Ibn Majah

Benefits and Issues:

➊
Being wounded in jihad is also a cause of great virtue.

➋
On the Day of Resurrection, just as the martyr will be honored, likewise the one wounded in jihad will also be honored.

➌
This honor will be only for the person who fought in jihad with sincerity, solely for the pleasure of Allah.

➍
The reality of intention is known only to Allah.
We should have a good opinion about a Muslim based on apparent circumstances.
If his intention is not correct, then Allah Ta’ala Himself will punish him.
The freshness of the wounds of the martyr or the wounded will be to make his righteous deed apparent to people, and the fragrance of the blood will be a manifestation of Allah’s pleasure.
And it will be a sign of his sacrifice being accepted.
And Allah knows best.

Explanation:
The scholars have presented various interpretations of this hadith. According to Shah Waliullah rahimahullah, the purpose of this hadith is to establish that musk is pure. Musk is a coagulated blood, but due to its coagulation and the emergence of fragrance within it, it no longer retains the ruling of blood. Rather, it has taken the form of pure and clean musk. Similarly, when the color, smell, or taste of water changes due to impurity, it no longer remains in its original state of purity, but rather becomes impure.

Hadith Commentary:
The scholars have presented various explanations for this hadith.
According to Shah Waliullah (rahimahullah), the purpose of this hadith is to establish that musk is pure.
Musk is a congealed blood.
However, due to its coagulation and the emergence of fragrance within it, it no longer retains the ruling of blood.
Rather, it has taken the form of pure and clean musk. In the same way, when the color, smell, or taste of water changes due to impurity, it no longer remains in its original state of purity, but instead becomes impure.

Hadith Commentary:
The color of this blood will be like (ordinary) blood, but its fragrance will be like musk. Hafiz Ibn Hajar rahimahullah has written the meaning of this phrase as follows: On the Day of Resurrection, the wounds of the martyrs and the blood flowing from them will be shown to all the people of the gathering, so that their virtue and the oppression of the oppressors become manifest to everyone, and the benefit of their blood emitting a fragrance like musk will be that all those present at the gathering will recognize their greatness. This is the very reason that the Shariah has prohibited cleaning the blood from the wounds of the martyrs; rather, it has instructed that they be buried in that very state. (Fath al-Bari: 1/448)

2.
Apparently, there seems to be no relevance between this hadith and the chapter heading, so why then did Imam Bukhari rahimahullah bring this hadith here? Because this hadith is not about the purity or impurity of blood, but rather about the virtue of those wounded in the path of Allah. On this basis, there are multiple statements from the commentators regarding the reasoning for its relevance.

The real matter is that Imam Bukhari was at the level of ijtihad and did not follow anyone in taqlid; he himself would derive rulings from the Shari’ah texts according to his own understanding and knowledge. He was not concerned with agreement or disagreement with others; rather, he was habituated to following the texts. Since his fiqh selections have not been compiled, there is always debate over the chapter headings he established, and everyone tries to interpret them in accordance with their own views, but these efforts yield nothing. A poet has beautifully said:
“And everyone claims to have a connection with Layla... but Layla does not acknowledge any of them in this regard...”

Regarding the relevance of this hadith to the chapter heading, Hafiz Ibn Hajar rahimahullah writes that Imam Bukhari’s purpose is to support his position that water does not become impure merely by the mixing of impurity, unless there is a change in it. This is because a change in an attribute affects the thing described, just as one attribute of blood—its odor—when changed into fragrance, gave it special significance, and instead of blame, it became a matter of praise. Similarly, if any attribute of water changes due to impurity, its ruling of purity will change to impurity, and as long as there is no change, impurity will not occur. (Fath al-Bari: 1/449)

Provided that it is two qullahs or more. By qullatayn is meant five Hijazi water-skins, which is about five hundred ratl. (Tuhfat al-Ahwazi: 1/71) In the current metric system, this is 197 kilograms.

Hadith Commentary:
The relevance of mentioning musk (misk) at this point is that just as a hide becomes pure through tanning, similarly, musk too is initially an impure blood, but after drying, it becomes pure. The purity of musk, by consensus of the people of Islam, is established from numerous ahadith: the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) used to use musk, and he said regarding the soil of Paradise that it is fragrant like musk. And in the Noble Qur’an it is stated: "its seal will be musk" (). And Muslim has narrated from Abu Sa’id (radi Allahu anhu) that musk is the most excellent of all fragrances. In short, musk is pure.

Hadith Commentary:
Just as the hide of a dead animal becomes pure after tanning, in the same way, the blood that comes out from the navel of a deer becomes pure after drying, and this is what is called musk (kasturi).
It is established from multiple ahadith that the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) used musk.
He (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said regarding the soil of Paradise:
“It is fragrant like musk.”
(Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitab al-Salat, Hadith: 349)
And the sweat of the people of Paradise will emit a fragrance like musk.
(Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitab Bad’ al-Khalq, Hadith: 3246)
In one hadith, it is mentioned that musk is the finest of all fragrances.
(Sahih Muslim, Kitab al-Alfaz min al-Adab wa Ghayriha, Hadith: (19) 2252)
The statement of Allah, the Exalted:
“The seal of their pure drink will be musk.” ( al-Mutaffifin: 26)
In summary, musk is pure and the best of fragrances.
And Allah knows best.

Hadith Commentary:

That is, Allah knows well who fights purely for His pleasure and whether there is any trace of showing off or seeking fame in it or not.

Imam Nawawi rahimahullah has said that whoever is wounded at the hands of rebels or bandits, or dies during the teaching of religion, for him too is this same virtue. In present times, those Muslims who are being killed oppressively at the hands of enemies also fall under this category (and Allah knows best what is correct).

Hadith Commentary:
"Allah knows who was wounded in His path"—these words indicate that a person should perform every deed with the intention of seeking Allah’s pleasure.
There should not be any trace of seeking fame or reputation in it.
Furthermore, if a person is wounded at the hands of bandits or highwaymen, or becomes bloodied while acquiring religious knowledge, then the same virtue applies to him, provided that death occurs before the wounds heal.
If he dies after the wounds have healed, then he will not be entitled to the aforementioned virtue.
The reason for being raised with his wounds is that, on the Day of Resurrection, he will have a witness with him that he expended his life in obedience to Allah.
(Fath al-Bari: 26/6)

Hadith Commentary:
Vocabulary of the Hadith:
yath‘ubu:
It will be flowing rapidly,
as mentioned in another narration.
yatafajjaru:
It will be gushing forth.

Explanation:
1:
That is, with what intention the one wounded in the path of jihad participated in jihad, Allah knows this very well, because if he participated in jihad with any intention other than the elevation of Allah's word, then he will be deprived of the reward mentioned in this hadith.

1) In Hadith number 3143, the words were: "The color will be that of saffron." In reality, the color of saffron itself is red like blood. Since saffron is a valuable and fragrant substance, its attribution was made as an honor, and in this narration, the actual reality has been stated. There is no difference in meaning. And Allah knows best.

2) "Allah Ta'ala knows best"—because this matter pertains to intention, and only Allah Ta'ala can know the intention.

Takhrij al-Hadith:
[وأخرجه البخاري 2803، من حديث مالك، ومسلم 105/1876، من حديث ابي الزناد به]
Jurisprudential Points:
➊ Among all general deeds, the most virtuous deed is striving (jihad) in the path of Allah.
➋ Hafiz Ibn Abd al-Barr (rahimahullah) stated that within the generality of this hadith is included every person who sets out for goodness, truth, and virtue, who enjoins what is right and forbids what is wrong. See: [التمهيد 19/14]
➌ Whoever is martyred in a particular state will be resurrected in that very state. This is most likely the reason why the martyr (shaheed) is not given a ritual bath (ghusl).
➍ "Hand" is one of the attributes of Allah. To deny the attribute and interpret it as merely "power" is invalid.
➎ It is permissible to swear an oath for the sake of emphasizing a statement.
➏ The words of the hadith: "And Allah knows who is wounded in His path," point to the necessity and importance of sincerity of intention for the one striving (mujahid). And Allah knows best.