Toggle above to switch between keyword search and direct hadith lookup

Hadith 1407

Narrated Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both):
The first woman to wear a waist-wrapper among women was Umm Isma'il, Lady Hajar (peace be upon her). Her intention was that Sarah would not find her trace (so she could escape quickly). Then Ibrahim (peace be upon him) brought her and her son Isma'il (peace be upon him) (to Makkah), and Hajar (peace be upon her) was breastfeeding Isma'il (peace be upon him) at that time. He made them sit under a tree near the House of Allah, at the place where Zamzam is now, on the higher side of the mosque. In those days, there was no human being in Makkah, nor was there any water. So Ibrahim (peace be upon him) made them sit there and gave them a leather bag full of dates and a small water-skin full of water. Then he turned to leave, so Umm Isma'il followed him and said, "O Ibrahim! Where are you going, leaving us in this valley where there is no human being nor anything else?" Hajar (peace be upon her) repeatedly called out the same, but Ibrahim (peace be upon him) did not look back at her. So Hajar (peace be upon her) said, "Has Allah commanded you to do this?" Ibrahim (peace be upon him) said, "Yes." She replied, "Then Allah will not let us perish." Saying this, she returned, and Ibrahim (peace be upon him) departed. When he reached the hill (Thaniyyah) where they could no longer see him, he faced the Ka'bah, raised both hands, and prayed with these words: "Our Lord! I have settled some of my offspring in a barren valley near Your Sacred House..." until the words "so that they may give thanks." (Ibrahim: 37)
Umm Isma'il, Lady Hajar, continued to breastfeed Isma'il (peace be upon him) and drink from the water-skin, until when the water was finished, she herself became thirsty, and so did her son (the child Isma'il, peace be upon him). She was looking at the child, who was writhing (due to thirst), or he said, "He was struggling," so she moved away so as not to see the child's condition. The hill of Safa was nearby, so she climbed it, looked in the valley to see if anyone was visible, but saw no one. Then she descended, gathered her garment, and ran in the valley as a distressed person runs, until she crossed the valley and reached the hill of Marwah. She climbed it and looked, hoping to see someone, but saw no one. She did this seven times between Safa and Marwah. Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "This is the origin of the Sa'i (ritual walking) between these two (Safa and Marwah), which was later made obligatory for Muslims during Hajj."
When Hajar (on the last round) climbed Marwah, she heard a voice. She said to herself, "Be quiet." Then she heard the same voice again and said, "(O servant of Allah! Whoever you are,) I have heard your voice. Can you help us?" Then she saw that near the place of Zamzam, there was an angel (Jibril, peace be upon him) digging the earth with his heel (or he said, with his wing) until water began to flow from that place. She began to make a basin around it with her hand and started filling her water-skin with water by scooping it up. The more she scooped, the more the spring gushed forth (the water increased).
Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "May Allah have mercy on the mother of Isma'il. If she had left Zamzam as it was (without making a basin), or (he said) if she had not scooped water to fill her water-skin, Zamzam would have become a flowing stream." (Then the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said:) "Hajar herself drank the water and gave it to her child."
The angel said to her, "Do not fear for your life. Indeed, here is the House of Allah, which this child and his father will build together, and Allah does not abandon His servants." At that time, the site of the House of Allah was like a mound, raised above the ground, and when rainwater came, it would flow away from its sides.
Lady Hajar (peace be upon her) spent a period in this way until some men or some families from the tribe of Jurhum passed by them, coming from the direction of Kada'. They descended into the lower part of Makkah and saw a bird circling there. They said, "Surely this bird is circling around water, but we know this plain well, and there is no water here." So they sent one or two men, who found water and returned to inform them. They all came (to the place).
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Umm Isma'il (peace be upon her) was sitting near the water. They said, 'Do you permit us to settle here?' She said, 'Yes, but you have no right to the water.' They agreed."
Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The people of Jurhum sought permission to settle there at a time when Isma'il's mother herself wanted habitation there. So they settled and called their families, who also came and settled with them, until many families were established there. Isma'il (peace be upon him) grew up and learned Arabic from the people of Jurhum. He became very pleasing in their eyes, and they loved him and married him to a woman from their tribe.
Later, when Umm Isma'il passed away, after Isma'il (peace be upon him) had married, Ibrahim (peace be upon him) came to check on his family whom he had left. Isma'il (peace be upon him) was not at home, so Ibrahim (peace be upon him) asked his wife about him. She said, "He has gone out in search of livelihood." Ibrahim (peace be upon him) asked, "How do you live? How is your sustenance?" She replied, "Very poorly, we live in great hardship," and she complained a lot. Ibrahim (peace be upon him) said, "When your husband comes, convey my greetings to him and tell him to change the threshold of his door."
When Isma'il (peace be upon him) came home and sensed something (of his father's visit), he asked his wife, "Did anyone come to you?" She said, "Yes, an old man in such-and-such condition came. He asked about you, and I told him you had gone out in search of livelihood. He asked me how we lived, and I told him, 'With great difficulty and hardship.'" Isma'il (peace be upon him) asked, "Did he give you any advice?" She said, "Yes, he told me to convey his greetings to you and to tell you to change the threshold of your door." Isma'il (peace be upon him) said, "That was my father, and he has ordered me to divorce you. So go to your family," and he divorced her and married another woman from the tribe of Jurhum.
Then, as long as Allah willed, Ibrahim (peace be upon him) stayed away. Later, he came again, but Isma'il (peace be upon him) was again not at home. So he went to his (second) wife and asked about Isma'il (peace be upon him). She said, "He has gone out in search of livelihood." Ibrahim (peace be upon him) asked, "How are you? How is your sustenance and living?" She replied, "All praise is due to Allah, we live in goodness and prosperity." Ibrahim (peace be upon him) asked, "What do you eat?" She said, "Meat." He asked, "What do you drink?" She said, "Water." Ibrahim (peace be upon him) said, "O Allah! Bless their meat and water."
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "At that time, there was no grain in Makkah. If there had been, Ibrahim (peace be upon him) would have prayed for blessing in it as well." (And he said:) "(This special quality is only in Makkah.) If people of other lands lived only on meat and water, they would fall ill." (And he said:) "Ibrahim (peace be upon him) said, 'When your husband comes, convey my greetings to him and tell him to keep the threshold of his door safe (she is very good).'
When Isma'il (peace be upon him) came, he asked his wife, 'Did anyone come to you?' She said, 'Yes, a handsome old man came,' and she praised Ibrahim (peace be upon him) a lot. She said, 'He asked about you, and I told him. He asked how we lived, and I told him, "Very well."' Isma'il (peace be upon him) asked, 'Did he give you any advice?' She said, 'Yes, he sends you his greetings and says to keep the threshold of your door safe.' Isma'il (peace be upon him) said, 'That was my father, and you are the threshold. He has ordered me to keep you as my wife.'
Then, as long as Allah willed, Ibrahim (peace be upon him) stayed away. After that, he came when Isma'il (peace be upon him) was sitting near the well of Zamzam under a tree, repairing his arrows. When he saw Ibrahim (peace be upon him), he stood up. The father did with the son and the son with the father as is customary. Then Ibrahim (peace be upon him) said, 'O Isma'il! Indeed, Allah has given me a command.' Isma'il (peace be upon him) said, 'Do what Allah has commanded you.' Ibrahim (peace be upon him) said, 'Will you help me?' He said, 'I will surely help you.' Ibrahim (peace be upon him) said, 'Allah has commanded me to build a house at this place,' and he pointed to a high mound and said, 'around it.'
(The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said:) At that time, both (father and son) raised the walls of the House. Isma'il (peace be upon him) would bring stones, and Ibrahim (peace be upon him) would build. When the walls became high (and could not be built while standing on the ground), Isma'il (peace be upon him) brought a stone (the Maqam Ibrahim) and placed it, and Ibrahim (peace be upon him) stood on it to build the wall, while Isma'il (peace be upon him) handed him the stones. Both of them said: "Our Lord! Accept (this effort) from us. Indeed, You are the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing." (Al-Baqarah: 127)
Hadith Reference مختصر صحيح بخاري / 1407