Bukhari

Explanation:
From the establishment of this chapter, it appears that the purpose of Imam Bukhari rahimahullah is to show that the blood which comes to a pregnant woman is not menstruation (hayd), because if the pregnancy is complete, then the womb (rahim) is occupied with it, and the blood that comes out is the remainder of nourishment. If the pregnancy is incomplete, then the womb has expelled a thin piece of flesh, so that will be considered a part of the child, not menstruation.

Ibn Munir said that Imam Bukhari rahimahullah derived evidence from the hadith of the chapter that the blood of a pregnant woman is not menstruation, because there an angel is appointed, and he does not go to the place of impurity. This reasoning of Ibn Munir has been called weak.

The Hanafi and Hanbali schools, and most scholars, hold the view that the blood which comes during pregnancy will be considered an illness, not menstruation. Imam Bukhari rahimahullah is also establishing this. For this very purpose, he has chosen the title «مخلقة و غير مخلقة». The mentioned narration also points in this direction; the complete verse is in Surah Al-Hajj.

Benefits and Issues:
Relevance between the Chapter and the Hadith:
«قلتُ» Apparently, the connection between the hadith and the chapter is extremely difficult, but upon reflection, its solution is present. Imam Bukhari rahimahullah has alluded to the hadith in which, when Sayyidah Aisha radi Allahu anha complained to the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam about her menstruation during Hajj, he sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said: «فان ذالك شيئ كتبه الله على بنات آدم» “This is something that has been decreed for the daughters of Adam.” Now, come to this hadith in which it is written that a boy will be born, a girl will be born, etc. Therefore, Imam Bukhari rahimahullah included the hadith about predestination (qadar) in the Book of Menstruation (Kitab al-Hayd) because menstruation has been decreed for the daughters of Adam, and thus menstruation is also related to predestination.

The commentators have written that Imam Bukhari rahimahullah’s intention in including this hadith in the chapters of menstruation is to clarify that the blood which comes to a pregnant woman during pregnancy is not menstruation, because at that time the womb is engaged in nurturing the child, along with the blood of menstruation. So, if blood sometimes comes from her womb, it is not menstruation, but rather the waste of the child’s nourishment or due to some illness. [فتح الباري ج1 ص551]

Ibn al-Mulaqqin rahimahullah says:
«و غرض البخاري بهذا الباب والله تعالیٰ اعلم، ان لا تحيض، وهو قول ابي حنيفة (والكوفين) والاوزاعي واحد قولي الشافعي، لان اشتمال الرحم صلى الولد يمنع الخروج» [التوضيح لشرح لجامع الصحيح، ج6، ص96]
Imam Bukhari rahimahullah’s purpose in this chapter is (and Allah knows best) that a pregnant woman does not menstruate, and this is the view of Imam Abu Hanifah rahimahullah (the Kufans), al-Awza‘i, and Imam al-Shafi‘i rahimahullah. Because the womb in which there is a child prevents (the flow of menstrual blood).

Benefit: Belief in predestination (qadar) is part of faith, and its denial is a denial of faith. Some questions arise regarding the important issue of predestination. For example, the hadith of Sahih Bukhari has made it clear that when the soul is breathed into the child in the mother’s womb, at that very moment his destiny is written. But there is another hadith, also mentioned by Bukhari, that:
«عن انس رضى الله عنه قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم من احب ان يبسط له فى رزقه وينسا له فى اثره فليصل رحمه»
Sayyiduna Anas radi Allahu anhu narrates that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said: Whoever wishes that his provision (rizq) and lifespan (umr) be increased, let him maintain the ties of kinship (silat ar-rahm). [مشكوة المصابيح باب البر و الصلة ج3 ص327]
From this hadith, it is apparently clear that maintaining ties of kinship brings blessings in lifespan and provision, whereas in the Noble Qur’an, Allah the Exalted says:
«فَإِذَا جَاءَ أَجَلُهُمْ لَا يَسْتَأْخِرُونَ سَاعَةً وَلَا يَسْتَقْدِمُونَ» [16-النحل : 61]
“When their appointed time comes, they will not be able to delay it for a single moment, nor advance it.”
In the Qur’an, the issue of predestination is such that death cannot be brought forward or delayed from its appointed time, but in the hadiths of Bukhari and Muslim, it is clear that death can be brought forward or delayed. To resolve this apparent contradiction and confusion, the following reconciliation is worth considering: The author of Tanqih al-Ruwat, Allamah Abu Sa‘id al-Muhaddith al-Dihlawi rahimahullah, says that the hadith which mentions that maintaining ties of kinship increases lifespan and provision is related to the knowledge of the angels, and the verse regarding death is related to the knowledge of Allah the Exalted. [ديكهئے تنقيح الرواة ج2 س337]

Benefit No. 2: In the aforementioned hadith, there is affirmation of a great sign of Allah the Exalted. We certainly read this hadith, that the Creator of all these things is Allah alone, but we have never reflected upon His signs. The above hadith and the related hadiths mentioned by Imam Bukhari rahimahullah in the Book of Qadar are related to the issues of embryology. There are many verses in the Qur’an related to embryological matters, but there is also deep commentary on these issues in the hadiths of the Messenger sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, which is clear evidence that he sallallahu alayhi wa sallam is the true Messenger of Allah the Exalted.

Sayyiduna Hudhayfah radi Allahu anhu says: I heard the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam saying: When forty-two nights have passed over the drop (nutfah), Allah sends an angel to it, who shapes it and creates its hearing, sight, skin, flesh, and bones. Then he asks: O Lord! Is it male or female? Then whatever Allah wills, He decrees, and the angel writes it. Then he asks: O Lord! What is its lifespan? So Allah decrees whatever He wills, and the angel writes it. Then he asks: O Lord! What is its provision? So the Lord decrees whatever He wills, and the angel writes it. Then the angel leaves with that record in his hand, in which nothing is omitted or added.

Sayyiduna Ibn Mas‘ud radi Allahu anhu narrates that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said: «حدثنا رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم وهو الصادق المصدوق قال : إن احدكم يجمع خلقه فى بطن امه اربعين يوما ثم يكون علقة مثل ذلك ثم يكون مضغة مثل ذلك ثم يبعث الله ملكا فيؤمر باربع كلمات ويقال له : اكتب عمله ورزقه واجله وشقي او سعيد» [صحيح بخاري، باب بدء الخلق : 3208، صحيح مسلم كتاب القدر]
Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Mas‘ud radi Allahu anhu narrates that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said: “The creation of each one of you is brought together in his mother’s womb for forty days as a drop (nutfah), then he becomes a clot of blood (alaqah) for a similar period, then a lump of flesh (mudghah) for a similar period. Then Allah sends an angel who breathes the soul into him and is commanded with four matters: to write down his provision, his lifespan, his deeds, and whether he will be wretched or blessed.”

Sayyiduna Anas ibn Malik radi Allahu anhu narrates that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said:
«ان الله قد وكل بالرحم ملكا، ‏‏‏‏‏‏فيقول : ‏‏‏‏ اي رب نطفة، ‏‏‏‏‏‏اي رب علقة، ‏‏‏‏‏‏اي رب مضغة، ‏‏‏‏‏‏فإذا اراد الله ان يقضي خلقها، ‏‏‏‏‏‏قال : ‏‏‏‏ اي رب اذكر ام انثى، ‏‏‏‏‏‏اشقي ام سعيد، ‏‏‏‏‏‏فما الرزق، ‏‏‏‏‏‏فما الاجل، ‏‏‏‏‏‏فيكتب كذلك فى بطن امه» [صحيح بخاري، باب القدر، حديث 6595]
“Allah the Exalted has appointed an angel over the womb. He says: O my Lord! A clot of flesh has been formed. Then, when Allah wishes to create it, the angel asks: O my Lord! Is it male or female, wretched or blessed, what is its provision, what is its lifespan? Thus, in the womb itself, its destiny is written regarding these matters.”

In this hadith, the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam mentioned the stages of the drop (nutfah), the clot (alaqah), and the lump (mudghah), whereas in the previous hadith it is stated that after the formation of the drop, after forty-two nights, by Allah’s command, the angel comes and performs the task of shaping and creating it. This period is exactly what modern embryological research states: that during this period, the bodily parts present in the lump of flesh are transformed into bones and muscles. Then flesh and muscles are placed over the bones. From this, it becomes clear that the stages mentioned in the hadith of Sayyiduna Hudhayfah radi Allahu anhu and the results of modern embryological research are exactly the same.

However, regarding the time of the angel’s arrival, there is some difference between the hadiths of Sayyiduna Hudhayfah radi Allahu anhu and Sayyiduna Ibn Mas‘ud radi Allahu anhu. Because in the hadith of Sayyiduna Hudhayfah radi Allahu anhu, it is stated that the angel comes after forty-two nights, whereas from the hadith of Ibn Mas‘ud radi Allahu anhu, it appears that the angel comes after one hundred and twenty days. The scholars have reconciled between these two hadiths.

In this regard, Hafiz Ibn al-Qayyim rahimahullah says:
The hadith of Sayyiduna Hudhayfah radi Allahu anhu indicates the beginning of creation after the first forty days, and the meaning of the hadith of Sayyiduna Ibn Mas‘ud radi Allahu anhu is that the beginning of creation occurs after the third period. The question is: how can these two be reconciled? The answer is that the hadith of Sayyiduna Hudhayfah radi Allahu anhu is explicit regarding the beginning of creation after forty days, and the hadith of Sayyiduna Ibn Mas‘ud radi Allahu anhu does not contradict the time of shaping and creation. Rather, it mentions the different stages of the drop (nutfah) and states that after every forty days, a new stage begins, and after the third period, the soul is breathed into it. This is not mentioned in the hadith of Sayyiduna Hudhayfah radi Allahu anhu, but is specifically mentioned in the hadith of Sayyiduna Ibn Mas‘ud radi Allahu anhu. Therefore, both hadiths agree that after the first period, a specific thing is created, and the hadith of Sayyiduna Hudhayfah radi Allahu anhu specifically mentions that the process of shaping and creation of the drop begins after the first period, and the hadith of Sayyiduna Ibn Mas‘ud radi Allahu anhu specifically mentions that the soul is breathed into the embryo after the third period. Now, both hadiths agree that during this time, the angel asks Allah the Exalted about the destiny of the child to be born and writes it down. In this way, all the statements of the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam are true, and one hadith confirms the other. [تحفة المودود : بأحكام المولود از ابن قيم الجوزي رحمه الله، ص224]

With this explanation of Hafiz Ibn al-Qayyim rahimahullah, the perceived difference between the hadiths of Sayyiduna Hudhayfah and Ibn Mas‘ud radi Allahu anhuma is resolved, because the hadith of Sayyiduna Hudhayfah refers to the beginning of shaping and creation after forty-two nights, and the hadith of Sayyiduna Ibn Mas‘ud radi Allahu anhu mentions that when the stages of creation are completed, then the soul is breathed into it, and the completion of creation in the womb after the drop is established is completed in one hundred and twenty days. After the soul is breathed into the embryo, it becomes a different creature, because it becomes capable of movement and hearing sounds, and its heart begins to beat continuously. This is indicated in the words of the Noble Qur’an:
«ثُمَّ أَنْشَأْنَاهُ خَلْقًا آخَرَ فَتَبَارَكَ اللَّهُ أَحْسَنُ الْخَالِقِينَ» [المؤمنون : 14]
Translation: “Then We made him into another creation. So blessed is Allah, the best of creators.”

The time for the completion of creation and the breathing of the soul mentioned in the hadith of Sayyiduna Ibn Mas‘ud radi Allahu anhu is exactly the same as what modern embryology states regarding the onset of movement in the embryo. That is, after the establishment of the drop, at the end of the third month or the beginning of the fourth month, the stages of development of the embryo mentioned in this hadith and the results of modern embryological research are exactly the same. Dr. Keith Moore, while commenting on the above hadiths, writes:

In the first hadith mentioned, the statement of the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam is that the creative elements of every human being are gathered in forty days (five weeks and five days). In scientific language, these creative elements are called “primordia.” In the embryological explanation of the mentioned hadith, the embryonic period has been described. This period is completed in five or six weeks, during which all the major organs, except the reproductive organs, develop their primordia. According to modern scientific knowledge, in the sixth week (forty-two days), the gonadal ridges, which are the reproductive prominences, appear, from which the primordial germ cells begin to gather. Then, in the seventh week, the primordia of the reproductive organs are formed, and the sexual characters begin to develop. [تخليق انساني اور معجزات قرآن ان كيته مور، ص89]

There are also many statements from the pious predecessors (salaf salihin) from which it can be clearly concluded that the complete creation of a human being occurs after four months.

Ibn al-Mulaqqin rahimahullah says in his commentary:
«واتفق العلماء على أن نفخ الروح لا يكون إلا بعد أربعة أشهر» [التوضيح، ج5، ص98]
“The scholars are agreed that the breathing of the soul occurs after four months.”

Imam al-Qurtubi rahimahullah also points to this; see [تفسير القرطبي، ج12، ص8].
In forty-three (43) weeks, until four months are completed, then the soul is breathed into it. [التوضيح، ج5، ص98]

Qadi ‘Iyad rahimahullah says:
«ولم يختلف ان نفخ الروح فيه يكون بعد مائة و عشرين يوما، و ذالك تمام اربعة اشهر» [اكمال المعلم بشرح صحيح مسلم۔ ج8۔ ص128]
From these quotations and researches, it is clear that at the end of four months, the human being assumes a complete human form in the womb.

Benefit No. 3: There is a detailed discussion of human creation in the Qur’an and Sunnah. As we have clarified in the previous pages, Allah the Exalted created the human being through several stages. Ibn al-‘Imad al-Aqfahsi [المتوفی 867ھ] has discussed this in detail in his book [الذريعة إلى معرفة الاعداد الواردة فى الشريعة], and he has mentioned twelve stages, stating that Allah the Exalted will transform the human being through twelve stages from creation until the Day of Resurrection. As Allah the Exalted says: «مَّا لَكُمْ لَا تَرْجُونَ لِلَّـهِ وَقَارًا ﴿﴾ وَقَدْ خَلَقَكُمْ أَطْوَارًا» [نوح : 13-14]
“What is the matter with you that you do not show reverence for the greatness of Allah, when He has created you in various stages?”

Ibn al-‘Imad has deduced the twelve stages from these verses. Allah the Exalted says: «وَلَقَدْ خَلَقْنَا الْإِنسَانَ مِن سُلَالَةٍ مِّن طِينٍ ﴿ ﴾ ثُمَّ جَعَلْنَاهُ نُطْفَةً فِي قَرَارٍ مَّكِينٍ ﴿ ﴾ ثُمَّ خَلَقْنَا النُّطْفَةَ عَلَقَةً فَخَلَقْنَا الْعَلَقَةَ مُضْغَةً فَخَلَقْنَا الْمُضْغَةَ عِظَامًا فَكَسَوْنَا الْعِظَامَ لَحْمًا ثُمَّ أَنشَأْنَاهُ خَلْقًا آخَرَ فَتَبَارَكَ اللَّـهُ أَحْسَنُ الْخَالِقِينَ» [المؤمنون : 12-14]
➊ We created man from an extract of clay.
➋ Then We placed him as a drop (nutfah) in a firm resting place.
➌ Then We made the drop into a clot (alaqah).
➍ Then We made the clot into a lump (mudghah).
➎ Then We made the lump into bones.
➏ Then We clothed the bones with flesh.
➐ Then We produced him as another creation.
➑ Then after that you die.
➒ Then on the Day of Resurrection you will be raised up.

After this, Ibn al-‘Imad al-Aqfahsi writes:
«ثُمَّ يُخْرِجُكُمْ طِفْلًا ثُمَّ لِتَبْلُغُوا أَشُدَّكُمْ ثُمَّ لِتَكُونُوا شُيُوخًا» [40-غافر:67]
➓ Then He brings you forth as a child.
⓫ Then you reach your maturity.
⓬ Then you become old.
That is, these are the three stages also mentioned in the Noble Qur’an. Thus, the complete twelve stages are established.

Hadith Commentary:
1.
Hafiz Ibn Hajar rahimahullah says that Imam Bukhari rahimahullah intends to interpret the noble verse through the noble hadith, but the place for interpretation is the Book of Tafsir; what connection does it have with the Book of Menstruation (Kitab al-Hayd)? The connection is as follows: when the sperm enters the womb of the mother, there are two possibilities:
➊ A creative process is initiated in it, and this is only possible when the womb has the capacity for menstruation (hayd). To bring about a creative change in the sperm without menstruation is against the law of Allah.
➋ No creative process is initiated in it, and such sperm is expelled by the womb. In this way, the hadith is connected to the Book of Menstruation. But what is Imam Bukhari’s purpose in titling the chapter this way? Regarding this, the commentator of Bukhari, Ibn Battal rahimahullah, says:
Through this chapter heading, Imam Bukhari wants to resolve a disputed issue: if a woman sees blood during pregnancy, should this blood be considered menstruation (hayd), or should it be counted as irregular bleeding (istihada)? According to Imam Bukhari, blood that appears during pregnancy cannot be menstruation. The scholars of Kufa and Awza‘i have also adopted this position.
(Sharh Ibn Battal: 1/444)

2.
Blood that appears during pregnancy is not menstruation, because after the establishment of pregnancy, the mouth of the womb is closed, and Allah Ta‘ala uses the menstrual blood as nourishment for the child. The tube attached to the child’s navel also purifies the blood, and through it, the purified blood serves as food for the child. After pregnancy is established, there are only two possibilities:
➊ The child is destined to be fully formed (mukhallaqa).
➋ It is not destined to be completed.
In the second case, it will be expelled as a miscarriage.
Before this happens, the mouth of the womb is closed.
When the time comes, the mouth of the womb opens and the fetus is expelled. Therefore, in the case of established pregnancy, any blood that appears cannot be menstruation, because it does not emerge from the womb, as its mouth is closed. Furthermore, a major proof for this is that the arrival of menstruation is considered a sign of the womb’s cleanliness.
If menstruation could occur during pregnancy, how would the determination of the womb’s cleanliness (istibra’ al-rahim) be made? (Fath al-Bari: 1/543)

3.
If it is not decreed by Allah that offspring will result from the sperm, then the menstrual blood is retained in the womb and is used for the nourishment of the child. If it is not decreed that offspring will result from the sperm, then the blood is expelled from the womb along with it. In the case of offspring, different angels are appointed by Allah who nurture and care for the child in various stages, as follows:
➊ In the first stage, the mixed sperm (nutfah amshaj) remains in its state for forty days.
➋ In the second stage, it becomes a clot (alaqah), and forty days pass over this congealed blood.
➌ In the third stage, it is given the form of a lump of flesh (mudghah), and forty days pass over this lump of flesh.
➍ In the fourth stage, the form of the child is completed and the soul is breathed into it.
This means that after four months, the soul is breathed into it, and all these matters are carried out under the supervision of the angel. These stages are mentioned in the ahadith.
(Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of the Beginning of Creation, Hadith: 3208)

4.
Imam Bukhari rahimahullah has not explicitly established whether or not a pregnant woman can menstruate, but from his style and approach, it is indicated that a pregnant woman does not menstruate, because the presence of the child in the womb is an obstacle to the discharge of menstrual blood.
Hafiz Ibn Hajar, disagreeing with this position, writes that deducing the absence of menstruation from the mentioned hadith is questionable, because the hadith only establishes that what emerges from the womb of a pregnant woman is an incomplete fetus, which has no form or shape.
It does not necessarily follow from this that if blood emerges from the womb of a pregnant woman during pregnancy, it will not be considered menstruation.
Those who claim that the blood which emerges is waste from the child’s nourishment, or has dripped from its body, or is due to some illness, need to provide evidence for their claim. The reports and traditions narrated in this regard are insufficient to prove the claim. Rather, this blood also possesses the characteristics of menstrual blood, and it is possible for it to occur at that time. Therefore, it should be given the ruling of menstrual blood, and whoever claims otherwise should prove his position with evidence.
(Fath al-Bari: 1/543)

5.
Finally, we present the research of the famous scholar of the land of Hijaz, Shaykh Muhammad ibn Salih al-Uthaymin rahimahullah, which he presented in one of his treatises. He says:
“Generally, when a woman becomes pregnant, her menstrual blood stops. Thus, Imam Ahmad rahimahullah says that women recognize pregnancy by the cessation of menstruation.
There are two scenarios for a pregnant woman seeing blood:
➊ If she sees blood two or three days before childbirth and there are no labor pains with it, then it will be considered postnatal bleeding (nifas).
* If she sees blood long before childbirth, or a few days before, and there are no labor pains with it, then it will not be considered nifas.
If it is not nifas, should it be considered menstruation (hayd) or irregular bleeding (istihada)? There is a difference of opinion among the scholars on this. The correct view is that it should be considered menstruation,
provided it occurs in the usual manner of menstruation, because the basic principle is that the blood which comes to a woman is menstrual blood, unless there is a reason that prevents it from being considered menstruation.
There is no evidence in the Book or Sunnah by which we can decide that a pregnant woman cannot menstruate. This is also the position of Imam Shafi‘i rahimahullah and Imam Malik rahimahullah, and Hafiz Ibn Taymiyyah rahimahullah has also adopted this view.
Imam Bayhaqi rahimahullah has narrated this from Imam Ahmad rahimahullah as well. In fact, he said that Imam Ahmad’s earlier position was that menstruation does not occur, but he retracted from that.
On this basis, the rulings of menstruation for a pregnant woman will be the same as for a non-pregnant woman,
except in two matters:
➊ It is not permissible to divorce a non-pregnant woman during her menstrual period, because divorcing in this state is contrary to the command of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam: “If you wish to divorce women, then divorce them at the time of their waiting period (iddah).”
(al-Talaq: 65:1)
But divorcing a pregnant woman during menstruation does not entail this opposition, because during pregnancy, the waiting period is until delivery, which has not yet occurred. Therefore, divorcing a pregnant woman during menstruation is not forbidden, whereas divorcing a non-pregnant woman during menstruation is not valid.
➋ If a pregnant woman menstruates, her waiting period (iddah) is not affected, nor is her iddah counted from menstruation, whereas the iddah of a non-pregnant woman is counted from menstruation. The iddah of a pregnant woman is until delivery, whether she menstruates or not.
The command of Allah Ta‘ala is:
﴿ وَأُولَاتُ الْأَحْمَالِ أَجَلُهُنَّ أَن يَضَعْنَ حَمْلَهُنَّ ۚ﴾ “The waiting period of pregnant women is until they deliver their burden.”
(al-Talaq: 65:4)
In any case, our position in this matter is that if blood appears during pregnancy, the woman should not abandon prayer or fasting, nor is there any prohibition for the husband to have intercourse with her.
And Allah knows best.
Other discussions related to this hadith will be mentioned in the Book of Qadar, inshaAllah.

Hadith Commentary:
A child is born upon this very innate disposition (fitrah), and gradually destiny (taqdir) continues to unfold before him.

Hadith Commentary:
➊
In the other hadith, action is not mentioned because action is already included within the context of happiness and wretchedness (good fortune and misfortune). Two angels are appointed over the womb. One is permanently on duty, and the other comes temporarily to write the decree. Although Allah’s decision has already been made from the beginning, Allah manifests this decision to the angel and commands him to write it.

➋
According to this hadith, the soul (ruh) is breathed into the fetus in the fourth month of pregnancy, whereas modern medicine states that movement in the child appears before this. The answer to this is that the movement observed before four months is the movement of growth, which is also found in plants. As for the soul (ruh), which is an affair of my Lord (amr rabbi), through which perception and consciousness arise in a human being—on the basis of which he becomes deserving of reward and punishment—and after death, it is separated from him, and on the Day of Resurrection, it will be joined to the body forever. That is breathed into the fetus in the fourth month.

➌
In these ahadith, the stages of human creation are described. That is why Imam Bukhari rahimahullah has mentioned them.

Hadith Commentary:
(1)
In these ahadith, the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam has mentioned two subjects:
At the beginning, there is mention of those stages of human creation through which a person passes in the womb of the mother, from the mingled sperm-drop (nutfah amshaj) up to the blowing of the soul (nafkh al-ruh).
The mention of these stages serves as a preamble to the next subject.
After this, Allah Ta’ala has mentioned that written record (the decree) which the angel appointed by Allah Ta’ala writes concerning the human being at the time of the blowing of the soul.
Imam Bukhari rahimahullah has mentioned these ahadith here in view of the clarification of this written decree (taqdeer).
(2)
Some scholars have described the following four types of decree (taqdeer):
• Eternal Decree (Taqdeer Azali):
By this is meant the eternal and everlasting knowledge of Allah Ta’ala.
It can never differ from this in the slightest, but this eternal knowledge does not compel the servants in their actions and conduct.
This eternal decree has two types:
(a)
Knowledge:
Allah Ta’ala has knowledge of all that is to occur in the universe or that His creation will do.
Allah Ta’ala, through His eternal knowledge, knows in detail and in summary all those things which have already appeared or are yet to come into existence.
(b)
Writing:
Allah Ta’ala, in accordance with His eternal knowledge, has written all things in the Preserved Tablet (al-Lawh al-Mahfuz), as is mentioned in the hadith that the first thing Allah Ta’ala created was the Pen, then He said to it: Write.
It said: O my Lord! What should I write? Allah Ta’ala said:
Write the decree of everything until the Day of Resurrection. So it wrote.
(Sunan Abi Dawud, al-Sunnah, Hadith: 4700)
In another hadith, it is mentioned that Allah Ta’ala wrote down all the events that would occur in the universe fifty thousand years before the creation of the heavens and the earth.
(Sahih Muslim, al-Qadr, Hadith: 6748 (2653))
Regarding these two types, Allah the Exalted has said:
“Do you not know that Allah knows whatever is in the heavens and the earth? Indeed, all that is in a written record (Book).” (al-Hajj: 70/22)
• Lifetime Decree (Taqdeer Umri):
Whatever a person is to do throughout his life is preserved separately; this too has two types:
(a)
It was written at the time of taking the covenant from the children of Adam, as is mentioned in Surah al-A’raf, verse 172.
(b)
The mention of the lifetime decree in the womb of the mother is in the first hadith presented by Imam Bukhari rahimahullah.
• Daily Decree (Taqdeer Yawmi):
Every day His fresh decisions are enforced.
By the command of Allah Ta’ala, every day someone falls ill, someone is granted cure from illness, someone meets death:
“Every day (every moment) He is in a (new) affair.” (al-Rahman: 29/55)
Hafiz Ibn Hajar rahimahullah has written, with reference to narrations, that all the matters that are to befall a person in this world are written down, even to the extent that even a slight scratch that is to occur is also written, and the writing of these matters is in the relevant register, as is in Sahih Muslim:
“Then this record is folded up, and there is no addition or subtraction in it.”
(Sahih Muslim, al-Qadr, Hadith: 6725 (2644), and Fath al-Bari: 11/588)
And Allah knows best.

Hadith Commentary: Benefits and Issues: From this hadith, it is also understood that after the "mudghah" (chewed lump of flesh) stage, the formation of the limbs and organs begins, and at that time, the determination of whether it will be male or female is made, and its destiny is written. The angel who writes the destiny may be different from the angel appointed over the womb, and it is also possible that the same angel performs both tasks.