Nāfiʿ ibn ʿUmar (1) related—through Ibn Abī Mulaykah—from ʿĀʾishah, who said:

“When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was stricken with the illness in which he passed away, he said, ‘Call for me Abū Bakr and his son, so that no aspirant may covet Abū Bakr’s position and no wishful soul may entertain a wish.’ He then added, ‘Allah—and the believers—refuse that.’ He said this twice.

ʿĀʾishah continued, ‘So Allah—and the believers—did indeed refuse that.’ (3) This wording is reported only by Aḥmad through this chain.

Aḥmad (4) also said: Abū Muʿāwiyah narrated to us; ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Abī Bakr al-Qurashī narrated—from Ibn Abī Mulaykah—from ʿĀʾishah—who said:

“When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ became gravely ill, he said to ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Abī Bakr, ‘Bring me a shoulder-blade or a wooden tablet so that I may write a document for Abū Bakr about which no one will differ.’ When ʿAbd al-Raḥmān rose to bring it, he said, ‘Allah and the believers refuse that anyone differ with you, O Abū Bakr.’ This narration too is unique to Aḥmad.

Al-Bukhārī (6) relates—from Yaḥyā ibn Yaḥyā, from Sulaymān ibn Bilāl, from Yaḥyā ibn Saʿīd, from al-Qāsim ibn Muḥammad, from ʿĀʾishah—who said:

“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, ‘I have almost sent for Abū Bakr and his son to appoint him by a written document, lest some speaker make claims or some aspirant harbour wishes.’ I replied, ‘Allah will refuse, and the believers will repel it—or Allah will repel it and the believers will refuse.’

In the Ṣaḥīḥ of al-Bukhārī and Muslim (8), from the ḥadīth of Ibrāhīm ibn Saʿd, from his father, from Muḥammad ibn Jubayr ibn Muṭʿim, from his father, it is related:

“A woman came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and he ordered her to return to him later. She said, ‘Suppose I come and do not find you?’—as if she meant his death. He answered, ‘If you do not find me, then go to Abū Bakr.’”

It appears—and Allah knows best—that she said this to him ﷺ during the very illness in which he died, may Allah’s blessings and peace be upon him.

Further, on the Thursday five days before his passing, the Prophet ﷺ delivered a momentous sermon in which he highlighted the merit of al-Ṣiddīq above all the Companions. He had already designated Abū Bakr to lead the entire community in prayer, as will be detailed, with all of them present. It is likely that this sermon served in place of the written document he had intended. Prior to delivering this noble address, the Prophet ﷺ bathed, and they poured over him seven water-skins whose knots had not been untied—one of the Prophetic practices of seeking remedy through sevens, as attested by other ḥadīths. The point, therefore, is that he, upon him be blessings and