Mukhtasar Muslim

‘Umm al-Mu’minin Aisha Siddiqa (may Allah be pleased with her) says that the pure wives of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) sent his daughter, Sayyida Fatimah al-Zahra (may Allah be pleased with her), to him. She asked for permission, and the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was lying with me under my sheet. When he granted permission, she said, “O Messenger of Allah! Your wives have sent me to you; they wish that you be just with the daughter of Abu Quhafah (meaning, that you love them as much as you love her. And this matter was not optional, and in all other matters you (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) were just).” And I remained silent. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, “O daughter! Do you not want what I want?” She replied, “O Messenger of Allah! I only want what you want.” The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, “Then love Aisha.” Upon hearing this, Fatimah got up and went to the wives of the Prophet and conveyed to them what she had said and what the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) had said. They said, “We think you will not be of any help to us, so go again to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and say that his wives seek justice regarding the daughter of Abu Quhafah (Abu Quhafah was the father of our master Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), so he was Aisha’s grandfather, and it is permissible to attribute to the grandfather).” Sayyida Fatimah al-Zahra (may Allah be pleased with her) said, “By Allah! I will never speak to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) again regarding Aisha’s matter.” Umm al-Mu’minin Aisha Siddiqa (may Allah be pleased with her) said that finally, the wives of the Prophet sent Umm al-Mu’minin Zaynab bint Jahsh (may Allah be pleased with her) to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and in rank she was equal to me before him. I have not seen any woman more religious, more God-fearing, more truthful in speech, more upholding of kinship, and more charitable than her, nor any woman who strove harder in Allah’s cause and in charity than her, except that she had a quick temper (i.e., she would get angry), but she would quickly calm down, reconcile, and feel remorse. She sought permission from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and he granted it while he was still in my sheet, just as he was when Sayyida Fatimah al-Zahra (may Allah be pleased with her) had come. She said, “O Messenger of Allah! Your wives seek justice regarding the daughter of Abu Quhafah.” Then she turned to me and spoke harshly, and I was watching the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) to see if he would permit me to respond or not, until I realized that he would not mind if I replied. Then I responded to her and soon overcame her or rendered her speechless. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) smiled and said, “She is the daughter of Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) (not just any woman who would be subdued by you).”