Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah

It is narrated from Hazrat Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said that a woman may not observe mourning for more than three days for anyone except her husband.

Hazrat Umm Salamah and Hazrat Umm Habibah (may Allah be pleased with them) narrate that once a woman came to the service of the Prophet ﷺ and said that her daughter's husband had passed away. Her daughter had pain in her eye and wanted to apply kohl. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: Among you, when a year was completed, she would throw a camel's dung; now the waiting period is four months and ten days. Hazrat Humaid (may Allah be pleased with him), the narrator, says that I asked Hazrat Zainab bint Umm Salamah (may Allah be pleased with her) what is meant by throwing a camel's dung? She replied that in the age of ignorance, after a woman's husband died, she would sit in the worst room, staying there for a year. When the year was completed, she would come out and throw a camel's dung behind her.

It is narrated from Hazrat Hafsa (may Allah be pleased with her) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: It is not permissible for a woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day to observe mourning for anyone other than her husband for more than three days.

It is narrated from Hazrat Umm Atiyyah (may Allah be pleased with her) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: It is not permissible to mourn for any deceased person for more than three days. However, a woman will mourn for her husband for four months and ten days. She will not wear dyed clothes; she may only wear clothes made of rough cloth. She will not apply kohl or use perfume, except that when she becomes pure (after menstruation), she may use a little bit of incense or aloeswood.

Hazrat Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) said that a woman whose husband passes away will observe a waiting period of four months and ten days. A man said that this is too long. Hazrat Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) said that in the days of ignorance, women used to mourn for even longer than this.

Hazrat Umm Salamah (may Allah be pleased with her), Hazrat Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), and Hazrat Hafsa (may Allah be pleased with her) narrate that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Any woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day should not observe mourning for more than three days over any deceased person, except for her husband; for him, she should observe mourning for four months and ten days.