1 of 2 · 1 AH · the arrival in Madinah · The house of Abu Ayyub, Madinah
Abu Ayyub al-Ansari رضي الله عنه
The House the Camel Chose
When the Prophet ﷺ entered Madinah, every household of the Ansar hoped he would stay with them and took hold of the bridle of his camel. He told them to let it go, for it was commanded. The camel knelt at the plot of land that later became the mosque, rose, walked a little way, and knelt again beside the house of Abu Ayyub. The Prophet ﷺ stayed there.
Abu Ayyub carried the baggage in with joy. The Prophet ﷺ chose the lower floor so that visitors could reach him, and Abu Ayyub and his wife lived above him. That night they could not sleep, afraid of walking over the head of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. When a jar of water broke upstairs, they wiped up the spill with their only quilt, so that it would not drip down on him. In the morning Abu Ayyub begged him to move upstairs, and the Prophet ﷺ agreed out of kindness.
Abu Ayyub sent food each day and brought back what the Prophet ﷺ left, seeking blessing from the place where his fingers had touched. Once the dish came back untouched, and he asked what was wrong. The Prophet ﷺ said that there was garlic in it. Abu Ayyub asked whether it was forbidden, and he said that it was not, but that he disliked it. Abu Ayyub said, "Then I dislike what you dislike."
Love for the Messenger ﷺ shows itself in the smallest consideration, down to what he likes and dislikes.
What small act of care could you offer someone you love or revere today?
- Sahih Muslim 2053 Sahih · in the two Sahihs
- Sahih al-Bukhari 3911 Sahih · in the two Sahihs
- Ibn Hisham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah (the arrival in Madinah)Historical report
What the hadith grades mean
- Sahih (authentic): an unbroken chain of trustworthy, precise narrators, free of hidden flaws or contradiction. It is acted upon.
- Hasan (good): like sahih, but a narrator's precision is slightly lighter. It is also accepted and acted upon. "Hasan sahih" means it reaches sahih by its routes.
- Da'if (weak): a break in the chain or a narrator who is not reliable enough. It is not used to establish beliefs or rulings.
- Very weak (munkar, matruk): a seriously flawed chain or a narrator accused of lying. It is not relied on at all.
- Mawdu' (fabricated): falsely attributed to the Prophet ﷺ. It may not be narrated as his words except to warn against it.
- The two Sahihs: every hadith with a full chain in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim is accepted as sahih by the scholars of hadith.
- Historical report: biographies and histories (Ibn Ishaq, Ibn Sa'd, al-Tabari) record events with chains that are often incomplete. They are used for the story, not for rulings.
- Hadith scholars grade a narration; the four madhhabs do not. Where a hadith carries a ruling, the page shows which schools act on it.
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