Question
Can you please give me the source of the following incident:
When there was disease in Madinah and Sayyiduna Abu Bakr and Sayyiduna Bilal (radiyallahu ‘anhuma) were affected by it, Sayyidah ‘Aaishah (radiyallahu ‘anha) went to meet them.
Answer
Imam Bukhari and Imam Muslim (rahimahumallah) have recorded this Hadith.
The wording of the Hadith as appears in Sahih Muslim is as follows:
Sayyidah ‘Aaishah (radiyallahu ‘anha) states: “We came to Madinah [at the time of Hijrah] and at the time Madinah was gripped by an epidemic. Abu Bakr and Bilal (radiyallahu ‘anhuma) became ill. When Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) saw the illness of his companions, he said, ‘O Allah! Make Madinah beloved to us just as you made Makkah beloved to us or more than that, make [the weather and water] conducive to health and bless us in it’s sa’ and mudd [i.e. measures] and move the fever over to Juhfah.
(Sahih Muslim, Hadith: 1376, Sahih Bukhari, Hadith: 1889)
The version in Sahih Bukhari states that Sayyidah ‘Aaishah (radiyallahu ‘anha) visited Abu Bakr and Bilal (radiyallahu ‘anhuma) and they both recited couplets which they would usually recite when affected by fever.
(Sahih Bukhari, Hadith: 3926, 5654, 5677)
At that time, Madinah Munawwarah would be affected by epidemics due to the poor state of the water.
(Refer: Sahih Bukhari, Hadith: 1889 with Fathul Bari, vol. 4 pg. 101)
Note: Sayyiduna Bilal (radiyallahu’anhu) was the freed slave of Sayyidah ‘Aishah’s father; Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (radiyallahu ‘anhuma).
And Allah Ta’ala Knows best.
Answered by: Moulana Suhail Motala
Approved by: Moulana Muhammad Abasoomar