Forbidding Al from Marrying the Daughter of Ab Jahl The Prophet

Forged adths in the as of al-Bukhr and Muslim

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Narrated Ab l-YamnShuayb(Ibn Shihb) al-ZuhrAl ibn usaynal-Miswar ibn

Makhramah said: Al proposed the daughter of Ab Jahl. Fimah heard of this and went to Allhs
saying: Your people think that you do not become angry for the sake of your daughters, Messenger
and Al is now going to marry the daughter of Ab Jahl. On that Allhs Messenger got up and after his
recitation of tashahhud I heard him saying: Then after! I married one of my daughters to Ab l- ibn
, before Islm) and he proved truthful in al-Rab (the husband of Zainab, the daughter of the Prophet
whatever he said to me. No doubt, Fimah is a part of me, I hate to see her being troubled. By Allh, the
and the daughter of Allhs enemy cannot be together with one man. daughter of Allhs Messenger
So Al gave up that engagement.
Muammad ibn Amr ibn alalahIbn Shihb (al-Zuhr)Al ibn al-usaynal-Miswar further
talking and he mentioned a son-in-law of his belonging to the tribe of Ban said: I heard the Prophet
Abd Shams. He highly praised him concerning that relationship and said: (Whenever) he spoke to me,
he spoke the truth, and (whenever) he promised me, he fulfilled his promise.
[a al-Bukhr, book 62: book of virtues of Companions of the Prophet (kitb fail ab al]Naby), chapter 16, adth 3729
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Narrated Amad ibn anbalYaqb ibn Ibrhmhis fatherWald ibn KathrMuammad ibn
Amr ibn alalah al-DualIbn Shihb (al-Zuhr)Al ibn al-usayn narrated that when they came
to al-Madnah from Yazd ibn Muwiyah, after the killing of al-usayn ibn Al, he was met by alMiswar ibn Makhramah who said to him: Do you have anything you want me to do? He said: I said to
him: No. He said to him: Will you give me the sword of the Messenger of Allh ?For I fear that the
people may wrest it from you. By Allh! If you give it to me I will never give it up so long as there is still
life in me. Al ibn Ab lib proposed marriage to the daughter of Ab Jahl (to be a co-wife) to Fimah,
and I heard the Messenger of Allh addressing the people concerning that, on this minbar of his, and I
had an ejaculation (mutalim) that day. He said: Fimah is part of me, and I fear lest she be put to trial
with regard to her religion.
Then he mentioned a son-in-law of his from Ban Abd Shams, and praised his behaviour as a son-inlaw. He said: When he spoke to me he told the truth, when he made me a promise he kept it, and I am
not making anything permissible forbidden or anything forbidden permissible, but by Allh, the
daughter of the Messenger of Allh and the daughter of the enemy of Allh will never be joined
together in one place.
[a Muslim, book 44: book of virtues of the Companions (kitb fail al-abah), chapter 15,
adth 95 (2449)]

Ibn Shihb al-Zuhr is alone in reporting this version of the narration

Ibn Shihb al-Zuhr is the only person reporting this version of the narration from al-Miswar ibn
Makhramah wherein proposing the daughter of Ab Jahl in marriage by Al ibn Ab lib, Fimah
getting angry about it, and the Prophet forbidding him to do so is mentioned.
All the other narrations are either void of this incident, or are either munqati (broken) or mursal
(hurried), and hence, cannot be used for corroboration. Therefore, Ibn Shihb al-Zuhr is the prime
suspect here.

1. Ibn Shihb al-Zuhr

He is Muammad ibn Muslim ibn Ubayd Allh ibn Abd Allh ibn Shihb al-Zuhr, and he has been
mentioned as reliable (thiqah) by many. But he has also been criticized by many others.

Al-Zuhr used to interpolate the text

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Al-Zuhr used to insert words in the text of the narration from his own understanding or interpretation,
as pointed out by al-Bukhr, and as cited by al-Mubrakfr in Tufah al-Awadh [vol. 2, p. 233]:
Imm al-Bukhr said in Juz al-Qirah [p. 28, adth 62]: His statement people are done with
(fa ntah al-ns) are the words of al-Zuhr. And Mlik said: Rabah said to al-Zuhr:
Whenever you narrate (a adth) then separate your words from the words of the Prophet .
And al-Hfi (Ibn ajar al-Asqaln) said in al-Talkh al-abr [vol. 1, p. 419, adth (15) 344]:
And his words people are done with till the end are interpolation by al-Zuhr. It has been made
clear by al-Khab [al-Baghdd], and is agreed upon by al-Bukhr in al-Trkh [al-Kabr] [vol. 9,
p. 38], Ab Dwd, Yaqb ibn Sufyn, al-Dhuhal, al-Khab, and others.
Al-Khab al-Baghdd said: Ms ibn Uqbah used to say to al-Zuhr: Separate your words from the
words of the Prophet . Whenever he used to narrate (a adth) he would mix it with his own words.
[Cited by al-Ambd in Awn al-Mabd Shar Sunan Ab Dwd, vol. 10, p. 472, no. 3927]
Ibn ajar al-Asqaln said in Al-Nukat al Kitb Ibn al-al [vol. 2, p. 829]: Al-Zuhr used to
expound adths too much, and would, sometimes, drop the particle of commentary (while doing so).
Sometimes, his peers would say to him: Separate your words from the words of the Prophet .

Al-Zuhr was among the mudallisn

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Al-Zuhr was among the mudallisn (those who perform tadls, i.e. concealing the identity of the
narrators in the chain (isnd) or the chain itself).
Ibn ajar al-Asqaln has included him (al-Zuhr) in the third category (al-martabah al-thlithah) of
mudallisn, describing the third category as follows: (Of those) who frequently performed tadls, so the
Imms (scholars) did not use their adths as evidence except wherein they explicitly express hearing
(sam) (the adths), and of them (the scholars) are (some) who reject their adths outright [abaqt
al-Mudallisn, p. 13]
Then while mentioning al-Zuhr he writes: Al-Shfi, al-Draqun, and many others have charged him
(al-Zuhr) with tadls. [ibid., p. 45, no. 102]

Al-Zuhr would narrate from the murderer of al-usayn

Al-Zuhr used to narrate from Umar ibn Sad, the murderer of al-usayn, the grandson of the Prophet
.

Ibn ajar al-Asqaln said in Tahdhb al-Tahdhb [vol. 7, p. 396, no. 747]: Umar ibn Sad ibn Ab
Waqq al-Zuhr, from him Al-Ijl said: He would narrate adths from his father, and people would
narrate from him, and he is a reliable successor (tbi thiqah), and he is the one who murdered alusayn. Ibn Ab Khaythamah reported from Ibn Man: How can the one who murdered al-usayn
be reliable (thiqah)?

Al-Zuhr had Umayyad leanings

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Al-Dhahab said in Siyar Alm al-Nubal [vol. 5, p. 337] about al-Zuhr: He had a great image in the
state of Ban Umayyah. Muammad ibn Ishkb said: Al-Zuhr was a soldier. I say: He was at the
rank of a commander (amr). [ibid., p. 341] Imm al-Shfi said: Mursal adths (irsl) of al-Zuhr have
no value, for we find him narrating from Sulaymn ibn Arqam. It is narrated from Makl while he
mentioned al-Zuhr: What a (great) man he was had he not corrupted himself with the company of the
kings. [ibid., p. 339]

The scholars criticized al-Zuhr

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Ibn Abd al-Barr reported Yay ibn Man lambasting al-Zuhr: He was the tax administrator of some
Umayyads (Ban Umayyah). He once lost his assets, so he accused one of his slaves for it, he then struck
him (so hard) that he died of his blow. Ibn Abd al-Barr further said: He (Yay ibn Man) made harsh
statements (about al-Zuhr) about his killing of his slave, the description of which I have omitted
[Jmi Bayn al-Ilm wa-Falihi, vol. 2, p. 1113, no. 2179]

2. Al-Miswar ibn Makhramah

He is al-Miswar ibn Makhramah ibn Nawfal ibn Ahb ibn Abd Munf al-Qarash.

Al-Miswar used to invoke blessings on Muwiyah

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Al-Dhahab said: Urwah said: I never heard al-Miswar mention Muwiyah except that he invoked
blessings on him. [Siyar Alm al-Nubal, vol. 3, p. 151]

The Khawrij (Kharijites) used to adopt the advice (opinion) of al-Miswar

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Al-Dhahab said: Al-Zubayr ibn Bakkr said: The Khawrij (Kharijites) would surround him (alMiswar) and seek his advice. [Siyar Alm al-Nubal, vol. 3, p. 391]
Ibn Askir narrated from al-Zubayr ibn Bakkr: The Khawrij would surround al-Miswar ibn
Makhramah, glorify him, and seek his opinion. [Trkh Damishq, vol. 58, p. 161; al-Dhahab, Trkh alIslm, vol. 2, p. 718]

Ibn ajar calls the narration of al-Miswar problematic and flawed

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If we scrutiny what is reported in the narration we find scholars who doubted the age of al-Miswar at the
time of this incident. Ibn ajar al-Asqaln said in Tahdhb al-Tahdhb [vol. 10, p. 137, no. 290]:
And it is mentioned in a Muslim [adth 95 (2449)] in a adth by him about the proposal of
Al to the daughter of Ab Jahl, wherein al-Miswar said: I heard the Prophet addressing the
people while I had an ejaculation (mutalim) and he mentioned the rest of it. And it is
problematic and flawed (or hard to believe) (mushkil al-makhdh), because the historians do not
differ that his birth was after the Hijrah and the incident of Al about the proposal occurred after
six or seven years after the birth of al-Miswar, so how can he be said to have an ejaculation or
reached puberty (mutalim)? Seems like he meant ejaculation (itilm) in the literal sense and that
is more sensible, and Allah knows best.
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Al-Mizz writes in Tahdhb al-Kaml f Asm al-Rijl [vol. 27, p. 5813, no. 5967] about al-Miswar:
And he was born in Makkah after two years of the Hijrah, he then came to al-Madnah at the end of Dh
l-ijjah in the eighth yearthe Year of the Conquest (of Makkah)while he was a kid of six years.
So is this the age of al-Miswar of reaching puberty that enabled him to remember this incident in its
entirety and with all its details?

Ibn ajars objection on al-Miswar

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Ibn ajar says in Fat al-Br bi-Shar a al-Bukhr [vol. 9, p. 327, adth 5230]:
And I cannot stop wondering as to how al-Miswar exaggerated in his fanaticism (or love) for Al
ibn al-usayn to the extent of saying that had he entrusted the sword with him no one would have
been able to to take it from him till his soul leaves (his body), caring for the son of Fimah while
he did not care for his emotions (or feelings), for the narration explicitly casts doubt on the
personality of Al ibn al-usayn as well as his grandfather, Al ibn Ab lib, that he dared to
propose the daughter of Ab Jahl after being married to Fimah, which required its rejection by
the Prophet !And I wonder at al-Miswar for the second time that he went to the extent of
sacrificing his life for the sword for the sake of the son of Fimahs son, while he did not sacrifice
his life in place of Fimahs sonI mean al-usayn, the father of Al ibn al-usaynat the
incident that occurred to him till he was killed at the hands of unjust rulers!
The narration by Ibn Ab Mulaykah from al-Miswar in a Muslim [adth 93 (2449)] does not
mention the proposal. It only states that Ban Hishm ibn al-Mughrah sought permission from the
Prophet to give their daughter to Al ibn Ab lib in marriage but the Prophet refused and said that
Al should divorce his daughter (Fimah) if he wanted to marry theirs.
All this leaves no doubt that additions had been made to the adth, and the signs of forgery herein are as
bright as the sun.

The argument of al-Sharf al-Murta

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The Shia scholar al-Sharf al-Murta calls this entire incident an outright fabrication, while arguing how
the Prophet could forbid Al from marrying the daughter of Ab Jahl while having up to four wives is
something permissible in Sharah. [Tanzh al-Anbiy, p. 21920]

Works cited

Ambd, Muammad Shams al-aqq, al-, Awn al-Mabd Shar Sunan Ab Dwd, 14 vols
(Medina: al-Maktabah al-Salafiyyah, 1388/1969).
Bukhr, Muammad ibn Isml, al-, a al-Bukhr (Damascus: Dr Ibn Kathr, 1423/2002).
Juz al-Qirah Khalf al-Imm (Lahore: al-Maktabah al-Salafiyyah, 1400/1980).
al-Trkh al-Kabr, or, Kitb al-Trkh al-Kabr, 9 vols (Hyderabad: Dirah al-Marif alUthmniyyah, [n.d.]).
al-Dhahab, Shams al-Dn Muammad ibn Amad, Siyar Alm al-Nubal, 25 vols ([n.p.]: Muassasah
al-Rislah, 14029/19828).
Trkh al-Islm wa-Wafayt al-Mashhr wal-Alm, 17 vols (Beirut: Dr al-Gharb al-Islm,
1424/2003).
Ibn Abd al-Barr, Ysuf ibn Abd Allh, Jmi Bayn al-Ilm wa-Falih, 2 vols ([n.p.]: Dr Ibn al-Jawz,
1414/1994).
Ibn Askir, Al ibn al-asan, Trkh Damishq, or, Trkh Madnah Damishq, 80 vols (Beirut: Dr alFikr, 1415/1995).
Ibn ajar al-Asqaln, al-Talkh al-abr f Takhrj Adth al-Rfi al-Kabr, 4 vols (Cairo:
Muassasah Qurubah, 1416/1995).
Al-Nukat al Kitb Ibn al-al, 2 vols (Medina: al-Jmiah al-Islmiyyah, 1404/1984).
abaqt al-Mudallisn, or, Tarf Ahl al-Taqds bi-Martib al-Mawfn bil-Tadls (Amman:
Maktabah al-Manr, [1403/4]/1983).
Tahdhb al-Tahdhb, 14 vols (Beirut: Dr al-Fikr, 1404/1984).
Fat al-Br bi-Shar a al-Bukhr, 13 vols ([n.p.]: al-Maktabah al-Salafiyyah, 1379/[1959]).
Mizz, Ysuf ibn Abd al-Ramn, al-, Tahdhb al-Kaml f Asm al-Rijl, 35 vols (Beirut: Muassasah
al-Rislah, 1413/1992).
Mubrakfr, Abd al-Ramn, al-, Tufah al-Awadh bi-Shar Jmi al-Tirmidh, 10 vols ([n.p.]: Dr
al-Fikr, [n.d.]).
Muslim ibn al-ajjj al-Qushayr, a Muslim, 2 vols (Riyadh: Dr aybah, 1427/2006).
Sharf al-Murta, Al ibn al-usayn, al-, Tanzh al-Anbiy (Qum: Intishrt al-Sharf al-Ra,
1376/[1956]).

Shees Hassan Shaikh

shees1993@rediff.com