The Book of Divorce

Mahmud ibn Ghaylan informed us; he said: Abu Dawud narrated to us; he said: Shu'bah narrated to us; he said: Abd Rabbihi ibn Sa'id informed me; he said: I heard Abu Salamah say: Abu Hurayrah and Ibn Abbas disagreed about a woman whose husband died and who then gave birth. Abu Hurayrah said, ‘She may marry.’ Ibn Abbas said, ‘She must wait for the longer of the two periods.’ They sent for Umm Salamah, who said, ‘Subay'ah’s husband died, and she gave birth fifteen days—half a month—after his death.’ She said: Two men proposed to her, and she leaned toward one of them. When they feared that she might decide the matter for herself, they told her, ‘You are not yet permitted to marry.’ She said, ‘I went to the Messenger of Allah, and he said, “You are permitted; marry whomever you wish.”’

Muhammad ibn Salamah and al-Harith ibn Miskin reported to us by reading to him while I listened; the wording is Muhammad’s. He said: Ibn al-Qasim informed us, from Malik, from Abd Rabbihi ibn Sa'id, from Abu Salamah, who said: Ibn Abbas and Abu Hurayrah were asked about a woman whose husband died while she was pregnant. Ibn Abbas said, ‘She must wait for the later of the two terms.’ Abu Hurayrah said, ‘Once she gives birth, she is permitted to marry.’ Abu Salamah went to Umm Salamah and asked her about this. She said, ‘Subay'ah al-Aslamiyyah gave birth half a month after her husband died. Two men proposed to her, one young and the other middle-aged, and she leaned toward the younger. The middle-aged man said, “You are not yet permitted to marry.” Her family were away, and he hoped that when they returned they would prefer him as a husband for her. She came to the Messenger of Allah, who said, “You are permitted; marry whomever you wish.”’

Muhammad ibn Abd Allah ibn Bazi' informed me; he said: Yazid narrated to us—and he is Ibn Zuray'—he said: Hajjaj narrated to us; he said: Yahya ibn Abi Kathir narrated to us; he said: Abu Salamah ibn Abd al-Rahman related to me: Ibn Abbas was asked about a woman who gave birth twenty nights after her husband died: ‘May she marry?’ He said, ‘No, not until the later of the two terms has ended.’ I said, ‘Allah, Blessed and Exalted, says: “For those who are pregnant, their term is that they deliver their burden.”’ He replied, ‘That applies only to divorce.’ Abu Hurayrah said, ‘I side with my brother’s son’—meaning Abu Salamah. He sent his servant Kurayb and said, ‘Go to Umm Salamah and ask her whether this was a practice of the Messenger of Allah.’ He returned and said: She replied, ‘Yes. Subay'ah al-Aslamiyyah gave birth twenty nights after her husband died, and the Messenger of Allah instructed her to marry. Abu al-Sanabil was among those who proposed to her.’

Qutaybah informed us; he said: al-Layth narrated to us, from Yahya, from Sulayman ibn Yasar, that Abu Hurayrah, Ibn Abbas, and Abu Salamah ibn Abd al-Rahman discussed the waiting period of a woman whose husband died while she was pregnant and who gave birth after his death. Ibn Abbas said, ‘She must observe the later of the two terms.’ Abu Salamah said, ‘Rather, she becomes permitted to marry as soon as she gives birth.’ Abu Hurayrah said, ‘I side with my brother’s son.’ They sent to Umm Salamah, the wife of the Prophet, and she said, ‘Subay'ah al-Aslamiyyah gave birth shortly after her husband died. She sought a ruling from the Messenger of Allah, and he instructed her to marry.’

Abd al-A'la ibn Wasil ibn Abd al-A'la informed us; he said: Yahya ibn Adam narrated to us, from Sufyan, from Yahya ibn Sa'id, from Sulayman ibn Yasar, from Kurayb, from Umm Salamah; and Muhammad ibn Amr narrated, from Abu Salamah, from Kurayb, from Umm Salamah, who said: Subay'ah gave birth a few days after her husband died, and the Messenger of Allah instructed her to marry.

Muhammad ibn Salamah informed us, from Ibn al-Qasim, from Malik, from Yahya ibn Sa'id, from Sulayman ibn Yasar, that Abd Allah ibn Abbas and Abu Salamah ibn Abd al-Rahman differed about a woman who gave birth a few nights after her husband died. Abd Allah ibn Abbas said, ‘She must wait for the later of the two terms.’ Abu Salamah said, ‘Once she has given birth, she is permitted to marry.’ Abu Hurayrah came and said, ‘I side with my brother’s son’—meaning Abu Salamah ibn Abd al-Rahman. They sent Kurayb, Ibn Abbas’s client, to Umm Salamah to ask her about it. He returned and told them that she had said, ‘Subay'ah gave birth a few nights after her husband died and mentioned this to the Messenger of Allah. He said, “You are now permitted.”’

Husayn ibn Mansur informed us; he said: Ja'far ibn Awn narrated to us; he said: Yahya ibn Sa'id narrated to us; he said: Sulayman ibn Yasar informed me; he said: Abu Salamah ibn Abd al-Rahman informed me: Ibn Abbas, Abu Hurayrah, and I were together. Ibn Abbas said, ‘If a woman gives birth after her husband dies, her waiting period is the later of the two terms.’ Abu Salamah said, ‘We sent Kurayb to Umm Salamah to ask her about it. He returned and told us from her that Subay'ah’s husband had died and she gave birth a few days after his death. The Messenger of Allah instructed her to marry.’

Abd al-Malik ibn Shu'ayb ibn al-Layth ibn Sa'd informed us; he said: My father narrated to me, from my grandfather, who said: Ja'far ibn Rabi'ah narrated to me, from Abd al-Rahman ibn Hurmuz, from Abu Salamah ibn Abd al-Rahman, that Zaynab bint Abi Salamah related to him from her mother Umm Salamah, the wife of the Prophet: A woman of the Aslam tribe named Subay'ah was married when her husband died while she was pregnant. Abu al-Sanabil ibn Ba'kak proposed to her, but she refused to marry him. He said, ‘You cannot marry until you have observed the later of the two terms.’ She waited nearly twenty nights, then gave birth. She came to the Messenger of Allah, who said, ‘Marry.’

Ishaq ibn Ibrahim informed us; he said: Abd al-Razzaq informed us; he said: Ibn Jurayj informed us; he said: Dawud ibn Abi Asim informed me that Abu Salamah ibn Abd al-Rahman related to him: Abu Hurayrah and I were with Ibn Abbas when a woman came to him and said, ‘My husband died while I was pregnant, and I gave birth less than four months after the day he died.’ Ibn Abbas said, ‘She must wait for the later of the two terms.’ Abu Salamah said: A man among the Prophet’s Companions told me that Subay'ah al-Aslamiyyah came to the Messenger of Allah and said, ‘My husband died while I was pregnant, and I gave birth less than four months after he died.’ The Messenger of Allah instructed her to marry. Abu Hurayrah said, ‘I bear witness to that.’

Yunus ibn Abd al-A'la informed us; he said: Ibn Wahb narrated to us; he said: Yunus informed me, from Ibn Shihab, that Ubayd Allah ibn Abd Allah related to him that his father wrote to Umar ibn Abd Allah ibn al-Arqam al-Zuhri, instructing him to visit Subay'ah bint al-Harith al-Aslamiyyah and ask for her account and what the Messenger of Allah had told her when she sought a ruling from him. Umar ibn Abd Allah wrote to Abd Allah ibn Utbah, informing him that Subay'ah had told him: ‘I had been married to Sa'd ibn Khawlah—a man of Banu Amir ibn Lu'ayy who had been present at Badr. My husband died during the Farewell Pilgrimage while I was pregnant, and soon after his death I gave birth. When my postpartum bleeding ended, I adorned myself for prospective suitors. Abu al-Sanabil ibn Ba'kak, a man of Banu Abd al-Dar, came to me and said, “Why do I see you adorned? Perhaps you intend to marry. By Allah, you may not marry until four months and ten days have passed.”’ Subay'ah said: ‘When he said this to me, I gathered my clothes around me that evening, went to the Messenger of Allah, and asked him about it. He ruled that I was permitted to marry once I had given birth, and told me to marry if I wished.’

Muhammad ibn Wahb informed us; he said: Muhammad ibn Salamah narrated to us; he said: Abu Abd al-Rahim narrated to me; he said: Zayd ibn Abi Unaysah narrated to me, from Yazid ibn Abi Habib, from Muhammad ibn Muslim al-Zuhri, who said: He wrote to him, reporting that Ubayd Allah ibn Abd Allah related to him that Zufar ibn Aws ibn al-Hadathan al-Nasri related to him that Abu al-Sanabil ibn Ba'kak ibn al-Sabbaq said to Subay'ah al-Aslamiyyah, ‘You are not permitted to marry until the longer of the two terms has passed—four months and ten days.’ She went to the Messenger of Allah and asked him about it. She related that the Messenger of Allah ruled that she could marry once she had given birth. She had been nine months pregnant when her husband died. She had been married to Sa'd ibn Khawlah, who died during the Farewell Pilgrimage while with the Messenger of Allah. Once she gave birth, she married a young man from her people.

Kathir ibn Ubayd informed us; he said: Muhammad ibn Harb narrated to us, from al-Zubaydi, from al-Zuhri, from Ubayd Allah ibn Abd Allah, that Abd Allah ibn Utbah wrote to Umar ibn Abd Allah ibn al-Arqam al-Zuhri, saying: ‘Visit Subay'ah bint al-Harith al-Aslamiyyah and ask her what ruling the Messenger of Allah gave her about her pregnancy.’ Umar ibn Abd Allah visited her and asked. She told him: ‘I had been married to Sa'd ibn Khawlah, a Companion of the Messenger of Allah who had been present at Badr. He died during the Farewell Pilgrimage, and I gave birth before four months and ten days had passed since my husband’s death. When my postpartum bleeding ended, Abu al-Sanabil—a man of Banu Abd al-Dar—came to me and saw that I had adorned myself. He said, “Perhaps you intend to marry before four months and ten days have passed?”’ She said: ‘When I heard this from Abu al-Sanabil, I went to the Messenger of Allah and told him my story. The Messenger of Allah said, “You became permitted to marry when you gave birth.”’

Muhammad ibn Abd al-A'la informed us; he said: Khalid narrated to us; he said: Ibn Awn narrated to us, from Muhammad, who said: I was sitting among people in Kufa at a large gathering of the Ansar, which included Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Layla. They discussed Subay'ah’s case, and I cited Abd Allah ibn Utbah ibn Mas'ud in support of the meaning of Ibn Awn’s statement, ‘until she gives birth.’ Ibn Abi Layla said, ‘But his uncle does not say that.’ I raised my voice and said, ‘How bold of me it would be to lie about Abd Allah ibn Utbah when he is nearby in Kufa!’ He said: Then I met Malik and asked, ‘What did Ibn Mas'ud say about Subay'ah’s case?’ He replied, ‘He said: “Would you impose hardship on her and deny her the concession? The shorter Surah of Women was revealed after the longer one.”’

Muhammad ibn Miskin ibn Numaylah—a Yamami—related to me; he said: Sa'id ibn Abi Maryam informed us; he said: Muhammad ibn Ja'far informed us; and Maymun ibn al-Abbas related to me; he said: Sa'id ibn al-Hakam ibn Abi Maryam narrated to us; he said: Muhammad ibn Ja'far informed me; he said: Ibn Shubrumah al-Kufi narrated to me, from Ibrahim al-Nakha'i, from Alqamah ibn Qays, that Ibn Mas'ud said: ‘Whoever wishes, I will enter into a mutual invocation of God’s curse with him. The verse “For those who are pregnant, their term is that they deliver their burden” was revealed only after the verse concerning a woman whose husband has died. When a woman whose husband has died gives birth, she is then permitted.’ This is Maymun’s wording.

Abu Dawud Sulayman ibn Sayf informed us; he said: al-Hasan—who is Ibn A'yan—narrated to us; he said: Zuhayr narrated to us. And Muhammad ibn Isma'il ibn Ibrahim informed me; he said: Yahya narrated to us; he said: Zuhayr ibn Mu'awiyah narrated to us; he said: Abu Ishaq narrated to us, from al-Aswad, Masruq, and Abidah, from Abd Allah, that the shorter Surah of Women (Surah At-Talaq) was revealed after al-Baqarah.

Mahmud ibn Ghaylan informed us; he said: Zayd ibn al-Hubab narrated to us; he said: Sufyan narrated to us, from Mansur, from Ibrahim, from Alqamah, from Ibn Mas'ud, who was asked about a man who married a woman, stipulated no dowry for her, and did not consummate the marriage before he died. Ibn Mas'ud said, ‘She is entitled to a dowry equal to that of women like her, with neither reduction nor excess; she must observe the waiting period, and she inherits.’ Ma'qil ibn Sinan al-Ashja'i stood up and said, ‘The Messenger of Allah gave the same ruling among us concerning Birwa' bint Washiq, a woman from our people.’ Ibn Mas'ud was pleased.

It was narrated from 'Aishah that the Messenger of Allah said: 'A woman may not mourn for anyone who dies for more than three days, except for her husband.'

It was narrated from 'Aishah that the Prophet said: 'A woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day may not mourn for anyone for more than three days, except for her husband.'

It was narrated from Zainab bint Abi Salamah that Umm Habibah said: 'I heard the Messenger of Allah say this from the pulpit: A woman who believes in Allah and His Messenger may not mourn for anyone who dies for more than three days, except for her husband, for whom the mourning period is four months and ten days.'

It was narrated from Al-Fari'ah bint Malik that her husband went out in pursuit of some slaves, and they killed him. Shu'bah and Ibn Juraij said: 'She was in a remote house. She came with her brothers to the Messenger of Allah and told him what had happened, and he granted her a concession. As she was leaving, he called her back and said: Stay in your house until the prescribed term is fulfilled.'