English Translation

'Affan narrated to us, Hammad narrated to us, Thabit narrated to us, from Anas ibn Malik, who said: I was riding behind Abu Talhah on the Day of Khaybar, and my foot was touching the foot of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him. He said: We came to them when the sun had just risen, and they had brought out their livestock and gone out with their axes, baskets, and spades. They said, "Muhammad! And the army!" The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, "Allah is Greatest! Khaybar is destroyed! When we descend upon the courtyard of a people, evil is the morning of those who have been warned." He said: So Allah, Mighty and Sublime, routed them. He said: A beautiful young woman fell to the lot of Dihyah, so the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, bought her for seven heads, then gave her to Umm Sulaym to prepare and adorn her—she was Safiyyah bint Huyayy. He said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, made her wedding feast of dates, dried curd, and clarified butter. He said: Pits were dug in the ground, and leather mats were brought and placed in them, then the dried curd, dates, and butter were brought, and the people ate their fill. He said: And the people said, "We do not know whether he has married her or merely taken her as a concubine." They said, "If he veils her, she is his wife; if he does not veil her, she is a concubine." When he wanted to mount, he veiled her until she sat on the rear of the camel, so they knew that he had married her. When they drew near Madinah, he set off and we set off, and the she-camel al-'Adba' stumbled, so the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, and she were thrown down. He said: He got up and shielded her from view. The women had come out looking, and said, "Allah distance the Jewish woman!" I said, "O Abu Hamzah, did the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, consummate the marriage?" He said, "Yes, by Allah, he consummated it." And I witnessed the wedding feast of Zaynab bint Jahsh; he fed the people bread and meat until they were full, and he used to send me to invite the people. When he had finished, he got up and I followed him, and two men lingered, engrossed in conversation, and did not leave. He went about visiting his wives and greeting each one, saying, "Peace be upon you, O people of the house, how are you this morning?" and they would say, "Well, O Messenger of Allah—how did you find your family?" and he would say, "Well." When he returned, and I returned with him, and he reached the door, there were the two men still engrossed in conversation. When they saw that he had returned, they got up and left. He said: By Allah, I do not know whether I informed him or whether revelation came down to him that they had left. He returned, and I returned with him, and when he placed his foot on the threshold of the door, he drew the curtain between me and him, and Allah revealed the verses of the veil: "Do not enter the houses of the Prophet unless permission is given to you for a meal, without awaiting its readiness"—until he finished with it.