Fath al-Rabbani

Narrated by Sayyida Khawla bint Tha’laba (may Allah be pleased with her), she says: By Allah! Allah Almighty revealed the beginning of Surah Al-Mujadila regarding me and my husband, Sayyiduna Aws bin Samit (may Allah be pleased with him). The details are as follows: I was his wife, Aws had become old and weak, due to which he had become ill-tempered and irritable. One day he came to me, I argued with him, he became angry and said: “You are to me like the back of my mother.” Then he went out, sat for a while in the gathering of his people, then came back to me and wanted to have relations with me, but I said: By the One in whose hand is Khawla’s soul! You will not be able to approach me, you have just said what you said, until Allah Almighty and His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) decide between us. He jumped towards me, but I managed to protect myself from him, just as a woman overcomes her old husband. I pushed him away and went out, borrowed some clothes from my neighbor, and went to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). I sat before him and narrated the whole incident, and began to complain to him about my husband’s bad behavior. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: O Khawla! He is your cousin and has become old, so fear Allah regarding him. But I kept repeating my complaint until the Qur’an began to be revealed about me. The state that would come upon him during revelation came upon the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), then that state ended and he said to me: O Khawla! Allah’s command has been revealed regarding you and your husband. Then he recited these verses: {قَدْ سَمِعَ اللّٰہُ قَوْلَ الَّتِی تُجَادِلُکَ فِی زَوْجِہَا وَتَشْتَکِیْ إِلَی اللّٰہِ وَاللّٰہُ یَسْمَعُ تَحَاوُرَ کُمَا إِنَّ اللّٰہَ سَمِیعٌ بَصِیرٌ … … وَلِلْکَافِرِینَ عَذَابٌ أَ لِیمٌ}. Sayyida Khawla says: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to me: Tell your husband to free a slave. I said: O Messenger of Allah! He does not have the means to free a slave. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Then tell him to fast for two consecutive months. I said: O Messenger of Allah! He is very old and does not have the strength to fast. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Then tell him to feed sixty poor people one wasq of food. I said: O Messenger of Allah! He does not have that either. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: I will help with a basket of dates. I said: O Messenger of Allah! I will also help with a basket. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: You have made a very correct and good decision, now go and give charity on his behalf, then treat your cousin kindly. So I did as instructed.

Narrated from Sayyidah Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), she says: All praise is due to Allah, whose hearing encompasses all voices. The woman who argued (Sayyidah Khawla, may Allah be pleased with her) came to the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and began to speak, while I was in a corner of the house. I could not hear her words, but Allah Almighty revealed these verses: {قَدْ سَمِعَ اللّٰہُ قَوْلَ الَّتِی تُجَادِلُکَ فِی زَوْجِہَا وَتَشْتَکِیْ إِلَی اللّٰہِ وَاللّٰہُ یَسْمَعُ تَحَاوُرَ کُمَا إِنَّ اللّٰہَ سَمِیعٌ بَصِیرٌ۔} … Surely Allah has heard the statement of the woman who disputes with you concerning her husband and complains to Allah, and Allah hears your conversation. Indeed, Allah is All-Hearing, All-Seeing.

It is narrated from Sayyida Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) that some Jews came to the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: O Abu al-Qasim! As-Saamu ‘alayka (death be upon you). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) replied: Wa ‘alaykum (and upon you). But Sayyida Aisha said: Death and curse be upon you! The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: O Aisha! Do not be so harsh in your speech. I said: O Messenger of Allah! Did you not hear what they said? They said: As-Saamu ‘alayka. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Did I not reply to them? I said: Wa ‘alaykum. The words of the narrator Ibn Numayr are: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Allah does not like indecency and deliberate abuse. Then this verse was revealed: {وَاِذَا جَاء ُوْکَ حَیَّوْکَ بِمَا لَمْ یُحَیِّکَ بِہِ اللّٰہُ وَیَقُوْلُوْنَ فِیْٓ اَنْفُسِہِمْ لَوْلَا یُعَذِّبُنَا اللّٰہُ بِمَا نَقُوْلُ حَسْبُہُمْ جَہَنَّمُ یَصْلَوْنَہَا فَبِئْسَ الْمَصِیْرُ۔} … And when they come to you, they greet you with words with which Allah has not greeted you, and they say within themselves: “Why does Allah not punish us for what we say?” Hell is sufficient for them; they will enter it, and what an evil destination it is.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Jews used to say to the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), "Sām ‘alayka" (death be upon you), and then would say in their hearts: Why does Allah not punish us for what we say? Then this verse was revealed: {وَاِذَا جَاء ُوْکَ حَیَّوْکَ بِمَا لَمْ یُحَیِّکَ بِہِ اللّٰہُ وَیَقُوْلُوْنَ فِیْٓ اَنْفُسِہِمْ لَوْلَا یُعَذِّبُنَا اللّٰہُ بِمَا نَقُوْلُ حَسْبُہُمْ جَہَنَّمُ یَصْلَوْنَہَا فَبِئْسَ الْمَصِیْرُ۔} … And when they come to you, they greet you with words with which Allah has not greeted you, and they say in their hearts: Why does Allah not punish us for what we say? Hell is sufficient for them; they will enter it, and what an evil destination it is.