2272 – Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-ʿAbqasi related to us; Muhammad ibn Ibrahim ibn ʿAbd Allah related to us; he said: Abu ʿUbayd Allah al-Makhzumi narrated to us; he said: Sufyan ibn ʿUyaynah narrated from Hisham ibn ʿUrwah, from his father, from ʿAʾisha, who said:

“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ was afflicted by something, to the extent that he would think he had gone in to his wives when he had not. Then he woke from his sleep and said, ‘O ʿAʾisha, Allah, Exalted is He, has answered me concerning what I asked of Him. Two beings came to me: one sat at my head and the other at my feet. One of them said to the other, “What is the matter with this man?” He replied, “He is bewitched.” He asked, “Who cast the spell on him?” He answered, ⦗1286⦘ “Labid ibn ʿAsim.” He asked, “With what?” He answered, “With a comb and the hair that clung to it.” He asked, “Where is it?” He answered, “Inside the husk of a date-spadix, beneath a stone, in the well of Dharwan.”’

She said: ‘The Prophet ﷺ went to the well and removed it, and he ﷺ said, “This is the well I was shown: its water looks as though it has been steeped in henna, and its palm-trees appear like the heads of devils.”’

ʿAʾisha said: ‘I asked him, “Will you not seek redress?” He replied, “As for me, Allah has already cured me, and I dislike to stir up harm against anyone.”’

She added: ‘Then the verses were revealed: “Say: I seek refuge with the Lord of daybreak, from the evil of what He created…”—to the end of the surah.’

Al-Bukhari recorded it through ʿAbd Allah ibn Muhammad, and Muslim through the narration of Hisham.