Sahih al-Bukhari: Book 51: Gifts

The Prophet ﷺ said, “O Muslim women! None of you should look down upon the gift sent by her she-neighbour even if it were the trotters of the sheep (fleshless part of legs).”

‘Aishah said to me, “O my nephew! We used to see the crescent, and then the crescent and then the crescent in this way we saw three crescents in two months and no fire (for cooking) used to be made in the houses of Allah’s Messenger ﷺ. I said, “O my aunt! Then what use to sustain you?” ‘Aishah said, “The two black things: dates and water, our neighbors from Ansar had some Manarh and they used to present Allah’s Messenger ﷺ some of their milk and he used to make us drink.”

The Prophet ﷺ said, “I shall accept the invitation even if I were invited to a meal of a sheep’s trotter, and I shall accept the gift even if it were an arm or a trotter of a sheep.”

The Prophet ﷺ sent for a woman from the emigrants and she had a slave who was a carpenter. The Prophet ﷺ said to her “Order your slave to prepare the wood (pieces) for the pulpit.” So, she ordered her slave who went and cut the wood from the tamarisk and prepared the pulpit, for the Prophet ﷺ. When he finished the pulpit, the woman informed the Prophet ﷺ that it had been finished. The Prophet ﷺ asked her to send that pulpit to him, so they brought it. The Prophet ﷺ lifted it and placed it at the place in which you see now.”

That his father said, “One day I was sitting with some of the Prophet’s ﷺ companions on the way to Makkah. Allah’s Messenger ﷺ was ahead of us. All of my companions were in the state of Ihram while I was a non-Muhrim. They saw an onager while I was busy repairing my shoes, so they did not tell me about it but they wished I had seen it. By chance I looked up and saw it. So, I turned to the horse, saddled it and rode on it, forgetting to take the spear and the whip. I asked them if they could hand over to me the whip and the spear but they said, ‘No, by Allah, we shall not help you in that in any way.’ I became angry and got down from the horse, picked up both the things and rode the horse again. I attacked the onager and slaughtered it, and brought it (after it had been dead). They took it (cooked some of it) and started eating it, but they doubted whether it was allowed for them to eat it or not, as they were in the state of Ihram. So, we proceeded and I hid with me one of its fore-legs. When we met Allah’s Messenger ﷺ and asked him about the case, he asked, ‘Do you have a portion of it with you?’ I replied in the affirmative and gave him that fleshy fore-leg which he ate completely while he was in the state of Ihram .

Once Allah’s Messenger ﷺ visited us in this house of ours and asked for something to drink. We milked one of our sheep and mixed it with water from this well of ours and gave it to him. Abu Bakr was sitting on his left side and ‘Umar in front of him and a bedouin on his right side. When Allah’s Messenger ﷺ finished, ‘Umar said to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ “Here is Abu Bakr.” But Allah’s Messenger ﷺ gave the remaining milk to the bedouin and said twice, “The (persons on the) right side! So, start from the right side.” Anas added, “It is a Sunna (the Prophet’s ﷺ traditions)” and repeated it thrice.

We chased a rabbit at Mar-al-Zahran and the people ran after it but were exhausted. I overpowered and caught it, and gave it to Abu Talha who slaughtered it and sent its hip or two thighs to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ. (The narrator confirms that he sent two thighs). The Prophet ﷺ accepted that. (The sub-narrator asked Anas, “Did the Prophet ﷺ; eat from it?” Anas replied, “He ate from it.”)

An onager was presented to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ at the place called Al-Abwa’ or Waddan, but Allah’s Messenger ﷺ rejected it. When the Prophet ﷺ noticed the signs of sorrow on the giver’s face he said, “We have not rejected your gift, but we are in the state of Ihram.” (i.e. if we were not in a state of Ihram we would have accepted your gift, Fateh-al-Bari page 130, Vol. 6)

The people used to look forward for the days of my (‘Aishah’s) turn to send gifts to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ in order to please him.

Ibn ‘Abbas said: Um Hufaid, Ibn ‘Abbas’s aunt sent some dried yogurt (butter free), ghee (butter) and a mastigar to the Prophet ﷺ as a gift. The Prophet ﷺ ate the dried yogurt and butter but left the mastigar because he disliked it. Ibn ‘Abbas said, “The mastigar was eaten at the table of Allah’s Messenger ﷺ and if it had been illegal to eat, it could not have been eaten at the table of Allah’s Messenger ﷺ.”

Whenever a meal was brought to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ, he would ask whether it was a gift or Sadaqa (something given in charity). If he was told that it was Sadaqa, he would tell his companions to eat it, but if it was a gift, he would hurry to share it with them.

Some meat was brought to the Prophet ﷺ and it was said that the meat had been given in charity to Buraira. He said, “It was Sadaqa for Buraira but a gift for us.”

I intended to buy Buraira but her masters stipulated that her Wala should be for them. When the Prophet ﷺ was told about it, he said to me, “Buy and manumit her, as the Wala’ is for the liberator.” Once Buraira was given some meat, and the Prophet ﷺ asked, “What is this?” I said, “It has been given to Buraira in charity.” He said, “It is sadaqa for her but a gift for us.” Buraira was given the option (to stay with her husband or to part with him). AbdurRahman (a sub-narrator) wondered, “Was her husband a slave or a free man?” Shu’ba (another sub-narrator) said, “I asked ‘Abdur-Rahman whether her husband was a slave or a free man. He replied that he did not know whether he was a slave or a free man.”

Once the Prophet ﷺ went to ‘Aishah and asked her whether she had something (to eat). She said that she had nothing except the mutton which Um ‘Atiyya had sent to (Buraira) in charity. The Prophet ﷺ said that it had reached its destination (i.e. it is no longer an object of charity.)

The people used to send gifts to the Prophet ﷺ on the day of my turn. Um Salama said: “My companions (the wives of the Prophet ﷺ Other than ‘Aishah) gathered and they complained about it. So I informed the Prophet ﷺ about it on their behalf, but he remained silent.

The wives of Allah’s Messenger ﷺ were in two groups. One group consisted of ‘Aishah, Hafsa, Safiyya and Sauda; and the other group consisted of Um Salama and the other wives of Allah’s Messenger ﷺ. The Muslims knew that Allah’s Messenger ﷺ loved ‘Aishah, so if any of them had a gift and wished to give to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ, he would delay it, till Allah’s Messenger ﷺ had come to ‘Aishah’s home and then he would send his gift to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ in her home. The group of Um Salama discussed the matter together and decided that Um Salama should request Allah’s Messenger ﷺ to tell the people to send their gifts to him in whatever wife’s house he was. Um Salama told Allah’s Messenger ﷺ of what they had said, but he did not reply. Then they (those wives) asked Um Salama about it. She said, “He did not say anything to me.” They asked her to talk to him again. She talked to him again when she met him on her day, but he gave no reply. When they asked her, she replied that he had given no reply. They said to her, “Talk to him till he gives you a reply.” When it was her turn, she talked to him again. He then said to her, “Do not hurt me regarding ‘Aishah, as the Divine Inspirations do not come to me on any of the beds except that of ‘Aishah.” On that Um Salama said, “I repent to Allah for hurting you.” Then the group of Um Salama called Fatima, the daughter of Allah’s Messenger ﷺ and sent her to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ to say to him, “Your wives request to treat them and the daughter of Abu Bakr on equal terms.” Then Fatima conveyed the message to him. The Prophet ﷺ said, “O my daughter! Don’t you love whom I love?” She replied in the affirmative and returned and told them of the situation. They requested her to go to him again but she refused. They then sent Zainab bint Jahsh who went to him and used harsh words saying, “Your wives request you to treat them and the daughter of Ibn Abu Quhafa on equal terms.” On that she raised her voice and abused ‘Aishah to her face so much so that Allah’s Messenger ﷺ looked at ‘Aishah to see whether she would retort. ‘Aishah started replying to Zainab till she silenced her. The Prophet ﷺ then looked at ‘Aishah and said, “She is really the daughter of Abu Bakr.”

When I went to Thumama bin ‘Abdullah, he gave me some perfume and said that Anas would not reject the gifts of perfume. Anas said: The Prophet ﷺ used not to reject the gifts of perfume.

When the delegates of the tribe of Hawazin came to the Prophet ﷺ he stood up amongst the people, Glorified and Praised Allah as He deserved, and said, “Then after: Your brethren have come to you with repentance and I see it logical to return to them their captives; so whoever amongst you likes to do that as a favor, then he can do it, and whoever of you like to stick to his share till we give him his right from the very first Fai (war booty) (1) which Allah will bestow on us, then (he can do so).” The people replied, “We do that (to return the captives) willingly as a favor for your sake.”

Allah’s Messengers used to accept gifts and used to give something in return.

that his father took him to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ and said, “I have given this son of mine a slave.” The Prophet ﷺ asked, “Have you given all your sons the like?” He replied in the negative. The Prophet ﷺ said, “Take back your gift then.”

I heard An-Nu’man bin Bashir on the pulpit saying, “My father gave me a gift but ‘Amra bint Rawaha (my mother) said that she would not agree to it unless he made Allah’s Messenger ﷺ as a witness to it. So, my father went to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ and said, ‘I have given a gift to my son from ‘Amra bint Rawaha, but she ordered me to make you as a witness to it, O Allah’s Messenger ﷺ!’ Allah’s Messenger ﷺ asked, ‘Have you given (the like of it) to everyone of your sons?’ He replied in the negative. Allah’s Messenger ﷺ said, ‘Be afraid of Allah, and be just to your children.’ My father then returned and took back his gift.”

Ubaidullah bin ‘Abdullah told me that ‘Aishah had said, “When the Prophet ﷺ became sick and his condition became serious, he requested his wives to allow him to be treated in my house, and they allowed him. He came out leaning on two men while his feet were dragging on the ground. He was walking between Al-‘Abbas and another man.” ‘Ubaidullah said, “When I informed Ibn ‘Abbas of what ‘Aishah had said, he asked me whether I knew who was the second man whom ‘Aishah had not named. I replied in the negative. He said, ‘He was ‘Ali bin Abi Talib.”

The Prophet ﷺ said, “One who takes back his gift (which he has already given) is like a dog that swallows its vomit.”

Once I said, “O Allah’s Messenger ﷺ! I have no property except what has been given to me by Az-Zubair (i.e. her husband). May I give in charity?” The Prophet ﷺ said, “Give in charity and do not withhold it; otherwise Allah will withhold it back from you . “

Allah’s Messenger ﷺ said, “Give (in charity) and do not give reluctantly lest Allah should give you in a limited amount; and do not withhold your money lest Allah should withhold it from you.”

the freed slave of Ibn ‘Abbas, that Maimuna bint Al-Harith told him that she manumitted a slave-girl without taking the permission of the Prophet ﷺ. On the day when it was her turn to be with the Prophet ﷺ, she said, “Do you know, O Allah’s Messenger ﷺ, that I have manumitted my slave-girl?” He said, “Have you really?” She replied in the affirmative. He said, “You would have got more reward if you had given her (i.e. the slave-girl) to one of your maternal uncles.”

Whenever Allah’s Messenger ﷺ wanted to go on a journey, he would draw lots as to which of his wives would accompany him. He would take her whose name came out. He used to fix for each of them a day and a night. But Sauda bint Zam’a gave up her (turn) day and night to ‘Aishah, the wife of the Prophet ﷺ in order to seek the pleasure of Allah’s Messenger ﷺ (by that action).

2594. Narrated Maimuna, the wife of the Prophet ﷺ that she manumitted her slave-girl and the Prophet ﷺ said to her, “You would have got more reward if you had given the slave-girl to one of your maternal uncles.”

I said, “O Allah’s Messenger ﷺ! I have two neighbors; which of them should I give a gift to?” The Prophet ﷺ said, “(Give) to the one whose door is nearer to you.”

That he heard As-Sa’b bin Jaththama Al-Laithi, who was one of the companions of the Prophet ﷺ, saying that he gave the meat of an onager to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ while he was at a place called Al-Abwa’ or Waddan, and was in a state of Ihram. The Prophet ﷺ did not accept it. When the Prophet ﷺ saw the signs of sorrow on As-Sa’b’s face because of not accepting his present, he said (to him), “We are not returning your present, but we are in the state of Ihram.” (See Hadith No. 747)

The Prophet ﷺ appointed a man from the tribe of Al-Azd, called Ibn ‘Utbiyya for collecting the Zakat. When he returned he said, “This (i.e. the Zakat) is for you and this has been given to my as a present.” The Prophet ﷺ said, “Why hadn’t he stayed in his father’s or mother’s house to see whether he would be given presents or not? By Him in Whose Hands my life is, whoever takes something from the resources of the Zakat (unlawfully) will be carrying it on his neck on the Day of Resurrection; if it be a camel, it will be grunting; if a cow, it will be mooing; and if a sheep, it will be bleating.” The Prophet ﷺ then raised his hands till we saw the whiteness of his armpits, and he said thrice, “O Allah! Haven’t I conveyed Your Message (to them)?”

The Prophet ﷺ said to me, “I will give you so much (the Prophet ﷺ pointed thrice with his hands) when funds of Bahrain will come to me.” But the Prophet ﷺ died before the money reached him. (When it came) Abu Bakr ordered an announcer to announce that whoever had a money claim on the Prophet ﷺ or was promised to be given something, should come to Abu Bakr. I went to Abu Bakr and told him that the Prophet ﷺ had promised to give me so much. On that Abu Bakr gave me three handfuls (of money).

Allah’s Messenger ﷺ distributed some cloaks but did not give anything thereof to Makhrama. Makhrama said (to me), “O son! accompany me to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ.” When I went with him, he said, “Call him to me.” I called him (i.e. the Prophet ﷺ ) for my father. He came out wearing one of those cloaks and said, “We kept this (cloak) for you, (Makhrama).” Makhrama looked at the cloak and said, “Makhrama is pleased,” (or the Prophet ﷺ said), “Is Makhrama pleased?”

A man came to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ and said, “I am ruined.” The Prophet ﷺ asked, “What do you mean?” He said, “I had a sexual intercourse with my wife during Ramadan (while fasting).” The Prophet ﷺ asked him, “Can you manumit a slave?” He replied in the negative. He then asked him, “Can you fast for two successive months continuously” He replied in the negative. The Prophet ﷺ then asked him, “Can you feed sixty poor persons?” He replied in the negative. In the meantime an Ansari came with a basket full of dates. The Prophet ﷺ said to the man, “Take it and give it in charity (as an expiation of your sin).” The man said “Should I give it to some people who are poorer than we O Allah’s Messenger ﷺ? By Him Who has sent you with the Truth, there is no family between Al-Madina’s two mountains poorer than we.” Allah’s Messenger ﷺ told him to take it and provide his family with it.”

My father was martyred on the day (of the battle) of Uhud and his creditors demanded the debt back in a harsh manner. So I went to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ and informed him of that, he asked them to accept the fruits of my garden and excuse my father, but they refused. So, Allah’s Messenger ﷺ did not give them the fruits, nor did he cut them and distribute them among them, but said, “I will come to you tomorrow morning.” So, he came to us the next morning and walked about in between the date-palms and invoked Allah to bless their fruits. I plucked the fruits and gave back all the rights of the creditors in full, and a lot of fruits were left for us. Then I went to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ, who was sitting, and informed him about what happened. Allah’s Messenger ﷺ told ‘Umar, who was sitting there, to listen to the story. ‘Umar said, “Don’t we know that you are Allah’s Messenger ﷺ? By Allah! you are Allah’s Messenger ﷺ!”

A drink (milk mixed with water) was brought to the Prophet ﷺ who drank some of it while a boy was sitting on his right and old men on his left. The Prophet ﷺ said to the boy, “If you permit me, I’ll give (the rest of the drink to) these old men first.” The boy said, “I will not give preference to any one over me as regards my share from you, O Allah’s Messenger ﷺ!” The Prophet ﷺ then put that container in the boy’s hand. (See Hadith No. 541).

2603. Jabir (radhiyallahu anhu) said, “I went to the Prophet ﷺ in the mosque and he paid me my right and gave me more than he owed me.”

I sold a camel to the Prophet ﷺ on one of the journeys. When we reached Al-Madina, he ordered me to go to the Mosque and offer two Rak’at. Then he weighed for me (the price of the camel in gold) and gave an extra amount over it. A part of it remained with me till it was taken by the army of Sham on the day of Harra.”

A drink (of milk and water) was brought to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ while a boy was sitting on his right side and old men were sitting on his left side. He asked the boy, “Will you allow me to give it to these (people)?” The boy said, “No, by Allah, I will not allow anyone to take my right from you.” Then the Prophet ﷺ put the bowl in the boy’s hand.

Allah’s Messenger ﷺ owed a man some debt (and that man demanded it very harshly). The companions of the Prophet ﷺ wanted to harm him, but the Prophet ﷺ said to them, “Leave him, as the creditor has the right to speak harshly.” He then added, “Buy (a camel) of the same age and give it to him.” They said, “We cannot get except a camel of an older age than that of his.” He said, “Buy it and give it to him, as the best amongst you is he who pays back his debt in the most handsome way.’

When the delegates of the tribe of Hawazin came to the Prophet ﷺ they requested him to return their property and their captives. He said to them, “This concerns also other people along with me as you see, and the best statement to me is the true one, so you may choose one of two alternatives; either the captives or the property and (I have not distributed the booty for) I have been waiting for you.”

When the Prophet ﷺ had returned from Ta’if, he waited for them for more than ten nights. When they came to know that the Prophet ﷺ would not return except one of the two, they chose their captives. The Prophet ﷺ then stood up amongst the Muslims, Glorified and Praised Allah as He deserved, and then said, “Then after: These brothers of yours have come to you with repentance and I see it proper to return their captives, so whoever amongst you likes to do that as a favor, then he can do it, and whoever of you wants to stick to his share till we pay him from the very first Fai (i.e. war booty) which Allah will give us, then he can do so.” The people said, “We return (the captives) to them willingly as a favor, O Allah’s Messenger ﷺ!” The Prophet ﷺ said, “I do not know who of you has given his consent and who has not; so go back and your leaders may present your decision to me.” The people went away, and their leaders discussed the matter with them, and then came to the Prophet ﷺ to tell him that all of them had given their consent (to return the captives) willingly. (Az-Zuhn, the sub-narrator said, “This is what we know about the captives, of Hawazin.”)

That the people sitting with that person will be his co-owners. But this report is not confirmed by an authentic narration. (Refer to Hadith 778)

The Prophet ﷺ took a camel of special age from somebody on credit. Its owner came and demanded it back (harshly). The Prophet ﷺ said, “No doubt, he who has a right, can demand it.” Then the Prophet ﷺ gave him an older camel than his camel and said, “The best amongst you is he who repays his debts in the most handsome way.”

That he was in the company of the Prophet ﷺ on a journey, riding a troublesome camel belonging to ‘Umar. The camel used to go ahead of the Prophet ﷺ, so Ibn ‘Umar’s father would say, “O ‘Abdullah! No one should go ahead of the Prophet ﷺ.” The Prophet ﷺ said to him, “Sell it to me.” ‘Umar said to the Prophet ﷺ “It is for you.” So, he bought it and said, “O ‘Abdullah! It is for you, and you can do with it what you like.”

We were in the company of the Prophet ﷺ on a journey, and I was riding a troublesome camel. The Prophet ﷺ asked ‘Umar to sell that camel to him. So, ‘Umar sold it to him. The Prophet ﷺ then said, “O ‘Abdullah! The camel is for you.”

‘Umar bin Al-Khattab saw a silken dress (cloak) being sold at the gate of the Mosque and said, “O Allah’s Messenger ﷺ! Would that you buy it and wear it on Fridays and when the delegates come to you!” Allah’s Messenger ﷺ said, “This is worn by the one who will have no share in the Hereafter.” Later on some silk dresses were brought and Allah’s Messenger ﷺ sent one of them to ‘Umar. ‘Umar said, “How do you give me this to wear while you said what you said about the dress of ‘Utarid?” Allah’s Messenger ﷺ said, “I have not given it to you to wear.” So, ‘Umar gave it to a pagan brother of his in Makkah.

Once the Prophet ﷺ went to the house of Fatima but did not enter it. ‘Ali came and she told him about that. When ‘All asked the Prophet ﷺ about it, he said, “I saw a (multi-colored) decorated curtain on her door. I am not interested in worldly things.” ‘Ali went to Fatima and told her about it. Fatima said, “I am ready to dispense with it in the way he suggests.” The Prophet ﷺ ordered her to send it to such-and-such needy people. “

The Prophet ﷺ gave me a silken dress as a gift and I wore it. When I saw the signs of anger on his face, I cut it into pieces and distributed it among my wives.”

A Jubba (i.e. cloak) made of thick silken cloth was presented to the Prophet ﷺ. The Prophet ﷺ used to forbid people to wear silk. So, the people were pleased to see it. The Prophet ﷺ said, “By Him in Whose Hands Muhammad’s ﷺ soul is, the handkerchiefs of Sad bin Mu’adh in Paradise are better than this.”

2616. Anas added, “The present was sent to the Prophet ﷺ by Ukaidir (a Christian) from Dauma.”

A Jewess brought a poisoned (cooked) sheep for the Prophet ﷺ who ate from it. She was brought to the Prophet ﷺ and he was asked, “Shall we kill her?” He said, “No.” I continued to see the effect of the poison on the palate of the mouth of Allah’s Messenger ﷺ .

We were one-hundred and thirty persons accompanying the Prophet ﷺ who asked us whether anyone of us had food. There was a man who had about a Sa of wheat which was mixed with water then. A very tall pagan came driving sheep. The Prophet ﷺ asked him, “Will you sell us (a sheep) or give it as a present?” He said, “I will sell you (a sheep).” The Prophet ﷺ bought a sheep and it was slaughtered. The Prophet ﷺ ordered that its liver and other abdominal organs be roasted. By Allah, the Prophet ﷺ gave every person of the one-hundred-and-thirty a piece of that; he gave all those of them who were present; and kept the shares of those who were absent.The Prophet ﷺ then put its meat in two huge basins and all of them ate to their fill, and even then more food was left in the two basins which were carried on the camel (or said something like it).

‘Umar saw a silken cloak over a man for sale and requested the Prophet ﷺ to buy it in order to wear it on Fridays and while meeting delegates. The Prophet ﷺ said, “This is worn by the one who will have no share in the Hereafter.” Later on Allah’s Messenger ﷺ got some silken cloaks similar to that one, and he sent one to ‘Umar. ‘Umar said to the Prophet ﷺ “How can I wear it, while you said about it what you said?” The Prophet ﷺ said, “I have not given it to you to wear, but to sell or to give to someone else.” So, ‘Umar sent it to his brother at Makkah before he embraced Islam.

My mother came to me during the lifetime of Allah’s Messenger ﷺ and she was a pagan. I said to Allah’s Messenger (seeking his verdict), “My mother has come to me and she desires to receive a reward from me, shall I keep good relations with her?” The Prophet ﷺ said, “Yes, keep good relation with her. “

The Prophet ﷺ said, “He who takes back his present is like him who swallows his vomit.”

The Prophet ﷺ said, “The bad example is not for us. He who takes back his present is like a dog that swallows back its vomit.”

I gave a horse in Allah’s Cause. The person to whom it was given, did not look after it. I intended to buy it from him, thinking that he would sell it cheap. When I asked the Prophet ﷺ he said, “Don’t buy it, even if he gives it to you for one Dirham, as the person who takes back what he has given in charity, is like a dog that swallows back its vomit.”

The sons of Suhaib, (Suhaib, who was the freed slave of Bani Jud’an) claimed that Allah’s Messenger ﷺ had given two houses and one room to Suhaib. Marwan asked, “Who will testify to your claim?” They replied that Ibn ‘Umar would do so. Marwan sent for Ibn ‘Umar who testified that Allah’s Messenger ﷺ had really given Suhaib two houses and a room. So, Marwan gave the verdict (in favour of Suhaib’s sons), because of (Ibn ‘Umar’s) witness.

The Prophet ﷺ gave the verdict that ‘Umra is for the one to whom it is presented.

The Prophet ﷺ said, “Umra is permissible.” Ata said, “Jabir narrated the same to me from the Prophet ﷺ.”

Once the people of Al-Madina were frightened, so the Prophet ﷺ borrowed a horse from Abu Talha called Al-Mandub, and rode it. When he came back he said, “We have not seen anything (to be afraid of), but the horse was very fast (having an energy as inexhaustible as the water of the sea).”

I went to ‘Aishah and she was wearing a coarse dress costing five Dirhams. ‘Aishah said, “Look up and see my slave-girl who refuses to wear it in the house though during the lifetime of Allah’s Messenger ﷺ I had a similar dress which no woman desiring to appear elegant (before her husband) failed to borrow from me.”

Allah’s Messenger ﷺ said, “What a good Maniha (the she-camel which has recently given birth and which gives profuse milk) is, and (what a good Maniha) (the sheep which gives profuse milk, a bowl in the morning and another in the evening) is!”

Maniha is a good deed of charity.

Anas bin Malik said, “When the emigrants came Al-Madina, they had nothing whereas the Ansar had land and property. The Ansar gave them their land on condition that the emigrants would give them half the yearly yield and work on the land and provide the necessaries for cultivation.” His (i.e. Anas’s mother who was also the mother of ‘Abdullah bin Abu Talha, gave some date-palms to Allah’ Messenger ﷺ who gave them to his freed slave-girl (Um Aiman) who was also the mother of Usama bin Zaid. When the Prophet ﷺ finished from the fighting against the people of Khaibar and returned to Al-Madina, the emigrants returned to the Ansar the fruit gifts which the Ansar had given them. The Prophet ﷺ also returned to Anas’s mother the date-pallms. Allah’s Messenger ﷺ gave Um Aiman other trees from his garden in lieu of the old gift.

That Allah’s Messenger ﷺ said, “There are forty virtuous deeds and the best of them is the Maniha of a she-goat, and anyone who does one of these virtuous deeds hoping for Allah’s reward with firm confidence that he will get it, then Allah will make him enter Paradise because of Hassan (a sub-narrator) said, “We tried to count those good deeds below the Maniha; we mentioned replying to the sneezer, removing harmful things from the road, etc., but we failed to count even fifteen.”

Some men had superfluous land and they said that they would give it to others to cultivate on the condition that they would get one-third or one-fourth or one half of its yield. The Prophet ﷺ said, “Whoever has land should cultivate it himself or give it to his brother or keep it uncultivated.”

A bedouin came to the Prophet ﷺ and asked him about emigration. The Prophet ﷺ said to him, “May Allah be merciful to you. The matter of emigration is difficult. Have you got some camels?” He replied in the affirmative. The Prophet ﷺ asked him, “Do you pay their Zakat?” He replied in the affirmative. He asked, “Do you lend them so that their milk may be utilized by others?” The bedouin said, “Yes.” The Prophet ﷺ asked, “Do you milk them on the day off watering them?” He replied, “Yes.” The Prophet ﷺ said, “Do good deeds beyond the merchants (or the sea) and Allah will never disregard any of your deeds.” (See Hadith No. 260, Vol. 5)

That he was told by the most learned one amongst them (i.e. Ibn ‘Abbas) that the Prophet ﷺ went towards some land which was flourishing with vegetation and asked to whom it belonged. He was told that such and such a person took it on rent. The Prophet ﷺ said, “It would have been better (for the owner) if he had given it to him gratis rather than charging him a fixed rent.

Allah’s Messenger ﷺ said, “The Prophet Abraham migrated with Sarah. The people (of the town where they migrated) gave her Ajar (i.e. Hajar). Sarah returned and said to Abraham, “Do you know that Allah has humiliated that pagan and he has given a slave-girl for my service?”

Once I gave a horse (for riding) in Allah’s Cause. Later I saw it being sold. I asked Allah’s Messenger ﷺ (whether I could buy it). He said, “Don’t buy it, for you should not get back what you have given in charity.”