Musnad Imam Shafi'i

It is narrated from Humaid bin Nafi’ that Zainab bint Abi Salama related three hadiths to him. She said that Zainab (may Allah be pleased with her) narrated: I came to Umm al-Mu’minin Umm Habibah (may Allah be pleased with her) at the time when her father Abu Sufyan had passed away. Umm Habibah (may Allah be pleased with her) asked for perfume in which there was a yellowish tinge of khaluq or something else mixed in it. Then a slave girl applied it to her, then she herself applied it to her cheeks, and then said: “By Allah! I had no desire for perfume, but I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: ‘It is not permissible for a woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day to mourn for anyone for more than three days, except for her husband (for whom the mourning period is) four months and ten days.’”

And Zainab narrated that after that I came to Zainab bint Jahsh (may Allah be pleased with her) when her brother had passed away, so she called for perfume and applied it, then said: "By Allah! I had no desire for perfume, but I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say from the pulpit that it is not permissible for any woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day to mourn for any deceased person for more than three days, except for her husband, for whom the mourning period is four months and ten days."

And Zainab narrated that I heard from my mother, Umm Salama (may Allah be pleased with her), she said: A woman came to the Prophet ﷺ and said, “O Messenger of Allah ﷺ! My daughter’s husband has passed away, and her eyes are in bad condition. Can she apply kohl?” The Messenger of Allah ﷺ replied, “No,” and said it two or three times, each time saying, “No.” Then he said, “The (prescribed waiting period) is four months and ten days. In the time of ignorance, you used to throw dung after a year.” (Meaning, in the time of ignorance, the waiting period was a year, and now you cannot be patient for four months and ten days.) Zainab (may Allah be pleased with her) said: When a woman’s husband died (in the time of ignorance), she would enter a small room and wear the worst clothes, and would not use perfume or anything else until a year passed in that state. Then, to come out of the waiting period, an animal—a donkey, goat, or some bird—would be brought, and she would hold it. It was rare that she would hold a part of the animal and it would not die. Then she would come out of the waiting period, and she would be given dung, which she would throw away. Then she would use perfume or something else. Imam Shafi’i (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “Hifsh” means a small house made of hair or bricks, and “al-qabs” means to hold a part of the animal with your fingers, and “qabz” means to hold with the whole palm.

Narrated by Aisha and Hafsa (may Allah be pleased with them): The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: "It is not permissible for a woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day to mourn for any deceased person for more than three days, except for her husband, for whom the mourning period is four months and ten days."