27/46. Chapter:
Sunan an-Nasai 3478 — Heredity and Child Lineage
If A Man Hints An Accusation About His Wife, And Wanted To Disown The Child
Hadith About Heredity and Not Rushing to Doubt Lineage
Sunan an-Nasai : 3478
Sunan an-NasaiHadith Number 3478
أَخْبَرَنَا إِسْحَاقُ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ، قَالَ أَنْبَأَنَا سُفْيَانُ، عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ، عَنْ سَعِيدِ بْنِ الْمُسَيَّبِ، عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، أَنَّ رَجُلاً، مِنْ بَنِي فَزَارَةَ أَتَى رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَقَالَ إِنَّ امْرَأَتِي وَلَدَتْ غُلاَمًا أَسْوَدَ . فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم " هَلْ لَكَ مِنْ إِبِلٍ " . قَالَ نَعَمْ . قَالَ " فَمَا أَلْوَانُهَا " . قَالَ حُمْرٌ . قَالَ " فَهَلْ فِيهَا مِنْ أَوْرَقَ " . قَالَ إِنَّ فِيهَا لَوُرْقًا . قَالَ " فَأَنَّى تَرَى أَتَى ذَلِكَ " . قَالَ عَسَى أَنْ يَكُونَ نَزَعَهُ عِرْقٌ . فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم " وَهَذَا عَسَى أَنْ يَكُونَ نَزَعَهُ عِرْقٌ " .
Abu Hurairah Narrated from:
A man from Banu Fazarah came to the Messenger of Allah and said: "My wife has given birth to a black boy." The Messenger of Allah said: "Do you have camels?" He said: "Yes." He said: "What color are they?" He said: "Red." He said: "Are there any gray ones among them?" He said: "There are some gray ones among them." He said: "Where do you think they come from?" He said: "Perhaps it is hereditary." He said: "Likewise, perhaps this is hereditary."
Reference : Sunan an-Nasa'i 3478In-book reference : Book 27, Hadith 90English translation : Vol. 4, Book 27, Hadith 3508
Summary of Sunan an-Nasai Hadith 3478
This hadith about heredity and child lineage tells of a man from Banu Fazarah who came to the Messenger of Allah and said that his wife had given birth to a black boy. The Prophet asked whether he had camels. The man said yes. The Prophet asked their color, and he said they were red. Then the Prophet asked whether any were gray. The man said there were some gray ones. When asked where that came from, the man said perhaps it was hereditary. The Prophet replied that perhaps the child’s color was also hereditary. The hadith teaches a calm way to answer suspicion. The Prophet used an example the man understood and did not approve a quick judgment against the child.
What we learn from this hadith
- A difference in a child’s appearance should not lead to quick suspicion.
- The Prophet used the example of camels to explain heredity.
- The man himself accepted that color can come through ancestry.
- The answer encouraged caution before making a claim about lineage.
