39/23. Chapter:
Sunan an-Nasai 4186 — Permission to Live in the Desert
Returning To The Desert Life After Having Emigrated.
Living in the Desert with Prophetic Permission
Sunan an-Nasai : 4186
Sunan an-NasaiHadith Number 4186
أَخْبَرَنَا قُتَيْبَةُ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا حَاتِمُ بْنُ إِسْمَاعِيلَ، عَنْ يَزِيدَ بْنِ أَبِي عُبَيْدٍ، عَنْ سَلَمَةَ بْنِ الأَكْوَعِ، أَنَّهُ دَخَلَ عَلَى الْحَجَّاجِ فَقَالَ يَا ابْنَ الأَكْوَعِ ارْتَدَدْتَ عَلَى عَقِبَيْكَ وَذَكَرَ كَلِمَةً مَعْنَاهَا وَبَدَوْتَ . قَالَ لاَ وَلَكِنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم أَذِنَ لِي فِي الْبُدُوِّ .
Salama bin Al-Akwa` Narrated from:
It was narrated from Salamah bin Al-Akwa ' that he entered upon Al-Hajjaj who said: O son of Al-Akwa, you have turned on your heels (i.e., deserted Islam) by staying in the desert with the Bedouins." He said: "No; the Messenger of Allah gave me permission to stay in the desert with the Bedouins.
Reference : Sunan an-Nasa'i 4186In-book reference : Book 39, Hadith 38English translation : Vol. 5, Book 39, Hadith 4191
Summary of Sunan an-Nasai Hadith 4186
This hadith about living in the desert records a charge made against Salamah bin Al-Akwa‘. Al-Hajjaj accused him of turning back on his heels and linked that accusation to his life among the Bedouins. Salamah answered clearly that he had not deserted Islam. He explained that the Messenger of Allah had given him permission to stay in the desert. The main teaching is that an outward circumstance should not be used as proof of religious desertion when there is clear permission behind it. The narration also shows Salamah correcting a serious accusation with a direct fact rather than a long argument. Readers searching for the Salamah bin Al-Akwa desert hadith should note that the text is about a specific permission given to him, not a general claim about every person who chooses rural life.
What we learn from this hadith
- Salamah directly denied that living in the desert meant he had deserted Islam.
- He based his answer on permission given by the Messenger of Allah.
- A person’s location alone did not prove the accusation made against him.
- The narration records a specific permission for Salamah bin Al-Akwa‘.
