He reported God's messenger as saying, "I am the nearest of kin to Jesus, son of Mary in this world and the next. The prophets are brothers, sons of one father by co-wives. Their mothers are different, but their religion is one [*] . There has been no prophet between us." *This saying is explained as meaning that all prophets have the same religion, which is figuratively called their lather, but they differ in their law and in a number of regulations, these being figuratively called their mothers. Cf. Mirqat, 5:346. (Bukhari and Muslim.)

He reported God's messenger as saying, "All the descendants of Adam have their sides pierced by the devil with two of his fingers at birth, except the son of Mary. He went to pierce him, but pierced the membrane covering him." (Bukhari and Muslim.)

Abu Musa reported the Prophet as saying, "Many men have been perfect, but among women only Mary the daughter of `Imran and Asiya the wife of Pharaoh were perfect; and `A'isha's superiority over women is like the superiority of tharid over other kinds of food." (Bukhari and Muslim.)

Abu Razin told that he asked God's messenger, "Where was our Lord before He created the creation?" to which he replied, "He was in obscurity ('ama') with no air below Him and no air above Him, and He created His Throne on the water." Tirmidhi transmitted it. Yazid b. Harun [1] said `ama' means that there was nothing with Him [2] . Al-Wasiti (d.206), a highly estimated authority who appears in the course of the isnad. The word 'ama' presents difficulty. It commonly means `clouds', but this is felt to be inappropriate here unless figuratively in the sense of God being veiled. It is suggested that this means it is a matter which the mind cannot grasp. Cf. Mirqat, 5:349.

Al- `Abbas b. `Abd al-Muttalib asserted that he was sitting in al Batha' [*] with a company among whom God's messenger was sitting when a cloud passed. They looked at it and God's messenger asked, "What do you call this?" and received the reply "Clouds (sahab)." He said, "And rain-clouds (muzn)," to which they agreed. He said, "And clouds (`aman)," to which they agreed. He asked, "Do you know the distance between heaven and earth?" and when they replied that they did not, he said, "The distance between them is seventy-one, seventy-two, or seventy-three years, the heaven which is above it is at a similar distance (going on till he counted seven heavens). Above the seventh heaven there is a sea the distance between whose surface and bottom is like that between one heaven and the next. Above that there are eight mountain goats the distance between whose hoofs and haunches is like that between one heaven and the next. On their backs is the Throne the extent of which from top to bottom is like the distance between one heaven and the next. Then God is above that." *A stony valley at Mecca. Tirmidhi and Abu Dawud transmitted it.

Jubair b. Mut'im told that a nomadic Arab came to God's messenger and said, "People are suffering distress, the children are hungry, the crops are withered and the animals are perishing, so ask God to grant us rain, for we seek you as our intercessor with God and God as our intercessor with you." Thereupon the Prophet said, "Glory be to God, glory be to God," and he continued declaring God's glory till the effect of that was apparent in the faces of his companions. He then said, "Woe to you! God is not to be sought as intercessor with anyone. God's state is greater than that. Woe to you! Do you know how great God is? His Throne is above the heavens thus (indicating with his fingers something like a dome over him), and it groans on account of Him as a saddle does because of the rider." Abu Dawud transmitted it.

Jabir b. `Abdallah reported God's messenger as saying, "I have been permitted to tell about one of God's angels who bear the Throne that the distance between the lobe of his ear and his shoulder is a journey of seven hundred years." Abu Dawud transmitted it.

Zurara b. Aufa told that God's messenger asked Gabriel, "Have you seen your Lord?" Gabriel trembled and replied, "Between Him and me, Muhammad, there are seventy veils of light, and if I approached one of them I would be burned." Thus, it is given in al-Masabih.

Abu Nu'aim transmitted it in al-Hilya on the authority of Anas, but did not mention that Gabriel trembled.

Ibn `Abbas reported God's messenger as saying, "God created Israfil who has been keeping his feet in line from the day he was created and not raising his glance. Between him and the Lord who is blessed and exalted there are seventy lights not one of which he could approach without being burned." Tirmidhi transmitted it and called it sahih.