He was laid to rest in the south-western corner of the chamber; afterward Abū Bakr and then ʿUmar were buried there beside him—may Allah be pleased with them both.

Al-Bukhārī (1) reports: “Muḥammad ibn Muqātil narrated to us, ʿAbd Allāh (2) narrated to us, Abū Bakr ibn ʿAyyāsh narrated to us, from Sufyān al-Tammār, who said that he had seen the Prophet’s grave—peace and blessings be upon him—raised like a camel’s hump (musannam).” This wording is unique to al-Bukhārī.

Abū Dāwūd (3) states: “Aḥmad ibn Ṣāliḥ narrated to us, Ibn Abī Fudayk narrated to us, ʿAmr ibn ʿUthmān ibn Hāniʾ informed me, from al-Qāsim, who said: I entered upon ʿĀʾishah and said, ‘Mother, uncover for me the grave of the Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—and those of his two Companions.’ She lifted the covering and showed me three graves, neither elevated nor sunken, leveled and strewn with the red gravel of the courtyard:
– the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—
– Abū Bakr—may Allah be pleased with him—
– ʿUmar—may Allah be pleased with him.”
This narration is exclusive to Abū Dāwūd.

Al-Ḥākim (4) and al-Bayhaqī (5) transmit the same report through Ibn Abī Fudayk, from ʿAmr ibn ʿUthmān, from al-Qāsim, who added: “I saw the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—placed foremost, Abū Bakr’s head level with the Prophet’s shoulders, and ʿUmar’s head at the Prophet’s feet.”

Al-Bayhaqī remarked: “This narration shows that their graves were flat, for gravel remains in place only on a flat surface.” The author comments: This is remarkable of al-Bayhaqī—may Allah have mercy on him—for the report contains no mention of gravel at all; and even if gravel were present, the grave could still have been humped, the stones being set in clay or something similar.

Al-Wāqidī relates, through al-Dārāwardī, from Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad, from his father, that “the grave of the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—was made flat (musattah).”

Al-Bukhārī (6) also records: “Furwah ibn Abī al-Mughrā narrated to us, ʿAlī ibn Mus-hir (7) narrated to us, from Hishām ibn (8) ʿUrwah, from his father, who said: ‘When the wall collapsed upon them in the time of al-Walīd ibn ʿAbd al-Malik, they set about rebuilding it; a foot then appeared to them, and they were alarmed, thinking it was…’”