They split open his abdomen, removed whatever was inside and placed it in a basin of gold, washed it with Zamzam water, and then packed his chest with wisdom and knowledge.

A second chain comes through Ibn Wahb as well, from Yaʿqūb ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān al-Zuhrī, from his father, from ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Hishām ibn ʿUtbah ibn Abī Waqqāṣ, from Anas, who said:

“The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was visited on three consecutive nights. They said, ‘Take the best and the leader among them.’ So they took the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), brought him to Zamzam, split open his torso, then a golden basin was fetched and his inner cavity was washed. After that it was filled with wisdom and faith.”

This is also firmly established through the narration of Sulaymān ibn al-Mughīrah, from Thābit, from Anas. In the two Ṣaḥīḥs it appears by way of Sharīk ibn Abī Namir from Anas; of al-Zuhrī from Anas, from Abū Dharr; of Qatādah from Anas; and of Mālik ibn Ṣaʿṣaʿah from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in the ḥadīth of the Night Journey, as will be detailed later: his chest was opened that night and washed with Zamzam water. There is no contradiction, for it is entirely possible that this happened twice—once when he was a child, and again on the Night of the Ascension—so that he might be prepared to enter the highest company, converse with the Lord—Majestic and Exalted—and stand before Him—Glorious is He.

Ibn Isḥāq said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to tell his Companions, “I am the most eloquent of you in Arabic; I am a Qurashī, and I was suckled among Banū Saʿd ibn Bakr.”

Ibn Isḥāq also related that when Ḥalīmah returned him to his mother after he had been weaned, she passed by a group of