Hadith #201

Arabic Text

English Translation

Ya'qub narrated to us, my father narrated to us, from Ibn Ishaq, Husayn ibn 'Abdullah narrated to me, from 'Ikrimah, from Ibn 'Abbas (رضي الله عنهما) who said: When the people gathered to wash the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, no one was in the house except his family: his uncle al-'Abbas ibn 'Abd al-Muttalib, 'Ali ibn Abi Talib, al-Fadl ibn al-'Abbas, Qutham ibn al-'Abbas, Usamah ibn Zayd ibn Harithah, and Salih his freed slave. When they gathered to wash him, Aws ibn Khawli al-Ansari — one of the Banu 'Awf ibn al-Khazraj, who had fought at Badr — called out from behind the door to 'Ali ibn Abi Talib (رضي الله عنه) and said: "O 'Ali, I implore you by Allah and our share of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ." 'Ali said to him: "Enter." So he entered and witnessed the washing of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ but did not participate in any of the washing. 'Ali leaned the Prophet ﷺ against his chest with his shirt still on him, while al-'Abbas, al-Fadl, and Qutham turned him over with 'Ali. Usamah ibn Zayd and Salih their freed slave poured the water. 'Ali washed him, and nothing was seen of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ that is normally seen of the dead. He kept saying: "May my father and mother be sacrificed for you! How pleasant you are, alive and dead." When they finished washing the Messenger of Allah ﷺ — he was washed with water and lotus leaves — they dried him, then did with him what is done with the deceased. He was wrapped in three garments: two white cloths and a striped Yemeni cloak. Then al-'Abbas summoned two men and said: "Let one of you go to Abu 'Ubaydah ibn al-Jarrah" — who used to dig graves with a side-niche for the people of Makkah — "and let the other go to Abu Talhah" — who used to dig graves with a straight trench for the people of Madinah. Al-'Abbas said: "O Allah, choose for Your Messenger." The one sent to Abu 'Ubaydah did not find him, and the one sent to Abu Talhah found him, so he dug a straight-trench grave for the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.