ʿĀʾishah proficient in the laws of inheritance?’
He answered, ‘By Allah, I myself saw the senior Companions of Muhammad ﷺ consulting her about the laws of inheritance.’ ⦗1⦘
Ibn Qudāmah and Ibn ʿIllān informed us, saying: Hanbal informed us; Ibn al-Ḥuṣayn informed us; Ibn al-Mudhahhab informed us; Aḥmad ibn Jaʿfar informed us; ʿAbd Allah ibn Aḥmad narrated to us; my father narrated to me; Abū Muʿāwiyah ʿAbd Allah ibn Muʿāwiyah al-Zubayrī—who had come to us in Mecca—narrated to us. He said:
Hishām ibn ʿUrwah narrated to us:
ʿUrwah used to say to ʿĀʾishah, ‘My mother! I am not surprised at your mastery of jurisprudence—after all, you are the Prophet of Allah’s wife and the daughter of Abū Bakr. Nor am I surprised at your knowledge of poetry and Arab history—you are Abū Bakr’s daughter, and he was the most learned of people. What truly astonishes me is your knowledge of medicine: how did you acquire it, where did it come from, what is its source?!’
She tapped him on the shoulder and replied, ‘Little ʿUrayyah, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to fall ill toward the end of his life. Delegations of Arabs would come to him from every direction, prescribing various treatments, and I would prepare those treatments for him. That is how I learned.’ ⦗2⦘
I read to Muḥammad ibn Qāymāz: Muḥammad ibn Qiʾwām has reported to you; Abū Saʿīd al-Rārānī informed us ⦗3⦘; Abū ʿAlī al-Ḥaddād informed us; Abū Nuʿaym informed us; ʿAbd Allah ibn