53. Circumcision

53. Circumcision

chapter 595. Circumcision

1244. Abu Hurayra reported that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, “Ibrahim, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was circumcised when he was eighty years old. He was circumcised with an axe (qadum).” Abu ‘Abdullah said that “qadum” refers to the name of a place (rather than an axe).”
Grade: Saheeh (Authentic)
Commentary: Shaykh Husayn al-‘Awaayisha (hafizahullah) said, “It shows that a matured person who had not been circumcised should do so or when he becomes a Muslim.” Sharh Saheeh al-Adab al-Mufrad (3/354). This noble practice of the Fitrah is been abandoned by many of the parents for their daughters on the flimsy excuse that it is only Mustahabb (recommended)! Quite badly, some Muslim countries have even legislated against female circumcision!

596. Female circumcision

1245. An old woman from Kufa, the grandmother of ‘Ali ibn Ghurab, reported that Umm al-Muhajir said, “I was captured with some girls from Byzantium. ‘Uthman offered us Islam, but only myself and one other girl accepted Islam. ‘Uthman said, ‘Go and circumcise them and purify them.'”
Grade: Da’eef (Weak)

chapter 597. Supplication during circumcision

1246. Salim said, “Ibn ‘Umar, Nu’aym and I were circumcised and they sacrificed a ram on our behalf. I think that we were more happy about it than the other children since a ram had been sacrificed on our behlaf.”
Grade: Da’eef (Weak)

chapter 598. Diversion during circumcision

1247. Umm ‘Alqama related that when the nieces of ‘A’isha’s brother were circumcised, ‘A’isha was asked, “Shall we call someone to amuse them?” “Yes,” she replied. ‘Adi was sent for and he came to them. ‘A’isha passed by the room and saw him singing and shaking his head in rapture and he had a large head of hair. ‘Uff!’ she exclaimed, ‘A shaytan! Get him out! Get him out!'”
Grade: Hasan (Sound)
Commentary: The narration demonstrates that it was a normal practice amongst the early Muslims to circumcise girls. This is further asserted in the hadeeth checked and graded in Silsilat al-Ahaadeeth is-Saheehah, that: “The women migrated (from Makkah to Madeenah) and amongst them was Umm Habeebah who was known to circumcise girls. When the Messengerﷺ saw her, he said to her, ‘O Umm Habeebah! Do you have with you today what you always had with you?’ She said, ‘Yes, O Messenger of Allah! Except it is not permissible so you can prohibit me.’ So the Messengerﷺ said, ‘No, it is allowed; come closer so that I can teach you (how to do it).’ She came closer and he said, ‘When you do it do not cut deep for that (i.e. to slightly remove a part of it) better brightens the face (of the woman) and is found more honorable by the husband.’” 2. The hadeeth shows that entertainment could be permissible or even encouraged when they do not involve sins. 3. Sins should not be tolerated; the Muslims should seek appropriate means to quickly discourage them.

chapter 599. The dhimmi ‘s invitation

1248. Aslam, the client of ‘Umar, said, “When we came to Syria with ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab, the chief came to him, ‘Amir al-Mu’minin, I have prepared some food for you and I would like you to bring some nobles with you. That will be a stronger and nobler action for me.’ ‘Umar said, ‘We cannot enter these churches of yours with the images which are inside them.'”
Grade: Da’eef (Weak)

chapter 600. Circumcising slavegirls

1249. See 1245.
Grade: Da’eef (Weak)

chapter 601. Circumcision of an older person

1250. Abu Hurayra said, “Ibrahim, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was circumcised when he was 120 years old. Then he lived eighty years after that.” Sa’id ibn al-Musayyab said, “Ibrahim was the first to be circumcised, the first to give hospitality, the first to trim his moustache, the first to cut his nails and the first to get white hair. He said, ‘O Lord, what is this?’ ‘Gravity,’ Allah replied. Ibrahim said, ‘O Lord, increase me in gravity!'”
Grade: Saheeh (Authentic)
Commentary: The report ascribed to the Prophetﷺ here is not authentic; it was even graded Mawdoo’ (fabricated) by Imam al-Albaanee (rahimahullah) in Silsilat al-Ahaadeeth id-Da’eefah (2112). See hadeeth no. 1244. As for the statement of Sa’eed bin Musayyib (rahimahullah), they are authentically reported from him. However, reliance on such reports from a taabi’ee requires corroborating evidences from the Prophetﷺ

1251. It is reported that al-Hasan said, “Are you not astonished by this man? (i.e. Malik ibn al- Mundhir) He went to some of the old people of Kaskar who had become Muslim and examined them and then commanded that they be circumcised although it was winter. I heard that some of them died. Greeks and Abyssinians became Muslim with the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and they were not examined at all.”
Grade: Saheeh (Authentic)
Commentary: Commenting on this narration, Imam Albaanee (rahimahullah) said, “Rightly, they were not examined. However, that did not prevent them from been ordered to circumcise, and even to completely shave the hair of the period of disbelief which is from the obligations upon the Muslim. Likewise other traits of Fitrah. In the hadeeth collected by Aboo Daawood and others, (it says) that the Prophetﷺ said to a man: ‘Shave off the hairs of the period of disbelief and circumcise.’ See Saheeh Abee Daawood (383). The next narration strengthens it.”

1252. Ibn Shihab said, “When a man became Muslim, he was ordered to have himself circumcised, even if he was old.”
Grade: Saheeh (Authentic)
Commentary: Imam az-Zuhree, Muhammad bin Muslim bin Shihaab (rahimahullah), was from the scholars among the students of the companions (radiya Allahu anhum). So, his statement here demonstrates that circumcision was a well established custom among the early Muslims. 1. The narration demonstrates that it was a normal practice amongst the early Muslims to circumcise girls. This is further asserted in the hadeeth checked and graded in Silsilat al-Ahaadeeth is-Saheehah, that: “The women migrated (from Makkah to Madeenah) and amongst them was Umm Habeebah who was known to circumcise girls. When the Messengerﷺ saw her, he said to her, ‘O Umm Habeebah! Do you have with you today what you always had with you?’ She said, ‘Yes, O Messenger of Allah! Except it is not permissible so you can prohibit me.’ So the Messengerﷺ said, ‘No, it is allowed; come closer so that I can teach you (how to do it).’ She came closer and he said, ‘When you do it do not cut deep for that (i.e. to slightly remove a part of it) better brightens the face (of the woman) and is found more honorable by the husband.’” 2. The hadeeth shows that entertainment could be permissible or even encouraged when they do not involve sins. 3. Sins should not be tolerated; the Muslims should seek appropriate means to quickly discourage them.

chapter 602. An invitation when a child is born

1253. Bilal ibn Ka’b al-‘Ukki said, “We Ibrahim ibn Adham, ‘Abdu’l-‘Aziz ibn Qarir, Musa ibn Yasar and I visited Yahya ibn Hassan (al-Bakri al-Filistini) in his village. He brought us some food, but Musa held back because he was fasting. Yahya said, ‘We had a man with the kunya of Abu Qursafa from the Banu Kinana who had been one of the Companions of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and he was in this mosque for forty years. He would fast one day and break the fast the next day, My father had a son born to him and he invited this man on the day that he was fasting and he broke his fast.’ Ibrahim stood up and swept him with cloak and Musa broke his fast.”
Grade: Da’eef (Weak)

chapter 603. Rubbing a child’s gums

1254. Anas said, “On the day he was born, I took ‘Abdullah ibn Abi Talha to the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. I found him wearing a woollen robe while he was marking one of his camels with tar. The Prophet said, ‘Do you have any dates with you?’ ‘Yes,’ I replied. I gave him some dates. He chewed the dates and opened the child’s mouth and put some chewed dates into the child’s mouth. The child licked his lips. The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, ‘The Ansar love dates,’ and gave him the name ‘Abdullah.”
Grade: Saheeh (Authentic)
Commentary: It demonstrates among other things that one could seek the learned and pious to give the child tahneek and name him.

chapter 604. Supplication at birth

1255. Mu’awiya ibn Qurra said, “When Iyas was born to me, I invited a group of the Companions of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and I fed them and they made supplication. I said, ‘You have made supplication, so may Allah bless you for your supplication. If I make supplication, then you say, “Amen”.’ He went on, ‘I made a lot of supplication for him for his deen, his intellect and things like that.’ He added, ‘I still recognise the supplication of that day in him.”
Grade: Saheeh (Authentic)
Commentary: The narration encourages supplicating for a child at birth and even asking the righteous to do same. It shows that it is allowed for people to say, Ameen to the supplication of a single person, and that one could invite people to a banquet when a child is born.

chapter 605. The person who praises Allah when he is born if he is well-formed and is not concerned whether it is a boy or a girl

1256. Kathir ibn ‘Ubayd said, “When someone in the family of ‘A’isha had a child, she did not ask, ‘Boy or girl?’ She asked, ‘Was he created well-formed?’ If the answer was ‘Yes,’ she said, ‘Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds.'”
Grade: Saheeh (Authentic)

chapter 606. Shaving public hair

1257. Abu Hurayra reported that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, “Five things are included in the fitra: trimming the moustache, cutting the nails, shaving the public hair, plucking the armpits, and using the siwak (arak stick for cleaning the teeth).”
Grade: Da’eef (Weak)
Commentary: The tooth-stick is only authentically reported as from the Fitrah in the hadeeth of A’aisha (radiya Allahu anhaa). Thus, the Sunnah of plucking the armpits, which forms the point of reference in this hadeeth is established from authentic reports.

chapter 607. The time for cutting the nails and hair

1258. Nafi’ reported that Ibn ‘Umar used to trim his nails every fifteen days and shave his pubic hair every month.
Grade: Saheeh (Authentic)
Commentary: It highlights the adherence of the companion to the Sunnah, and how he attended to personal hygiene. However, in an authentic hadeeth, collected in Sunan Abee Dawood and others, Anas bin Malik said, “The Messenger of Allahﷺ gave a forty days range for us to shave the armpits, cut the fingernails, trim the moustache and shave the pubes.” Thus Imam ash-Shawkaanee (rahimahullah) said, “Therefore, it is not permissible to exceed it, and the one who leaves trimming and its like after it gets long for up to that limit is not considered to be contradicting the Sunnah.” See Nayl al-Awtaar (1/164).