Our mother, Aisha | Episode (27) | Oh Aisha, God has exonerated you

0:00 Our Mother ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her.

0:04 “As for ‘A’ishah, Allah has declared your innocence.”

0:19 The people most severely tested are the prophets, then those most like them, and then those most like them.

0:24 Our Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was tested with various trials, yet he remained patient.

0:31 Among the most difficult of these for him personally

0:33 was the slander against the honor of ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her,

0:37 which lasted for a full month during which no revelation was sent down to him.

0:42 Then, Allah revealed the innocence of ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, in the Qur’an, to be recited until the Day of Resurrection.

0:49 This trial is known as the Incident of the Slander (al-Ifk).

0:53 If we were to discuss this incident in detail, it would require more than one session.

1:00 However, we shall extract only the final portion of it,

1:03 and conclude the "O ‘A’ishah" series with it,

1:07 in the hope of meeting you in another series,

1:11 if Allah grants us and you life until the coming Ramadan, insha’Allah.

1:16 ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, says in her narration of the story of the Incident of the Slander:

1:22 “My parents were with me,

1:24 and they had not yet left when the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, entered.

1:30 He had already prayed the ‘Asr prayer.

1:31 Then he entered,

1:33 while my parents were sitting on my right and left.

1:37 He praised Allah and extolled Him, then said:

1:41 ‘To proceed:

1:42 O ‘A’ishah,

1:44 if you have committed a fault or done wrong, then repent to Allah,

1:49 for Allah accepts repentance from His servants.’

1:53 She said:

1:54 ‘A woman from the Ansar had come,

1:56 and she was sitting at the door.

1:59 I said,

2:00 “Do you not feel ashamed before this woman to mention such a thing?”’

2:05 The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, exhorted me.

2:08 I turned to my father

2:10 and said to him, ‘Answer him.’

2:12 He said,

2:13 ‘What should I say?’

2:15 I turned to my mother

2:17 and said, ‘Answer him.’

2:19 She said,

2:20 ‘What should I say?’

2:22 When they did not answer him,

2:25 I testified, praised Allah, and extolled Him as He deserves,

2:29 then I said,

2:31 ‘To proceed:

2:32 By Allah, if I were to tell you that I did not do it—

2:36 and Allah, the Almighty and Majestic, bears witness that I am truthful—

2:40 that would not benefit me with you.

2:43 You have spoken of it, and your hearts have become filled with it.

2:47 And if I were to tell you that I did do it—

2:49 and Allah knows that I did not do it—

2:52 you would surely say, “She has confessed to it herself.”

2:56 By Allah, I find no example for myself and for you

3:00 except for the father of Yusuf (Jacob), when he said:

3:02 “So patience is most fitting.”’

3:04 I could not recall his name.

3:06 [The verse: ﴾So patience is most fitting. And Allah is the one sought for help against that which you describe.﴿]

3:08 “And they came with false blood on his shirt. He said: Nay, but your minds have beguiled you into something. (My course is) comely patience. And Allah it is Whose help is to be sought in that (predicament) which ye describe.” (12:18)

3:13 Then, revelation descended upon the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, at that very moment.

3:17 We remained silent until it was lifted from him.

3:20 I could see the joy on his face

3:23 as he wiped his forehead and said,

3:26 ‘Rejoice, O ‘A’ishah!

3:28 For Allah has revealed your innocence.’

3:31 She said:

3:32 ‘I was at the height of my anger.

3:35 My parents said to me,

3:37 “Go to him.”

3:39 I said,

3:40 “No, by Allah, I will not go to him,

3:42 nor will I praise him, nor will I praise you both.

3:46 Rather, I praise Allah, who has revealed my innocence.”

3:50 You heard it,

3:51 yet you neither denied it nor changed it.’”

3:55 Narrated by al-Bukhari.

3:57 The Incident of the Slander contains many lessons.

4:01 Scholars have written dedicated works on it,

4:05 and the scholars of hadith have explained it in the books of hadith,

4:09 and the exegetes in the books of Tafsir.

4:12 The occasion does not allow for mentioning all the benefits contained in this incident,

4:17 but perhaps we can conclude these articles with some of its benefits.

4:22 The first benefit:

4:24 “You have spoken of it, and your hearts have become filled with it.”

4:29 When rumors spread in society

4:32 and everyone talks about them without verification,

4:36 this rumor turns into a perceived reality in people's souls

4:41 due to its frequent circulation and the lack of anyone denying it.

4:45 This is what ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, pointed to with this statement,

4:50 because she was certain of her innocence,

4:54 and she assumed that everyone who heard the news would be certain of her innocence.

4:59 We have a lesson in this:

5:02 we must not believe news that attacks the honor of people,

5:06 even if it spreads throughout society.

5:09 We must verify what we hear,

5:12 for the enemies of Islam are keen to spread lies about the callers to Islam

5:17 and about the scholars to tarnish their image and turn people away from them,

5:22 and to pressure them to stop speaking the truth.

5:26 The danger of these rumors to individual Muslims lies

5:30 in their believing them due to hearing them frequently without denial,

5:35 until they settle in their hearts,

5:37 causing them to think ill of the scholars of the Ummah and its callers,

5:41 and they contribute to attacking their honor without realizing it.

5:47 The second benefit:

5:49 The saying of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him:

5:52 “Rejoice, O ‘A’ishah!

5:54 For Allah has revealed your innocence.”

5:57 In another narration by al-Bukhari:

6:00 “O ‘A’ishah,

6:01 as for Allah, He has declared your innocence.”

6:04 Allah, the Almighty and Majestic, declared her innocent of what people were saying.

6:08 “Allah! There is no Allah save Him. He gathereth you all unto a Day of Resurrection whereof there is no doubt. Who is more true in statement than Allah?” (4:87)

6:12 “But as for those who believe and do good works We shall bring them into Gardens underneath which rivers flow, wherein they will abide for ever. It is a promise from Allah in truth; and who can be more truthful than Allah in utterance?” (4:122)

6:15 So, whoever attacks her honor after that

6:18 is only calling Allah a liar regarding what He declared her innocent of.

6:22 Therefore, scholars have ruled that whoever attacks the honor of ‘A’ishah

6:26 after Allah has declared her innocent

6:28 is a disbeliever, because he is denying the word of Allah, the Almighty and Majestic, in the Noble Qur’an,

6:33 which He revealed to His Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,

6:38 through Jibril the Trustworthy.

6:41 The third benefit:

6:43 The saying of ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her:

6:46 “No, by Allah, I will not go to him,

6:49 nor will I praise him, nor will I praise you both.

6:52 Rather, I praise Allah, who has revealed my innocence.”

6:56 “You heard it, yet you neither denied it nor changed it.”

7:01 ‘A’ishah was in a state of extreme anger

7:03 because of this heinous accusation made against her,

7:07 and the silence of her parents regarding her innocence and their failure to defend her.

7:11 So when Allah declared her innocent from above seven heavens,

7:15 and her mother asked her to thank the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,

7:20 for her innocence,

7:22 ‘A’ishah said these words.

7:25 The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, did not get angry with her

7:28 for this statement of hers;

7:31 rather, he excused her for what she said,

7:33 for she had recognized the truth for its rightful owner,

7:35 and directed her praise to Allah, who had revealed her innocence.

7:40 Ibn Hajar, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

7:43 “Her excuse for saying that

7:45 was what she mentioned regarding the anger that had overcome her

7:49 because they did not hasten to deny the one who said about her what he said,

7:53 despite their certainty of her good character.”

7:57 Ibn al-Jawzi said:

7:58 “She only said that

8:00 out of coquetry, just as a beloved acts toward her lover.”

8:04 It was also said:

8:05 “She pointed to the oneness of Allah, the Exalted, by her saying,

8:09 ‘He is the one who revealed my innocence,’

8:12 so it was appropriate to single Him out with praise at that moment,

8:15 and it does not necessitate abandoning praise thereafter.”

8:18 It is also possible that she adhered to the literal meaning of his saying, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, to her:

8:25 “Praise Allah.”

8:27 She understood from it a command to single out Allah, the Exalted, with praise,

8:31 so she said that.

8:32 As for the other words she added,

8:36 they were prompted by anger.

8:39 This stance of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, in excusing her for what she said

8:44 is part of his beautiful character, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,

8:48 and his kind treatment of his family.

8:50 He sought an excuse for her,

8:53 for she was the one whose honor was attacked,

8:55 people spoke against her,

8:57 and even those closest to her did not defend her,

9:00 despite their knowledge of her good conduct and the purity of her heart.

9:06 The fourth benefit:

9:08 It is a great honor for ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her,

9:12 that Allah revealed verses about her to be recited until the Day of Resurrection,

9:17 declaring her innocence of what was attributed to her.

9:21 Muslims continue to recite these verses in their prayers,

9:26 so the innocence of ‘A’ishah echoes in their ears,

9:29 softening their hearts,

9:31 and raising the status of ‘A’ishah in their souls.

9:35 Whoever does not benefit from what Allah revealed in the Qur’an

9:39 and persists in attacking her honor,

9:42 then Allah, the Almighty and Majestic, will take vengeance upon him in this world and the Hereafter.

9:47 The continuation of attacks on the honor of ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her,

9:51 is a continuation of her reward,

9:53 so that it does not cease with her death.

9:56 This is a great virtue not granted to everyone.

10:01 So praise be to Allah who revealed the innocence of ‘A’ishah in His Book,

10:06 and praise be to Allah who declared her innocent Himself,

10:09 and praise be to Allah who made her the wife of our Prophet,

10:13 and praise be to Allah who guided us to love her,

10:17 and praise be to Allah who facilitated the writing of this series about her in this blessed month,

10:24 and praise be to Allah who made us among those who love the family of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,

10:30 and defend them.

10:32 I ask Allah, the Almighty and Majestic,

10:34 to gather us with our Prophet and his family in the highest Paradise,

10:39 and to accept from us our love for the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,

10:44 and his family, from his wives and his descendants,

10:48 and to place that in the scale of our good deeds.

10:52 And our final prayer is that all praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds.

11:00 Our Mother ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her.

Our mother, Aisha | Episode (27) | Oh Aisha, God has exonerated you

Transcript