Gardens of the Righteous — Page 139
RIYADH AS-SALIHIN 139. I met Abu Bakr and said to him: If you should be willing I would give Hafsah in marriage to you. Abu Bakr remained silent and did not say a word. which went harder with me than the reaction of Usman. I had waited only a few days when the Holy Prophet asked for her hand in marriage and I married her to him. Thereafter when Abu Bakr met me he said: You might perhaps have been offended when you made the proposal about Hafsah and I said nothing in reply. I said: Yes, that is so. He said: The only thing that stood in my way was that the Holy Prophet had mentioned her and I could not disclose the Holy Prophet's secret. Had the Holy Prophet not made an offer, I would have agreed to the proposal (Bokhari). 690. Ayesha relates that on one occasion when all the wives of the Holy. Prophet were with him together, his daughter Fatimah came in walking. She walked exactly like the Holy Prophet. When he saw her he welcomed her and asked her to be seated at his side and whispered something to her at which she sobbed violently. When he perceived her grief he whispered to her again at which she smiled. I said to her: The Holy Prophet chose you, leaving aside his wives, to speak secretly to you and yet you cried! When he left I asked her:. What did the Holy Prophet say to you? She said: I will not reveal the secret of the Holy Prophet. When the Holy Prophet died I said to her: I adjure you by the right I have in respect of you to tell me what the Holy Prophet told you. . She said: Now, yes. When he whispered to me the first time he told me that every year Gabriel used to hear him recite the Quran and then recite it back to him once or twice, and that this time he had done it twice. He said: I see that my time is now approaching. Then be mindful of your duty to Allah and be steadfast, for I shall be an excellent forerunner for you. On this I cried as you saw. When he perceived my distress he whispered to me the second time and said: Fatimah, are you not pleased that you will be the first among the believing women; on which I smiled as you saw (Bokhari and Muslim). 691. Thabit relates that Anas said: The Holy Prophet chanced upon me when I was playing among the boys and greeted us and despatched me on an errand for him which delayed my return to my mother. When I got to her she asked: What had detained you? I said: The Holy Prophet sent me on an errand. She asked: What was the errand? I said: It was secret. She said: Do not tell anyone the secret of the Holy Prophet. Anas said to Thabit: Were I to tell it to anyone I would tell you (Muslim). 86. . On Fulfilment of Covenants. Allah, the Exalted, has said: 240. Fulfil every covenant, for you will be called to account for it (17. 35).