❖ Authored by: Ḥāfiẓ Muḥammad Anwar Zāhid ḥafiẓahullāh
❖ The Story
Abān narrates from Sayyidunā Anas (رضي الله عنه) that during the time of the Prophet Muḥammad ﷺ, there was a young man named ʿAlqamah who was extremely devout in worship and generous in charity. Suddenly, he fell gravely ill. His wife sent a message to the Prophet ﷺ saying that her husband was in the throes of death, and she thought it appropriate to inform him.
The Prophet ﷺ instructed Sayyidunā Bilāl, ʿAlī, Salmān, and ʿAmmār (رضي الله عنهم) to go and check on him. Upon reaching him, they tried to prompt him to recite Lā ilāha illa Allāh, but his tongue failed to utter it.
As death approached, the companions asked Sayyidunā Bilāl (رضي الله عنه) to inform the Prophet ﷺ of his condition. The Prophet ﷺ asked if ʿAlqamah’s parents were alive. It was said that his father had passed away, but his elderly mother was alive.
The Prophet ﷺ instructed:
“O Bilāl, go to ʿAlqamah’s mother, give her my salām, and tell her that if she can come to me, she should. Otherwise, I shall go to her.”
When Sayyidunā Bilāl (رضي الله عنه) conveyed this message, the mother replied:
“My soul be sacrificed for the Prophet! I will go to him.”
She arrived using a cane, greeted the Prophet ﷺ, and he returned the greeting. She sat before him.
The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Tell me the truth. If you do not, I will come to know by revelation. What was ʿAlqamah’s conduct?”
She replied:
“He used to perform a lot of prayer, fast often, and give away whatever he had in charity.”
The Prophet ﷺ asked:
“What was your relationship with him like?”
She said:
“O Messenger of Allah, I am angry with him because he prioritized his wife over me and disobeyed me.”
The Prophet ﷺ said:
“His mother’s displeasure has prevented his tongue from reciting the testimony of faith.”
Then the Prophet ﷺ said to Bilāl:
“Collect plenty of firewood so that I may burn him in front of her.”
The woman cried out:
“O Messenger of Allah, would you burn my son before my eyes? How could I bear it?”
The Prophet ﷺ responded:
“O mother of ʿAlqamah, the punishment of Allah is more severe and lasting. If you want Allah to forgive him, then be pleased with him. By the One in whose hand is my soul, neither his prayer nor charity will benefit him while you remain displeased.”
The mother raised her hands and said:
“O Messenger of Allah, I call upon Allah, you, and those present to witness that I am now pleased with ʿAlqamah.”
The Prophet ﷺ said:
“O Bilāl, go and see whether ʿAlqamah is now able to recite the testimony.”
Perhaps she only said this out of shame before me and not sincerely from her heart.
Bilāl (رضي الله عنه) returned and heard ʿAlqamah reciting Lā ilāha illa Allāh. He informed the Prophet ﷺ, who said:
“His mother’s displeasure had tied his tongue, and her approval has now untied it.”
ʿAlqamah passed away that same day. The Prophet ﷺ came, arranged his bathing and shrouding, led the funeral prayer, and stood at the edge of his grave, saying:
“O Emigrants and Helpers! Whoever gives preference to his wife over his mother, upon him is the curse of Allah, and neither his obligatory nor supererogatory deeds will be accepted.”
❖ Ḥadīth Verification
⟹ The chain of narration is fabricated (اسنادہ موضوع).
This narration is entirely concocted.
Sources:
- al-Fawāʾid al-Majmūʿah fī al-Aḥādīth al-Ḍaʿīfah wa al-Mawḍūʿah, Kitāb al-Adab, 38/686
- Narrated by al-ʿUqaylī from ʿAbdullāh ibn Abī Awfā in al-Ḍuʿafāʾ, 3/461
❖ Problems in the Chain
The foundation of this story rests on Fāʾid ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān Abū al-Waraqāʾ al-ʿAṭṭār, who is:
✔ Matrouk (abandoned)
✔ Kadhdhāb (a liar)
Statements from ḥadīth scholars:
✔ Ibn al-Jawzī:
"This story is not established (غير ثابت)."
✔ Imām Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal:
"Fāʾid is matrouk."
✔ Yaḥyā ibn Maʿīn:
"He is worthless (ليس بشيء)."
✔ Ibn Ḥibbān:
"He is not to be taken as evidence."
✔ al-ʿUqaylī:
"No one corroborates his narrations."
✔ Abū Ḥātim al-Rāzī:
"He is dhāhib al-ḥadīth (his ḥadīths are discarded), and should not be written."
In addition, Dāwūd ibn Ibrāhīm, found in the chain, is also described by Abū Ḥātim as a liar.
❖ Conclusion
This entire narrative is baseless and fabricated, relying on unreliable narrators with known accusations of lying and fabrication.
The story is frequently circulated for emotional appeal and misused to emphasize the priority of the mother in a dramatic, yet inauthentic, fashion. It must not be relied upon for deriving legal or moral conclusions.
وَاللّٰهُ أَعْلَمُ بِالصَّوَابِ
