logo

| 2 Bukhari hadiths

3218
Narrated Ibn `Abbaas(may Allah be pleased with him): Allah's Messengerﷺasked Gabriel, "Why don't you visit us more often than you do?" Then the following Holy Verse was revealed (in this respect):-- {And we (angels) descend not but by the order of your Lord. To Him belong what is before us and what is behind us, and what is between those two, and your Lord was never forgetful} ." (19.64)
.

Commentary : The Prophet ﷺwould long to meeting Gabriel more often; therefore, he ﷺ encouraged him to visit him more often when he asked him: “Why don't you visit us more often than you do?” This is because the Prophet ﷺ hoped that Gabriel would come down to him with revelation more often, as he longed to hear the Words of Allah, Exalted be He.Thereupon, Allah, Most High, revealed: {We only descend by the command of your Lord. To Him belongs whatever is before us, and whatever is behind us, and everything in between. And your Lord is never forgetful.} [Quran 19:64].Angels come down with revelation only by Allah’s command, for He knows whatever is before them, and whatever is behind them; we do not move from one place to another except by Allah’s command and do not descend at any time except by Allah’s command. He knows everything, and nothing escapes His knowledge, for He transcends forgetfulness and heedlessness.

This hadeeth shows that one should ask the righteous to visit him at home to benefit from their company.

.

3219
Narrated Ibn `Abbaas(may Allah be pleased with him): Allah's Messengerﷺsaid, "Gabriel read the Quran to me in one way, and I continued asking him to read it in different ways till he read it in seven different ways."
.

Commentary : The Prophet ﷺ would teach his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) the Quran and help them to master it perfectly. He ﷺ would recite it to them in different ways corresponding to many different dialects of Arabs in order to facilitate its recitation for Muslims.

In this hadeeth, the Prophetﷺ mentions that Gabriel (peace be upon him) - the angel that conveys Allah’s revelation to His Prophets and Messengers – would send down the Quran to him and recite it to him in one way. However, the Prophet ﷺ continued to ask Gabriel to recite it for him in other ways until he recited it to him in seven different ways upon receiving the order from Allah, the Exalted, to make its recitation easier for his nation. Whoever recites the Quran in any of the seven ways, his recitation is accepted and valid.

The scholars differed on the intended meaning of the seven different ways, and there are many views. The most likely correct ones are that they refer to seven Arab dialects, seven different aspects of words that give the same meaning, or they are seven different ways that are nothing more.

This hadeeth proves the Prophet ﷺ recited the Quran in different ways..

3220
Narrated Ibn `Abbaas(may Allah be pleased with him): Allah's Messengerﷺwas the most generous of all the people, and he used to be more generous in the month of Ramadan when the angel Gabriel used to meet him. Angel Gabriel used to meet him every night in Ramadan to teach him the Quran. Allah's Messengerﷺused to become more generous than the fast wind when he met angel,Gabriel..

Commentary : Generosity is of different levels, the highest of which is extravagant generosity, where a person gives others without being asked to. The Prophet ﷺ was the most extravagant giver and most generous person.

In this hadeeth, Ibn ‘Abbaas (may Allah be pleased with him) reports that the Prophet ﷺ was the most generous of all the people, and he used to be more generous in the month of Ramadan. He was like that in Ramadan because he would meet the archangel Gabriel (peace be upon him) – the angel that conveys Allah’s revelation to His Prophets and Messengers – and he wouldrevisethe Quran he memorised with the angel Gabriel. Ibn ‘Abbaas (may Allah be pleased with him) remarks that the Prophet ﷺ was more generous,even more than the seasonal wind that Allah sends todrive clouds to bring forthrainand mercy.

It is reported that Gabriel (peace be upon him) used to revise the Quran with the Prophet ﷺ once a year, but that he did it twice in the year during which he ﷺpassed away.

The hadeeth encourages us to be generous at all times and shows us that visiting righteous people and sitting with them brings forth goodness and piety.

It highlights that one should be more generous in his giving and recite the Quran more than usual during the month of Ramadan.

The hadeeth highlights the virtue of Ramadan and encourages us to revise and study the Quran..

3226
Narrated Aboo Talhah: The Prophetﷺsaid, "The Angels do not enter a house wherein there is a picture."
Busr said, "Later on, Zayd ibn Khaalid fell ill, and we called on him. To our surprise, we saw a curtain decorated with pictures in his house. I said to Ubaydullah Al-Khawlaanee, "Didn't he (i.e. Zayd) tell us about the (prohibition of) pictures?" He said, "But he excepted the embroidery on garments. Didn't you hear him?" I said, "No." He said, "Yes, he did."
.

Commentary : Angels are honoured creatures that do not disobey Allah at all and obey all His orders; thus, their presence in any place brings forth blessings to the people of the place.

In this hadeeth, Aboo Talhah al-Ansaaree (may Allah be pleased with him) reports that the Prophet ﷺ said: “The Angels do not enter a house wherein there is a picture.” The angels referred to in this hadeeth are those who convey Allah’s mercy and blessings and ask Allah’s forgiveness for people; they are not the recording angels. The pictures referred to in the hadeeth are the images of humans and animals and not inanimate beings and plants.The reason angels do not enter a house that contains a picture or a dog is that such pictures are forbidden, and they imitate the creation of Allah, the Exalted.

Then the Taabi’ee Busr ibn Sa’eed, the sub-narrator of this hadeeth, mentioned that Zayd ibn Khaalid fell ill after he narrated to them this hadeeth and that he went with ‘Ubaydullah al-Khawlaanee to visit him. To their surprise, they found a curtain decorated with pictures in his house. ‘Ubaydullah clarified to Busr that Zayd ibn Khaalid added that the Prophet ﷺ excepted embroidery on garments. ‘Ubaydullah asked if he had heard it, but Busr replied that he had not. Thereupon, ‘Ubaydullah confirmed to him that he had narrated it. It has been said there is an exception due to the necessity for people to have garments and that some images are allowed in objects thatare not treated with respect since even the ignorant will not glorify that which is not treated with respect. The opposite has been said for objects that are treated with respect, considered a luxury and not a necessity,or that which remains permanently like engraving images into rocks and making sculptures;that they are forbidden and imitate the creation of Allah. .

3227
Narrated ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar: Once Gabriel promised the Prophetﷺ (that he would visit him, but Gabriel did not come) and later on he said, "We, angels, do not enter a house which contains a picture or a dog."
.

Commentary : Angels are assigned different roles, duties, and functions. One kind of them accompany people all the time, and their duty is to record all of our good and bad deeds. Andthey are the ones referred to in the Quran: {not a word does a person utter without having a (vigilant) observer ready ˹to write it down˺} [Quran 50:18]. Other angels are assigned to bring down Allah’s mercy and blessings upon people who engage in Allah’s remembrance.

In this hadeeth, ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) reports that the archangel Gabriel (peace be upon him) – who is assigned to send down Allah’s revelation to His Prophets and Messengers – promised the Prophet ﷺ to visit him at a specific time, as further explained in Saheeh al-Bukhaaree, but he did not show up. Afterwards, when the Prophet ﷺ asked him about it, he explained that angels do not enter a house that contains dogs or pictures (explained as being of living beings like animals and humans). This does not include the pictures of creatures that have no soul, like plants and inanimate beings.

It is reported on the authority of Aboo Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "Jibreel came to me and said: "Indeed I had come to you last night, and nothing prevented me from entering upon you at the house you were in, except that there were images of men at the door of the house, and there was a curtain screen with images on it, and there was a dog in the house. So go and sever the head of the image that is at the door so that it will become like a tree stump and go, and cut the screen and make two throw-cushions to be sat upon, and go and expel the dog." So, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ did so.” [Sunan Aboo Dawood and Sunan al-Tirmithee]. According to the report in Sunan al-Nisaa’iee, it reads: “You should either cut off their heads or make it into a rug to be stepped on.” It is said that the reason angels do not enter a house that contains a picture or a dog is that such pictures are forbidden, and they imitate the creation of Allah, the Exalted. For that reason, the one who commits such a sin is punished by the disallowance of angels to enter his house; thus, he is deprived of their blessing, prayers, and protection from the evil of Satan. Likewise, angels do not enter a house in which there is a dog, and this seems applicable to all types of dogs, including those that we are allowed to keep, like hunting and security dogs – since they are not meant to be kept inside the house. The house that angels visit and enter basks in serenity and security as it gives a sign that it is a house of goodness and Imaan..