Book 31: The Rajm of a married lady pregnant through illegal sexual intercourse

Sahih al-Bukhari 6830

Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah narrated to us that Ibrahim bin Sa'd told me. He narrated from Salih (bin Kaisan), Salih from Zuhri, he from Ubaidullah bin Abdullah bin Utbah bin Mas'ud, Ubaidullah from Hazrat Ibn Abbas (ra). He said: I used to teach the Qur’an to several men of the Emigrants (Muhajirin). Among them was Hazrat Abdur Rahman bin Auf (ra). Once I was in his house at Mina, and he had gone to Hazrat Umar bin Khattab (ra). This incident belongs to the last Hajj which Hazrat Umar (ra) performed. When Hazrat Abdur Rahman (ra) came back to me, he said: “If only you had seen the man who came to the Commander of the Faithful today and said: ‘Commander of the Faithful, have you heard about so-and-so, who says: If Hazrat Umar (ra) dies, I shall pledge allegiance to so-and-so. By Allah, the pledge of allegiance to Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) took place just like that, in haste, by mistake, and it was carried through.’ (Hearing this) Hazrat Umar (ra) was grieved. Then he said: ‘If Allah wills, I shall stand among the people this evening and warn them against those people who want to take their affairs into their own hands by force.’” Hazrat Abdur Rahman (ra) used to say: I said: “Commander of the Faithful, do not do that, for in the Hajj common people of every kind, good and bad, gather together, and when you stand among the people, it is these very people who will gather close to you. I fear that whatever you say when you stand up, those who spread talk may spread something else about you, and people may not understand it and may not apply it in its proper place. Wait until you reach Medina, for it is the place of migration (Hijrah) and of the Sunnah. Take aside the people of understanding and nobility and say calmly what you have to say. The people of knowledge will understand what you say and will apply it in its proper place.” Hazrat Umar (ra) said: “Very well. By Allah, the first time I stand up to deliver a sermon in Medina, I shall, if Allah wills (In sha Allah), state this matter.” Hazrat Ibn Abbas (ra) used to say: We reached Medina at the end of Dhul Hijjah. When it was Friday, as soon as the sun had declined, I came quickly (to the mosque). (Arriving) there, I found Sa'id bin Zaid bin Amr bin Nufail (ra) sitting by the pulpit. I too sat down beside him; my knee was touching his knee. I had waited only a short while when Hazrat Umar bin Khattab (ra) came out. When I saw him coming towards us, I said to Sa'id bin Zaid bin Amr bin Nufail (ra): “Today Hazrat Umar (ra) will say something he has not said since he became Khalifah.” He did not accept what I said and said: “It is not to be expected that he will say anything he has not said before.” Hazrat Umar (ra) sat on the pulpit. When those calling the Adhan fell silent, he stood up and praised Allah as He deserves. Then he said: “Now then, I am about to tell you something which it was decreed for me that I should say. I do not know; perhaps this saying is close to my death. So whoever understands this saying and remembers it well, let him relate it wherever his she-camel takes him; and whoever fears that he has not understood it, I do not permit anyone to tell lies about me. Allah sent Muhammad (saw) with the truth and sent down the Book upon him (saw), and among the commandments which Allah sent down is the command of stoning (Rajm). We read this command, we understood it and we remembered it well. The Messenger of Allah (saw) too carried out stoning, and we too carried out stoning after him (saw). And I fear that so long a time may pass over people that someone will say: ‘By Allah, we do not find the command of stoning in the Book of Allah,’ and then they will go astray by abandoning an obligation which Allah sent down. And according to the Book of Allah the punishment of stoning is absolutely binding on the one who commits adultery, provided that he is married, whether men or women, provided that the proof is established, or there is pregnancy, or there is a confession. Then in what we used to read in the Book of Allah we also used to read this: ‘Do not turn away from your forefathers, for it would be ingratitude on your part to turn away from your forefathers,’ or he said: ‘it would certainly be ingratitude on your part that you turn away from your forefathers.’ Listen, then the Messenger of Allah (saw) also said: ‘Do not exaggerate in praising me as Jesus son of Mary (as) was exaggerated in praise, but say: He is the servant of Allah and His Messenger.’ Then the news has reached me that someone among you says: ‘By Allah, if Umar (ra) dies, I shall pledge allegiance to so-and-so.’ So let no one be deceived into saying that the pledge of allegiance to Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) took place just like that, in haste, and was carried through. Listen, that pledge did indeed take place in haste in this way, but Allah kept (us) safe from the evil of that haste, and there is no one among you like Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra), to whom people would come riding on camels. Whoever pledges allegiance to any man without consultation with the Muslims, allegiance is not to be pledged to him nor to the one who pledged allegiance to him; as a result both of them will lose their lives. And (in fact) our incident took place thus: when Allah caused the Prophet (saw) to die, the Ansar (Helpers) differed from our opinion and all gathered together in the Saqifah of the Banu Sa'idah, and Ali (ra) and Zubair (ra) and those who were with them also differed from us. And the Emigrants gathered and came to Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra). I said to Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra): ‘Abu Bakr (ra), come, let us go to these brothers of ours, the Ansar.’ We set off, making for them. When we came near them, two righteous men from among them met us and mentioned the counsel on which those people had unanimously agreed, and they said: ‘O company of Emigrants, where do you want to go?’ We said: ‘We want to meet these brothers of ours, the Ansar.’ The two of them said: ‘By no means. It is proper for you not to go to them. Decide yourselves whatever you have to decide.’ I said: ‘By Allah, we shall certainly go to them.’ Saying this we set off and reached them in the Saqifah of the Banu Sa'idah. And behold, there was a man among them wrapped in a sheet. I said: ‘Who is this?’ The people said: ‘This is Sa'd bin Ubadah (ra).’ I asked: ‘What is the matter with him?’ The people said: ‘He has a fever.’ When we had sat for a little while, their speaker recited the testimony of faith (Kalimah Shahadah) and praised Allah as He deserves. Then he said: ‘Now then, we are the helpers (Ansar) of Allah and the army of Islam, and you, O company of Emigrants, are a small number of people; a small group came out from your people. And what is this, that those people now want to uproot us and, patting us on the back, separate us from this Khilafat?’ When he fell silent, I wanted to speak, and I too had prepared a speech which seemed excellent to me. I wanted to deliver it before Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) and to remove to some extent Hazrat Abu Bakr's (ra) distress. When I wanted to speak, Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) said: ‘Wait a little.’ And I disliked displeasing him, and Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) made a speech, and he was wiser and more dignified than I. By Allah, whatever point had seemed excellent to me in my mind, he said the same extempore, or said something better than it, and having said it he fell silent. He said this: ‘What you have said about your merits, you are indeed worthy of it, but this Khilafat will never be acknowledged for anyone except this clan of the Quraish. In lineage and family they are the highest of all the Arabs, and I have chosen for you one of these two men; pledge allegiance to whichever of the two you wish.’ Saying this, he took hold of my hand and the hand of Abu Ubaidah bin Jarrah (ra), and he was sitting between us. Apart from this I disliked nothing of what he said. By Allah, it was such that if I had been brought forward and my neck struck off, so that this death would not let me come near any sin, I would have liked that better than becoming the leader of a people among whom was Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra). It would be another matter if at the time of death my self were to present something else to me as attractive, which I do not now find within me. Thereupon one of the Ansar spoke up: ‘In this matter I am the post against which (camels) rub themselves, and I am the fruit-bearing date palm with a fence around it. O company of Quraish, let there be one leader from us and one leader from you.’ At this there was great clamour, and voices were raised so high that I feared a split might occur. I said: ‘Abu Bakr (ra), stretch out your hand.’ So he stretched out his hand. I pledged allegiance to him, and the Emigrants pledged allegiance to him; after that the Ansar pledged allegiance to him. And we went to Sa'd bin Ubadah (ra), and one of the Ansar said: ‘You have killed Sa'd bin Ubadah (ra).’ I said: ‘Allah has killed Sa'd bin Ubadah (ra).’” Hazrat Umar (ra) used to say: “And by Allah, in the counsel for which we had come we found nothing more necessary than the pledge of allegiance to Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra). We feared that if we left the people in a state where there was no pledge of allegiance, they might, after us, pledge allegiance to some man from among themselves, and then either we would have pledged allegiance to him in a state of not liking it, or we would have opposed him, and this would have led to disorder. Therefore, whoever pledges allegiance to any man without consultation with the Muslims, he is not to be followed, nor is the one who pledged allegiance to him to be followed, lest both of them lose their lives.”

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