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(Book 29, Hadith 103) #36319
Mourning Customs in the Jahiliyya Period

SUMMARY: This hadith explains the customs of the Jahiliyya period, where a woman would observe a period of mourning for her deceased husband and then break her idda by rubbing herself against an animal.

Zaynab said, "I heard my mother, Umm Salama, the wife of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, say that a woman came to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and said, 'Messenger of Allah! My daughter's husband died, and her eyes are troubling her, can she put kohl on them?' The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, 'No' two or three times. Then he said, 'It is only four months and ten days. In the Jahiliyya, none of you threw away the piece of dung until a year had passed'. " Humayd ibn Nafi said, "I asked Zaynab to explain what 'throwing away the piece of dung at the end of a year' meant. Zaynab said, 'In the Jahiliyya when a woman's husband died, she went into a small tent and dressed in the worst of clothes. She did not touch perfume or anything until a year had passed. Then she was brought an animal - a donkey, a sheep, or a bird, and she would break her idda with it, by rubbing her body against it (Taftaddu). Rarely did she break her idda with anything (by rubbing herself against it) but that it died. Then she would come out and would be given a piece of dung. She would throw it away and then return to whatever she wished of perfumes or whatever'. " Malik explained, 'Taftaddu' means to wipe her skin with it in the same way as with a healing charm".
قَالَتْ زَيْنَبُ وَسَمِعْتُ أُمِّي أُمَّ سَلَمَةَ، زَوْجَ النَّبِيِّ تَقُولُ جَاءَتِ امْرَأَةٌ إِلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ فَقَالَتْ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ إِنَّ ابْنَتِي تُوُفِّيَ عَنْهَا زَوْجُهَا وَقَدِ اشْتَكَتْ عَيْنَيْهَا أَفَتَكْحُلُهُمَا فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ‏"‏ لاَ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ مَرَّتَيْنِ أَوْ ثَلاَثًا كُلُّ ذَلِكَ يَقُولُ ‏"‏ لاَ ‏"‏ ثُمَّ قَالَ ‏"‏ إِنَّمَا هِيَ أَرْبَعَةُ أَشْهُرٍ وَعَشْرًا وَقَدْ كَانَتْ إِحْدَاكُنَّ فِي الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ تَرْمِي بِالْبَعْرَةِ عَلَى رَأْسِ الْحَوْلِ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ قَالَ حُمَيْدُ بْنُ نَافِعٍ فَقُلْتُ لِزَيْنَبَ وَمَا تَرْمِي بِالْبَعْرَةِ عَلَى رَأْسِ الْحَوْلِ فَقَالَتْ زَيْنَبُ كَانَتِ الْمَرْأَةُ إِذَا تُوُفِّيَ عَنْهَا زَوْجُهَا دَخَلَتْ حِفْشًا وَلَبِسَتْ شَرَّ ثِيَابِهَا وَلَمْ تَمَسَّ طِيبًا وَلاَ شَيْئًا حَتَّى تَمُرَّ بِهَا سَنَةٌ ثُمَّ تُؤْتَى بِدَابَّةٍ حِمَارٍ أَوْ شَاةٍ أَوْ طَيْرٍ فَتَفْتَضُّ بِهِ فَقَلَّمَا تَفْتَضُّ بِشَىْءٍ إِلاَّ مَاتَ ثُمَّ تَخْرُجُ فَتُعْطَى بَعْرَةً فَتَرْمِي بِهَا ثُمَّ تُرَاجِعُ بَعْدُ مَا شَاءَتْ مِنْ طِيبٍ أَوْ غَيْرِهِ

TOPICS
mourning  *  customs  *  rubbing  *  idda  *  adat  *  aljahililyyah  *  taftaddu  *  jahiliyya

QUICK LESSONS:
Respect traditions even if you don't understand them fully , Understand cultural practices from past eras , Show compassion towards animals .

EXPLANATIONS:
This hadith explains the customs of mourning observed by women in the pre-Islamic era known as Al-Jahiliyyah. According to this hadith, when a woman's husband died, she would go into seclusion for four months and ten days. During this time, she was not allowed to use any perfumes or dress up nicely. After this period ended, she was given an animal such as a donkey or sheep which she would rub against her body to break her Idda period. Rarely did it happen that the animal survived after being rubbed against her body. After breaking her Idda with this ritual, she was given a piece of dung which symbolized that all ties with her deceased husband were broken and then she could return to using perfumes or dressing up nicely again. This hadith teaches us about respecting traditions even if we do not understand them fully because they are part of our culture and history as Muslims.

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