ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Ibrāhīm related to us, saying: Abū al-Ḥusayn ʿAbd al-Ḥaqq al-Yūsufī related to us; Abū Saʿd ibn Khushaysh related to us; Abū ʿAlī al-Ḥasan ibn Aḥmad related to us; Maymūn ibn Isḥāq related to us; Aḥmad ibn ʿAbd al-Jabbār reported to us, saying: Yūnus ibn Bukayr transmitted from Hishām ibn ʿUrwah, from his father, from ʿĀʾishah, who said:
“The talk about me—the story of the Slander—was being circulated and widely repeated, while I had no idea. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ came accompanied by some of his Companions and they asked a black servant-girl of mine who used to attend to me: ‘Tell us what you know about ʿĀʾishah.’ She replied, ‘By Allah, I know nothing to censure her for except that she sleeps in the forenoon, so that the household’s domesticated animal comes and eats her kneaded dough.’ They kept pressing her and questioning her until she took notice of what they were after, whereupon she said, ‘Glory be to Allah! By Him in whose hand is my soul, I know about ʿĀʾishah only what a goldsmith knows about pure red gold.’ All of this took place and I remained completely unaware of it.
“Then the Messenger of Allah ﷺ rose to address the people. He praised Allah and extolled Him as He deserves, and then said: ‘To proceed: give me your counsel regarding some men who have injured my household with their accusations. By Allah, I have never known any evil concerning my family, and they allege it about a man concerning whom, by Allah, I have never known any evil either. He never entered upon my household except in my presence, and whenever I was away on campaign he was away with me.’
“Sāʿd ibn Muʿādh said, ‘Messenger of Allah, I think you should strike their necks.’ A man from the Khazraj—Umm Ḥassān was from his clan, as was Ḥassān—protested, ‘You have not spoken truthfully! Had they been from the Aws you would not have suggested that.’ This almost caused trouble between the Aws and the Khazraj there in the mosque, and I knew nothing about any of it, nor did anyone mention it to me.
“That same evening I went out with a group of women to relieve ourselves. Umm Miṣṭaḥ—the daughter of Abū Bakr’s maternal aunt—went out with us. As we were walking toward the place, Umm Miṣṭaḥ tripped and exclaimed, ‘May Miṣṭaḥ be ruined!’ I said, ‘My dear mother, are you cursing your own son?’ She gave me no answer. She stumbled again and said, ‘May Miṣṭaḥ be ruined!’ I said, ‘Mother, are you cursing your son, a Companion of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ?’ Again she did not reply. Then she stumbled a third time and said, ‘May Miṣṭaḥ be ruined!’ I said, ‘Mother—’