Note / Clarification: (3) In manuscripts (Z) and (B) there was a blank space in place of the attribution "al-Abdi"; we have established it from al-Bayhaqi's "Dala'il al-Nubuwwah" (6/411), which he narrated from Abu Abdullah al-Hakim. It had dropped out of manuscripts (S) and (M).

Grading: (4) Its chain is sahih.

Reference / Source: Al-Bayhaqi narrated it in "Dala'il al-Nubuwwah" (6/411) from Abu Abdullah al-Hakim with this same chain, but with the wording: "I wish I had lost ten children like the children of al-Harith bin Hisham and had not made this journey that I made." Ibn Abi al-Dunya narrated it in "al-Mutamannin" (64) through the route of Abu Mu'awiyah, from Isma'il bin Abi Khalid. It is like al-Bayhaqi's narration, but he said: "ten like Abd al-Rahman bin al-Harith bin Hisham."

Reference / Source: Abu Bakr al-Khallal narrated it in "al-Sunnah" (747) through the route of Ubaydullah bin Amr al-Raqqi, from Isma'il bin Abi Khalid, from Qays bin Abi Hazim, from A'ishah, who said: "Had I known beforehand what I came to know afterwards, and not gone out against Ali, that would have been dearer to me than having ten children from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), all of them like Abu Bakr bin Abd al-Rahman bin al-Harith bin Hisham."

Technical note / Defect ('illah): Ibn Ma'in (Su'alat Ibn al-Junayd: 796) considered the mention of Qays bin Abi Hazim a mistake, and said that the mistake is from Abu Mu'awiyah, and that Isma'il bin Abi Khalid narrates it from someone other than Qays. Ibn Ma'in's evidence is the narration that Ibn Abi Shaybah (15/277), al-Baladhuri (3/60) and Ibn Abi al-Dunya (65) narrated through the route of Ya'la bin Ubayd, from Isma'il bin Abi Khalid, from Ali bin Amr al-Thaqafi. Here Ali bin Amr al-Thaqafi is mentioned in place of Qays, and he is unknown. But Ibn Ma'in's faulting of Abu Mu'awiyah cannot be accepted, because Abu Mu'awiyah is not alone; rather two trustworthy hafiz narrators corroborated him in mentioning Qays, and it is not unlikely that Isma'il heard it from both men. Otherwise, the narration of three trustworthy narrators takes precedence over the narration of Ya'la bin Ubayd (despite his trustworthiness).

Important point: It is narrated from A'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) through several routes that she regretted that going out and journey of hers.

Reference / Source: Ibn Abi Shaybah (15/281) narrated through the route of Abdullah bin Ubayd bin Umayr that A'ishah said: "I wish I had been a fresh green branch and had not made this journey."
Grading: And its chain is sahih.

Reference / Source: He (15/281) also narrated through the route of Ubayd bin Sa'd that A'ishah was asked about her journey and said: "It was decreed."
Grading: And its chain is hasan.

Reference / Source: Ibn Asakir narrated in "Tarikh Dimashq" (31/110) through the route of Ibn Abi Atiq that A'ishah said to Ibn Umar: What prevented you from forbidding me from this journey? He said: I saw a man who had taken control of your affair (meaning Ibn al-Zubayr), and I thought you would not go against him. She said: "Had you forbidden me, I would not have gone out."
Grading: And its chain is hasan.

Important point: Al-Hafiz said in "Fath al-Bari" (11/205): The excuse for A'ishah, Talhah and al-Zubayr is that they were acting on an interpretation (ta'wil); their aim was to bring about reconciliation among the people and to take retribution (qisas) from the killers of Uthman. Whereas Ali's view was that there should be unity upon obedience, and that the heirs of the slain should seek retribution from the one against whom the killing was proven according to its conditions.