921 – On the authority of ʿĀʾishah (may Allah be pleased with her): “Sawdah bint Zamʿah gave her day to ʿĀʾishah, and the Prophet ﷺ thereafter allotted to ʿĀʾishah both her own day and Sawdah’s.” Agreed upon.⦗1⦘

What is derived from the ḥadith:
1 – Sawdah bint Zamʿah al-Qurashiyyah al-ʿĀmiriyyah was the second wife of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ; he married her after the death of Khadījah. When she became elderly and physically heavy she feared that he might divorce her, thereby losing the great honor and immense blessing of remaining one of his wives. She therefore ceded her day and night to ʿĀʾishah so that she could remain his wife. He accepted her offer, and the Prophet ﷺ passed away while she was still in his wedlock, one of the Mothers of the Believers.

2 – Al-Ṭayālisī relates from Ibn ʿAbbās: Sawdah feared that the Prophet ﷺ would divorce her, so she said, “O Messenger of Allah, do not divorce me; assign my day to ʿĀʾishah.” He did so, and the verse was revealed: “And if a woman fears from her husband disdain or neglect, there is no blame upon the two of them if they make terms of settlement between themselves; and reconciliation is best” (Qur’an 4:128). In the two Ṣaḥīḥs ʿĀʾishah said: “When Sawdah grew old, she gave her day to ʿĀʾishah, so the Prophet ﷺ used to allot to me on Sawdah’s day.”

3 – The ḥadith shows the permissibility of reconciliation between spouses when a woman senses estrangement or avoidance from her husband and fears he may leave her. She may relinquish all or part of her rights—such as maintenance, clothing, lodging, or any other entitlement—and he may accept her offer. There is no sin on her for giving it up, and no sin on him for accepting it.