say: lā ilāha illā Allāh (there is no god but Allah); by it I shall be allowed to intercede for you.”

Abū Ṭālib replied, “My nephew, by Allah, were it not that it would become a reproach upon your household—that they would think I had uttered it only out of terror at death—I would indeed say it, and I would say it merely to please you.”

When Abū Ṭālib’s illness grew severe he was seen moving his lips. His brother al-ʿAbbās bent close to listen, then drew back and said, “Messenger of Allah, by Allah, he has said it.” The Messenger of Allah ﷺ replied, “I did not hear it.”

I say: This report is not sound. Had al-ʿAbbās truly heard him utter it, he would not later have asked the Prophet ﷺ, “Have you benefited your uncle in any way?” Nor would ʿAlī, after Abū Ṭālib’s death, have said, “Messenger of Allah, your misguided old uncle has died.” What is authentically established is that ʿAmr ibn Dīnār related from Abū Saʿīd ibn Rāfiʿ who said: I asked Ibn ʿUmar about the verse, “Indeed, you do not guide whom you love” (Qur’an 28:56). Was it revealed concerning Abū Ṭālib? He answered, “Yes.”

Zayd ibn al-Ḥabbāb reported: Ḥammād narrated to us, from Thābit, from Isḥāq ibn ʿAbd Allah ibn al-Ḥārith, from al-ʿAbbās, that he asked the Prophet ﷺ, “What do you hope for Abū Ṭālib?” He replied, “All good from my Lord.”

Ayyūb narrated from Ibn Sīrīn who said: When Abū Ṭālib’s condition worsened, he summoned the Prophet ﷺ and said, “My nephew, when I die, go to your maternal uncles among the Banū al-Najjār, for they are the most protective of what is in their homes.”

ʿUrwah ibn al-Zubayr said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ remarked, “Quraysh kept holding back from me, timid and cowed, until my uncle died.” Kāʿa is the plural of kāʿiʿ, meaning a coward; one says kaʿa when a person grows faint-hearted and shrinks back.

Yazīd ibn Kaysān reported: Abū Ḥāzim narrated to me, from Abū Hurayrah, who said: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to his uncle, “Say: lā ilāha illā Allāh (there is no god but Allah) and I will testify for you with it on the Day of Resurrection.” He replied, “Were it not that Quraysh would ridicule me, saying that fear alone drove me to it, your eyes would indeed be comforted.” Thereupon Allah revealed: “Indeed, you do not guide whom you love…” (Qur’an 28:56). It was recorded by