Beginning of the Musnad of Ibn Abbas

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The best of your kohls is ithmid; use it at the time of sleep, for it makes the hair (of the eyelashes) grow and brightens the eyesight. And the best of your clothes are white ones, so wear them yourselves and shroud your dead in them."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) sent Sayyiduna Arqam bin Abi Arqam al-Zuhri (may Allah be pleased with him) to collect some of the charity (as an official). He passed by Sayyiduna Abu Rafi' (may Allah be pleased with him) and asked him to come along with him. Then he came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and mentioned this to him, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Abu Rafi'! Indeed, charity is unlawful for Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and for the family of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), and the mawla (freed slave) of a people is from among them, or from their own selves."

Qays bin Habtar (may Allah have mercy on him) narrates: I asked Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) about white, green and red earthen jars. He said: The first to ask the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) about this was the delegation of Abd al-Qays, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Do not drink from gourd vessels, pitch-coated jars, hollowed wooden vessels or green jars, nor drink from earthen jars; rather, drink from water-skins." They said: Then pour water over it. Then, on the third or fourth time, he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Pour it out." Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, Allah Almighty has forbidden for me (or he said: has forbidden (absolutely)) wine, gambling and the kubah, and every intoxicant is unlawful." Sufyan (may Allah have mercy on him) said: I asked Ali bin Badhimah (may Allah have mercy on him): What is the "kubah"? He replied that it means "the drum".

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade the use of naqir, dubba' and muzaffat (such vessels) and said: "Drink only from vessels." So the people made (water-skins) from camel hides and made their necks from sheep hide. When this reached the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Drink only from a vessel whose upper part is also made of the same (material)."

Abu Rafi' (may Allah have mercy on him) narrates that Abu Lu'lu'ah was the slave of Sayyiduna al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah (may Allah be pleased with him), and he used to make hand-mills. Sayyiduna al-Mughirah (may Allah be pleased with him) used to take four dirhams from him every day (as levy). One day Abu Lu'lu'ah met Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) and said: "O Commander of the Believers! Al-Mughirah has made my levy very heavy on me; speak to him so that he reduces it for me." Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said to him: "Fear Allah and do good to your master," while it was the intention of Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) to meet Sayyiduna al-Mughirah (may Allah be pleased with him) himself and speak to him about reducing it. But the slave became angry and said: "His justice extends to all people except me." So he firmly resolved to kill him, and he made a two-headed dagger, sharpened it well and poisoned it. Then he brought it to al-Hurmuzan and asked: "How do you find this?" He said: "I think that whomever you strike with it, he will be killed." The narrator says: Then Abu Lu'lu'ah waited for an opportunity until he came at the time of the morning prayer and stood behind Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him). It was the practice of Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) that when the iqamah for the prayer was called, he would say to those behind him: "Straighten your rows." Then, when he said the takbir, Abu Lu'lu'ah struck him in his shoulder and his side, and Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) fell. He also wounded thirteen other men with his dagger, of whom seven died and six recovered. Then Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) was carried to his house, and the people were so distressed that the sun was about to rise. Then Sayyiduna Abd al-Rahman bin Awf (may Allah be pleased with him) called out: "O people! The prayer, the prayer, the prayer!" So the people turned to the prayer, and Sayyiduna Abd al-Rahman bin Awf (may Allah be pleased with him) went forward and led them in prayer with the two shortest surahs of the Qur'an. When he finished the prayer, they all came to Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him). He asked for a drink so that the nature of the wound could be known. So date-water (nabidh) was brought, and when he drank it, it came out through the wound, and it could not be known whether it was blood or the drink. Then milk was brought, and after he drank it, it too came out of the wound. The people said: "O Commander of the Believers! There is nothing to fear." He said: "If being killed is something to fear, then I have been killed." The people began to praise him, saying: "May Allah reward you with good, O Commander of the Believers! You were like this, and you accomplished such deeds." Then when one group left, another would come and praise him. Then Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "By Allah! In spite of all that you are saying, my wish is that I leave this (world) even, with nothing against me and nothing in my favour, and that the companionship of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) remains safe for me." Meanwhile Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) was present at his head; he was as close to him as if he were a member of his household, and he was learned in the Qur'an. Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: "By Allah! You will not leave it merely even (rather, you will attain a great reward). You remained in the company of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and kept the best of companionship; you were a great helper to him (peace and blessings be upon him), until, when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) passed away, he was pleased with you. Then you remained with the successor (khalifah) of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) (Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, may Allah be pleased with him). Then you yourself became the ruler, and you discharged the responsibilities of the caliphate in the best manner." Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) was finding comfort in the words of Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both), so he said: "O Ibn Abbas! Repeat these words of yours to me again." He repeated them, and Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "By Allah! In spite of what you are saying, if today I had gold equal to the expanse of the earth, I would give it as ransom to be saved from the terror of what lies ahead. I have left the matter of the caliphate to the consultation of six people: Sayyiduna Uthman, Sayyiduna Ali, Sayyiduna Talhah bin Ubaydullah, Sayyiduna al-Zubayr bin al-Awwam, Sayyiduna Abd al-Rahman bin Awf and Sayyiduna Sa'd bin Abi Waqqas (may Allah be pleased with them all), and I have placed Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) with them only as an adviser, but he will not be a candidate for the caliphate." He gave them a respite of three days and ordered Sayyiduna Suhayb (may Allah be pleased with him) to lead the people in prayer.

Abu Jamrah (may Allah have mercy on him) narrates that he used to sit in the gathering of Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) and used to keep people away from him (that is, manage the crowd). He says: I was absent from his gathering for a few days, so he asked me: "What kept you away?" I said: "I could not attend because of a fever." He said to me: the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, fever is from the spreading heat of Hell, so cool it off from yourselves with the water of Zamzam."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that he saw Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) performing ablution, and Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) addressed him, saying: "O Ibn Abbas! Do you know why I am performing ablution? The fact is that I ate some pieces of dried cheese (aqit) (so I am performing ablution)." Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: "By Allah! I do not know on what basis you have performed ablution. As for me, I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) eat bread and meat, then stand up for the prayer, and he did not perform ablution (anew)."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that he said: "I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) eating meat off a bone; then the mu'adhdhin came to him, so he (peace and blessings be upon him) put it down, then he (peace and blessings be upon him) stood up for the prayer and did not touch water (that is, he did not perform ablution again)."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that "The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade branding (animals) on the face. So when Sayyiduna al-Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) heard this blessed instruction, he branded (his animals) on both sides of the hindquarters."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: "I am ruined!" He (peace and blessings be upon him) asked: "What has ruined you?" He said: "Last night I turned my saddle around (that is, I had intercourse with my wife from behind, in the place of the front)." The narrator says: the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) gave him no reply, until this verse was revealed to him (peace and blessings be upon him): "Your wives are a tilth for you, so come to your tilth however you wish." Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Come (in the place of childbirth) from the front or from behind, but avoid the anus and (intercourse during) menstruation."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the sister of Sayyiduna Uqbah bin Amir (may Allah be pleased with him) had vowed to perform Hajj on foot. So he asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) about it, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, is free of need of your sister's vow; she should ride and offer a camel (badanah) as a sacrifice."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I have been forbidden to pray behind people who are talking (among themselves) or who are sleeping."

Yazid bin Hurmuz (may Allah have mercy on him) narrates that Najdah al-Haruri, when he had rebelled during the turmoil in the time of Sayyiduna Abdullah bin al-Zubayr (may Allah be pleased with them both), sent a message to Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) asking him about the share of the near relatives (dhawi al-qurba, the relatives of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)): to whom did he consider it to belong? Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: "It is the share of the relatives of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), which the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) distributed among them. Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) once offered us something from it which we considered less than our full right, so we returned it to him and refused to accept it. What Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) offered them was that he would financially help those of them who married, pay off the debts of those of them in debt, and give to their poor; but he refused to add anything more to that."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that when this blessed verse was revealed: "And those who accuse chaste women and then do not bring four witnesses, flog them eighty lashes and never accept their testimony, and it is they who are the defiantly disobedient," Sayyiduna Sa'd bin Ubadah (may Allah be pleased with him), the chief of the Ansar, said: "O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! Is this how it was revealed?" The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) addressed the Ansar and said: "O company of the Ansar! Do you not hear what your chief is saying?" They said: "O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! Do not blame him, for he is a very jealous man. By Allah! Whenever he married a woman she was a virgin, and whenever he divorced a woman none of us dared to marry her because of the intensity of his jealousy." At this Sayyiduna Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "By Allah, O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! I certainly know that it is the truth and that it is from Allah Almighty, but I was amazed that if I were to find a wicked man beside my wife, would it not be permissible for me to stir him or move him until I bring four witnesses? By Allah! By the time I go to bring witnesses, he will have fulfilled his need." The narrator says: Only a little time had passed when Sayyiduna Hilal bin Umayyah (may Allah be pleased with him) came (he was one of the three whose repentance was accepted). He had come from his field at the time of Isha and found a strange man with his wife. He saw with his own eyes and heard with his own ears, but he did not disturb him until morning. As soon as morning came, he went to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: "O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! I came home at the time of Isha and found a man there; I saw with my own eyes and heard with my own ears." The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) disliked what he said, and the matter weighed heavily on him (peace and blessings be upon him). The Ansar gathered and said: "We have been afflicted with the very trial that Sayyiduna Sa'd bin Ubadah (may Allah be pleased with him) mentioned; now the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) will impose the punishment for slander on Sayyiduna Hilal bin Umayyah (may Allah be pleased with him) and declare his testimony void among the Muslims." At this the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "By Allah, by Allah! I hope that Allah will make a way out for me in this matter." Sayyiduna Hilal (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! I see that the news I have brought has weighed very heavily on you (peace and blessings be upon him), but Allah knows that I am truthful." By Allah! The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was just about to order that he be flogged when revelation began to descend upon him (peace and blessings be upon him). Whenever revelation descended upon him (peace and blessings be upon him), the Companions would recognise it from the change in the colour of his blessed skin, so they held back from him (peace and blessings be upon him) until the revelation ended, and these verses were revealed: "And those who accuse their wives and have no witnesses except themselves" (to the end of the passage). Then that state of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) passed, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Rejoice, O Hilal! Allah Almighty has made relief and a way out for you." Sayyiduna Hilal (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "This is what I hoped for from my Lord." The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Summon that woman." So she was summoned, and when she came, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) recited these verses, admonished them both and warned them that the punishment of the Hereafter is far more severe than the punishment of this world. Sayyiduna Hilal (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "By Allah, O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! I have spoken the truth about her." The woman said: "He has lied." Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Have them perform li'an (mutual cursing) between them." He (peace and blessings be upon him) said to Sayyiduna Hilal (may Allah be pleased with him): "Testify." So he testified four times, swearing by Allah, that he was among the truthful. When the fifth time came, it was said to him: "O Hilal! Fear Allah, for the punishment of this world is lighter than the punishment of the Hereafter, and this fifth testimony will make the punishment binding on you." He said: "By Allah! Allah Almighty will not punish me for it, just as He saved me from being flogged (for slander)." So he testified the fifth time that the curse of Allah be upon him if he was among the liars. Then it was said to the woman: "Testify." She testified four times, swearing by Allah, that he (Hilal) was among the liars. When the fifth time came, it was said to her: "Fear Allah, for the punishment of this world is lighter than the punishment of the Hereafter, and this fifth testimony will make the punishment binding on you." She hesitated for a while, then said: "By Allah! I will not disgrace my people." So she gave the fifth testimony that the wrath of Allah be upon her if he (Hilal) was among the truthful. Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) separated them and decreed that her child would not be attributed to a father, nor would her child be accused, and that whoever accused her or her child would be subject to the prescribed punishment for slander. He (peace and blessings be upon him) also decreed that she had no right to housing or maintenance from her husband, because they had separated neither through divorce nor through the husband's death. Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "If she gives birth to a child that is reddish, with a small back, thin hips and thin shins, then he is Hilal's; and if she gives birth to one that is dusky, curly-haired, heavily built, with fleshy shins and broad buttocks, then he belongs to the man she has been accused with." The child was born dusky, curly-haired, heavily built, with fleshy shins and broad buttocks. So the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Were it not for these sworn testimonies, I would have dealt with her in a particular way." Ikrimah (may Allah have mercy on him) said: That boy later became the governor (amir) of Egypt, and he was not attributed to any father.

A similar narration is also reported from Yazid bin Harun (may Allah have mercy on him).

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Any Muslim man who has two daughters and treats them with kindness and goodness for as long as they remain with him or he remains with them, they will surely admit him into Paradise (by the grace of Allah)."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whomever you find committing bestiality with an animal, kill him and kill the animal along with him; and whomever you find doing the deed of the people of Lut (sodomy), kill both the one who does it and the one to whom it is done."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that on the day of Arafah he invited Sayyiduna al-Fadl bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) to a meal, and he said: "I am fasting." At this Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: "Do not fast, for on this day (of Arafah) a vessel of milk was brought to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and he (peace and blessings be upon him) drank it; and indeed the people follow your example."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that he said: "I prayed the eclipse prayer behind the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and during that prayer I did not hear a single letter (of recitation) from him (peace and blessings be upon him)."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that this blessed saying of Allah Almighty: "O you who believe, obey Allah and obey the Messenger ((peace and blessings be upon him)) and those of you who are in authority" was revealed concerning Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Hudhafah bin Qays bin Adi (may Allah be pleased with him), when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sent him as the commander of a sariyyah (military detachment). Ibn Jurayj (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Ya'la bin Muslim narrated this report to me through Sa'id bin Jubayr (may Allah have mercy on him) from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both).

It is narrated from Tawus (may Allah have mercy on him), attributing this hadith to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) (that is, as a mursal report), that he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Nothing (better) like marriage has been seen for two people who love each other." Since this report is narrated from Tawus (may Allah have mercy on him), it is technically mursal, because the Companion through whom it came is not mentioned in it.

It is narrated from Ubayd bin Sa'd (may Allah have mercy on him), attributing it to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), that he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever loves my fitrah (natural way) should follow my Sunnah, and marriage is part of my Sunnah."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both): Abu al-Sahba' (may Allah have mercy on him) said: I was with Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both), and we mentioned the things that break the prayer. The people said: "A donkey and a woman." At this Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: "A boy from Banu Abd al-Muttalib and I came riding together on a donkey, while the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was leading the people in prayer in an open field. We left the donkey in front of the people praying, then we came and joined the rows, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) paid no attention to that. Also, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was leading the people in prayer when two little girls of Banu Abd al-Muttalib came running, fighting with each other. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) took hold of them and separated one from the other, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) paid no attention to that either."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Jibril (peace be upon him) led me in prayer twice at the House (of Allah). He prayed Zuhr when the sun had passed its zenith and the shadow was the size of a sandal strap; then he prayed Asr when the shadow of everything was equal to its own height; then he led me in Maghrib when the fasting person breaks his fast; then he led me in Isha when the red twilight had disappeared; and he prayed Fajr when food and drink become forbidden to the fasting person. Then on the next day he prayed Zuhr when the shadow of everything was equal to it, then he prayed Asr when the shadow of everything was twice its length, then he led me in Maghrib at the same time, when the fasting person breaks his fast, that is, at one and the same time on both days; then he prayed Isha when the first third of the night had passed; then he prayed Fajr (the narrator said: I do not remember what words he used for it). Then Jibril (peace be upon him) turned to me and said: O Muhammad, this is the prayer time of the prophets (peace be upon them) before you, and the (proper) time lies between these two times."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever combines two prayers without an excuse has committed one of the doors of the major sins. And whoever conceals testimony by which the wealth of a Muslim is seized or his blood is shed has made Hell(fire) obligatory (for himself)." Or as he (peace and blessings be upon him) said.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Aishah, whoever of my Ummah has two (young deceased) children sent ahead of him will enter Paradise because of them." Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: "May my father be sacrificed for you, and the one who has only one child (sent ahead)?" He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "And the one who has one child sent ahead (will also enter Paradise), O you who are granted success!" She asked again: "May my father be ransomed for you, then the person of your Ummah who has no child (who died in childhood) sent ahead?" He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I am the one who goes ahead for my Ummah (as a provision for the Hereafter), for they will never be afflicted with any calamity like (the calamity of losing) me."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "It is as if I am looking at him: he is black and bow-legged, pulling it (that is, the Ka'bah) out stone by stone."

Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) said concerning the saying of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, "La'amruka": "Its meaning is 'By your life.'"

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever asks you for something by the Face of Allah (wajh Allah), give him; and whoever seeks refuge with you by Allah, grant him refuge."