The Book of Suckling

'Amra reported that she beard 'A'isha (Allah he pleased with her) discussing fosterage which (makes marriage) unlawful; and she ('A'isha) said: There was revealed in the Holy Qur'an ten clear sucklings, and then five clear (sucklings).

Ahadith like this is transmitted by 'A'isha through another chain of narrators.

' A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported that Sahla bint Suhail came to Allah's Apostle (may peace be eupon him) and said: Messengerof Allah, I see on the face of Abu Hudhaifa (signs of disgust) on entering of Salim (who is an ally) into (our house), whereupon Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) said: Suckle him. She said: How can I suckle him as he is a grown-up man? Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) smiled and said: I already know that he is a young man 'Amr has made this addition in his narration that he participated in the Battle of Badr and in the narration of Ibn 'Umar (the words are): Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) laughed.

'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported that Salim, the freed slave of Abu Hadhaifa, lived with him and his family in their house. She (i. e. the daughter of Suhail came to Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) and said: Salim has attained (purbety) as men attain, and he understands what they understand, and he enters our house freely, I, however, perceive that something (rankles) in the heart of Abu Hudhaifa, whereupon Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) said to her: Suckle him and you would become unlawful for him, and (the rankling) which Abu Hudhaifa feels in his heart will disappear. She returned and said: So I suckled him, and what (was there) in the heart of Abu Hudhaifa disappeared.

Ibn Abu Mulaika reported that al-Qasim b. Muhammad b. Abu Bakr had narrated to him that 'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported that Sahla bint Suhail b. 'Amr came to Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) and said: Messenger of Allah, Salim (the freed slave of Abu Hudhaifa) is living with us in our house, and he has attained (puberty) as men attain it and has acquired knowledge (of the sex problems) as men acquire, whereupon he said: Suckle him so that he may become unlawful (in regard to marriage) for you He (Ibn Abu Mulaika) said: I refrained from (narrating this hadith) for a year or so on account of fear. I then met al-Qasim and said to him: You narrated to me a hadith which I did not narrate (to anyone) afterwards. He said: What is that? I informed him, whereupon he said: Narrate it on my authority that 'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) had narrated that to me.

Umm Salama said to 'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her): A young boy who is at the threshold of puberty comes to you. I, however, do not like that he should come to me, whereupon 'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) said: Don't you see in Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) a model for you? She also said: The wife of Abu Hudhaifa said: Messenger of Allah, Salim comes to me and now he is a (grown-up) person, and there is something that (rankles) in the mind of Abu Hudhaifa about him, whereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: Suckle him (so that he may become your foster-child), and thus he may be able to come to you (freely).

Zainab daughter of Abu Salama reported: I heard Umm Salama, the wife of Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon himy, saying to 'A'isha: By Allah, I do not like to be seen by a young boy who has passed the period of fosterage, whereupon she ('A'isha) said: Why is it so? Sahla daughter of Suhail came to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and said: Allah's Messenger, I swear by Allah that I see in the face of Abu Hudhaifa (the signs of disgust) on account of entering of Salim (in the house), whereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: Suckle him. She (Sahla bint Suhail) said: He has a heard. But he (again) said: Suckle him, and it would remove what is there (expression of disgust) on the face of Abu Hudhaifa. She said: (I did that) and, by Allah, I did not see (any sign of disgust) on the face of Abu Hudhaifa.

Umm Salama, the wife of Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him), used to say that all wives of Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) disclaimed the idea that one with this type of fosterage (having been suckled after the proper period) should come to them. and said to 'A'isha: By Allah, we do not find this but a sort of concession given by Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) only for Salim, and no one was ging to be allowed to enter (our houses) with this type of fosterage and we do not subscribe to this view.

'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported: Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) visited me when a man was sitting near me, and he seemed to disapprove of that. And I saw signs of anger on his face and I said: Messenger of Allah, he is my brother by forsterage, whereupon he said: Consider who your brothers are because of fosterage since fosterage is through hunger (i. e. in infancy).

This hadith is narrated on the authority of Abu al-Ahwas with another chain of transmitters and a slight variation of words.

Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (Allah her pleased with him) reported that at the Battle of Hanain Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) sent an army to Autas and encountered the enemy and fought with them. Having overcome them and taken them captives, the Companions of Allah's Messenger (may peace te upon him) seemed to refrain from having intercourse with captive women because of their husbands being polytheists. Then Allah, Most High, sent down regarding that: " And women already married, except those whom your right hands possess (iv. 24)" (i. e. they were lawful for them when their 'Idda period came to an end).

Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (Allah be pleased with him) reported that Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) sent a small army. The rest of the hadith is the same except this that he said: Except what your right hands possess out of them are lawful for you; and he did not mention" when their 'idda period comes to an end".

This hadith has been reported on the authority of AbuSa'id (al-Khudri) (Allah be pleased with him) through another chain of transmitters and the words are: They took captives (women) on the day of Autas who had their husbands. They were afraid (to have sexual intercourse with them) when this verse was revealed:" And women already married except those whom you right hands posses" (iv. 24)

Qatada reported a hadith like this with the same chain of transmitters.

'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported: Sa'd b. Abu Waqqas and Abd b. Zam'a (Allah be pleased with them) disputed with each other over a young boy. Sa'd said: Messenger of Allah, he is the son of my brother 'Utba b. Abu Waqqas as he made it explicit that he was his son. Look at his resemblance. Abd b. Zam'a said Messenger of Allah, he is my brother as he was born on the bed of my father from his slave-girl. Allah's Messenger (way peace he upon him) looked at his resembl-. ance and found a clear resemblance with 'Utba. (But) he said: He is yours 0 'Abd (b. Zam'a), for the child is to be attributed to one on whose bed it is born, and stoning for a fornicator. Sauda bint Zam'a, O you should observe veil from him. So he did not see Sauda at all. Muhammad b. Rumh did not make a mention (of the words):" O Abd."

A hadith like this is narrated on the authority of Ibn 'Uyaiyna and Ma'mar (and the words are): The child is attributed to him on whose bed he is born; but they did not mention this:" For a fornicator there is stoning."

Abu Huraira (Allah be pleased with him) reported Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: The child is to be attributed to one on whose bed he is born, and for a fornicator there is stoning.

A hadith like this is narrated on the authority of Abu Huraira.

'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported: Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) visited me looking pleased as if his face was glistening and said: Did you see that Mujazziz cast a glance at Zaid b. Haritha and Usama b. Zaid, and (then) said: Some (of the features) of their feet are found in the others?

'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported: One day Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) visited me looking pleased and he said: 'A'isha, don't you see Mujazziz al-Mudliji? (He) entered (my house) and saw Usama and Zaid with a rug over them covering their heads, but their feet appeared, and (he) said: These feet are related to one another.

'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported: A physiognomist visited (our house) and Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) was present, and Usama b. Zaid and Zaid b. Haritha were both lying asleep, and he (the physiognomist), said: These feet are related to one another. Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) was pleased to hear this, and he was happy and informed 'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) about it.

A hadith like this has been narrated on the authority of Zuhri and Yunus said: Mujazziz was a physiognomist.

'Abd al-Malik b. Abu Bakr b. Abd al-Rahman b. al-Harith b. Hisham reported on the authority of his father from Umm Salama (Allah be pleased with her) that when Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) married Umm Salama, he stayed with her for three nights, and said: There is no lack of estimation on the part of your husband for you. If you wish I can stay with you for a week, but in case I stay with you for a week, then I shall have to stay for a week with all my wives.

Ibn Abu Bakr b. Abd al-Rahman reported that when Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) married Umm Salama and she stayed with him (during the night), and it was dawn, he (the Holy Prophet) said to her: There is no lack of estimation for you on the part of your husband. So if you desire I can spend a week with you, and if you like I may spend three (nights). and then I will visit you in turn. She said: Spend three (nights).

Abu Bakr b. 'Abd al-Rahman reported that when Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) married Umm Salama and he visited her, and when he intended to come out, she caught hold of his cloth. whereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: If you so desire, I can extend the time (of my stay) with you, but then I shall have to calculate the time (that I stay with you and shall have to spend the same time with other wives). For the virgin woman, (her husband has to stay with her) for a week, and for the woman previously married it is three days.

A hadith like this has been narrated on the authority of Ibn Humaid.

Umm Salama (Allah be pleased with her) reported that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) married her, and he (the narrator) made mention of so many things in this connection (and one of them was this) that he said: If you desire that I spend a week with you, I shall have to spend a week with my (other) wives, and if spend a week with you, I shall have to spend a week with my (other) wives.

Anas b. Malik reported: When anyone who has already a wife marries virgin, he should stay with her for seven nights (and then turn to his other wife), but when anyone having a virgin with him (as his wife) marries a woman who has been previously married he should stay with her for three nights. Khalid (one of the narrators) said. If I were to say that it could be directly traced to the Holy Prophet (may peace be upon him). I would have told the truth, but he (Hadrat Anas) said: Such is the tradition.

Abu Qilaba reported on the authority of Anas: It is the Sunnah to stay with a virgin (after having married her) for a week. Khalid (one of the narrators) said: If wish I can say that it can be traced up to the Holy Prophet (may peace be upon him).