16
is the best of his wives. Indeed, many among the Ahl al-Sunnah have held this view, citing the report in the two Sahih collections from Abū Mūsā and Anas—may Allah be pleased with them both—that the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—said:
“Aisha’s superiority over other women is like the superiority of tharīd (a bread-and-meat dish) over all other foods.” (1)
Tharīd is the finest of foods because it consists of bread and meat, as the poet said:
When bread has meat to accompany it,
By Allah’s trust, that indeed is tharīd.
This is because wheat is the finest staple and meat is the finest accompaniment (2), as stated in the hadith related by Ibn Qutaybah and others from the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—who said:
“Meat is the foremost accompaniment of [the people of]—“the people of” is omitted from (N) and (M)—this world and the Hereafter.” (3)
Thus, if meat is the foremost
(1) The hadith is narrated from Anas ibn Mālik and Ā'isha, and it also forms part of a hadith narrated from Abū Mūsā al-Asharī—may Allah be pleased with them—in al-Bukhārī, 5/29 (Book of the Merits of the Prophet’s Companions, chapter “The Virtue of Ā'isha”); Muslim, 4/1895 (Book of the Merits of the Companions, chapter “The Virtue of Ā'isha”); *Sunan al-Tirmidhī*, 5/365 (Book of Virtues, chapter concerning the virtue of Ā'isha). Al-Tirmidhī said: “Reports on this subject have also been narrated from Ā'isha and Abū Mūsā.” See also *Sunan al-Nasā'ī*, 7/63–64 (Book of Marital Relations, chapter on a man loving some of his wives more than others), where it is narrated from Abū Mūsā and Ā'isha; *Sunan Ibn Mājah*, 2/1901 1092 (Book of Foods, chapter on the superiority of *tharīd* over other foods); *Sunan al-Dārimī*, 2/106 (Book of Foods, chapter on the virtue of *tharīd*); and *al-Musnad* (Aleppo edition), 3/156, 264; 4/394, 409; 6/159.
(2) S reads: *al-udum* (“accompaniments”).
(3) This forms part of a hadith narrated from Burayda—may Allah be pleased with him—which al-Suyūtī cited in *al-Jāmi al-Saghīr* with the wording: “The foremost accompaniment in this world and the Hereafter is meat; the foremost drink in this world and the Hereafter is water; and the foremost aromatic plant in this world and the Hereafter is the henna blossom.” Al-Suyūtī said: “TS: al-Tabarānī in *al-Awsat* and Abū Nu'aym in *al-Tibb*; HB: al-Bayhaqī in *Shuab al-Īmān*, from Burayda.” Al-Albānī stated in his annotation on *Da'īf al-Jāmi al-Saghīr*, 3/230: “Very weak.” I also found the hadith in *Sunan Ibn Mājah*, 2/1099 (Book of Foods, chapter on meat), narrated from Abū al-Dardā'—may Allah be pleased with him—with the wording: “Meat is the foremost food of the people of this world and the people of Paradise.” The annotator graded the hadith weak. Al-Ajlūnī likewise graded it weak in *Kashf al-Khafā'*, 1/461–462, where he discussed it in detail.
أَفْضَلُ نِسَائِهِ، بَلْ قَدْ ذَهَبَ إِلَى ذَلِكَ كَثِيرٌ مِنْ أَهْلِ السُّنَّةِ، وَاحْتَجُّوا بِمَا فِي الصَّحِيحَيْنِ عَنْ أَبِي مُوسَى وَعَنْ أَنَسٍ - رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمَا - أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ -
قَالَ:
"
«فَضْلُ عَائِشَةَ عَلَى النِّسَاءِ كَفَضْلِ الثَّرِيدِ عَلَى سَائِرِ الطَّعَامِ»
"
(١)
وَالثَّرِيدُ هُوَ أَفْضَلُ الْأَطْعِمَةِ لِأَنَّهُ خُبْزٌ وَلَحْمٌ،
كَمَا قَالَ الشَّاعِرُ:
إِذَا مَا الْخُبْزُ تَأَدَّمُهُ بِلَحْمٍ ... فَذَاكَ أَمَانَةُ اللَّهِ الثَّرِيدُ.
وَذَلِكَ أَنَّ الْبُرَّ أَفْضَلُ الْأَقْوَاتِ، وَاللَّحْمَ أَفْضَلُ الْإِدَامِ
(٢)
، كَمَا فِي الْحَدِيثِ الَّذِي رَوَاهُ ابْنُ قُتَيْبَةَ وَغَيْرُهُ عَنِ النَّبِيِّ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ -
أَنَّهُ قَالَ:
" «سَيِّدُ إِدَامِ
[أَهْلِ]
أَهْلِ: سَاقِطَةٌ مِنْ
(ن)
،
(م)
.
الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةِ اللَّحْمُ» "
(٣)
فَإِذَا كَانَ اللَّحْمُ سَيِّدَ
(١) الْحَدِيثُ عَنْ أَنَسِ بْنِ مَالِكٍ وَعَائِشَةَ وَهُوَ جُزْءٌ مِنْ حَدِيثٍ عَنْ أَبِي مُوسَى الْأَشْعَرِيِّ - رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ - فِي: الْبُخَارِيِّ ٥/٢٩ (كِتَابُ فَضَائِلِ أَصْحَابِ النَّبِيِّ. .، بَابُ فَضْلِ عَائِشَةَ. .) ; مُسْلِمٍ ٤/١٨٩٥ (كِتَابُ فَضَائِلِ الصَّحَابَةِ، بَابُ فَضْلِ عَائِشَةَ. .) ، سُنَنِ التِّرْمِذِيِّ ٥/٣٦٥ (كِتَابُ الْمَنَاقِبِ، بَابٌ مِنْ فَضْلِ عَائِشَةَ. .) وَقَالَ التِّرْمِذِيُّ: " وَفِي الْبَابِ عَنْ عَائِشَةَ وَأَبِي مُوسَى " ; سُنَنِ النَّسَائِيِّ ٧/٦٣، ٦٤ (كِتَابُ عِشْرَةِ النِّسَاءِ، بَابُ حُبِّ الرَّجُلِ بَعْضَ نِسَائِهِ أَكْثَرَ مِنْ بَعْضٍ) وَالْحَدِيثُ عَنْ أَبِي مُوسَى وَعَنْ عَائِشَةَ ; سُنَنِ ابْنِ مَاجَهْ ٢/١٩٠١ ١٠٩٢ (كِتَابُ الْأَطْعِمَةِ، بَابُ فَضْلِ الثَّرِيدِ عَلَى الطَّعَامِ) ; سُنَنِ الدَّارِمِيِّ ٢/١٠٦ (كِتَابُ الْأَطْعِمَةِ، بَابٌ فِي فَضْلِ الثَّرِيدِ) ; الْمُسْنَدِ (ط. الْحَلَبِيِّ) ٣/١٥٦، ٢٦٤، ٤/٣٩٤، ٤٠٩، ٦/١٥٩.
(٢) ص: الْأُدُمِ.
(٣) هَذَا جُزْءٌ مِنْ حَدِيثٍ عَنْ بُرَيْدَةَ - رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ - ذَكَرَهُ السُّيُوطِيُّ فِي " الْجَامِعِ الصَّغِيرِ " وَنَصُّهُ: " سَيِّدُ الْإِدَامِ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةِ اللَّحْمُ، وَسَيِّدُ الشَّرَابِ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةِ الْمَاءُ، وَسَيِّدُ الرَّيَاحِينِ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةِ الْفَاغِيَةُ ". قَالَ السُّيُوطِيُّ: " طس: الطَّبَرَانِيُّ فِي الْأَوْسَطِ، وَأَبُو نُعَيْمٍ فِي " الطِّبِّ " ; هب: الْبَيْهَقِيُّ فِي شُعَبِ الْإِيمَانِ عَنْ بُرَيْدَةَ " وَقَالَ الْأَلْبَانِيُّ فِي تَعْلِيقِهِ فِي " ضَعِيفِ الْجَامِعِ الصَّغِيرِ " ٣/٢٣٠: " ضَعِيفٌ جِدًّا ". وَوَجَدْتُ الْحَدِيثَ فِي سُنَنِ ابْنِ مَاجَهْ ٢/١٠٩٩ (كِتَابُ الْأَطْعِمَةِ، بَابُ اللَّحْمِ) عَنْ أَبِي الدَّرْدَاءِ - رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ - بِلَفْظِ: " سَيِّدُ طَعَامِ أَهْلِ الدُّنْيَا وَأَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ اللَّحْمُ " وَضَعَّفَ الْمُعَلِّقُ الْحَدِيثَ. كَمَا ضَعَّفَ الْعَجْلُونِيُّ الْحَدِيثَ فِي " كَشْفِ الْخَفَاءِ " ١/٤٦١ - ٤٦٢ وَتَكَلَّمَ عَلَيْهِ كَلَامًا مُفَصَّلًا.