What is Sunan Abu Dawud 785 about?

This hadith from Sunan Abu Dawud (Book of Prayer (Kitab Al-Salat)), narrated by ‘Urwah reported on the authority of ‘A’ishah mentioning the incident of slander. She said:, states: "The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) sat and unveiled his face and said: “I take refuge in Allah, All-Hearing, All-Knowing from the accursed devil. Lo! They who spread the slander are a gang among you.” Abu D…"

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 Sunan Abu Dawud, which contains 5,276 hadiths across 43 books. It is hadith number 785 in the Book of Prayer (Kitab Al-Salat).

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

Hadith numbering varies across editions and translations (USC-MSA, Dar as-Salam, Fath al-Bari, and others). If you followed a link citing a different number but landed here, you may have been redirected to the canonical version in our library. If you were looking for a different hadith entirely, use the search bar to find it by text.

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#784

#785

Sunan Abu Dawud

#786

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Sunan Abu Dawud #785

Prayer (Kitab Al-Salat)

Sahih

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

حَدَّثَنَا قَطَنُ بْنُ نُسَيْرٍ، حَدَّثَنَا جَعْفَرٌ، حَدَّثَنَا حُمَيْدٌ الأَعْرَجُ الْمَكِّيُّ، عَنِ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ، عَنْ عُرْوَةَ، عَنْ عَائِشَةَ، وَذَكَرَ الإِفْكَ، قَالَتْ جَلَسَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم وَكَشَفَ عَنْ وَجْهِهِ وَقَالَ ‏"‏ أَعُوذُ بِالسَّمِيعِ الْعَلِيمِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ ‏{‏ إِنَّ الَّذِينَ جَاءُوا بِالإِفْكِ عُصْبَةٌ مِنْكُمْ ‏}‏ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ الآيَةَ ‏.‏ قَالَ أَبُو دَاوُدَ وَهَذَا حَدِيثٌ مُنْكَرٌ قَدْ رَوَى هَذَا الْحَدِيثَ جَمَاعَةٌ عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ لَمْ يَذْكُرُوا هَذَا الْكَلاَمَ عَلَى هَذَا الشَّرْحِ وَأَخَافُ أَنْ يَكُونَ أَمْرُ الاِسْتِعَاذَةِ مِنْ كَلاَمِ حُمَيْدٍ ‏.‏

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) sat and unveiled his face and said: “I take refuge in Allah, All-Hearing, All-Knowing from the accursed devil. Lo! They who spread the slander are a gang among you.” Abu Dawud said: This is a rejected (munkar) tradition. A group of narrators have reported this tradition from al-Zuhri; but did not mention this detail. I am afraid the phrase concerning “seeking refuge in Allah” is the statement of Humaid.

Narrated by ‘Urwah reported on the authority of ‘A’ishah mentioning the incident of slander. She said:

Context

In this narration, Aisha recounts how the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) would take a bath and then perform two rak'ahs of prayer without performing ablution again. This indicates the Prophet's practice of maintaining a state of purity after bathing, which provides insight into the relationship between bathing and prayer in Islamic practice.

Modern Application

This hadith highlights the flexibility in performing daily salah, especially regarding the necessity of wudu after bathing. It encourages individuals to understand their personal circumstances and the context of their worship.

Topics

This hadith is tagged with Prayer because it illustrates the connection between bathing and the act of prayer, showing how the Prophet (ﷺ) approached these practices.

Ethics of Speech Slander