It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the son of Sayyiduna Abu Talha and Sayyidah Umm Sulaym (may Allah be pleased with them both) passed away. Sayyidah Umm Sulaym (may Allah be pleased with her) said to her family: Do not inform Abu Talha (may Allah be pleased with him) about his son; I will tell him myself. So when he came, she presented him with the evening meal; he ate and drank. Then Sayyidah Umm Sulaym (may Allah be pleased with her) prepared herself well for her husband, as she used to do before, and he had relations with her. When Umm Sulaym (may Allah be pleased with her) saw that her husband was satisfied and had fulfilled his marital right, she said: O Abu Talha! What is your opinion about people who are given something on loan by the people of a household, and then when they ask for it back, can they withhold it? He said: No, they cannot withhold it. Umm Sulaym (may Allah be pleased with her) said: Then seek reward by being patient over the death of your son.

Sayyiduna Abu Talha (may Allah be pleased with him) set out until he reached the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and informed him of the whole matter. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: May Allah bless you in your night just passed. Umm Sulaym (may Allah be pleased with her) became pregnant.

Once, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was on a journey and Umm Sulaym was with him. When the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) would return from a journey to Madinah, he would not enter the city at night. When they neared Madinah, Umm Sulaym (may Allah be pleased with her) began to experience labor pains. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) went ahead, but Sayyiduna Abu Talha (may Allah be pleased with him) stayed with his wife and said: O my Lord! You know that I love to go out on a journey with Your Messenger and to enter Madinah with him, but now You see that I have stayed behind. Then Umm Sulaym (may Allah be pleased with her) said: What I was feeling before, I am not feeling now. So we set out, and when we reached Madinah, the labor pains started again and she gave birth to a child.

Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) says: My mother said to me: O Anas! Let no one nurse him until you take him to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) in the morning. He says: I took the child to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and found him with an iron branding tool in his hand for marking animals. When he saw me, he said: Perhaps Umm Sulaym has given birth? I said: Yes. He put down the tool, I brought the child forward and placed him in the lap of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) called for some dates of Madinah’s ‘Ajwah variety, chewed them in his blessed mouth until they became soft, then put them in the child’s mouth, and the child began to move his tongue and swallow it. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: See how much the Ansar love dates! Then he passed his hand over the child’s face and named him Abdullah.