Majma al-Zawaid — Hadith 7687

Sayyidah Aishah al-Siddiqah (may Allah be pleased with her) narrates: I boasted about my father's wealth in the time of Jahiliyyah, which amounted to a thousand thousand uqiyah. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to me: "O Aishah! Be quiet, for I am to you as Abu Zar' was to Umm Zar'." Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) began to narrate: "In the time of Jahiliyyah, eleven women gathered together and agreed that each woman would tell about her husband and would not lie. It was said to one woman: 'O so-and-so! You tell.' She said: 'He is like the night of Tihamah: neither very cold nor very hot, neither causing fear nor causing weariness.' Then it was said: 'O so-and-so! You tell.' She said: 'His scent is like that of the zarnab plant, and he is soft like a rabbit; I prevail over him, and he prevails over people.' Then it was said: 'O so-and-so! You tell.' She answered: 'By Allah, as far as I know, my husband is the owner of lofty pillars, with a long sword-belt, with much ash, and with his house near the gathering place.' Then it was said: 'O so-and-so! You tell.' She said: 'I married Malik, who has camels with many grazing grounds and few resting places, and when they hear the sound of the lute (at the arrival of a guest), they become certain that they are about to be slaughtered.' Then it was said: 'O so-and-so! You tell.' She said: 'I will not mention my husband, for if I mention him, I will describe everything about him and reveal his hidden and open faults; I will not leave anything out.' Then it was said: 'O so-and-so! You tell.' She said: 'By Allah, as far as I know, when he enters the house he is a cheetah, and when he goes out he is a lion, and he is not asked about what he has undertaken.' Then it was said: 'O so-and-so! You tell.' She said: 'He is the meat of a lean camel placed on a hilltop; it is neither so healthy that it would be carried away, nor is reaching it so easy that one would climb the mountain.' Then it was said: 'O so-and-so! You tell.' She said: 'By Allah, as far as I know, when he eats he gobbles up everything, and when he drinks he finishes everything; when he slaughters an animal (he consumes its meat), and when he sleeps he sleeps wrapped up and oblivious. He does not stretch out his palm towards me so as to learn of my distress.' Then it was said: 'O so-and-so! You tell.' She said: 'Nothing about my husband is straight; if I speak I am divorced, and if I remain silent I am left hanging.' Then it was said: 'O so-and-so! You tell.' She said: 'My husband is impotent and foolish; he cannot converse, every kind of ailment afflicts him, and he also beats.' Then it was said: 'O so-and-so! You tell.' She said: 'I married Abu Zar', and what a man Abu Zar' was! He weighed down my ears with jewellery and filled my arms with fat, and he pleased me with his kindness so much that I became thoroughly happy. He had found me in a small household owning a few goats, and then he brought me to a house where there were horses, camels, ploughing oxen and farmers. When I slept at his home, I would sleep until the morning, and when I drank, I would drink my fill. When I spoke, I was not rebuked. And the son of Abu Zar', what a son he is! He fits completely into a space as small as that in which a slender, delicate branch is laid, and the shoulder of a young goat suffices to fill his stomach. The daughter of Abu Zar', and what a daughter of Abu Zar' she is! She has a full body, she is an adornment for her mother and father, and she is the best towards her neighbour (or co-wife). The slave-girl of Abu Zar', and what a slave-girl of Abu Zar' she is! She does not pry into our affairs, and she does not take the things of the house outside. Once Abu Zar' went out from my home while butter was being churned from the milk, and there he saw the mother of two boys, and the boys were like two falcons. Abu Zar' married her and divorced me. Then I married another man. I married a well-mannered young man, who was also brave and a fine horseman. He gave me all kinds of blessings and gave me various kinds of animals, and he said: 'O Umm Zar'! Use these yourself and give to your family too.' I gathered all these things together, and all of them together would not fill even the smallest of Abu Zar''s vessels.'" Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: "O Messenger of Allah! You are better for me than Abu Zar'." (Al-Haythami says:) I say: The hadith of Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) about Abu Zar' is mentioned in the Sahih as mawquf (stopping) on Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her). In that narration only these words are marfu' (attributed to the Prophet): "I am to you as Abu Zar' was to Umm Zar'."
Al-Tabarani recorded it. Some of its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih, the rest have been declared trustworthy by Ibn Hibban and others, and some of them have been criticised in a way that does not discredit them.