Thus, whenever the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was asked about something for which he did not yet have an answer, he would wait until revelation came down from Allah. Anyone else, all the more so, must wait—either by asking someone more knowledgeable, or by consulting the works of the scholars until he attains a sound ruling. To rush ahead is fraught with grave danger and shows poor manners toward Allah, for the one who responds speaks on behalf of the Divine Law, effectively saying, “Allah has made this lawful,” or, “Allah has forbidden that,” or, “Allah has legislated such-and-such.” The matter is therefore exceedingly serious.

Fourth issue: the hadith provides evidence for the proper etiquette of the seeker of knowledge. Gabriel, the chief of the angels, sat before the Messenger ﷺ, pressing his knees to the Prophet’s knees and placing his hands on his own thighs, then asked his questions with full decorum. He did this to teach people how they should behave toward scholars.

These are some of the lessons found in the hadith. Among them is a fifth point: it mentions certain signs of the Last Hour. Two are cited: first, that a slave-girl will give birth to her mistress. Some scholars interpret this to mean that filial insubordination will become rampant at the end of time, so that a daughter will treat her own mother as though she were her servant—ordering her about, forbidding her, and speaking to her harshly.