Al-Adab Al-Mufrad
Omens
كتاب الطيرة
Chapter 406
بَابُ قَوْلِ الرَّجُلِ: مُطِرْنَا بِنَوْءِ كَذَا وَكَذَا
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Isma‘il related to us, saying: Malik related to me, from Salih ibn Kaysan, from ‘Ubaydullah ibn ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Utba ibn Mas‘ud, from Zayd ibn Khalid al-Juhani, who said: The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, led us in the dawn prayer at al-Hudaybiya after rainfall during the night. When the Prophet turned away, he faced the people and said: “Do you know what your Lord has said?” They replied: “Allah and His Messenger know best.” He said: “This morning, some of My servants believe in Me and some disbelieve. Whoever says, ‘We received rain by Allah’s grace and mercy,’ believes in Me and disbelieves in the stars. But whoever says, ‘Because of such-and-such a star,’ disbelieves in Me and believes in the star.”
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The Arabic term نَوْء refers to a star’s setting, traditionally associated by some with rainfall.
Chapter 407
بَابُ مَا يَقُولُ الرَّجُلُ إِذَا رَأَى غَيْمًا
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Makki ibn Ibrahim related to us, saying: Ibn Jurayj informed us, from ‘Ata, from ‘A’isha, may Allah be pleased with her, who said: Whenever the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, saw a threatening cloud, he would go in and out, advance and retreat, and his face would change. When rain fell, he would be relieved. ‘A’isha pointed this out to him, and the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: “I do not know; perhaps it is as Allah, Mighty and Majestic, said: ‘When they saw it as a cloud approaching their valleys…’”
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The Qur’anic phrase is from 46:24.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Abu Nu‘aym al-Fadl related to us, from Sufyan, from Salama ibn Kuhayl, from ‘Isa ibn ‘Asim, from Zirr ibn Hubaysh, from ‘Abdullah, who said: The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: “Belief in omens is shirk. None of us is entirely free of it, but Allah dispels it through reliance upon Him.”
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The brief phrase وَمَا مِنَّا is elliptical; rendered as an acknowledgment that people may experience the impulse to heed omens, which reliance on Allah dispels.
وَمَا مِنَّا، وَلَكِنَّ اللَّهَ يُذْهِبُهُ بِالتَّوَكُّلِ
The Arabic elliptical phrase is more naturally read as “none of us is free of it,” followed by Allah dispelling it through reliance; the witness instead renders it as a denial of association.
Should the elliptical clause be checked against a reliable commentary?
Chapter 408
بَابُ الطِّيَرَةِ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Al-Hakam ibn Nafi‘ related to us, saying: Shu‘ayb informed us—meaning from al-Zuhri, who said: ‘Ubaydullah ibn ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Utba informed me that Abu Hurayra said: I heard the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, say: “There is no belief in omens; the best kind is fa’l [a hopeful sign].” They asked: “What is fa’l?” He replied: “A good word that one of you hears.”
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
Fa’l is a favorable word or hopeful sign, distinguished from superstitious reliance on omens.
لاَ طِيَرَةَ، وَخَيْرُهَا الْفَأْلُ
The witness omits the negation in لا طيرة (“there is no [valid] omen-belief”) and renders the phrase as a fragment.
Should the negation and contrast with fa’l be made explicit?
Chapter 409
بَابُ فَضْلِ مَنْ لَمْ يَتَطَيَّرْ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Hajjaj and Adam related to us, both saying: Hammad ibn Salama related to us, from ‘Asim, from Zirr, from ‘Abdullah ibn Mas‘ud, from the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, who said: “The nations were shown to me during the pilgrimage season, in the days of Hajj, and I was pleased by the great number of my community; they filled the plain and the mountain.” They said: “Muhammad, are you content?” He said: “Yes, my Lord.” He said: “Along with these are seventy thousand who will enter the Garden without reckoning. They are those who do not seek healing through incantation, do not cauterize themselves, do not seek omens, and place their trust in their Lord.” ‘Ukkasha said: “Pray to Allah to make me one of them.” He said: “O Allah, make him one of them.” Another man said: “Pray to Allah to make me one of them.” He said: “‘Ukkasha has preceded you in that.”
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The phrase لا يسترقون means they do not ask others to perform healing incantations for them.
Chapter 410
بَابُ الطِّيَرَةِ مِنَ الْجِنِّ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Isma‘il related to us, saying: Ibn Abi al-Zinad related to me, from ‘Alqama, from his mother, from ‘A’isha, that when children were born, they would be brought to her and she would pray for blessing for them. A child was brought to her, and she went to place his pillow; there was a razor beneath his head. She asked them about it, and they said: “We put it there for protection from the jinn.” She took the razor and threw it away, forbade them from doing that, and said: “The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, disliked and detested superstitious omens.” ‘A’isha used to forbid them.
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The phrase نَجْعَلُهَا مِنَ الْجِنِّ is elliptical; rendered as placing the razor there for protection from jinn.
Chapter 411
بَابُ الْفَأْلِ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Muslim related to us, saying: Hisham related to us, saying: Qatada related to us, from Anas, from the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace: “There is no contagion, nor belief in omens; but a good fa’l—a good word—is pleasing to me.”
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
La ‘adwa is rendered literally as “there is no contagion”; the accompanying English witness supplies a separate interpretive footnote not present in the Arabic block.
لاَ عَدْوَى، وَلاَ طِيَرَةَ
This explanatory footnote is not part of the Arabic source text and gives an interpretive theological gloss.
Should the footnote be kept separate from the translated narration?
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
‘Abdullah ibn Muhammad related to us, saying: Abu ‘Amir related to us, saying: Ibn al-Mubarak related to us, from Yahya ibn Abi Kathir, who said: Hayya al-Tamimi related to me that his father informed him that he heard the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, say: “There is nothing in hama; the truest fa’l is the hopeful sign, and the evil eye is real.”
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
Hama refers to a pre-Islamic superstition associated with an owl or the spirit of a slain person; the Arabic wording here simply negates it.
لاَ شَيْءَ فِي الْهَامِّ
Hama carries a historical range of meanings, including an owl or an avenging spirit; the Arabic only states that there is nothing in hama.
Should an explanatory gloss be used instead of the witness’s specific “avenging spirit”?
Chapter 412
بَابُ التَّبَرُّكِ بِالاسْمِ الْحَسَنِ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Ibrahim ibn al-Mundhir related to us, from Ma‘n ibn ‘Isa, who said: ‘Abdullah ibn Mu’ammal related to me, from his father, from ‘Abdullah ibn al-Sa’ib, that in the year of al-Hudaybiya, when ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan mentioned that Suhayl had been sent to the Prophet by his people, they made a truce on the condition that he turn back from them that year and that they leave it to them the following year for three days. When Suhayl came and it was said: “Suhayl has come,” the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: “May Allah make your affair easy.” ‘Abdullah ibn al-Sa’ib had met the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace.
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The Arabic says “the following year for three”; “days” is understood from the Hudaybiya truce context.
Chapter 413
بَابُ الشُّؤْمِ فِي الْفَرَسِ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Isma‘il related to us, saying: Malik related to me, from Ibn Shihab, from Hamza and Salim, the two sons of ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar, from ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar, that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: “Ill fortune is associated with a house, a woman, and a horse.”
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Isma‘il related to us, saying: Malik related to me, from Abu Hazim ibn Dinar, from Sahl ibn Sa‘d, that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: “If ill fortune is in anything, it is in a woman, a horse, or a dwelling.”
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
‘Ubaydullah ibn Sa‘id—Abu Qudama—related to us, saying: Bishr ibn ‘Umar al-Zahrani related to us, saying: ‘Ikrima ibn ‘Ammar related to us, from Ishaq ibn ‘Abdullah, from Anas ibn Malik, who said: A man said: “Messenger of Allah, we lived in a house where our numbers grew large and our wealth increased. We moved to another house, where our numbers dwindled and our wealth decreased.” The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: “Return to it, or leave it; it is blameworthy.”
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The pronoun in “return to it or leave it” likely refers to the dwelling associated with the decline; the Arabic does not specify the referent explicitly.