Sunan Abi Dawud
Sunan Abi Dawud 353
Abdullah ibn Maslamah narrated to us: Abdul-Aziz—meaning the son of Muhammad—narrated to us, from Amr ibn Abi Amr, from Ikrimah, that some people from the people of Iraq came and said, "O Ibn Abbas, do you consider bathing on Friday to be obligatory?" He said, "No, but it is purer and better for whoever bathes, and whoever does not bathe, it is not obligatory upon him. I will inform you how the origin of bathing came about: the people were strained, wearing woolen garments, and working on their backs, and their mosque was narrow with a low roof, being merely a shed. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, came out on a hot day, and the people perspired in those woolen garments until an unpleasant odor arose from them, causing some of them to annoy others. When the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, found that odor, he said, 'O people, when this day comes, then bathe, and let each of you touch the best of what he finds of his oil and perfume.'" Ibn Abbas said, "Then Allah brought good, and they wore clothes other than wool, and the work was lightened, and their mosque was expanded, and some of what used to trouble some of them from the sweat departed."