Sunan an-Nasa'i
Sunan an-Nasa'i 3533c
وَقَالَتْ زَيْنَبُ سَمِعْتُ أُمَّ سَلَمَةَ، تَقُولُ جَاءَتِ امْرَأَةٌ إِلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَقَالَتْ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ إِنَّ ابْنَتِي تُوُفِّيَ عَنْهَا زَوْجُهَا وَقَدِ اشْتَكَتْ عَيْنَهَا أَفَأَكْحُلُهَا فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم " لاَ " . ثُمَّ قَالَ " إِنَّمَا هِيَ أَرْبَعَةُ أَشْهُرٍ وَعَشْرًا وَقَدْ كَانَتْ إِحْدَاكُنَّ فِي الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ تَرْمِي بِالْبَعْرَةِ عِنْدَ رَأْسِ الْحَوْلِ " . قَالَ حُمَيْدٌ فَقُلْتُ لِزَيْنَبَ وَمَا تَرْمِي بِالْبَعْرَةِ عِنْدَ رَأْسِ الْحَوْلِ قَالَتْ زَيْنَبُ كَانَتِ الْمَرْأَةُ إِذَا تُوُفِّيَ عَنْهَا زَوْجُهَا دَخَلَتْ حِفْشًا وَلَبِسَتْ شَرَّ ثِيَابِهَا وَلَمْ تَمَسَّ طِيبًا وَلاَ شَيْئًا حَتَّى تَمُرَّ بِهَا سَنَةٌ ثُمَّ تُؤْتَى بِدَابَّةٍ حِمَارٍ أَوْ شَاةٍ أَوْ طَيْرٍ فَتَفْتَضُّ بِهِ فَقَلَّمَا تَفْتَضُّ بِشَىْءٍ إِلاَّ مَاتَ ثُمَّ تَخْرُجُ فَتُعْطَى بَعْرَةً فَتَرْمِي بِهَا وَتُرَاجِعُ بَعْدُ مَا شَاءَتْ مِنْ طِيبٍ أَوْ غَيْرِهِ . قَالَ مَالِكٌ تَفْتَضُّ تَمْسَحُ بِهِ فِي حَدِيثِ مُحَمَّدٍ . قَالَ مَالِكٌ الْحِفْشُ الْخُصُّ .
Zainab said: 'I heard Umm Salamah say: A woman came to the Messenger of Allah and said, O Messenger of Allah, my daughter's husband has died, and her eye is troubling her. May I apply kohl to her? He said, No. Then he said, The waiting period is four months and ten days. In pre-Islamic times, one of you would throw a piece of dung at the end of the year.' Humaid said: 'I asked Zainab, What does throwing a piece of dung at the end of the year mean?' Zainab replied: 'When a woman's husband died, she would enter a small hut, wear her worst clothes, and touch neither perfume nor anything else for a year. Then an animal—a donkey, sheep, or bird—would be brought to her, and she would wipe herself with it; scarcely any animal used this way survived. Then she would come out, be given a piece of dung, and throw it away. After that she could resume using whatever perfume or other things she wished.' Malik explained, in Muhammad's narration, that taftadd means to wipe oneself with it. Malik also said that al-hifsh means a small hut.'
Translation notes
قَالَ حُمَيْدٌ فَقُلْتُ لِزَيْنَبَ وَمَا تَرْمِي بِالْبَعْرَةِ عِنْدَ رَأْسِ الْحَوْلِ قَالَتْ زَيْنَبُ كَانَتِ الْمَرْأَةُ إِذَا تُوُفِّيَ عَنْهَا زَوْجُهَا دَخَلَتْ حِفْشًا وَلَبِسَتْ شَرَّ ثِيَابِهَا وَلَمْ تَمَسَّ طِيبًا وَلاَ شَيْئًا حَتَّى تَمُرَّ بِهَا سَنَةٌ ثُمَّ تُؤْتَى بِدَابَّةٍ حِمَارٍ أَوْ شَاةٍ أَوْ طَيْرٍ فَتَفْتَضُّ بِهِ فَقَلَّمَا تَفْتَضُّ بِشَىْءٍ إِلاَّ مَاتَ ثُمَّ تَخْرُجُ فَتُعْطَى بَعْرَةً فَتَرْمِي بِهَا وَتُرَاجِعُ بَعْدُ مَا شَاءَتْ مِنْ طِيبٍ أَوْ غَيْرِهِ .
The rare verb taftadd is explained in the source's own following gloss as wiping oneself with the animal, while the English witness describes this as ending the waiting period or cleaning herself.
Should the rare verb be translated with Malik's gloss 'wipe herself with it' in the main narrative?
قَالَ مَالِكٌ تَفْتَضُّ تَمْسَحُ بِهِ فِي حَدِيثِ مُحَمَّدٍ .
The English witness omits Malik's two explanatory notes at the end of the Arabic passage.
Should both of Malik's glosses be retained in the complete translation?