What is Sahih Muslim 5972 about?

This hadith from Sahih Muslim (Book of The Book of Virtues), narrated by Anas reported that Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) happened to pass by the people who had been busy in grafting the trees. Thereupon he said:, states: "If you were not to do it, it might be good for you. (So they abandoned this practice) and there was a decline in the yield. He (the Holy Prophet) happened to pass by them (and said): What has gone wro…"

Is this hadith authentic?

This hadith is graded Sahih. Sahih hadiths are considered the most authentic grade in hadith classification.

Which collection is this hadith from?

This hadith is from Sahih Muslim, which contains 7,459 hadiths across 57 books. It is hadith number 5972 in the Book of The Book of Virtues.

I searched for a different number — is this the right hadith?

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#5971

#5972

Sahih Muslim

#5973

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Sahih Muslim #5972

The Book of Virtues

Sahih

The Arabic includes the chain of narration (sanad) and the collector's commentary; the English translation shows the Prophet's words only.

حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو بَكْرِ بْنُ أَبِي شَيْبَةَ، وَعَمْرٌو النَّاقِدُ، كِلاَهُمَا عَنِ الأَسْوَدِ بْنِ عَامِرٍ، - قَالَ أَبُو بَكْرٍ حَدَّثَنَا أَسْوَدُ بْنُ عَامِرٍ، - حَدَّثَنَا حَمَّادُ بْنُ سَلَمَةَ، عَنْ هِشَامِ بْنِ عُرْوَةَ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، عَنْ عَائِشَةَ، وَعَنْ ثَابِتٍ، عَنْ أَنَسٍ، أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صلى الله عليه وسلم مَرَّ بِقَوْمٍ يُلَقِّحُونَ فَقَالَ ‏"‏ لَوْ لَمْ تَفْعَلُوا لَصَلُحَ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ قَالَ فَخَرَجَ شِيصًا فَمَرَّ بِهِمْ فَقَالَ ‏"‏ مَا لِنَخْلِكُمْ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ قَالُوا قُلْتَ كَذَا وَكَذَا قَالَ ‏"‏ أَنْتُمْ أَعْلَمُ بِأَمْرِ دُنْيَاكُمْ ‏"‏ ‏.‏

If you were not to do it, it might be good for you. (So they abandoned this practice) and there was a decline in the yield. He (the Holy Prophet) happened to pass by them (and said): What has gone wrong with your trees? They said: You said so and so. Thereupon he said: You have better knowledge (of a technical skill) in the affairs of the world.

Narrated by Anas reported that Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) happened to pass by the people who had been busy in grafting the trees. Thereupon he said:

Context

Anas reported an incident where the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ observed people grafting trees and commented on their practices. Initially, he suggested that not grafting might be beneficial, but later acknowledged that they were more knowledgeable about their worldly affairs. This interaction reflects the balance between divine guidance and human expertise.

Modern Application

This hadith encourages us to value both spiritual guidance and practical knowledge. In our daily lives, we should seek advice from experts in their fields while also considering spiritual principles that guide our decisions.

Topics

This hadith is tagged with Prophetic Conduct and Seeking Knowledge because it illustrates the Prophet's ﷺ respect for human expertise while also providing spiritual insight.

Prophetic Conduct Seeking Knowledge