and dig spaciously and deeply, placing two or three men in a single grave, with the one who knew more of the Qur’an laid first.”

Others transmit it as: Ḥumayd ibn Hilāl—through Saʿīd ibn Hishām ibn ʿĀmir—from his father.

Shuʿbah related from Ibn al-Munkadir: I heard Jābir say, “When my father was killed I began to weep and lift the cloth from his face, while the Companions of the Prophet ﷺ tried to stop me, yet the Messenger of Allah ﷺ did not. He said, ‘Do not weep for him—or: Why do you weep for him?—for the angels continued to shade him with their wings until you lifted him up.’ ” The two Imams recorded this.

Al-Bukhārī also narrated from Jābir that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ commanded that the martyrs of Uḥud be buried in their own blood, without washing and without the funeral prayer. He would wrap two men in one cloth, then ask, “Which of them had memorised more of the Qur’an?” When one was pointed out, he would place him first in the lahd (the niche of the grave).

ʿAlī ibn al-Madīnī said: Mūsā ibn Ibrāhīm al-Anṣārī told us—he heard Ṭalḥah ibn Khurāsh say: I heard Jābir ibn ʿAbd Allāh say: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ looked at me and asked, “Why do I see you distressed?” I replied, “Messenger of Allah, my father has been killed and he left debt and dependants.” He said, “Shall I tell you something? Allah has never spoken to anyone except from behind a veil, yet He spoke to your father directly, saying, ‘My servant, ask of Me and I will grant you.’ He answered, ‘I ask You to return me to the world so I may be killed again for Your sake.’ Allah said, ‘It has already been decreed that they shall not return.’ He then said, ‘My Lord, convey the news to those I have left behind.’ ” Thereupon Allah revealed: “And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead; rather, they are alive…” (Āl ʿImrān 3:169).

A similar account is transmitted from ʿUrwah, on the authority of ʿĀʾishah.