to us, from Hicham ibn Ourwa, from his father, from Aisha:

that when the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, came to Mecca, he entered it by its highest point and left it by its lowest.

The six imams reported it, save Ibn Majah, who reported it from Ibn Mouthanna, and we matched them with a high chain, praise to Allah.

Abou al-Fadl Ahmad ibn Hibatallah informed us in Cha'ban of the year two and ninety and six hundred, Abd al-Mou'izz ibn Muhammad al-Harawi informed us, Tamim ibn Abi Sa'd al-Jourjani informed us, Abou Sa'd al-Kanjaroudhi informed us, Abou 'Amr ibn Hamdan informed us, Abou Ya'la al-Mawsili narrated to us, Muhammad ibn Bakkar narrated to us, Abou Ma'shar narrated to us, from Sa'id, from Aisha, who said:

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: "O Aisha, were I to wish, mountains of gold would journey with me: an angel came to me, whose head equals the Ka'ba,

and he said:

Your Lord conveys to you His salam and says to you: if you will, a prophet servant, and if you will, a prophet king?

I looked at Jibril, and he signed to me: humble yourself.

I said therefore: a prophet servant."

Thereafter, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, he ate no more reclining, and said: "I eat as eats the servant, and I sit as sits the servant."

This hadith is hasan gharib.

No hadith of Oumm al-Mou'minin can reach us with a chain shorter than this one.

I read before Ibn 'Asakir, from Abou Rawh: Tamim informed us, Abou Sa'd narrated to us, Ibn Hamdan informed us, Abou Ya'la informed us, Abou Ma'mar Isma'il ibn Ibrahim narrated to us, from Ali ibn Hashim, from Hicham ibn Ourwa, from Bakr ibn Wa'il, from az-Zouhri, from Ourwa, from Aisha, who said:

"The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, never struck a woman, nor a servant of his, nor anything with his hand, save when striving in the path of Allah; and nothing was done to him but he took vengeance on its author, save that the sanctuaries of Allah be violated: then he avenges."

an-Nasa'i reported it, from Ahmad ibn Ali al-Qadi, from Abou Ma'mar.

It came to us as a high substitute route.

Yahya ibn Sa'id al-Qattan: Abou Younous Hatim ibn Abi Saghira narrated to us, from Ibn Abi Moulayka, from Aisha bint Talha, from Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her:

that she killed a jinn, and that she was told in sleep: "By Allah, you have killed a Muslim."

She said: "Had he been a Muslim, he would not have entered upon the wives of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him."

It was said: "Would he enter upon you otherwise than with your garments on?"

She woke in panic, ordered twelve thousand dirhams and set them in the path of Allah.

'Afif ibn Salim reported, from Abdallah ibn al-Mou'ammal, from Abdallah ibn Abi Moulayka, from Aisha bint Talha, who said:

A jinn used to come upon Aisha; she rebuked him time after time, but he refused to desist; she struck him therefore with an iron thing and killed him.

She was told in sleep: "Have you killed such a one, who had attended Badr, and who came upon you neither with loosed waist nor in bare dress, save that he heard the hadith of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him?"

What preceded and what followed seized her; she mentioned that to her father.

He said: "Give in alms twelve thousand as the indemnity of his blood."

Abdallah ibn Ahmad ibn Hanbal reported it, from 'Afif, who is trustworthy.

As for Ibn al-Mou'ammal: in him weakness.

The first chain is sounder, and I know none today who upholds the obligation of blood-money in such a case.

Abou Ishaq reported, from Mouss'ab ibn Sa'd, who said:

'Omar assigned to the Mothers of the Believers ten thousand, and added to Aisha two thousand, and said:

she is the beloved of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.

From ach-Cha'bi: that Aisha said: I retained for Labid near a thousand verses.

Ach-Cha'bi used to mention her and marvel at her fiqh and her knowledge, then say: what think you of the education [befitting] prophethood?

And from ach-Cha'bi, who said:

It was said to Aisha: "O Mother of the Believers, this Quran, you received it from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and so it is with the lawful and the unlawful; this poetry, these genealogies and these accounts, you heard them from your father and others; but what of medicine?"

She said: "Delegations came to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him: the man would not cease complaining of an ailment and asking him its remedy, and he would inform him; I retained what he described to them, and I understood it."

Hicham ibn Ourwa reported, from his father: that she recited a verse of Labid:

"Those with whom one lived beneath their wings are gone / and I remain behind, like the sloughed skin of the serpent."

She said: "May Allah have mercy on Labid: and how had he seen our age!"

Ourwa said: "May Allah have mercy on the Mother of the Believers: and how had she reached our age!"

Hicham said: "May Allah have mercy on my father: and how had he seen our age!"

His scribe said: we heard it chained in this saying, by a close chain.

Muhammad ibn Waddah reported: Abou Bakr ibn Abi Chayba narrated to us, Waki' narrated to us, from 'Isam ibn Qoudama, from 'Ikrima, from Ibn Abbas, who said:

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: "Which of you will be the owner of the humped camel: about her shall many be slain, and she shall survive after all but perishing."

Ibn Abd al-Barr said: this hadith is among the signs of prophethood.

As for 'Isam: trustworthy narrator.

Abou Hassan az-Ziyadi reported, from Abou 'Asim al-'Abadani, from Ali ibn Zayd, who said:

Aisha sold a house of hers for one hundred thousand, then divided the price; it reached Ibn az-Zoubeir,

who said:

"You divided one hundred thousand! By Allah, you shall cease selling your share, or I shall declare upon you the interdict of neighborhood."

She said: "Would he declare it upon me? I have made a vow to Allah never to speak to him."

The world grew strait for him until she spoke to him! She freed one hundred slaves.

I say: the Mother of the Believers was among the most generous people of her time; accounts of her generosity abound, while Ibn az-Zoubeir was the contrary of that.

Hammad ibn Salama reported: Hicham ibn Ourwa narrated to us, from 'Awf ibn al-Harith, from Roumaytha, from Oumm Salama, who said:

"My companions spoke to me to ask the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, to order the people to present him gifts wherever he was; for the people vie in gifts on the day of Aisha, and we love the good.

I said: O Messenger of Allah, my companions spoke to me, and she mentioned it to him.

He was silent and answered me not; I spoke to him thereafter two or three times; each time he kept silent, then he said: grieve me not concerning Aisha: for by Allah, revelation never descended upon me while I was in the garment of any of my wives other than Aisha."

I said: "I seek refuge in Allah from grieving you concerning Aisha."

an-Nasa'i reported it.

Yahya ibn Sa'id al-Oumawi: Abou al-Anbas Sa'id ibn Kathir narrated to me, from his father, who said:

Aisha reported to us that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, mentioned Fatima, and I spoke.

He said: "Would you not be content to be my wife in this world and the Hereafter?"

I said: yes, by Allah.

Az-Zouhri said: were the knowledge of all the people joined, and of the Mothers of the Believers, Aisha would be the vastest of them in knowledge.

Ibn 'Ouyayna reported, from Moussa al-Jouhani, from Abou Bakr ibn Hafs, from Aisha:

that her two parents said to the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him: we love that you invoke for Aisha while we listen.

He said: "O Allah, forgive Aisha a binding forgiveness, outward and inward."

Her two parents marveled at the beauty of his invocation

for her.

He said: "Do you marvel? This is my invocation for whoever bears witness that there is no deity but Allah and that I am the Messenger of Allah."

Al-Hakim reported it.

Al-A'mach reported, from Abou Wa'il, from Masrouq:

Aisha said to me: "I saw myself upon a height, about me cows being slaughtered."

I said: "Should your dream prove true, there shall be about you a great carnage."

She said: "I seek refuge in Allah from your evil: evil is what you said!"

I said to her: "It is perhaps, if it be, a fruitful affair."

She said: "More beloved to me would it be to fall from heaven than to do that."

Thereafter, it was mentioned before her that Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, had killed Dhouth-Thoudayya.

She said to me: "When you reach Koufa, write me a list of people among those who witnessed that."

I arrived, and found the people scattered into partisanships; I wrote her ten [witnesses] of every party, and came to her with their testimony.

She said: "May Allah curse 'Amr: he claims he killed him in Egypt."

Al-Hakim said: this hadith meets the condition of al-Boukhari and Mouslim.

Moughira ibn Ziyad reported, from 'Ata, who said:

Aisha was the most learned of people in fiqh, the most knowing of them, and the best of people in opinion concerning the common folk.

Al-Boukhari said: Moussa ibn Isma'il narrated to us, Abou 'Awana narrated to us, from Houssayn, from Abou Wa'il: Masrouq narrated to me, Oumm Roumane reported to me, who said:

"While I was sitting, a woman of the Ansar burst in upon me and said: may Allah do to such a one this and that!"