Sunday Open Thread 1-17-2010 | A Reminder

As salamu alaykum wa Rahmat Allahi wa Barakatuhu.

posted by abu abdAllah Tariq Ahmed

A reminder:

Umm Salamah said: “Abu Salamah came to me one day after being with the Messenger of Allāh (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) and said: 'I heard from the Messenger of Allāh (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) something that made me very happy. He said, “There is no calamity that befalls one of the Muslims and he responds by saying 'Inna Lillahi wa inna ilahi raji'oon (Truly, to Allāh we belong, and truly, to Him we shall return),' then he says, 'Allahumma ujurni fi museebati w'ukhluf li khayran minha (O Allāh, reward me in this calamity and compensate me with something better than it),' but Allāh will do that for him.”'”

Umm Salamah said: “I learnt this from him, and when Abu Salamah died, I said, 'Inna Lillahi wa inna ilahi raji'oon,' then , 'Allahumma ujurni fi museebati w'ukhluf li khayran minha,' Then I thought to myself, where could I find anyone better than Abu Salamah? When my 'iddah (waiting-period) was over, the Messenger of Allāh (sallallahu alayhi wa
sallam) asked permission to see me, whilst I was busy dyeing a hide. I washed the qaraz (a kind of dye derived from a certain plant) from my hands and granted him permission, putting out for him a leather cushion stuffed with palm fibres. He sat down on it, and asked for my hand in marriage. When he had finished what he had to say, I said: 'O Messenger of Allāh, I do not want you to lose interest in me, but I am a very jealous woman, and I am afraid that you may see in me something that could earn me the punishment of Allāh. I am also a woman who is ageing, and I have children.' He said, 'As for the jealousy you mentioned, Allāh will take this away from you (according to another report: as for you saying that you are a jealous woman, I will pray to Allāh to take away your jealousy). As for what you say about age, the same applies to me as to you. As for your children, your children are my children.' So I accepted his offer and the Messenger of Allāh (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) married me. Allāh gave me someone even better than Abu Salamah, namely the Messenger of Allāh (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam).”

Okay, to be fair, that one hadith contains many reminders. :) The hadith can be found at islamqa.com.