16/22. Chapter:
Sahih Muslim 1439a — What Is Decreed Will Come
The ruling on coitus interrupts ('Azl)
Hadith About Azl and What Allah Decrees
Sahih Muslim : 1439a
Sahih MuslimHadith Number 1439a
حَدَّثَنَا أَحْمَدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ يُونُسَ، حَدَّثَنَا زُهَيْرٌ، أَخْبَرَنَا أَبُو الزُّبَيْرِ، عَنْ جَابِرٍ، أَنَّ رَجُلاً، أَتَى رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَقَالَ إِنَّ لِي جَارِيَةً هِيَ خَادِمُنَا وَسَانِيَتُنَا وَأَنَا أَطُوفُ عَلَيْهَا وَأَنَا أَكْرَهُ أَنْ تَحْمِلَ . فَقَالَ " اعْزِلْ عَنْهَا إِنْ شِئْتَ فَإِنَّهُ سَيَأْتِيهَا مَا قُدِّرَ لَهَا " . فَلَبِثَ الرَّجُلُ ثُمَّ أَتَاهُ فَقَالَ إِنَّ الْجَارِيَةَ قَدْ حَبِلَتْ . فَقَالَ " قَدْ أَخْبَرْتُكَ أَنَّهُ سَيَأْتِيهَا مَا قُدِّرَ لَهَا " .
Jabir Narrated from:
A man came to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) and said: I have a slave-girl who is our servant and she carries water for us and I have intercourse with her, but I do not want her to conceive. He said: Practise 'azl, if you so like, but what is decreed for her will come to her. The person stayed back (for some time) and then came and said: The girl has become pregnant, whereupon he said: I told you what was decreed for her would come to her.
Reference : Sahih Muslim 1439aIn-book reference : Book 16, Hadith 158USC-MSA web (English) reference : Book 8, Hadith 3383
Summary of Sahih Muslim Hadith 1439a
This hadith about azl gives a clear example. A man came to Allah’s Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم and said that he had a slave-girl who served them and carried water, and that he had intercourse with her but did not want her to conceive. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم told him to practise azl if he wished, but what had been decreed for her would come to her. Later, the man returned and said she had become pregnant. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم reminded him that he had already told him what was decreed would come. The main lesson is simple: azl may be a human action, but it cannot override Allah’s decree in pregnancy and birth.
What we learn from this hadith
- The man feared pregnancy and asked about his situation.
- The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم linked the outcome to what Allah had decreed.
- The pregnancy occurred despite the man’s wish to avoid it.
- The hadith teaches humility before divine decree.
