The Book Pertaining to Repentance and Exhortation to Repentance

Safwan b. Muhriz reported that a person said to Ibn 'Umar: How did you hear Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying something about intimate conversation? He said: I heard him say: A believer will be brought to his Lord, the Exalted and Glorious, on the Day of Resurrection and He would place upon him His veil (of Light) and make him confess his faults and say: Do you recognise (your faults)? He would say: My Lord, I do recognise (them). He (the Lord) would say: I concealed them for you in the world. And today I forgive them. And he would then be given the Book containing (the account of his) good deeds. And so far as the non-believers and hypocrites are concerned, there would be general announcement about them before all creation telling them that these (people, i. e. non-believers and hypocrites) told a lie about Allah.

Ibn Shihab reported that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) made an expedition to Tabuk and he (the Holy Prophet) had in his mind (the idea of threatening the) Christians of Arabia in Syria and those of Rome. Ibn Shihab (further) reported that 'Abd al-Rahman b. 'Abdullah b. Ka'b informed him that Abdullah b. Ka'b who served as the guide of Ka'b b. 'Malik as he became blind that he heard Ka'b b. Malik narrate the story of his remaining behind Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) from the Battle of Tabuk. Ka'b b. Malik said: I never remained behind Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) from any expedition which he undertook except the Battle of Tabuk and that of the Battle of Badr. So far as the Battle of Badr is concerned, nobody was blamed for remaining behind as Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and the Muslims (did not set out for attack but for waylaying) the caravan of the Quraish, but it was Allah Who made them confront their enemies without their intention (to do so). I had the honour to be with Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) on the night of 'Aqaba when we pledged our allegiance to Islam and it was more dear to me than my participation in the Battle of Badr, although Badr was more popular amongst people as compared with that (Tabuk). And this is my story of remaining back from Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) on the occasion of the Battle of Tabuk. Never did I possess means enough and (my circumstances) more favourable than at the occasion of this expedition. And, by Allah, I had never before this expedition simultaneously in my possession two rides. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) set out for this expedition in extremely hot season; the journey was long and the land (which he and his army had to cover) was waterless and he had to confront a large army, so he informed the Muslims about the actual situation (they had to face), so that they should adequately equip themselves for this expedition, and he also told them the destination where he intended to go. And the Muslims who accompanied Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) at that time were large in numbers but there was no proper record of them. Ka'b (further) said: Few were the persons who wanted to absent themselves, and were under the impression that they could easily conceal themselves (and thus remain undetected) until revelations from Allah, the Exalted and Glorious (descended in connection with them). And Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) set out on an expedition when the fruits were ripe and their shadows had been lengthened. I had weakness for them and it was during this season that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) made preparations and the Muslims too along with them. I also set out in the morning so that I should make preparations along with them but I came back and did nothing and said to myself: I have means enough (to make preparations) as soon as I like. And I went on doing this (postponing my preparations) until people were about to depart and it was in the morning that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) set out and the Muslims too along with him, but I made no preparations. I went early in the morning and came back, but I made no decision. I continued to do so until they (the Muslims) hastened and covered a good deal of distance. I also made up my mind to march on and to meet them. Would that I had done that but perhaps it was not destined for me. After the departure of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as I went out amongst people, I was shocked to find that I did not find anyone like me but people who were labelled as hypocrites or the people whom Allah granted exemption because of their incapacity and Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) took no notice of me until he had reached Tabuk. (One day as he was sitting amongst the people in Tabuk) he said: What has happened to Ka'b b. Malik? A person from Banu' Salama said: Allah's Messenger, the (beauty) of his cloak and his appreciation of his sides have allured him and he was thus detained. Mua'dh b. Jabal said: Woe be upon that what you contend. Allah's Messenger, by Allah, we know nothing about him but good. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him), however, kept quiet. It was during that time that he (the Holy Prophet) saw a person (dressed in all white (garment) shattering the illusion of eye (mirage). Thereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: May he be Abu Khaithama and, lo, it was Abu Khaithama al-Ansari and he was that person who contributed a sa' of dates and was scoffed at by the hypocrites. Ka'b b. Malik farther said: When this news reached me that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) was on his way back from Tabuk I was greatly perturbed. I thought of fabricating false stories and asked myself how I would save myself from his anger on the following day. In this connection, I sought the help of every prudent man from amongst the members of my family and when it was said to me that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) was about to arrive, all the false ideas banished (from my mind) and I came to the conclusion that nothing could save me but the telling of truth, so I decided to speak the truth and it was in the morning that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) arrived (in Medina). And it was his habit that as he came back from a journey he first went to the mosque and observed two Rak'ahs of nafl prayer (as a mark of gratitude) and then sat amongst people. And as he did that, those who had remained behind him began to put forward their excuses and take an oath before him and they were more than eighty persons. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) accepted their excuses on the very face of them and accepted their allegiance and sought forgiveness for them and left their secret (intentions) to Allah, until I presented myself to him. I greeted him and he smiled and there was a tinge of anger in that. He (the Holy Prophet) then said to me: Come forward. I went forward until I sat in front of him. He said to me: What kept you back? Could you not afford to go in for a ride? I said: Allah's Messenger, by Allah, if I were to sit in the presence of anybody else from amongst the worldly people I would have definitely saved myself from his anger on one pretext (or the other) and I have also the knack to fall into argumentation, but, by Allah, I am fully aware of the fact that if I were to put forward before you a false excuse to please you Allah would definitely provoke your wrath upon me, and if I speak the truth you may be annoyed with me, but I hope that Allah would make its end well and, by Allah, there is no valid excuse for me. By Allah, I never possessed so good means, and I never had such favourable conditions for me as I had when I stayed behind you (failed to join the expedition). Thereupon, Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: This man told the truth, so get up until Allah gives a decision in your case. I stood up and some people of Banu' Salama followed me in hot haste, and they said to me: By Allah, we do not know about you that you committed a sin prior to this. You, however, showed inability to put forward an excuse before Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as those who stayed behind him have put forward excuses. It would have been enough for the forgiveness of your sin that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) would have sought forgiveness for you. By Allah, they continued to incite me until I thought of going back to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and contradict myself. Then I said to them: Has anyone else also met the same fate? They said: Yes, two persons have met the same fate as has fallen to you and they have made the sane statement as you have made, and the same verdict has been delivered in their case as it has been delivered in your case. I said: Who are they? They said: Murara b. ar-Rabi'a 'Amiri and Hilal b. Umayya al-Waqafi. They made a mention of these two pious persons to me who had participated in the Battle of Badr and there was an example for me in them. I went away when they named these two persons. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) forbade the Nluslims to talk with three of us from amongst those (persons) who had stayed behind him. The people began to avoid us and their attitude towards us underwent a change and it seemed as if the whole atmosphere had turned (hostile) against us and it was in fact the same atmosphere ot which I was fully aware and in which I had lived (for a fairly long time). We spent fifty nights in this very state and my two friends confined themselves withen their houses and spent (most of the) time in weeping, but as I was young and strong amongst them I got (out of my house), participated in congregational prayers, moved about in the bazar; but none spoke to me. I came to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as he sat amongst (people) after the prayer, greeted him and asked myself whether his lips stirred in response to my greetings (or not). Then I observed prayer beside him and looked at him with stealing glances and when I attended to my prayer, he looked at me and when I cast a glance at him he turned away his eyes from me. And when the harsh treatment of the Muslims towards me extended to a (considerable) length of time, I walked until I climbed upon the wall of the garden of Abu Qatada, and he was my cousin, and I had the greatest love for him. I greeted him but, by Allah, he did not respond to my greetings. I said to him: Abu Qatada, I adjure you by Allah, arn't you well aware of the fact that I love Allah and His Messenger (may peace be upon him) the most. He kept quiet. I again repeated saying: I adjure you by Allah. arn't you well aware of the fact that I love Allah and His Messenger (may peace be upon him) the most. He kept quiet. I again adjured him, whereupon he said: Allah and the Messenger (may peace be upon him) are best aware of it. My eyes began to shed tears and I came back climbing down from the wall and as I was walking in the bazar of Medina a Nabatean from amongst the Nabateans of Syria, who had come to sell foodgrains in Medina, asked people to direct him to Ka'b b. Malik. People gave him the indication by pointing towards me. He came to me and delivered to me a letter of the King of Ghassan and as I was a scribe I read that letter and it was written like this:" Coming to my point, it has been conveyed to us that your friend (the Holy Prophet) is subjecting you to cruelty and Allah has not created you for a place where you are to be degraded and where you cannot find your right place, so you come to us that we should accord you honour. As I read that letter I said: This is also a calamity, so I burnt it in the oven. When out of the fifty days, forty days had passed and Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) received no revelation, there came the messenger of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) to me and said: Verily, Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) has commanded you to remain separate from your wife. I said: Should I divorce her or what (else) should I do? He said: No, but only remain separate from her and don't have sexual contact with her. The same message was sent to my companions. So I said to my wife: You better go to your parents and stay there with them until Allah gives the decision in my case. The wife of Hilal b. Umayya came to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and said: Allah's Messenger, Hilal b. Umayya is a senile person, he has no servant. Do you disapprove of my serving him? He said: No, but don't go near him. She said: By Allah, he has no such instinct in him. By Allah, he spends his time in weeping from that day to this day. Some of the members of my family said to me: Were you to seek permission from Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) in regard to your wife as he has granted permission to the wife of Hilal b. Umayya to serve him. I said: I would not seek permission from Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him), for I cannot say what Allah's Apostle may say in response to seeking my permission. Moreover, I am a young man. It was in this state that I spent ten more nights and thus fifty nights had passed that (people) had observed boycott with us. It was on the morning of the fiftieth night that I observed my dawn prayer and was sitting on one of the roofs of our houses. And I was in fact sitting in that very state which Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, has described about us in these words:" Life had become hard for myself and the earth had compressed despite its vastness," that I heard the noise of an announcer from the peak of the hill of Sal' saying at the top of his voice: Ka'b b. Malik, there is glad tidings for you. I fell down in prostration and came to realise that there was (a message of) relief for me. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) had informed the people of the acceptance of our repentance by Allah as he offered the dawn prayer. So the people went on to give us glad tidings and some of them went to my friends in order to give them the glad tidings and a person galloped his horse and came from the tribe of Aslam and his horse reached me more quickly than his voice. And when he came to me whose sound I heard, he gave me the glad tidings. I took off my clothes and clothed him with them because of his bringing good news to me and, by Allah, I possessed nothing else (in the form of clothes) than these two on that occasion, and I asked one to lend me two clothes and dressed myself in them. I came to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and on my way I met groups of people who greeted me because of (the acceptance of) repentance and they said: Here is a greeting for you for your repentance being accepted by Allah. (I moved on) until I came to the mosque and Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) had been sitting there amongst persons. So Talha b. 'Ubaidullah got up and rushed towards me and he shook hands with me and greeted me and, by Allah, no person stood up (to greet me) from amongst the emigrants except he. Ka'b said that he never forgot (this good gesture of) Talha. Ka'b further said: I greeted Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) with Assalam-o-'Alaikam and his face was glistening because of delight, and he said: Let there be glad tidings and blessings for you, the like of which (you have neither found nor you will find, as you find today) since your mother gave your birth. I said: Allah's Messenger. is this acceptance of repentance from you or from Allah? He said: No, (it is not from ma), it is from Allah, and it was common with Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) that as he was happy his face brightened up and it looked like a part of the moon and it was from this that we recognised it (his delight). As I sat before him, I said: Allah's Messenger, am I allowed to give in charity my wealth for Allah's sake and for the sake of His Messenger (may peace be upon him)? Thereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: Keep some property with you as it is better for you. I said: I shall keep with me that part (of my property) which fell to my lot (on the occasion of the expedition of) Khaibar. I said: Allah's Messenger, verily, Allah has granted me salvation because of truth and, therefore, (I think) that repentance implies that I should not speak anything but truth as long as I live. He said: By Allah, I do not know whether anyone amongst the Muslims was put to more severe trial than I by Allah because of telling the truth. And since I made a mention of this to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) up to this day I have not told any lie and, by Allah, I have decided not to tell a lie and I hope that Allah would save me (from trials) for the rest of my life and Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, revealed these verses:" Certainly, Allah has turned in Mercy to the Prophet and the emigrants and the helpers who followed him in the hour of hardship after the hearts of a part of them were about to deviate; then He turned to them in mercy. Surely, to them He is Compassionate, Merciful and (He turned in Mercy) to the three who were left behind until the earth despite its vastness became strait for them and their souls were also straitened to them." And this revelation reached up to the (words):" O you who believe, develop God consciousness, and be with the truthful" (ix. 117-118). Ka'b said: By Allah, since Allah directed me to Islam there has been no blessing more significant for me than this truth of mine which I spoke to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and if I were to tell a lie I would have been ruined as were ruined those who told lies, for in regard to those who told lies Allah used harshest words used for anyone as He descended revelation (and the words of Allah are):" They will swear by Allah to you when you return to them so that you may leave them alone. So leave them alone. Surely, they are unclean and their resort is Hell, recompense for what they earned. They will swear to you that you may be pleased with them but if you are pleased with them, yet surely Allah is not pleased with the transgressing people" (ix. 95-96). K'ab said that the matter of us three persons was deferred as compared with those who took an oath in the presence of Allahs Messenger (may peace be upon him) and he accepted their allegiance and sought forgiveness for them and Allah did not give any decision in regard to us. It was Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, Who gave decisions in our case, three who remained behind. (The words of the Qur'an)" the three who were left behind" do not mean that we remained back from Jihad but these imply that He kept our matter behind them who took oath and presented excuse before Him. This hadith has been narrated on the authority of Zuhri with the same chain of transmitters.

'Abdullah b. K'ab, who was his (Ka'b's) guide as he became blind, reported that he heard from Ka'b b. Malik the story of his staying behind Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) from the expedition of Tabuk. The rest of the hadith is the same (but with this variation) that in the narration transmitted on the authority of Yunus (the words are): When Allah's Messenger (may. peace be upon him) intended to set on an expedition he kept It as a secret, but. be did not do so in thic. expedition. And in the narration transmitted on the authority of Muhammad b. Abdullah b. Muslim, there is no mention of Abu Khaithana (Allah be pleased with him) and no mention of his meeting with Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him).

It is reported on the authority of Abdullah b. K'ab and he was the guide of Ka'b as he lost his eyesight and he was the greatest scholar amongst his people and he retained in his mind many ahadith of the Companions of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him). He said: I heard my father Ka'b b. Malik, and he fas one of those three whose repentance was accepted (by Allah). He transmitted that He never lagged behind Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) from any expedition that he undertook except two expeditions; the rest of the hadith is the same, and in the tradition narrated through another chain of transmitters the words are:" That Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) set out on an expedition with a large number of persons more than ten thousand and this could not be recorded in the census register."

Sa'id b. Musayyib, 'Urwa b. Zubair, 'Alqama b. Waqqas and 'Ubaidullah b. Abdullah b. 'Utba b. Mas'ud--all of them reported the story of the false allegation against 'A'isha, the wife of Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him). And they (the slanderers) said what they had to say, but Allah exonerated her of this charge and all of them reported a part of the hadith and some of them who had better memories reported more and with better retention, and I tried to retain this hadith (listening) from every one of them that they reported to me and some of them attested the other. (The sumaried substance of the false allegation is this): 'A'isha said: Whenever Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) intended to set out on a journey he cast lots amongst his wives and he took one with him in whose favour the lot was cast. It so happened that he cast lots amongst us while setting out on a battle and it was cast in my favour, so I set out along with Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him). This relates to the period when the revelation concerning the commands of veil had been made. I was carried in a haudaj and I was brought down where we had to stay. In short, when we set out for return journey from the expedition and our caravan was near Medina, Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) commanded one night to march forward. I also got up when the command for the march was given and moved on until I went out of the encampments of the army and after relieving myself I came to my place. I touched my chest and found that my necklace which had been made of the stones of zafar had been broken. I retraced my steps and tried to search my necklace and this detained me there. The group of people who saddled my ride and placed my haudaj carrying me upon the camels marched on. They were under the impression that I was in it. The women in those days were light of weight and they did not wear much flesh, as they ate less food; so they did not perceive the weight of my haudaj as they placed it upon the camel as I was a young girl at that time. So they drove the camel and Eet out and I found my necklace after the army had marched. I came to my place and there was none to call and none to respond (the call). I waited at my place under the impression that when the people would riot find me they would come back. So I kept sitting at my place. I was overpowered by sleep and slept. Safwan b. Mu'attal Sulami Dhakwini, who had lagged behind the army because of taking rest came to my place walking in the latter part of the night and he saw the body of a person who was asleep. He came to me and recognised me as he had seen rue before it was enjoined to observe purda. I got ap by his voice as he recited Inna lillahi wa inna ilaihi raji'un [we are for Allah and to Him we have to return. ] and I covered my head with my headdress. By Allah, he did not speak to me a word and I did not hear a word from him except Inna lillahi. He made his camel kneel down and I amounted the camel as he pressed tLe camel's foreleg and he moved on leaning the camel by the nose string on which I was riding until we came to the army where it had encamped for rest because of extreme heat. Woe be upon those who harboured doubts about me and the most notorious among them was 'Abdullah b. Ubayy, the great hypocrite. We came to Medina and I fell sick for a month. The people had been deliberating over the statements of those who had brought these calumnies against me. I was absolutely unaware of anything concerning that. This, however, caused doubt in my mind that I did not see Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him.) treating me with such kindness with which he treated me as I fell ill before this. The Holy Prophet (may peace be upon him) would coome and greet me with Assalam-o-'Alaikum and only ask me how I was. This caused doubt in my mind, but I was unaware of the evil. I wept outside despite my failing health and there went along with me Umm Mistah and she said the daughter of Abu Rhm b. Muttalib b. 'Abd Manaf and his mother was the daughter of Sakhr b. 'Amir, the sister of the mother of Abu Bakr Sidiq and his son was Mistah b. Uthatha b. 'Abbad b. Muttalib. I and the daughter of Abu Rahm set towards the direction of my house. Something got into the head dress of Umm Mistah and she said: Woe be upon Mistah. And I said. Woe be upon what you say. Do you curse people who had participated in Badr? She said: Innocent woman, have you not heard what he said? I said: What did he say? She conveyed to me the statement of those who had brought false allegations against me. So my illness was aggravated. I went to my house and Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) came to me and he greeted me and then said: How is that woman? I said: Do you permit me to go to the (house) of my parents? She (further) said: I had at that time made up my mind to confirm this news from them. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) permitted me. So I came to (the house of) my parents and said to my mother: Mother, do you know what the people are talking about? She said: My daughter, you should not worry. By Allah, if there is a handsome woman who is loved by her husband and he has co-wives also they talk many a thing about her. I said: Hallowed be Allah, what are the people talking about? I wept during the whole night until it was morning and I did not have a wink of sleep and I wept even in the morning. As the revelation was delayed (in regard to this matter), so Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) called 'Ali ibn Abi 'Talib and Usama b. Zaid in order to seek their advice in regard to the separation of his wife. Usama b. Zaid told Allah's Messenger (may peace be apen him) about the innocence of his wives and what he knew about his love for them. He said: Allah's Messenger, they are your wives and we know nothing else about thembut goodness. And as for 'Ali b. Abu Talib, he said: Allah has not put any unnecessary burden upon you (in regard to your wives). There are a number of women besides her and if you ask that maidservant (Barira) she will tell you the truth. So, Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) called Bailra and said: Barira, did you see anything in 'A'isha which can cause doubt about her? Barira said: By Him Who sent thee with the truth, I have seen nothing objectionable in her but only this much that she is a young girl and she goes to sleep while kneading the flour and the lamb eats that. Thereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) mounted the pulpit and sought vindication against 'Abdullah b. Ubayy b. Salul, and he further said: Who would exonerate me from imputations of that person who has troubled (me) in regard to my family? By Allah, I find nothing in my wife but goodness and the person whom the people have mentioned in this connection is, according to my knowledge, a thoroughly pious person, and he did never get into my house but along with me. Sa'd b. Mu'adh stood up and said: Allah's Messenger, I defend your honour against him. If he belong to the tribe of Aus we would strike his neck and if he belongs to the tribe of our brother Khazraj and you order us we would comply with your order. Then Sa'd b. 'Ubada stood up. He was chief of the Khazraj tribe. He was otherwise a pioas man but he had some what tribal partisanship in him and he said to Sa'd b. Mu'adh: By the everlasting existence of Allah. you are not stating the fact, you will not be able to kill him and you will not have the power to do so. Thereupon, Usaid b. Hudair stood up, and he was the first cousin of Sa'd b. Mu'adh and said to Sa'd b. 'Ubada: By the everlasting existence of Allah, you are not stating the fact. We would kill him. You are a hypocrite and so you argue in defence of the hypocrites, and thus both the tribes Aus and Khazraj were flared up, until they were about to fall upon one another and Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) kept standing upon the pulpit and Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) tried to subside their anger until they became silent and thus there was silence. 'A'isha further reported: I spent the whole day in weeping and even the night and could not have a wink of sleep even next night. My parents thought that this constant weeping of mine would break my heart. I wept and they sat beside me. In the meanwhile a woman of the Ansar came to see me. I permitted her to see me and she also began to weep. And we were in this very state that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) came and he greeted me and then sat down. He had never sat with me since a month when this rumour was afloat, and there was no revelation (to clarity) my case. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) recited Tashahhud (there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is His Apostle) and then said: Coming to the point, 'A'isha, this is what has reached me about you and if you are innocent, Allah would Himself vindicate your honour, and if accidentally there has been a lapse on your part sock forgiveness of Allah; He will pardon thee for when a servant makes a confession of his fault and turns (to Him) penitently, Allah also turns to him (mercifully) accepting his repentance. When Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) talked, my tears dried up and not even a single drop of tear was perceived by me (rolling out of my eyes). I said to my father: You give a reply to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) on my behalf. He said: By Allah, I do not know what I should say to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him). I then said to my mother: Give a reply to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) on my behalf, but she said: By Allah, I do not know what I should say to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him). I was a small girl at that time and I had not read much of the Qur'an (but I said): By Allah, I perceive that you have heard about this and it has settled down in your mind and you have taken it to be true, so if I say to you that I am quite innocent, and Allah knows that I am innocent, you would never believe me to be true, and if I confess to (the alleged) lapse before you, whereas Allah knows that I am completely innocent (and I have not committed this sin at all), in that case You will take me to be true and, by Allah, I, therefore, find no other alternative for me and for you except that what the father of Yousuf said:, (My course is) comely patience. And Allah it is Whose help is to be sought for in that (predicament) which ye describe" (xii 18). After this I turned my face to the other side and lay down on my bed. By Allah, I was fully aware of this fact that I was innocent but I did not expect that Allah would descend Wahy Matlu (Qur'anic Wahy) in my case as I did not think myself so much important that Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, would speak in this matter in words to be recited. I only hoped that Allah would in vision give an indication of my innocence to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) during his sleep. And, by Allah, Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) had not moved an inch from where he had been sitting and none from the members of my family had gone that Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, descended revelation upon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) there and then and he felt the burden which he used to feel at the time of receiving revelation. He began to perspire because of the burden of words of Allah as they descended upon him even during the winter season and there fell the drops of his sweat like silvery beads. When this state of receiving revelation was over, the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) smiled and the first words which he spoke to me were that he said: 'A'isha, there is glad tidings for you. Verily, Allah has vindicated your honour, and my mother who had been standing by me said: Get up (and thank him, i. e. the Holy Prophet). I said: By Allah, I shall not thank him and laud him but Allah Who has descended revelation vindicating my honour. She ('A'isha) said: Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, revealed:" 'Verily, those who spread the slander are a gang among you" (and) ten (subsequent) verses in regard to my innocence. She further said: Abu Bakr used to give to Mistah (some stipend) as a token of kinship with him and for his poverty and he (Abu Bakr) said: By Allah, now I would not spend anything for him. 'A'isha said: It was upon this that Allah the Exalted and Glorious revealed this verse:" And let not those who possess dignity and ease among you swear to give to the near of the kin" up to" Yearn ye not that Allah may forgive you?" Hibban b. Musa' said that 'Abdullah b. Mubarak used to say: It is a verse contained in the Book which most (eminently) brightens the hope. Abu Bakr said: By Allah, I wish that Allah should pardon me. I shall never stop this stipend. So he continued to give him the stipend which he had withdrawn. 'A'isha said that Allah's Messenger (way peace be upon him) asked Zainab, daughter of Jahsh, the wife of Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him), about me what she knew or what she had seen in me, and she said: Allah's Messenger, I shall not say anything without hearing (with my ears) and seeing with my eyes. By Allah, I find nothing in her but goodness. (And she stated this in spite of the fact) that she was the only lady who amongst the wives of Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) used to vie with me but Allah saved her in bringing false allegation against me because of her God-consciousness. Her sister Hamna bint Jahsh, however, opposed her and she was undone along with others.

This hadith has been narrated on the authority of Zuhri through other chains of transmitters but with a slight variation of wording. In the hadith transmitters on the authority of 'Urwa, there is an addition of these words: " 'A'isha did not like that Hassan should be rebuked in her presence and she used to say: It was he who wrote this verse also:" 'Verily, my father and my mother and my honour, those are all meant for defending the honour of Muhammad against you." And 'Urwa further reported that 'A'isha said: By Allah, the person, about whom the allegation was trade used to say: Hallowed be Allah, by One, in Whose hand is my life, I have never unveiled any woman, and then he die, & as a martyr in the cause of Allah, and in the narration transmitted on the authority of Ya'qub b. Ibrahim., the word is Mu'irin and in the narration transmitted on the'authority of 'Abd al-Razzaq it is Mughirin. 'Abd b. Humaid said: I said to 'Abd al-Razzaq: What does this word Mughirin mean? And he said: Al- waghra means intense heat.

'A'Isha reported: When I came under discussion what the people had to say about me, Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) stood up for delivering an address and he recited tashahhud (I bear witness to the fact that iheie is no god but Allah) and praised Allah, lauded Him what He rightly deserves and then said: Coming to the point. Give me an advice about them who have brought false charge about my family. By Allah, I know no evil in the members of my family and the person in connection with whom the false charge is being levelled, I know no evil in him too. And he never entered my house but in my presence and when I was away on a journey, he remained with me even in that. The rest of the hadith is the same but with this change that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) came to my house and asked my maidservant and she said: By Allah, I know no fault in her but this that she sleeps, and goat comes and eats the kneaded flour. Some of the Companions (of the Holy Prophet) scolded her and said: State the fact before Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and they even made a pointed reference (to this incident). She said: gallowed be Allah. By Allah, I know about her as does the jeweller know about the pure piece of gold. And when this news reached the person in connection with whom the allegation was made he said: Hallowed be Allah. By Allah, I have never unveiled any woman. 'A'isha said: He fell as a martyr in the cause of Allah, and there is this addition in this hadith that the people who had brought false allegation amongst them were Mistah and Hamna and Hassan. And so far as the hypocrite 'Abdullah b. Ubayy is concerned, he was one who tried his best to gather the false news and then gave them the wind. And he was in fact a fabricator and there was Hamna, daughter of Jahsh with him.

Anas reported that a person was charged with fornication with the slavegirl of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him). Thereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said to 'Ali: Go and strike his neck. 'Ali came to him and he found him in a well making his body cool. 'Ali said to him: Come out, and as he took hold of his hand and brought him out, he found that his sexual organ had been cut. Hadrat 'Ali refrained from striking his neck. He came to Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) and said: Allah's Messenger, he has not even the sexual organ with him.