Nafi' reports: Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) informed him that he had divorced his wife once during her menstruation. Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) about this issue: He said, "Abdullah has divorced his wife during her menstruation." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Tell Abdullah to take her back, then keep her with him until she becomes pure from this menstruation. Then, when she experiences menstruation a second time and becomes pure again, then if he wishes, he may divorce her before having intercourse with her, and if he wishes, he may keep her with him."

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates: I divorced my wife during her menstruation, so the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) returned her to me until I divorced her when she was in a state of purity.

Sayyiduna Abu Musa Ash'ari (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "What is the matter with one of you that he plays with the limits set by Allah and says: I have divorced, I have taken her back."

Imam Awza'i narrates: I asked Zuhri, "Which wife of the Prophet (peace be upon him) was it who sought refuge from the Prophet (peace be upon him)?" Zuhri replied: 'Urwah bin Zubair has narrated this statement of Lady Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), that when the Prophet (peace be upon him) went to his daughter and approached her (and that woman did not recognize the Prophet, peace be upon him), she said, "I seek refuge with Allah from you." So the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "You have sought refuge with a Great One; go back to your family." Imam Zuhri narrates: "Go back to your family" meant one divorce.

Sayyidah Aisha Siddiqa (may Allah be pleased with her) narrates: The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) gave us the option, so we chose him. Was this considered a divorce?

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates: For a long time, I wished to ask Sayyiduna Umar bin Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) about those two women from among the wives of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) regarding whom Allah Almighty said: "If you both turn in repentance to Allah, (it will be better for you) for your hearts have deviated." (Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates:) Until Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) went for Hajj and I also went with him for Hajj. On the way, at a certain place, he moved aside (to relieve himself), then he began to perform ablution. I also moved aside with a vessel for him. He relieved himself, then came to me, and I poured water over his hands and he performed ablution. I said: O Commander of the Faithful! Who are those two women from among the wives of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) regarding whom Allah Almighty said: "If you both turn in repentance to Allah, (it will be better for you) for your hearts have deviated." Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: O Ibn Abbas, I am surprised at you (that you did not ask about this earlier). Then he informed me: They were Aisha and Hafsa. After that, he narrated the whole incident. He said: We, the people of Quraysh, used to have authority over our wives. When we came to Madinah, we found people whose women had authority over them. Our women began to learn their ways from them. My residence was in the outskirts, in the neighborhood of Banu Umayyah bin Zayd. Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: One day, I expressed anger towards my wife, and she replied back to me. I was very surprised at her replying back, so she said: Are you surprised that I reply to you? By Allah! The wives of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) also reply to him, and one of them remains aloof (or angry) with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) from morning till evening. Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: I left from there and went to Hafsa. I said: Do you reply back to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)? She replied: Yes, and one of us remains aloof from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) from morning till evening. So Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Are you saying this? Whoever among you does this will be disgraced and will suffer loss. Are you not afraid that Allah Almighty will become angry with her due to the anger of His Messenger, and in that case, she will be destroyed? Do not reply back to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and do not ask him for anything. Whatever you need, tell me, and do not be deceived by the fact that your neighbor is more beautiful and more beloved to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) than you. By this, Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) meant Sayyidah Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her). Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: I had an Ansari neighbor. We used to take turns to be in the service of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). One day he would go, and one day I would go. Sometimes he would bring news of revelation or other matters, and when I would go to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), I would also bring news and inform him. In those days, we were discussing that the people of Ghassan were preparing to fight us. One day, my companion went to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), then he came to me, knocked on my door, and called me. I came out to him, and he said: A great incident has occurred. I asked: What happened? Have the people of Ghassan come? He said: No, something greater and more serious has happened. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) has divorced his wives. I said: Hafsa is ruined and has suffered loss. I had a feeling that this would happen. (Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates:) When I had performed the morning prayer, I wrapped my cloak and (came towards Madinah). I went to Hafsa, and she was crying. I asked: Has the Messenger of Allah divorced you all? She replied: I do not know. He is there, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is staying in that upper room in seclusion. Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: I went to the black slave of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: Ask permission for Umar to enter. The boy went inside, then came out and said: I mentioned you before the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), but he did not say anything. (Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) says:) I left from there and went to the mosque, where some people were sitting near the pulpit and weeping. I sat with them for a while, then my anxiety overcame me, so I went to the boy and said: Ask permission for Umar to enter. He went inside, then came out and said: I mentioned you before the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), but he remained silent. (Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) says:) I returned and sat near the pulpit. Then my anxiety overcame me, so I went to the boy and said: Ask permission for Umar to enter. He went inside, then came out and said: I mentioned you before the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), but he remained silent. (Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) says:) I turned back, and in the meantime, the boy called me and said: You may enter; the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) has given you permission. (Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) says:) I entered and greeted the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). He was reclining on a mat, the marks of which were visible on his side. I said: O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! Have you divorced your wives? Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) says: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) raised his head and said: No. So I said: Allahu Akbar! (I said:) O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! You have observed that we, the people of Quraysh, used to have authority over our wives. When we came to Madinah, we found people whose women had authority over them. Our women began to learn their ways from their women. One day, I became angry with my wife, and she replied back to me. I expressed surprise at her, so she said: Are you surprised that I replied to you? By Allah! The wives of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) also reply to him, and one of them remains aloof (or angry) with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) from morning till evening. So I said: Whoever among them does this will be disgraced and will suffer loss. Does she not fear that Allah Almighty will become angry with her due to the anger of His Messenger, and in that case, she will be destroyed? Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) says: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) smiled. I said: O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! I went to Hafsa and said to her: Do not reply back to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and do not ask him for anything. Whatever you need, tell me, and do not be deceived by the fact that your neighbor is more beautiful and more beloved to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) than you. Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) smiled again. I said: O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! Should I stay? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Yes. So I sat down. I raised my head and looked around the house. By Allah! My eyes only fell on three skins. I said: O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! Pray to Allah Almighty to grant your Ummah abundance, for Allah Almighty has granted abundance to the people of Persia and Rome, even though they do not worship Allah Almighty. Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sat up straight and said: O son of Khattab! Do you have any doubt? These are the people whose blessings have been given to them in advance in this worldly life. I said: O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), pray for my forgiveness. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) had taken an oath that he would not go to his wives for a month. He did this due to severe displeasure with them, until Allah Almighty admonished him regarding this. Sayyidah Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) narrates: When twenty-nine days had passed, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) came to me. He honored me first. I said: O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! You had taken an oath that you would not come to us for a month, and you have come after twenty-nine days. I have counted them. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sometimes a month is twenty-nine days. Then he said: O Aisha! I am going to mention a matter to you. I do not want you to be hasty in this matter until you consult your parents. Sayyidah Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) narrates: Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) recited this verse before me: "O Prophet! Say to your wives: If you desire the life of this world and its adornment, then come, I will provide for you and release you in a good manner. But if you desire Allah and His Messenger and the home of the Hereafter, then verily Allah has prepared a great reward for those who do good among you." Sayyidah Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) knew that, by Allah, my parents would never instruct me to separate from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). I said: Should I consult my parents in this matter? Indeed, I choose Allah, His Messenger, and the home of the Hereafter.

Lady Aisha Siddiqa (may Allah be pleased with her) narrates: Three rulings were given regarding the matter of Barirah. Her owners intended to sell her and set the condition of her wala (right of inheritance). I mentioned this to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), and he said: Buy her and set her free, for the right of wala belongs to the one who sets free. Then Barirah was set free. Then the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), as the Imam, gave her the choice (to separate from her husband), so she chose herself (i.e., chose separation). (The third matter is) If anything was given to Barirah as charity, she would give us something from it as a gift. I mentioned this to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), and he said: You may eat it, for it is charity for her and a gift for you.

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) gave Barirah the choice, so she chose herself (i.e., she separated from her husband).

Lady Aisha Siddiqa (may Allah be pleased with her) narrates: She bought Barirah, and her owners set the condition that the right of wala (allegiance) would remain with them. So the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said (to Lady Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her): Set her free, because the right of wala belongs to the one who pays the price and becomes the benefactor. Lady Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) says, so I set her free. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) gave her the choice, so she said: Even if I am given such and such wealth, I will not stay with (my husband). Asunami, the narrator, says: Her husband was a free man.

Lady Aisha Siddiqa (may Allah be pleased with her) narrates: Barirah made a contract of emancipation concerning herself for nine awqiyah, in which she had to pay one awqiyah each year. She came to Lady Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) to seek help. Lady Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said: No, if they wish, I will pay them all at once and the right of wala’ (allegiance) will be mine. Barirah went and discussed this with her owners, but they did not accept it; they wanted the right of wala’ to remain with them. Barirah came to Lady Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), and at that time the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) also arrived there. Barirah told Lady Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) what her owners had said, so Lady Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said to her: No, by Allah! This will only happen if the right of wala’ is mine. The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) asked: What is the matter? I said: O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! Barirah came to me to seek help regarding the payment for her contract of emancipation, so I said: No, if they wish, I will pay them all at once and the right of wala’ will be mine. She mentioned this to her owners, but they did not accept it; they insisted that the right of wala’ remain with them. The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Buy her and let the condition of wala’ be for them, then set her free. The right of wala’ belongs to the one who sets free. The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) stood up, praised and glorified Allah, then said: What is the matter with people that they stipulate conditions which are not in Allah’s Book? People say: Set so-and-so free and the right of wala’ will be mine, whereas Allah’s Book is more deserving and Allah’s condition is stronger. Every condition which is not permitted by Allah’s Book is invalid, even if there are a hundred such conditions. (The narrator states) The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) gave that woman the choice regarding her husband; her husband was a slave man. The woman chose herself. Urwah says: If her husband had been a free man, the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) would not have given her the choice regarding her husband.