Islamic society—the very best generation? The earth itself would close in on him, and that is exactly what happened to them: their own souls felt suffocated and they were certain that there was no refuge from Allah except in turning to Him. They remained in that state for fifty days—one full month and twenty additional days.

The people had cut them off completely. No one greeted them, and if they offered salām, no one returned it. It was as though, among the people, they were mangy camels that everyone avoids.

Thus everything grew tight for them, their circumstances became harsh, and they fled to Allah. Yet for all that, Kaʿb ibn Mālik never abandoned the congregational prayer.

He would come to the mosque and greet the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—but toward the end he might miss some of the prayers because of the heaviness and embarrassment he felt: he was ashamed to join a congregation that would not speak to him in the least—neither a kind word nor even a word of reproach. The community had left them entirely; the earth narrowed upon them, and they stayed like that for a full fifty nights. When forty nights had elapsed, the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—sent word that they were to separate from their wives. Matters reached the point that even their spouses were kept from them.

Now imagine what it meant for a young man like Kaʿb ibn Mālik to be parted from his wife. It was a grave affair. The messenger said, “The Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—orders you to keep away from your wife.” Kaʿb asked, “Must I divorce her, or what?” Had the messenger answered, “Divorce her,” Kaʿb would have done so without hesitation, out of obedience to Allah and His Messenger. So he asked again, “Should I divorce her, or what?” The Messenger’s envoy replied, “The Messenger—peace and blessings be upon him—only commands you to keep away from your family.” He stuck precisely to that wording—even the Companion who had been sent