Divorce

‘Ā’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) liked sweets and honey, and whenever he finished the ‘Asr prayer, he would visit his wives and stay closely with them, one after another. He once visited Hafsah and remained with her for longer than usual. I inquired about it, and it was said to me: ‘A woman from her tribe gifted her a leather vessel containing honey, and she gave some of it to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) to drink.’ I said: "By Allah, we will play a trick on him." So I mentioned the story to Sawdah and said to her: "When he visits you, he will come near you, whereupon you should say to him: 'O Messenger of Allah, have you eaten Maghafīr (bad-smelling gum)?' He will say: 'No.' Then say to him: 'What about this smell then?' It was very hard on the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) that a bad smell would emit from him. He will say: 'Hafsah has given me a drink of honey.' Then say to him: 'Its bees must have sucked from ‘Urfut (a foul-smelling plant).' I too will tell him the same. And you, O Safiyyah, also say the same.’ When the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) visited Sawdah, the following happened, as related by Sawdah, who said: 'By the One other than Whom there is no god, I was about to tell him what you had told me while he was still at the door, out of fear from you.’ But when the Messenger (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) came near her, she said to him: ‘O Messenger of Allah, have you eaten Maghāfīr?’ He replied: ‘No.’ ‘I said: 'What about this smell then?' He said: 'Hafsah has given me a drink of honey.' I said: 'Its bees must have sucked ‘Urfut.'’ When he visited me, I told him the same, and when he visited Safiyyah, she too said the same. When he visited Hafsah again, she said to him: ‘O Messenger of Allah, shall I give you a drink of it (the honey)?’ He said: ‘I have no desire for it.’ Sawdah said: ‘Glory be to Allah! By Allah, we have deprived him of it.’ I said to her: ‘Keep quiet!’”

Subay‘ah al-Aslamiyyah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported that she was married to Sa‘d ibn Khawlah, who belonged to the tribe of ‘Āmir ibn Lu’ay. He was one of the Companions who participated in the battle of Badr. He died during the Farewell Hajj while Subay‘ah was pregnant. Shortly after his death, she delivered her child. When her post-natal bleeding stopped, she beautified herself for prospective suitors. Abu As-Sanābil ibn Ba‘kak (a man from the tribe of Banu ‘Abd Ad-Dār) entered upon her and said: "Why are you thus adorned? Perhaps you wish to remarry? By Allah, you cannot remarry unless four months and ten days (of ‘Iddah) have passed." Subay‘ah said: "When he said that, I put on my clothes in the evening and I went to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him). I asked him about that, and he gave me a Fatwa that remarrying had became lawful to me when I delivered my child, and he ordered me to marry if I so wished." Ibn Shihāb said: "I do not find anything wrong with her marrying right after she gives birth, even if she is still bleeding (post-partum) except that her new husband should not approach her until she attains purity (when the bleeding stops).

A relative of Umm Habībah died, so she asked for a yellow perfume and wiped it over her arms and said: "I do this only because I heard the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) say: It is not lawful for a woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day to mourn for a deceased more than three [days], but for her husband, four months and ten days.'"

A relative of Umm Habībah died, so she asked for a yellow perfume and wiped it over her arms and said: "I do this only because I heard the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) say: It is not lawful for a woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day to mourn for a deceased more than three [days], but for her husband, four months and ten days.'"