Moses (1) went on at length—every word of it is true—and the only one among them who has not yet tasted death is Jesus, peace be upon him. It is therefore proven that our Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, has remained ever pure and sweet-scented, and that the earth is forbidden to consume the bodies of the prophets; this is a matter known solely through revealed evidence. Nor did the Prophet, peace be upon him, rebuke the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, when they, unaware, asked him, “How will our prayers be presented to you once you have decayed?”—that is, once your body has decomposed. He replied, “Allah has forbidden the earth to consume the bodies of the prophets” (2).
This has been a brief digression offered in defence of one of the leading imams of the Muslims—a task undertaken before me by the Imam of the Hijaz, Sufyan ibn ʿUyaynah. Had this incident not been recorded in several sources—such as the History of the ḥāfiẓ Ibn ʿAsākir and the Kāmil of the ḥāfiẓ Ibn ʿAdī—I would have passed over it entirely; yet it contains a lesson. Until he said,
(1) The hadith of the Night Journey (*isra*) is recorded by al-Bukhari, 6/217 and 219, in “The Beginning of Creation: Chapter on the Angels,” in “The Prophets: Chapter ‘Has the story of Moses reached you when he saw a fire?’,” and in “The Virtues of the Companions: Chapter on the Ascension (*miʿraj*).” It is also related by Muslim, no. 164, “Faith: Chapter on the Night Journey of the Messenger of Allah,” by al-Tirmidhi, no. 3343, “Quranic Exegesis: Chapter on Surah *Alam nashrah*,” and by al-Nasaʾi, 1/217–218, “Prayer: Chapter on the Obligation of Prayer.”
(2) Ahmad, 4/8; Abu Dawud, no. 1047; al-Nasaʾi, 3/91–92; and Ibn Majah, nos. 1085 and 1636, transmit—through Aws ibn Aws—that the Prophet said: “The best of your days is Friday: on it Adam was created, on it he died, on it the trumpet will be blown, and on it the blast will seize (creation). Therefore multiply your prayers of blessing upon me on that day, for your blessings will be presented to me.” They asked, “Messenger of Allah, how will our blessings be shown to you after you have decayed?” He replied, “Allah has forbidden the earth to consume the bodies of the prophets.”
The chain is sound (sahih). It was declared authentic by Ibn Khuzayma (no. 1733), Ibn Hibban (no. 550), and al-Hakim, 2/287 (endorsed by al-Dhahabi); rated hasan by the two hadith masters al-Mundhiri and Ibn Hajar; and judged sahih by al-Nawawi in Al-Adhkar. A supporting narration comes from Abu al-Dardaʾ in Ibn Majah (no. 1637)—its transmitters are trustworthy although the chain is broken—and another from Abu Umama in al-Bayhaqi, whose isnad al-Mundhiri graded hasan, despite the likelihood that Makhul did not hear directly from Abu Umama.