Fath al-Rabbani

(Second chain) It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) that Sayyiduna Abu Talha (may Allah be pleased with him) married Sayyidah Umm Sulaym (may Allah be pleased with her), who was the mother of Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik and Sayyiduna Bara’ (may Allah be pleased with them both). Sayyidah Umm Sulaym (may Allah be pleased with her) gave birth to a beloved son for him, whom Sayyiduna Abu Talha (may Allah be pleased with him) loved very much. But it happened that the child became very seriously ill. Sayyiduna Abu Talha (may Allah be pleased with him) had a routine: he would get up for Fajr prayer, perform ablution, go to the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), pray with him, and stay with him until about midday. Then he would return, take a nap, and eat food. After preparing for the Zuhr prayer, he would leave and would not return until after the Isha prayer. One day, when he returned at night, the child had passed away. Sayyidah Umm Sulaym (may Allah be pleased with her) (initially to conceal his death) covered him with a cloth and left him. When Sayyiduna Abu Talha (may Allah be pleased with him) returned, he said: O Umm Sulaym! How did my beloved son spend the night? She said: O Abu Talha! Your son, since the day he became ill, tonight was the most peaceful for him. Then she brought food, he ate, and his soul became pleasant. Then he went to his bed and laid his head down to sleep. Sayyidah Umm Sulaym (may Allah be pleased with her) says: I applied perfume and came to him, entering the bed with him. When he sensed the fragrance, what happens between husband and wife happened. Then, when morning came, he began to prepare as per his routine, as he did every day. Now Sayyidah Umm Sulaym (may Allah be pleased with her) said: O Abu Talha! What do you think about this: if a man entrusted something to you, you benefited from it, then he asked for it back and took it, would you be impatient in this matter? He said: No. She said: Then your son has passed away. He became very anxious and distressed and went to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and informed him of the whole matter: that his wife had fed him in this way, applied perfume, and then what happened. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: You have fulfilled the right of marriage, and the child was between your sides? He said: Yes, O Messenger of Allah! The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: May Allah bless you in this night of yours. Thus, Sayyidah Umm Sulaym (may Allah be pleased with her) conceived that very night. Later, when she gave birth to a child, in the morning Sayyiduna Abu Talha (may Allah be pleased with him) said to me (Anas, may Allah be pleased with him): Take him in a cloth and bring him to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and also take some Ajwa dates. So I wrapped him in a cloth and carried him; he had not been given anything to eat, nor had he tasted anything. When I arrived, I said: O Messenger of Allah! Sayyidah Umm Sulaym (may Allah be pleased with her) has given birth to a child. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) (happily) said: Allahu Akbar! What has she given birth to? I said: A boy. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Alhamdulillah, bring him to me. So I handed him to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) wanted to perform tahneek for him, so he asked me: Do you have any Ajwa dates? I said: Yes, I do. Then I took out the dates. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) took a date, put it in his blessed mouth, and chewed it until it was mixed with his saliva. Then he gave it to the child, and immediately it seemed as if the child was tasting the sweetness of the date; he began to suck the sweetness of the date and the saliva of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The first thing that opened this child’s intestines was the saliva of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: The favorite thing of the Ansar is dates. Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) named the child Abdullah. Many children were born to this Abdullah, and this Abdullah was martyred in Persia.