share that blessing with other women and would not enjoy it exclusively herself; therefore, if someone must share in this tremendous favor, let it be her own sister.
Apparently she was unaware that combining two sisters in one marriage is forbidden, so he ﷺ informed her that her sister was not lawful for him (1).
She then told him that she had been told he intended to marry the daughter of Abu Salamah.
He sought clarification, asking, “Do you mean the daughter of Umm Salamah?” She answered, “Yes.”
He said—laying bare the falsehood of that rumor—“The daughter of Umm Salamah is not lawful to me for two reasons.
“First: she is my step-daughter, whose affairs I have overseen in my care; she is the daughter of my wife.
“Second: she is the daughter of my milk-brother, for Thuwaybah—a freedwoman of Abu Lahab—nursed both me and her father Abu Salamah. Thus I am also her paternal uncle through nursing. Therefore, do not put forward your daughters or your sisters to me; I am more knowledgeable and better able than you to manage my own affairs in such matters.”
Lessons derived from the ḥadith:
- It is forbidden to marry one’s wife’s sister, and such a marriage is invalid.
- It is forbidden to marry a step-daughter—that is, the daughter of a wife with whom consummation has taken place; here “entering upon” (dukhūl) means sexual intercourse, and mere seclusion is insufficient.
- The term hajr (“in my care”) in this context is not a legal condition; it is mentioned only to intensify the censure and deterrence.
- A milk-niece is forbidden, for whatever is prohibited by lineage is likewise prohibited by nursing.
- When a muftī is asked about an issue whose ruling varies with its circumstances, he should seek the necessary clarification.
- The questioner should be guided as to what he ought to avoid and what he ought to pursue—especially those whose upbringing and education are obligatory, such as a child or a wife.
- It appears that Umm Ḥabībah assumed that the Prophet ﷺ enjoyed a special dispensation allowing him to marry a wife’s sister. Having heard that he meant to marry his step-daughter—who is prohibited to him by the same verse that forbids combining two sisters—she presumed that this general prohibition might have an exception in his case.