When I came under discussion what the people had to say about me, Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) stood up for delivering an address and he recited tashahhud (I bear witness to the fact that iheie is no god but Allah) and praised Allah, lauded Him what He rightly deserves and then said: Coming to the point. Give me an advice about them who have brought false charge about my family. By Allah, I know no evil in the members of my family and the person in connection with whom the false charge is being levelled, I know no evil in him too. And he never entered my house but in my presence and when I was away on a journey, he remained with me even in that. The rest of the hadith is the same but with this change that Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) came to my house and asked my maidservant and she said: By Allah, I know no fault in her but this that she sleeps, and goat comes and eats the kneaded flour. Some of the Companions (of the Holy Prophet) scolded her and said: State the fact before Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) and they even made a pointed reference (to this incident). She said: gallowed be Allah. By Allah, I know about her as does the jeweller know about the pure piece of gold. And when this news reached the person in connection with whom the allegation was made he said: Hallowed be Allah. By Allah, I have never unveiled any woman. 'A'isha said: He fell as a martyr in the cause of Allah, and there is this addition in this hadith that the people who had brought false allegation amongst them were Mistah and Hamna and Hassan. And so far as the hypocrite 'Abdullah b. Ubayy is concerned, he was one who tried his best to gather the false news and then gave them the wind. And he was in fact a fabricator and there was Hamna, daughter of Jahsh with him.
The Book of Repentance - Sahih Muslim 2770c
This narration from Sahih Muslim concerns the incident of slander (al-ifk) against 'A'isha, the Mother of the Believers, and demonstrates the profound wisdom and justice of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ in handling false accusations, while also serving as a foundation for the rulings on repentance for slanderers.
Exposition of the Hadith
The Prophet's ﷺ opening with the tashahhud and praise of Allah establishes the gravity of the matter, seeking divine guidance in a situation that threatened the honor of his family and a righteous companion. His declaration of knowing no evil in his household or the accused, Safwan bin Al-Mu'attal, is a definitive legal testimony (shahada) of their innocence, clearing them before the community.
The testimony of the maidservant, who affirmed 'A'isha's piety with the metaphor of a jeweller knowing pure gold, is a powerful form of character witness. The subsequent confession of the main slanderers—Mistah, Hamnah, and Hassan—and the identification of the hypocrite Abdullah bin Ubayy as the chief fabricator, highlights the different levels of sin involved, from being misled to actively conspiring.
Scholarly Commentary on Repentance
Classical scholars derive from this incident that repentance for slander (qadhf) is multifaceted. It requires: 1) Ceasing the sin immediately, 2) Feeling deep remorse, 3) Resolving never to return to it, and 4) Seeking the forgiveness of the one who was slandered, if possible. The Quranic revelation that followed (Surah An-Nur, verses 11-20) mandated the legal punishment for unproven accusation of chastity, but also opened the door for Allah's mercy upon those who repented, as some of the slanderers in this event did.
The hadith serves as a timeless lesson on the evil of spreading false rumors, the necessity of verifying news, the importance of protecting the honor of believers, and the comprehensive nature of divine forgiveness for those who sincerely turn back to Allah, even after a major sin.