❖ Authored by: Ḥāfiẓ Muḥammad Anwar Zāhid ḥafiẓahullāh
❖ The Alleged Incident
Imām al-Suyūṭī رحمه الله reports that Imām Ibn al-Mundhir narrated from Ibn Jurayj, who stated:
Someone informed us that Abū Quḥāfah, the father of Abū Bakr al-Ṣiddīq رضي الله عنه, once uttered indecent words about the Prophet ﷺ. As a result, Abū Bakr رضي الله عنه struck him with a powerful slap, causing him to fall down.
This matter was then brought to the attention of the Prophet ﷺ. He asked:
“O Abū Bakr, did you do this?”
Abū Bakr رضي الله عنه replied:
“By Allah, had a sword been near me, I would have surely struck him with it.”
The Prophet ﷺ remained silent, and then the following verse was revealed:
لَا تَجِدُ قَوْمًا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الْآخِرِ...
[Surah al-Mujādilah: 22]
❖ Ḥadīth Verification
⟹ The chain is fabricated (إسناده موضوع).
This narration is fabricated and has no authentic basis.
- It is mentioned in Tafsīr al-Durr al-Manthūr under the tafsīr of the above verse.
- Though it is also found in al-Qurṭubī's Tafsīr, none of the major scholars have cited a complete chain (isnād) for it.
- Our contemporary storytellers and public speakers often narrate this incident, but it lacks any credible chain of transmission.
See: Khuṭabāt Rabbānī, p. 280.
Conclusion:
This narration — that Abū Bakr رضي الله عنه struck his father Abū Quḥāfah for disrespecting the Prophet ﷺ — is fabricated and baseless. It is not permissible to affirm or preach it as historical fact.
وَاللهُ أَعْلَمُ بِالصَّوَابِ
