Question

What is the authenticity of the following narration?

Ummu Salamah (radiyallahu ‘anha) once brought food in a dish of her own to Nabi (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam). Seeing that, ‘Aishah (radiyallahu ‘anha) came holding a tool and broke the dish. Understanding the situation, Nabi (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) took the two halves of the dish and he (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said,  ‘Eat your food, it is just the self possessiveness of your mother’, then Nabi (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) took the dish of Sayyidah ‘Aishah and gave it to Ummu Salamah and gave the dish of Ummu Salamah to ‘Aishah (radiyallahu ‘anhuma).

Answer

Imam Nasai (rahimahullah) has recorded the version cited above.

(Sunan Nasai; Al Mujtaba, Hadith: 3955/3956)

Imam Bukhari (rahimahullah) has also recorded a similar incident. This version is as follows:

Sayyiduna Anas (radiyallahu ‘anhu) reports, “Nabi (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was with one of his wives [Sayyidah ‘Aishah] when one of the Mothers of the Believers sent [a servant] with a plate of food. The wife he was with struck the hand of the servant and the bowl fell and broke. Nabi (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) collected the pieces of the bowl and then gathered the food which had been in the plate and said, ‘Your mother was [overcome] with self possessiveness.’

Then he kept back the servant until a bowl was brought by the wife whose house he was in. He gave the unbroken bowl to the wife whose bowl had been broken and kept the broken one in the house of the one who broke it”

(Sahih Bukhari, Hadith: 5225, 2481)

Also see Fathul Bari, (Hadith: 2481) for other versions of this incident.

And Allah Ta’ala Knows best.

Answered by: Mawlana Suhail Motala

Approved by: Mawlana Muhammad Abasoomar

Checked by: Mawlana Haroon Abasoomar