5/191. Chapter:
Sunan Ibn Majah 1389 — Forgiveness on Mid-Sha'ban
What was narrated concerning the night of the middle of Sha’ban
Mid-Sha'ban Forgiveness Hadith from Aishah
Sunan Ibn Majah : 1389
Sunan Ibn MajahHadith Number 1389
حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدَةُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ الْخُزَاعِيُّ، وَمُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ الْمَلِكِ أَبُو بَكْرٍ، قَالاَ حَدَّثَنَا يَزِيدُ بْنُ هَارُونَ، أَنْبَأَنَا حَجَّاجٌ، عَنْ يَحْيَى بْنِ أَبِي كَثِيرٍ، عَنْ عُرْوَةَ، عَنْ عَائِشَةَ، قَالَتْ فَقَدْتُ النَّبِيَّ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ ذَاتَ لَيْلَةٍ فَخَرَجْتُ أَطْلُبُهُ فَإِذَا هُوَ بِالْبَقِيعِ رَافِعٌ رَأْسَهُ إِلَى السَّمَاءِ فَقَالَ " يَا عَائِشَةُ أَكُنْتِ تَخَافِينَ أَنْ يَحِيفَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْكِ وَرَسُولُهُ " . قَالَتْ قَدْ قُلْتُ وَمَا بِي ذَلِكَ وَلَكِنِّي ظَنَنْتُ أَنَّكَ أَتَيْتَ بَعْضَ نِسَائِكَ . فَقَالَ " إِنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى يَنْزِلُ لَيْلَةَ النِّصْفِ مِنْ شَعْبَانَ إِلَى السَّمَاءِ الدُّنْيَا فَيَغْفِرُ لأَكْثَرَ مِنْ عَدَدِ شَعَرِ غَنَمِ كَلْبٍ " .
A'isha Narrated from:
I missed the Prophet (ﷺ) one night, so I went out looking for him. I found him at Al-Baqi’, raising his head towards the sky. He said: ‘O ‘Aishah, were you afraid that Allah and His Messenger would wrong you?’” She said: “I said: ‘No, it is not that, but I thought that you had gone to one of your other wives.’ He said: ‘Allah descends on the night of the middle of Sha’ban to the lowest heaven, and He forgives more than the numbers of hairs on the sheep of Banu Kalb.’”
Reference : Sunan Ibn Majah 1389In-book reference : Book 5, Hadith 587English translation : Vol. 1, Book 5, Hadith 1389
Summary of Sunan Ibn Majah Hadith 1389
This mid-Sha'ban forgiveness hadith is narrated by Aishah. She said she missed the Prophet one night and went out looking for him. She found him at Al-Baqi, raising his head toward the sky. The Prophet asked whether she feared that Allah and His Messenger would wrong her. She explained that she thought he had gone to one of his other wives. The Prophet then mentioned the night of the middle of Sha'ban and said Allah descends to the lowest heaven and forgives more than the number of hairs on the sheep of Banu Kalb. The core message is Allah's vast forgiveness on that night, as stated in the narration.
What we learn from this hadith
- Aishah searched for the Prophet when she missed him at night.
- The Prophet was found at Al-Baqi, raising his head toward the sky.
- The hadith mentions Allah's forgiveness on the middle night of Sha'ban.
- The narration uses a large number to describe the breadth of forgiveness.
