Hadith 2135

This hadith is listed as number 5598 in Maktaba Shamila

حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو بَكْرِ بْنُ أَبِي شَيْبَةَ ، وَمُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ نُمَيْرٍ ، وَأَبُو سَعِيدٍ الْأَشَجُّ ، وَمُحَمَّدُ بْنُ الْمُثَنَّى الْعَنَزِيُّ ، وَاللَّفْظُ لِابْنِ نُمَيْرٍ ، قَالُوا : حَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ إِدْرِيسَ ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ ، عَنْ سِمَاكِ بْنِ حَرْبٍ ، عَنْ عَلْقَمَةَ بْنِ وَائِلٍ ، عَنْ الْمُغِيرَةِ بْنِ شُعْبَةَ ، قال : لَمَّا قَدِمْتُ نَجْرَانَ سَأَلُونِي ، فَقَالُوا : إِنَّكُمْ تَقْرَءُونَ يَا أُخْتَ هَارُونَ وَمُوسَى قَبْلَ عِيسَى بِكَذَا وَكَذَا ، فَلَمَّا قَدِمْتُ عَلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ سَأَلْتُهُ ، عَنْ ذَلِكَ ، فَقَالَ : " إِنَّهُمْ كَانُوا يُسَمُّونَ بِأَنْبِيَائِهِمْ وَالصَّالِحِينَ قَبْلَهُمْ " .
Mughira bin Shu'bah reported: When I came to Najran, they (the Christians of Najran) asked me: You read "O sister of Harun" (i. e. Hadrat Maryam) in the Qur'an, whereas Moses (ؑ) was born much before Jesus. When I came back to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) I asked him about that, whereupon he said: The (people of the old age) used to give names (to their persons) after the names of Apostles and pious persons who had gone before them.
Hadith Reference صحيح مسلم / كتاب الآداب / 2135
Hadith Grading محدثین: أحاديث صحيح مسلم كلها صحيحة
Hadith Takhrij «أحاديث صحيح مسلم كلها صحيحة»
Related hadith on this topic
Explanation & Benefits
Shaykh Maulana Abdul Aziz Alvi
Hadith Commentary: Benefits and Issues: Lady Maryam (alayha as-salam) was addressed as ﴿يَا أُخْتَ هَارُونَ﴾ ("O sister of Harun"), even though Harun (alayhi as-salam) was the brother of Musa (alayhi as-salam), who lived a long time before Lady Maryam and Isa (alayhima as-salam). The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said that the Harun referred to here is not the brother of Musa (alayhi as-salam), but another Harun. The Children of Israel (Banu Isra'il) used to name their children after previous prophets and righteous people, and Lady Maryam was called ﴿يَا أُخْتَ هَارُونَ﴾ as a way of likening her to the piety and righteousness of that person. Otherwise, he was not her real brother. And now, according to the unanimous agreement of the scholars, it is permissible to name children after the prophets. As for the prohibition by Umar (radi Allahu anhu) regarding naming someone Muhammad, the reason was that if a person with this name were to commit some wrongful act, people would curse and criticize him, and thus, by extension, the name of the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) would be spoken ill of, which is contrary to the greatness and respect due to his name. Therefore, Umar (radi Allahu anhu) said, "Do not give this name." But when he was informed that the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) himself had named some people with this name, he remained silent.
Source: Tuhfat al-Muslim: Commentary on Sahih Muslim, Page: 5598
Shaykh Dr. Abdur Rahman Freywai
Explanation:
1:
O sister of Harun, your father was not a wicked man, nor was your mother unchaste.

2:
Then this statement is incorrect because here the address is to Maryam, and Maryam is called the sister of Harun. Harun was the brother of Musa, and there is a long interval between the times of Musa and Isa (alayhima as-salam). So how can it be correct to call Maryam the sister of Harun?

3:
That is, the Harun mentioned in the verse is Maryam's brother, and the Harun who was the brother of Musa is someone else.
Source: Sunan al-Tirmidhi – Majlis ‘Ilmi Dar al-Da‘wah, New Delhi Edition, Page: 3155