Sunan Ibn Majah
Sunan Ibn Majah 3530
حَدَّثَنَا أَيُّوبُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ الرَّقِّيُّ، حَدَّثَنَا مُعَمَّرُ بْنُ سُلَيْمَانَ، حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ بِشْرٍ، عَنِ الأَعْمَشِ، عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ مُرَّةَ، عَنْ يَحْيَى بْنِ الْجَزَّارِ، عَنِ ابْنِ أُخْتِ، زَيْنَبَ امْرَأَةِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ عَنْ زَيْنَبَ، قَالَتْ كَانَتْ عَجُوزٌ تَدْخُلُ عَلَيْنَا تَرْقِي مِنَ الْحُمْرَةِ وَكَانَ لَنَا سَرِيرٌ طَوِيلُ الْقَوَائِمِ وَكَانَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ إِذَا دَخَلَ تَنَحْنَحَ وَصَوَّتَ فَدَخَلَ يَوْمًا فَلَمَّا سَمِعَتْ صَوْتَهُ احْتَجَبَتْ مِنْهُ فَجَاءَ فَجَلَسَ إِلَى جَانِبِي فَمَسَّنِي فَوَجَدَ مَسَّ خَيْطٍ فَقَالَ مَا هَذَا فَقُلْتُ رُقًى لِي فِيهِ مِنَ الْحُمْرَةِ فَجَذَبَهُ وَقَطَعَهُ فَرَمَى بِهِ وَقَالَ لَقَدْ أَصْبَحَ آلُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ أَغْنِيَاءَ عَنِ الشِّرْكِ سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ يَقُولُ " إِنَّ الرُّقَى وَالتَّمَائِمَ وَالتِّوَلَةَ شِرْكٌ " . قُلْتُ فَإِنِّي خَرَجْتُ يَوْمًا فَأَبْصَرَنِي فُلاَنٌ فَدَمَعَتْ عَيْنِي الَّتِي تَلِيهِ فَإِذَا رَقَيْتُهَا سَكَنَتْ دَمْعَتُهَا وَإِذَا تَرَكْتُهَا دَمَعَتْ . قَالَ ذَاكِ الشَّيْطَانُ إِذَا أَطَعْتِيهِ تَرَكَكِ وَإِذَا عَصَيْتِيهِ طَعَنَ بِإِصْبَعِهِ فِي عَيْنِكِ وَلَكِنْ لَوْ فَعَلْتِ كَمَا فَعَلَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ كَانَ خَيْرًا لَكِ وَأَجْدَرَ أَنْ تَشْفِينَ تَنْضَحِينَ فِي عَيْنِكِ الْمَاءَ وَتَقُولِينَ " أَذْهِبِ الْبَاسْ رَبَّ النَّاسْ اشْفِ أَنْتَ الشَّافِي لاَ شِفَاءَ إِلاَّ شِفَاؤُكَ شِفَاءً لاَ يُغَادِرُ سَقَمًا " .
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Ayyūb ibn Muḥammad al-Raqqī narrated to us: Muʿammar ibn Sulaymān narrated to us: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Bishr narrated to us, from al-Aʿmash, from ʿAmr ibn Murrah, from Yaḥyā ibn al-Jazzār, from a nephew of Zaynab, the wife of ʿAbd Allāh, from Zaynab, who said: An old woman used to come to us and perform ruqya for al-ḥumrah. We had a bed with long legs. Whenever ʿAbd Allāh entered, he would clear his throat and make a sound. One day he entered, and when she heard his voice, she veiled herself from him. He came and sat beside me and touched me; he felt a thread. He said, ‘What is this?’ I said, ‘A ruqya for me for al-ḥumrah, in this thread.’ He pulled it, cut it, and threw it away. He said, ‘The family of ʿAbd Allāh has become free of shirk. I heard the Messenger of Allah say, “Ruqyas, amulets, and love charms are shirk.”’
I said, ‘I went out one day and so-and-so saw me. The eye nearest him began to water. Whenever I performed ruqya over it, its watering stopped, but when I left it, it watered again.’ He said, ‘That is Satan. If you obey him, he leaves you alone; if you disobey him, he jabs your eye with his finger. But if you were to do as the Messenger of Allah did, it would be better for you and more likely to bring healing: sprinkle water in your eye and say, “Remove the affliction, Lord of humankind; heal me, You are the Healer. There is no healing except Your healing—a healing that leaves no illness.”’’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
Al-ḥumrah is retained as the name of a condition; the English witness identifies it as erysipelas, but the Arabic does not give a modern diagnosis. The thread is explicitly described as containing a ruqya, while the Messenger’s saying mentions ruqyas and amulets; the report later gives a supplication to use. The wording مس خيط means he felt a thread, not a sting. The eye described as watering is the one nearest the man who saw her.
قَالَتْ كَانَتْ عَجُوزٌ تَدْخُلُ عَلَيْنَا تَرْقِي مِنَ الْحُمْرَةِ وَكَانَ لَنَا سَرِيرٌ طَوِيلُ الْقَوَائِمِ وَكَانَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ إِذَا دَخَلَ تَنَحْنَحَ وَصَوَّتَ فَدَخَلَ يَوْمًا فَلَمَّا سَمِعَتْ صَوْتَهُ احْتَجَبَتْ مِنْهُ فَجَاءَ فَجَلَسَ إِلَى جَانِبِي فَمَسَّنِي فَوَجَدَ مَسَّ خَيْطٍ فَقَالَ مَا هَذَا فَقُلْتُ رُقًى لِي فِيهِ مِنَ الْحُمْرَةِ فَجَذَبَهُ وَقَطَعَهُ فَرَمَى بِهِ وَقَالَ لَقَدْ أَصْبَحَ آلُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ أَغْنِيَاءَ عَنِ الشِّرْكِ سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ يَقُولُ " إِنَّ الرُّقَى وَالتَّمَائِمَ وَالتِّوَلَةَ شِرْكٌ " .
الحُمْرَة is a named condition associated with redness; the English witness identifies it as erysipelas, but the Arabic does not itself establish that modern diagnosis.
Should al-ḥumrah remain transliterated, or be identified as erysipelas?
قَالَتْ كَانَتْ عَجُوزٌ تَدْخُلُ عَلَيْنَا تَرْقِي مِنَ الْحُمْرَةِ وَكَانَ لَنَا سَرِيرٌ طَوِيلُ الْقَوَائِمِ وَكَانَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ إِذَا دَخَلَ تَنَحْنَحَ وَصَوَّتَ فَدَخَلَ يَوْمًا فَلَمَّا سَمِعَتْ صَوْتَهُ احْتَجَبَتْ مِنْهُ فَجَاءَ فَجَلَسَ إِلَى جَانِبِي فَمَسَّنِي فَوَجَدَ مَسَّ خَيْطٍ فَقَالَ مَا هَذَا فَقُلْتُ رُقًى لِي فِيهِ مِنَ الْحُمْرَةِ فَجَذَبَهُ وَقَطَعَهُ فَرَمَى بِهِ وَقَالَ لَقَدْ أَصْبَحَ آلُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ أَغْنِيَاءَ عَنِ الشِّرْكِ سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ يَقُولُ " إِنَّ الرُّقَى وَالتَّمَائِمَ وَالتِّوَلَةَ شِرْكٌ " .
The Arabic says he felt the touch of a thread (مَسَّ خَيْطٍ); the English witness renders this as a sting, which is not what the Arabic says.
Should the literal ‘felt a thread’ be retained rather than ‘found a sting’?
قَالَتْ كَانَتْ عَجُوزٌ تَدْخُلُ عَلَيْنَا تَرْقِي مِنَ الْحُمْرَةِ وَكَانَ لَنَا سَرِيرٌ طَوِيلُ الْقَوَائِمِ وَكَانَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ إِذَا دَخَلَ تَنَحْنَحَ وَصَوَّتَ فَدَخَلَ يَوْمًا فَلَمَّا سَمِعَتْ صَوْتَهُ احْتَجَبَتْ مِنْهُ فَجَاءَ فَجَلَسَ إِلَى جَانِبِي فَمَسَّنِي فَوَجَدَ مَسَّ خَيْطٍ فَقَالَ مَا هَذَا فَقُلْتُ رُقًى لِي فِيهِ مِنَ الْحُمْرَةِ فَجَذَبَهُ وَقَطَعَهُ فَرَمَى بِهِ وَقَالَ لَقَدْ أَصْبَحَ آلُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ أَغْنِيَاءَ عَنِ الشِّرْكِ سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ يَقُولُ " إِنَّ الرُّقَى وَالتَّمَائِمَ وَالتِّوَلَةَ شِرْكٌ " .
The report calls the thread’s contents a ruqya, quotes a saying that ruqyas and amulets are shirk, then reports a recommended supplication; it does not spell out a distinction between these practices.
Should these statements remain together without adding a distinction not expressed in this passage?