Sunan Abu Dawud

Narrated AbuHurayrah: The Prophet (ﷺ) said: The testimony of a nomad Arab against a townsman is not allowable

Uqbah bin al-Harith said:"I married Umm Yahya daughter of Abu Ihab. A black woman entered upon us. She said that she had suckled both of us. So I came to the Prophet (ﷺ), and amentioned it to him. He turned away from me. I said (to him): Messenger of Allah! she is a liar. He said: What do you know? She has said what she has said. Separate yourself from her (wife)

The tradition mentioned above has also been transmitted by 'Uqbah bin al-Harith to the same effect through a different chain of narrators. Abu Dawud said:Hammad bin Zaid looked at al-Harith bin 'Umair and said: He is from reliable narrators from Ayyub

Ash-Sha'bi said:A Muslim was about to die at Daquqa', but he did not find any Muslim to call him for witness to his will. So he called two men of the people of the Book for witness. Then they came to Kufah, and approaching AbuMusa al-Ash'ari they informed him (about his) will. They brought his inheritance and will. Al-Ash'ari said: This is an incident (like) which happened in the time of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and never occurred after him. So he made them to swear by Allah after the afternoon prayer to the effect that they had not misappropriated, nor told a lie, nor changed, nor concealed, nor altered, and that it was the will of the man and his inheritance. He then executed their witness

Narrated Abdullah Ibn Abbas: A man from Banu Sahm went out with Tamim ad-Dari and Adi ibn Badda'. The man of Banu Sahm died in the land where no Muslim was present. When they returned with his inheritance, they (the heirs) did not find a silver cup with lines of gold (in his property). The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) administered on oath to them. The cup was then found (with someone) at Mecca. They said: We have bought it from Tamim and Adi. Then two men from the heirs of the man of Banu Sahm got up and swore saying: Our witness is more reliable than their witness. They said that the cup belonged to their man. He (Ibn Abbas) said: The following verse was revealed about them: "O ye who believe! when death approaches any of you

Narrated Uncle of Umarah ibn Khuzaymah: The Prophet (ﷺ) bought a horse from a Bedouin. The Prophet (ﷺ) took him with him to pay him the price of his horse. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) walked quickly and the Bedouin walked slowly. The people stopped the Bedouin and began to bargain with him for the horse as and they did not know that the Prophet (ﷺ) had bought it. The Bedouin called the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) saying: If you want this horse, (then buy it), otherwise I shall sell it. The Prophet (ﷺ) stopped when he heard the call of the Bedouin, and said: Have I not bought it from you? The Bedouin said: I swear by Allah, I have not sold it to you. The Prophet (ﷺ) said: Yes, I have bought it from you. The Bedouin began to say: Bring a witness. Khuzaymah ibn Thabit then said: I bear witness that you have bought it. The Prophet (ﷺ) turned to Khuzaymah and said: On what (grounds) do you bear witness? He said: By considering you trustworthy, Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)! The Prophet (ﷺ) made the witness of Khuzaymah equivalent to the witness of two people

Ibn 'Abbas said:The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) gave a decision on the basis of an oath and a single witness

The tradition mentioned above has also been transmitted by 'Amr bin Dinar through a different chain of narrators and to the same effect. Salamah has in his version:'Amr said: In the rights (of the people)

Narrated AbuHurayrah: The Prophet (ﷺ) gave a decision on the basis of an oath and a single witness. Abu Dawud said: Al-Rabi' bin Sulaiman al-Mu'adhdhin told me some additional words in this tradition: Al-Shafi'i told me from 'Abd al-'Aziz. I then mentioned it fo Suhail who said: Rabi'ah told me - and he is reliable in my opinion - that I told him this (tradition) and I do not remember it. 'Abd al-'Aziz said: Suhail suffered from some disease which caused him to lose a little of his intelligence, and he forgot some of his traditions. Thereafter Suhail would narrate traditions from Rabi'ah on the authority of his father

The tradition mentioned above has also been transmitted by Rabi'ah through the chain of Abu Mus'ab and to the same effect. Sulaiman said:I then met Suhail and asked him about this tradition. He said: I do not know it. I said to him: Rabi'ah transmitted it to me from you. He said: If Rabi'ah transmitted it to you from me, then retransmit it from Rabi'ah on my authority

Narrated Zubayb ibn Tha'labah al-Anbari: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) sent an army to Banu al-Anbar. They captured them at Rukbah in the suburbs of at-Ta'if and drove them to the Holy Prophet (ﷺ). I rode hurriedly to the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) and said: Peace be on you, Messenger of Allah, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings. Your contingent came to us and arrested us, but we had already embraced Islam and cut the sides of the ears of our cattle. When Banu al-Anbar arrived, the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) said to me: Have you any evidence that you had embraced Islam before you were captured today? I said: Yes. He said: Who is your witness? I said: Samurah, a man from Banu al-Anbar, and another man whom he named. The man testified but Samurah refused to testify. The Holy Prophet (ﷺ) said: He (Samurah) has refused to testify for you, so take an oath with your other witness. I said: Yes. He then dictated an oath to me and I swore to the effect that we had embraced Islam on a certain day, and that we had cut the sides of the ears of the cattle. The Holy Prophet (ﷺ) said: Go and divide half of their property, but do not touch their children. Had Allah not disliked the wastage of action, we should not have taxed you even a rope. Zubayb said: My mother called me and said: This man has taken my mattress. I then went to the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) and informed him. He said to me: Detain him. So I caught him with a garment around his neck, and stood there with him . Then the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) looked at us standing there. He asked: What do you intend (doing) with your captive? I said: I shall let him go free if he returns to this (man) the mattress of his mother which he has taken from her. He said: Prophet of Allah (ﷺ), I no longer have it. He said: The Holy Prophet (ﷺ) took the sword of the man and gave it to me, and said to him: Go and give him some sa's of cereal. So he gave me some sa's of barley

Narrated AbuMusa al-Ash'ari: Two men claimed a camel or an animal and brought the case to the Holy Prophet (ﷺ). But as neither of them produced any proof, the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) declared that they should share it equally

The tradition mentioned above has also been transmitted by Sa'id through a different chain of narrators to the same effect

The tradition mentioned above has also been transmitted by Qatadah through a different chain of narrators to the effect that two men laid claim camel and both of them produced witness so the prophet (peace be upon him) divided it in halves between them

Narrated AbuHurayrah: Two men disputed about some property and brought the case to the Holy Prophet (ﷺ), but neither of them could produce any proof. So the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) said: Cast lots about the oath whatever it may be, whether they like it or dislike it

Abu hurairah reported the holy prophet (peace be upon him) as saying:When two men dislike the oath or like it,lots will be cost about it. Salamah said on the authority of Ma’mar who said: when the two are compelled to take an oath

The tradition mentioned above has also been transmitted by sa’id b. ‘Urubah through the chain as narrated by Ibn Minhal. This version has :About an animal and they had no proof. So the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) ordered to cast lots about the oath

Ibn Abi Mulaikah said:Ibn ‘Abbas wrote to me that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)had defendant should take an oath

Narrated Abdullah ibn Abbas: The Holy Prophet (ﷺ) said to a man whom he asked to take an oath: Swear by Allah except whom there is no god that you have nothing belonging to him, i.e. the plaintiff

Al-Ash’ath b. Qais said:A Jew and I shared some land and he denied my right, so I took him to the holy prophet (ﷺ). The holy prophet (ﷺ) said to me: Have you have proof. I said: No. He then said to the Jew: Swear an oath I said Messenger of Allah,he will swear an oath and go off my property. So Allah sent down: “Those who barter for a small price Allah’s covenant and their oaths...." to the end of the verse

Al-Ash’ath b. Qais said:A men from Kindah and a men from Hadramawt came to the Holy Prophet(ﷺ)with their dispute about a land in the Yemen. The Hadrami said: Messenger of Allah, the this (man)had usurped land belonging to me, and it is his possession. He asked: Have you any proof ?He replied:No, but I can have him swear on oath. Allah knows that it is my land, and father seized it from me. The Kindi was prepared to take oath. He then narrated the rest of the tradition

‘Alqamah b. Wa’il b. Hujr al-Hadrami said on the authority of the father:A man from Hadramaw and a man from kindah came to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). The hadrami said: Messenger of Allah, this (man) has seized land which belonged to my father. Al-Kindi said: That is my land in my possession and I cultivate it; he has no right to it. The Holy prophet (may be peace upon him) said to the Hadrami: Have you any proof? We said : No. he (the Prophet)said: Then he will swear an oath for you . He said: Messenger of Allah, he is a reprobate and he would not care to swear to anything and stick at nothing. He said: That is only your recourse

Abu Hurairah said:The holy Prophet (ﷺ) said to the Jew : I adjure you by Allah Who sent down the Torah to Moses ! do you not find in the Torah(a rule about a man) who commits adultery. He then narrated the rest of the tradition relating to the stoning

The tradition mentioned above has also been transmitted by al-Zuhri through a different chain of narrator. This version has:A man from Muzainah who followed the knowledge and memorized it to me that sa’id b.al-Musayyab transmitted it. He then mentioned the rest of the tradition to the same effect

Narrated Ikrimah: The Holy Prophet (ﷺ) said to Ibn Suriya': I remind you by Allah Who saved you from the people of Pharaoh, made you cover the sea, gave you the shade of clouds, sent down to you manna and quails, sent down you Torah to Moses, do you find stoning (for adultery) in your Book? He said: You have reminded me by the Great. It is not possible for me to belie you. He then transmitted the rest of the tradition

Narrated Awf ibn Malik: The Holy Prophet (ﷺ) gave a decision between two men, and the one against whom the decision was given turned away and said: For me Allah sufficeth, and He is the best dispenser of affairs. The Holy Prophet (ﷺ) said: Allah, Most High, blames for falling short, but apply intelligence, and when the matter gets the better of you, say; For me Allah sufficeth, and He is the best disposer of affairs

Narrated Ash-Sharid: The Prophet (ﷺ) said: Delay in payment on the part of one who possesses means makes it lawful to dishonour and punish him. Ibn al-Mubarak said that "dishonour" means that he may be spoken to roughly and "punish" means he may be imprisoned for it

Narrated Grandfather of Hirmas ibn Habib: I brought my debtor to the Holy Prophet (ﷺ). He said to me: Stick to him. He again said to me: O brother of Banu Tamim, what do you want to do with your prisoner

Bahz bin Hakim, on his father's authority, said that his grandfather told that the Prophet (ﷺ) imprisoned a man on suspicion

Bahz ibn Hakim reported from his grandfather:(Ibn Qudamah's version has: His grandfather's brother or uncle reported:) - the narrator Mu'ammal said: - He (his grandfather Mu'awiyah) got up before the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) who was giving sermon: and he said: Why have your companions arrested my neighbours? He turned away from him twice. He (his grandfather Mu'awiyah) then mentioned something. The Holy Prophet (ﷺ) then said: Let his neighbours go. (Mu'ammal did not mention the words "He was giving sermon)

Narrated Jabir ibn Abdullah: I intended to go (on expedition) to Khaybar. So I came to the Holy Prophet (ﷺ), greeted him and said: I am intending to go to Khaybar. He said: When you come to my agent, you should take from him fifteen wasqs (of dates). If he asks you for a sign, then place your hand on his collar-bone

Narrated AbuHurayrah: The Prophet (ﷺ) said: If you dispute over a pathway, leave the margin of seven yards

Abu Hurairah reported the Holy Prophet(ﷺ) as saying:When one of you asks permission for inserting a wooden peg in his wall, he should not prevent him. So they (the people) lowered down their heads. Then he (Abu Hurairah) said: What is the matter ? I am seeing you are neglecting (to hear this tradition), I shall spread it among you. Abu Dawud said:This is the tradition of Ibn Abi Khalaf is more perfect

Narrated AbuSirmah: The Prophet (ﷺ) said: If anyone harms (others), Allah will harm him, and if anyone shows hostility to others, Allah will show hostility to him

Abu Ja'far Muhammad bin 'Ali reported from Samurah ibn Jundub that he had a row of palm-trees in the garden of a man of the Ansar. The man had his family with him. Samurah used to visit his palm-trees, and the man was annoyed by that and felt it keenly. So he asked him (Samurah) to sell them to him, but he refused. He then asked him to take something else in exchange, but he refused. So he came to the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) and mentioned it to him. The Holy Prophet (ﷺ) asked him to sell it to him, but he refused. He asked him to take something else in exchange, but he refused. He then said:Give it to him and you can have such and such, mentioning something with which he tried to please him, but he refused. He then said: You are a nuisance. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) then said to the Ansari: Go and uproot his palm-trees

Narrated Abdullah ibn az-Zubayr: A man disputed with az-Zubayr about streamlets in the lava plain which was irrigated by them. The Ansari said: Release the water and let it run, but az-Zubayr refused. The Holy Prophet (ﷺ) said to az-Zubayr: Water (your ground), Zubayr, then let the water run to your neighbour. The Ansari then became angry and said: Messenger of Allah! it is because he is your cousin! Thereupon the face of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) changed colour and he said: Water (your ground), then keep back the water till it returns to the embankment. Az-Zubayr said: By Allah! I think this verse came down about that: "But no , by thy Lord! they can have no (real) faith, until they make thee judge

Narrated Tha'labah ibn AbuMalik: Tha'labah heard his elders say that a man from the Quraysh had his share with Banu Qurayzah (in water). He brought the dispute to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) about al-Mahzur, a stream whose water they shared together. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) then decided that when water reached the ankles waters should not be held back to flow to the lower

Amr bin Shu'aib on his father's authority said that his grandfather told that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) decided regarding the stream al-Mahzur that its water should be held back till it reached the ankles, and that the upper waters should then be allowed to flow to the lower

Narrated AbuSa'id al-Khudri: Two men brought their dispute about the precincts of a palm-tree to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). According to a version of this tradition, he ordered to measure and it was measured. It was found seven yards. According to another version, it was found five yards. He made a decision according to that. AbdulAziz said: He ordered to measure with a branch of its branches. It was then measured

Narrated Kathir ibn Qays: Kathir ibn Qays said: I was sitting with AbudDarda' in the mosque of Damascus. A man came to him and said: AbudDarda, I have come to you from the town of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) for a tradition that I have heard you relate from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). I have come for no other purpose. He said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: If anyone travels on a road in search of knowledge, Allah will cause him to travel on one of the roads of Paradise. The angels will lower their wings in their great pleasure with one who seeks knowledge, the inhabitants of the heavens and the Earth and the fish in the deep waters will ask forgiveness for the learned man. The superiority of the learned man over the devout is like that of the moon, on the night when it is full, over the rest of the stars. The learned are the heirs of the Prophets, and the Prophets leave neither dinar nor dirham, leaving only knowledge, and he who takes it takes an abundant portion

The tradition mentioned above has also been transmitted by Abu al-Darda through a different chain of narrators to the same effect from the Holy Prophet (ﷺ)

Abu Hurairah reported the Prophet (ﷺ) as saying:If anyone pursues a path in search of knowledge, Allah will thereby make easy for him a path to paradise; and he who is made slow by his actions will not be speeded by his genealogy

Narrated AbuNamlah al-Ansari: When he was sitting with the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and a Jew was also with him, a funeral passed by him. He (the Jew) asked (Him): Muhammad, does this funeral speak? The Prophet (ﷺ) said: Allah has more knowledge. The Jew said: It speaks. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: Whatever the people of the Book tell you, do not verify them, nor falsify them, but say: We believe in Allah and His Apostle. If it is false, do not confirm it, and if it is right, do not falsify it

Narrated Zayd ibn Thabit: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) ordered me (to learn the writing of the Jews), so I learnt for him the writing of the Jews. He said: I swear by Allah, I do not trust Jews in respect of writing for me. So I learnt it, and only a fortnight passed before I mastered it. I would write for him when he wrote (to them), and read to him when something was written to him

Narrated Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-'As: I used to write everything which I heard from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). I intended (by it) to memorise it. The Quraysh prohibited me saying: Do you write everything that you hear from him while the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) is a human being: he speaks in anger and pleasure? So I stopped writing, and mentioned it to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). He signalled with his finger to him mouth and said: Write, by Him in Whose hand my soul lies, only right comes out from it

Narrated Al-Muttalib bin 'Abd Allah bin Hantab: Al-Muttalib ibn Abdullah ibn Hantab said: Zayd ibn Thabit entered upon Mu'awiyah and asked him about a tradition. He ordered a man to write it. Zayd said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) ordered us not to write any of his traditions. So he erased it

It was narrated that Abu Saeed Al-Khudri said:"We used not to write anything but the Tasha-hud and the Qur'an

Abu Hurairah said :When Mecca was conquered, the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) stood up. He (Abu Hurairah) then mentioned the sermon of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ). He said: A man of the Yemen, who was called Abu Shah, got up and said: Messenger of Allah! Write it for me. He said: Write it for Abu Shah

Al-Walid said :I asked Abu `Amr: What are they writing? He said: The sermon which he heard that day

Abd Allah bin al-Zubair said on the authority of the father :I asked al-Zubair : What prevents you from narrating traditions from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as his Companions narrate from him? He said: By Allah I was very close to him. But I heard him (ﷺ) say: He who lies about me deliberately will certainly come to his abode in Hell