Sunan Ibn Majah
Chapters Regarding Funerals
كتاب الجنائز
Chapter 54
مَا جَاءَ فِي الْمَيِّتِ يُعَذَّبُ بِمَا نِيحَ عَلَيْهِ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah narrated to us: Shadhan narrated to us. (A second route:) Muhammad ibn Bashshar and Muhammad ibn al-Walid narrated to us; both said: Muhammad ibn Jafar narrated to us. (A third route:) Nasr ibn Ali narrated to us: Abd al-Samad and Wahb ibn Jarir said: Shuabah narrated to us, from Qatadah, from Said ibn al-Musayyab, from Ibn Umar, from Umar ibn al-Khattab, from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), who said: ‘The deceased is punished because of the wailing over him.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The Arabic marks multiple transmission routes with ‘ح:’; these are kept distinct before their shared continuation. The wording ‘بِمَا نِيحَ عَلَيْهِ’ is rendered closely as ‘because of the wailing over him,’ without adding an explanation of how the deceased is punished.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Yaqub ibn Humayd ibn Kasib narrated to us: Abd al-Aziz ibn Muhammad al-Darawardi narrated to us: Asid ibn Abi Asid narrated to us, from Musa ibn Abi Musa al-Ashari, from his father, that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: ‘The deceased is punished for the living person’s weeping when they say, “O my strength! O my provider of clothing! O my helper! O my mountain!” and the like. He is shaken, and it is said to him, “Were you really like that? Were you really like that?”’
Asid said: I said, ‘Glory be to Allah! Allah says, “No bearer of burdens will bear the burden of another” (Quran 6:164).’ He replied, ‘Woe to you! I am telling you that Abu Musa narrated to me from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him); do you think Abu Musa lied about the Prophet, or do you think I lied about Abu Musa?’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The Arabic quotes expressions of lament (‘my arm/strength,’ ‘my clothing,’ ‘my helper,’ ‘my mountain’); these are rendered as direct cries without elaboration. ‘يُتَعْتَعُ’ is an uncommon verb; ‘is shaken’ is a close provisional rendering. The report places the statement alongside the Quranic verse that no bearer bears another’s burden; no reconciliation is supplied.
وَانَاصِرَاهْ وَاجَبَلاَهْ وَنَحْوَ هَذَا - يُتَعْتَعُ وَيُقَالُ أَنْتَ كَذَلِكَ أَنْتَ كَذَلِكَ " .
The rare verb ‘يُتَعْتَعُ’ does not make the precise action clear in this sentence; the translation gives a close provisional sense as ‘is shaken.’
What action is intended by ‘يُتَعْتَعُ’ here? The translation leaves it provisional.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Hisham ibn Ammar narrated to us: Sufyan ibn Uyaynah narrated to us, from Amr, from Ibn Abi Mulaykah, from Aishah, who said: A Jewish woman had died. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) heard them weeping for her and said: ‘Her family are weeping for her, while she is being punished in her grave.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The Arabic uses ‘إنما’ in Aishah’s statement; here it introduces the circumstance (‘a Jewish woman had died’). The report’s juxtaposition of her family’s weeping and her punishment is translated as stated, without adding a causal or doctrinal explanation.
Chapter 55
مَا جَاءَ فِي الصَّبْرِ عَلَى الْمُصِيبَةِ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Muhammad ibn Rumh narrated to us: Al-Layth ibn Sad informed us, from Yazid ibn Abi Habib, from Sad ibn Sinan, from Anas ibn Malik, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: ‘Patience is only at the first shock.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
‘الصَّدْمَةِ الأُولَى’ is the first shock or impact of calamity; the concise wording and emphasis of ‘إنما’ are retained.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Hisham ibn Ammar narrated to us: Ismail ibn Ayyash narrated to us: Thabit ibn Ajlan narrated to us, from al-Qasim, from Abu Umamah, from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), who said: ‘Allah, Glorified is He, says: “Son of Adam, if you are patient and seek reward at the first shock, I will not be satisfied with any reward for you less than Paradise.”’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
‘وَاحْتَسَبْتَ’ means to seek reward from Allah. ‘لَمْ أَرْضَ لَكَ ثَوَابًا دُونَ الْجَنَّةِ’ is rendered as not being satisfied with a reward below Paradise, preserving the negative condition and comparison.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah narrated to us: Yazid ibn Harun narrated to us: Abd al-Malik ibn Qudamah al-Jumahi informed us, from his father, from Umar ibn Abi Salamah, from Umm Salamah, that Abu Salamah told her he had heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: ‘There is no Muslim who is struck by a calamity and turns to what Allah has commanded him to say—“Indeed, we belong to Allah, and indeed to Him we return. O Allah, with You I seek reward for my calamity, so reward me for it and compensate me for it”—except that Allah rewards him for it and compensates him with something better.’
She said: When Abu Salamah died, I remembered what he had related to me from the Messenger of Allah. I said, ‘Indeed, we belong to Allah, and indeed to Him we return. O Allah, with You I seek reward for this calamity of mine, so reward me for it.’ When I was about to say, ‘And compensate me with something better than it,’ I said to myself, ‘Could I be compensated with someone better than Abu Salamah?’ Then I said it, and Allah compensated me with Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), and rewarded me in my calamity.
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The dua repeats ‘إِنَّا لِلَّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَ’ and asks both for reward in the calamity and compensation from it. Umm Salamah initially hesitates to ask for someone better than Abu Salamah, then says the full supplication; the Arabic says Allah compensated her with Muhammad and rewarded her for her loss.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Al-Walid ibn Amr ibn al-Sukayn narrated to us: Abu Hammam narrated to us: Musa ibn Ubaydah narrated to us: Musab ibn Muhammad narrated to us, from Abu Salamah ibn Abd al-Rahman, from Aishah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) opened a door between himself and the people—or drew aside a curtain—and saw the people praying behind Abu Bakr. He praised Allah for the good state he saw them in, hoping that Allah would succeed him among them in light of what he had seen of them. He said: ‘O people, anyone—whether among the people generally or among the believers—who is struck by a calamity, let him console himself through my calamity in place of the calamity that befalls him from anyone else. No one from my community will be struck by a calamity after me more severe for him than my calamity.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The Arabic gives two alternatives for how the Prophet looked out: he opened a door or drew aside a curtain. The phrase ‘رَجَاءَ أَنْ يَخْلُفَهُ اللَّهُ فِيهِمْ بِالَّذِي رَآهُمْ’ is compressed and unclear; the translation keeps its close sense without specifying what succession or replacement means. ‘فَلْيَتَعَزَّ بِمُصِيبَتِهِ بِي’ means to take comfort in the calamity of the Prophet’s loss when facing another loss.
قَالَتْ فَتَحَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ بَابًا بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَ النَّاسِ أَوْ كَشَفَ سِتْرًا فَإِذَا النَّاسُ يُصَلُّونَ وَرَاءَ أَبِي بَكْرٍ فَحَمِدَ اللَّهَ عَلَى مَا رَأَى مِنْ حُسْنِ حَالِهِمْ رَجَاءَ أَنْ يَخْلُفَهُ اللَّهُ فِيهِمْ بِالَّذِي رَآهُمْ فَقَالَ " يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ أَيُّمَا أَحَدٍ مِنَ النَّاسِ أَوْ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ أُصِيبَ بِمُصِيبَةٍ فَلْيَتَعَزَّ بِمُصِيبَتِهِ بِي عَنِ الْمُصِيبَةِ الَّتِي تُصِيبُهُ بِغَيْرِي فَإِنَّ أَحَدًا مِنْ أُمَّتِي لَنْ يُصَابَ بِمُصِيبَةٍ بَعْدِي أَشَدَّ عَلَيْهِ مِنْ مُصِيبَتِي " .
The wording about Allah succeeding the Prophet among them ‘بِالَّذِي رَآهُمْ’ is compressed, and the precise intended relation is unclear.
What does the phrase ‘أن يخلفه الله فيهم بالذي رآهم’ mean in this context? The translation preserves its close wording.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah narrated to us: Waki narrated to us, from Hisham ibn Ziyad, from his mother, from Fatimah bint al-Husayn, from her father, who said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: ‘Whoever is struck by a calamity, then remembers it and renews the words of returning to Allah—“Indeed, we belong to Allah and indeed to Him we return”—even after a long time has passed, Allah will record for him a reward like the reward on the day he was struck by it.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
‘استرجاعًا’ refers to saying ‘إنا لله وإنا إليه راجعون’ (‘Indeed, we belong to Allah and indeed to Him we return’). ‘وَإِنْ تَقَادَمَ عَهْدُهَا’ means even if the calamity is long past; the comparison in ‘مِثْلَهُ يَوْمَ أُصِيبَ’ is kept close without specifying a kind of reward not named in the Arabic.
Chapter 56
مَا جَاءَ فِي ثَوَابِ مَنْ عَزَّى مُصَابًا
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah narrated to us: Khalid ibn Makhlad narrated to us: Qays Abu Umarah, a freedman of the Ansar, narrated to me. He said: I heard Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr ibn Muhammad ibn Amr ibn Hazm relate, from his father, from his grandfather, from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), that he said: ‘There is no believer who consoles his brother over a calamity except that Allah, Glorified is He, will clothe him in garments of honor on the Day of Resurrection.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
‘يُعَزِّي أَخَاهُ بِمُصِيبَةٍ’ means to console a fellow believer over a calamity. ‘حُلَلِ الْكَرَامَةِ’ is kept as ‘garments of honor.’ The chain identifies Qays as a freedman of the Ansar and traces the report through Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr ibn Muhammad ibn Amr ibn Hazm, his father, and his grandfather.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Amr ibn Rafi narrated to us: He said: Ali ibn Asim narrated to us, from Muhammad ibn Suqah, from Ibrahim, from al-Aswad, from Abdullah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: ‘Whoever consoles someone afflicted by calamity will have a reward like his.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
‘مُصَابًا’ is someone afflicted by calamity. The Arabic says the one who consoles receives ‘a reward like his’; the pronoun is retained without further specifying its referent.
Chapter 57
مَا جَاءَ فِي ثَوَابِ مَنْ أُصِيبَ بِوَلَدِهِ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah narrated to us: Sufyan ibn Uyaynah narrated to us, from al-Zuhri, from Said ibn al-Musayyab, from Abu Hurayrah, from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), who said: ‘No man whose three children die will enter the Fire, except by the fulfillment of the oath.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
‘إِلَّا تَحِلَّةَ الْقَسَمِ’ is an idiomatic exception clause, literally ‘except the fulfillment/discharge of the oath.’ It is translated closely without supplying an explanation for the oath.
عَنِ النَّبِيِّ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ قَالَ " لاَ يَمُوتُ لِرَجُلٍ ثَلاَثَةٌ مِنَ الْوَلَدِ فَيَلِجَ النَّارَ إِلاَّ تَحِلَّةَ الْقَسَمِ " .
The idiom ‘تَحِلَّةَ الْقَسَمِ’ is compressed and the source passage does not explain the oath or the precise force of the exception.
How should ‘إِلَّا تَحِلَّةَ الْقَسَمِ’ be understood here? The translation keeps the wording close pending clarification.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Muhammad ibn Abdullah ibn Numayr narrated to us: He said: Ishaq ibn Sulayman narrated to us: Hariz ibn Uthman narrated to us, from Shurahbil ibn Shufah, who said: Utbah ibn Abd al-Sulami met me and said, ‘I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: “There is no Muslim whose three children die before reaching puberty except that they will meet him at one of the eight gates of Paradise, and he will enter through whichever one he wishes.”’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
‘لَمْ يَبْلُغُوا الْحِنْثَ’ refers to the children not having reached puberty. The Arabic says the children meet him at the eight gates, and he enters through whichever he chooses.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Yusuf ibn Hammad al-Maani narrated to us: Abd al-Warith ibn Said narrated to us, from Abd al-Aziz ibn Suhayb, from Anas ibn Malik, from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), who said: ‘There are no two Muslims who lose three children before they reach puberty except that Allah will admit them to Paradise through His gracious mercy toward them.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
‘مُسْلِمَيْنِ’ refers to two Muslims; the Arabic does not explicitly identify them as mother and father, so the translation does not add that gloss. ‘لَمْ يَبْلُغُوا الْحِنْثَ’ refers to not having reached puberty.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Nasr ibn Ali al-Jahdami narrated to us: Ishaq ibn Yusuf narrated to us, from al-Awwam ibn Hawshab, from Abu Muhammad—the freedman of Umar ibn al-Khattab—from Abu Ubaydah, from Abdullah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: ‘Whoever sends ahead three children who have not reached puberty, they will be a strong fortress for him against the Fire.’ Abu Dharr said, ‘I have sent two ahead.’ He replied, ‘And two.’ Ubayy ibn Kab, Abu al-Mundhir, the chief of the reciters, said, ‘I have sent one ahead.’ He replied, ‘And one.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
‘قَدَّمَ’ literally means to send or put forward; in this context it refers to children who died before their parent, as indicated by Abu Dharr’s and Ubayy’s replies. ‘لَمْ يَبْلُغُوا الْحِنْثَ’ means they had not reached puberty. The short replies affirm the same protection for two and for one.
Chapter 58
مَا جَاءَ فِيمَنْ أُصِيبَ بِسِقْطٍ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah narrated to us: He said: Khalid ibn Makhlad narrated to us: Yazid ibn Abd al-Malik al-Nawfali narrated to us, from Yazid ibn Ruman, from Abu Hurayrah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: ‘A miscarried child whom I send ahead of me is dearer to me than a mounted warrior whom I leave behind.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
‘سِقْطٌ’ refers to a miscarried fetus or child. The paired expressions ‘أُقَدِّمُهُ بَيْنَ يَدَيَّ’ and ‘أُخَلِّفُهُ خَلْفِي’ are retained as sending ahead and leaving behind; ‘فارس’ is a mounted warrior/horseman.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Muhammad ibn Yahya and Muhammad ibn Ishaq Abu Bakr al-Bakka'i narrated to us; both said: Abu Ghassan narrated to us: Mundal narrated to us, from al-Hasan ibn al-Hakam al-Nakha'i, from Asma bint Abis ibn Rabi'ah, from her father, from Ali, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: ‘The miscarried child will plead insistently with his Lord if He admits his parents to the Fire. Then it will be said, “O miscarried child pleading insistently with your Lord, admit your parents to Paradise!” So he will pull them both by his umbilical cord until he admits them to Paradise.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
‘السِّقْط’ means a miscarried fetus or child. ‘بِسَرَرِهِ’ refers to the umbilical cord. The Arabic verb ‘يُرَاغِمُ’ is rare and can carry the sense of opposing or pleading insistently; this translation follows the pleading sense without further interpretation.
قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ " إِنَّ السِّقْطَ لَيُرَاغِمُ رَبَّهُ إِذَا أَدْخَلَ أَبَوَيْهِ النَّارَ .
The rare verb ‘يُرَاغِمُ’ can suggest contending with or pleading insistently with someone; its intended force here is not certain from the wording alone.
What is the intended sense of ‘يُرَاغِمُ رَبَّهُ’ in this report? The translation provisionally uses ‘plead insistently.’
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Ali ibn Hashim ibn Marzuq narrated to us: Ubaydah ibn Humayd narrated to us: Yahya ibn Ubayd Allah narrated to us, from Ubayd Allah ibn Muslim al-Hadrami, from Muadh ibn Jabal, from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), who said: ‘By the One in whose hand is my soul, the miscarried child will pull his mother by his umbilical cord to Paradise if she seeks reward for him.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
‘السِّقْط’ refers to a miscarried fetus or child, and ‘بِسَرَرِهِ’ means by his umbilical cord. ‘إِذَا احْتَسَبَتْهُ’ means if the mother seeks reward from Allah in bearing this loss.
Chapter 59
مَا جَاءَ فِي الطَّعَامِ يُبْعَثُ إِلَى أَهْلِ الْمَيِّتِ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Hisham ibn Ammar and Muhammad ibn al-Sabbah narrated to us; both said: Sufyan ibn Uyaynah narrated to us, from Jafar ibn Khalid, from his father, from Abdullah ibn Jafar, who said: When news of Jafar’s death arrived, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: ‘Prepare food for the family of Jafar, for something has come upon them that occupies them—or a matter that occupies them.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The Arabic preserves ‘أَوْ’ (‘or’) between two closely related descriptions of what has come upon the family; the alternative is retained rather than collapsed.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Yahya ibn Khalaf Abu Salamah narrated to us: He said: Abd al-Ala narrated to us, from Muhammad ibn Ishaq, who told me: Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr narrated to me, from Umm Isa al-Jazzar, who said: Umm Awn, daughter of Muhammad ibn Jafar, told me, from her grandmother Asma bint Umays, who said: When Jafar was killed, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) returned to his family and said: ‘The family of Jafar are occupied with the matter of their deceased, so prepare food for them.’
Abdullah said: This continued as a Sunnah until it became something merely recounted, and then it was abandoned.
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
‘شُغِلُوا بِشَأْنِ مَيِّتِهِمْ’ says the family was occupied with the matter of their deceased. The final comment ‘فَمَا زَالَتْ سُنَّةً حَتَّى كَانَ حَدِيثًا فَتُرِكَ’ is rendered closely; ‘حديثًا’ may mean that the practice became merely something related as a report.
قَالَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ فَمَا زَالَتْ سُنَّةً حَتَّى كَانَ حَدِيثًا فَتُرِكَ .
The phrase ‘حَتَّى كَانَ حَدِيثًا’ does not specify whether the practice became merely a report or whether ‘hadith’ has another force here.
What is intended by ‘حَتَّى كَانَ حَدِيثًا’ in Abdullah’s comment? The translation provisionally reads it as becoming something merely recounted.
Chapter 60
مَا جَاءَ فِي النَّهْىِ عَنْ الاِجْتِمَاعِ، إِلَى أَهْلِ الْمَيِّتِ وَصُنْعَةِ الطَّعَامِ
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Muhammad ibn Yahya narrated to us: He said: Said ibn Mansur narrated to us: Hushaym narrated to us. (A second route:) Shuja ibn Makhlad Abu al-Fadl narrated to us: He said: Hushaym narrated to us, from Ismail ibn Abi Khalid, from Qays ibn Abi Hazim, from Jarir ibn Abdullah al-Bajali, who said: ‘We used to regard gathering with the family of the deceased and preparing food as part of wailing.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The Arabic marks a second transmission route with ‘ح’; both routes meet at Hushaym and continue through Ismail ibn Abi Khalid, Qays ibn Abi Hazim, and Jarir. ‘كُنَّا نَرَى’ is rendered as ‘we used to regard.’