Muwatta Imam Malik (Riwayat Yahya)

Hazrat Abu Sa’ib, who was the freed slave of Hisham bin Zuhrah, narrates (he says): I went to Sayyiduna Abu Sa’id Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him), he was praying, I sat down, waiting for him to finish the prayer. Meanwhile, I heard a rustling under his bed, and when I looked, it was a snake. I got up to kill it. Sayyiduna Abu Sa’id (may Allah be pleased with him) gestured for me to sit down (from this it is known that gesturing in prayer is permissible). When he finished the prayer, he pointed towards a small room and said: Do you see that room? I said: Yes! Sayyiduna Abu Sa’id Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) said: A young man used to live in that room who had recently married. He went with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) to the Battle of the Trench, then suddenly he came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! Grant me permission (to go home), I have recently married. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) gave him permission and said: “Go with your weapon, for I fear Banu Qurayza.” (Banu Qurayza were those Jews who, during the Battle of the Trench, turned away from obedience to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and intended for weapons and war). That young man went with his weapon, and when he reached home, he saw his wife standing at the door. Out of jealousy, he raised his spear to strike her, but she said: Do not be hasty, go into your house and see what is in it. He went into the house and saw a snake coiled up on his bed. The young man pierced the snake with his spear and pulled it out, and left the spear standing in the house. The snake kept twisting on the tip of the spear, and the young man died at that very moment. It was not known whether the snake died first or the young man died first. When this incident was narrated to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), he said(1): “In Madinah, those jinn have become Muslims(2), so when you see a snake, warn it for three days(3), and if it appears after that, then kill it, for it is a devil(4).”