An-Nawawi's Forty Hadiths
Hadith 20, 40 Hadith an-Nawawi
عَنْ أَبِي مَسْعُودٍ عُقْبَةَ بْنِ عَمْرٍو الْأَنْصَارِيِّ الْبَدْرِيِّ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه و سلم "إنَّ مِمَّا أَدْرَكَ النَّاسُ مِنْ كَلَامِ النُّبُوَّةِ الْأُولَى: إذَا لَمْ تَسْتَحِ فَاصْنَعْ مَا شِئْت" . [رَوَاهُ الْبُخَارِيُّ].
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
On the authority of Abu Mas‘ud ‘Uqbah ibn ‘Amr al-Ansari al-Badri (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Among what people received from the words of the first prophethood is: ‘If you feel no shame, then do as you wish.’” [Narrated by al-Bukhari].
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
عَنْ أَبِي مَسْعُودٍ عُقْبَةَ بْنِ عَمْرٍو الْأَنْصَارِيِّ الْبَدْرِيِّ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه و سلم "إنَّ مِمَّا أَدْرَكَ النَّاسُ مِنْ كَلَامِ النُّبُوَّةِ الْأُولَى: إذَا لَمْ تَسْتَحِ فَاصْنَعْ مَا شِئْت" .
The wording may be understood as permission or as a warning about shameless action; this isolated Arabic passage does not resolve its force.
Which interpretation is supported by the relevant commentary and context? The translation preserves the ambiguity.